NEXT MEETING DAY:  TUESDAY  - October 7  12:00 - to the End

MEETING PLACE:  Papapollino’s Mediterranean Bistro   2501 McHenry Ave  Modesto  CA   (Web-Site)

SPEAKER:    City of Modesto Mayor  -    Sue Zwahlen

President Kevin Scott

Modesto Kiwanis Club meeting of Sept 30, 2025

We ended the month with a fine meeting. Seldom seen, Loretta Menshew and Joy Swick were present, and Margaret Trammell slipped in late. How nice to have several women. Sorry, Carole Thoming couldn’t join us this day. 

Club president Scott called on Don Ahrens to lead a “patriotic song”. He asked Margaret for her choice. She said, “Heck if I know!” We managed to make a reasonable, if not notably patriotic, song out of that phrase. Joy led us in the pledge, and Loretta was asked to give an invocation. She reminded us that “that was Al’s forte.” She gave a few words in remembrance. 

Scott said we are “stuck with me for another two weeks” because the scheduled installation of new officers had to be postponed. Next week Modesto Mayor Sue Zwahlen will be our guest speaker so the installation will be further delayed. North Modesto Kiwanis will be invited to join us for an interclub meeting. 

Golfers are invited to participate in a Cancer Society fundraiser on October 20th at the Turlock Country Club on Golf Links Road.  

The Shriners' bus trip to their eight-story Sacramento Children's Hospital was “amazing”. There were 8 empty seats on the bus. You will have another opportunity to join the tour next year.  

President Kevin Scott thanked all who supported him throughout the club year. “Even Craig and John,” he quipped. Kevin said he is “going up” in the Masonic Lodge but he pledged, as past president, to arrange speakers for us.

He will be attending the 7 AM Thursday meeting of North Modesto Kiwanis at Fuzio’s on 10th Street. These weekly meetings are a good place to sell tickets to our Shrimp and Cioppino Feed coming up on November 1st. Kevin will ask them to provide helpers for the Veterans Day parade preparation.

Loretta said there remains $23,400 in the July 4th parade account. Two high schools have yet to cash checks given to them.

Happy and Sad:

     Paul Hearst celebrated his 76th birthday with a happy family gathering. He was also happy when they left.

     Don Ahrens said someone had asked why the Southern hemisphere wasn’t warmer than the Northern, given that the earth is closest to the sun in January, which is their summer. He will fill us in at a later meeting.

     Bill Gordin with the resilience of a rubber sole Bill feigned happiness that the LV Raiders are “on the march to get the number one draft pick”. It was a close game last Sunday, but the Raiders did what the Raiders do.

     Margaret was happy that her son brought grandkids to visit her all the way from Texas.

     Ron Freitas was happy that a lot of what was burned in the recent Chinese Camp fire was trash. Clean up has begun. The landmark school was untouched.

     Warren Kennedy is happy that Amazon has rented the new empty warehouse at the corner of Kiernan and Tully Road. The company that had it built went bankrupt. It will be filled with electronics, TV’s, etc.

     Craig and buddies went tent camping along the Clark Fork off Highway 108 above Pinecrest. They had a long “beautiful day” riding e-bikes nearly 200 miles, passing Portola and Sardine Lakes.

John Hertle was saddened by the funerals of 3 old friends, fellow business owners, this past week.

     Loretta recalled that our renowned member, her spouse, Al Menshew, has been gone 5 years this week. Time flies.

Jerry Jackman

Scribe