Volume LXXIX Number 12 January 12, 2024
Friday Meeting
By the clock it was 1:12 PM and President Al had lost control of the meeting before it started. The troublemaker table was attempting to cajole him into starting the meeting on their agenda, not his. Like a good military man, he quickly quelled the insurrection and order was restored. Don’t mess with a retired general!
Lisa Childers gave a nice invocation in which she not only remembered those who prepared our meal, but also those who grew it. We’d expect nothing less from the Farm City Czarina.
It was great to see Past President Worth Smith back again after his recent “spell”. All is well and he is feeling just fine. Others continue on the prayer list. We had only one birthday to celebrate this past week, happy birthday to Norwood Bryan!
Announcements
President-Elect Jim Schaffer announced that the Victoria’s Secret Fan Club, otherwise known as the Spiritual Emphasis Committee, led by Bob McAmis, was selected as Committee of the Month for December.
Secretary Bob announced that our current digital platform, Portalbuzz will no longer be available after February 29. We will transition to Club Runner March 1. Bob will provide details as the date approaches.
Our annual Awards Night will be held on Friday, February 23. This year we will return to Highland Country Club. As with last year we will be doing RSVP by email. Details to follow.
We will vote on the EJ Wells Cup recipient for 2023 this coming Friday. See bios of the two candidates below.
Eat Fish, Live Longer- Eat Oysters, Love Longer
Mike McCaskill from the Massey Hill Lion’s Club was on hand to tell us about the return of their annual oyster roast on Saturday, January 27. For the bargain price of $50 you get all the North Carolina bivalves you can eat. Mike noted that the Massey Hill Lion’s were even longer in the tooth than our Kiwanis Club with average member age being 72. Mike did report they had incredible stamina, thanks no doubt to their copious consumption of oysters. Mike also updated us on Lions International. The prime mission of Lions is care for the blind. Their motto is Brighter Visions, and this support takes many forms including Camp Dogwood for blind children. Mike reported that 100% of the proceeds from the oyster roast would go to support their projects including refurbishing and refurnishing the Lions Cottage at Lake Waccamaw Boys and Girls Home, a program near and dear to our hearts.
Civic Club Humor
Two guys are drinking in a bar and one guy looks at his buddy and says, “Hey did you know that lions have sex three to four times a day?” His friend then puts his head on the bar and begins to sob uncontrollably. “What’s the matter” his buddy asks. He replies, “I just joined the Kiwanis Club last week.”
Don’t miss Friday’s meeting. Richard Everett will introduce Kim Molnar to tell us about her Haymount coffee shop, Miller’s Brew which provides on the job training for developmentally disabled individuals.
EJ Wells Cup Nominees
Phil Harris Jr.
Phil Jr. is a lifelong resident of Fayetteville and a “lifelong” Kiwanian as the son of Past Governor Phil Harris and grandson of Past Lt. Governor George Vossler. Phil Jr. was a Key Club member in high school and joined the Fayetteville Kiwanis Club after graduating from Wake Forest University. Over the years he has served in various roles within Kiwanis, including Board Member, and he currently serves on the Finance and Scholastic Achievement Committees.
Phil joined the American Red Cross 10 ½ years ago after a 30-year career in banking. As Executive Director of the Sandhills Chapter, he oversees a 10-county service area to deliver the Red Cross mission in Blood Services, Disaster, Service to Armed Forces and Preparedness, Health and Safety. His responsibilities include fundraising, volunteer recruitment and public affairs. He periodically deploys across the country in support of Red Cross responses to larger scale disasters.
Phil Jr. is active at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church, where he serves as Finance Committee Chair, Stewardship Member, and Usher. In his spare time, he enjoys playing pickleball and serves as a local ambassador to further the growth of the sport in the Fayetteville area.
His past community involvement includes FTCC Foundation (Board Chair and Treasurer), Cape Fear Botanical Garden (Finance Chair), Highland Country Club (Board Treasurer), Cumberland County Business Council (Founding Board Member), Downtown Development Corporation
(Founding Board Member) United Way (Campaign Cabinet and Allocation Panel Chair) and Southeastern Speech and Hearing Center (Board President).
He has been married to his wife, Susie, for the past 35 years and they have two adult sons, Phillip III and Spencer.
George Holden
George Holden has been involved in Kiwanis and many other local organizations for decades. He graduated from Pine Forest High School and UNC-P with both undergraduate and graduate degrees. He is married to Eve and has two children, Tommy and Meg. He joined the Fayetteville Kiwanis Club in 1977, and has been involved in many of our projects and committees, including chairing Youth Baseball, Awards Night, Administrative Achievement, Talent Night, and Youth Services-Boys and Girls Week, being a Builders Club advisor, serving as a Board Member, being a distinguished past president, and serving as Lt. Governor. George has served on many committees, such as Reverse Raffle, Golf Tournament, Farm-City Week, Membership and Orientation, and others. George has won the Stewart Cup for Outstanding Committee Chairman two times, the Rose-Tinnin Cup for best all-around Kiwanis spirit, and the J.O. Tally award for outstanding service to the Kiwanis family.
George served as the Physical Director at the Fayetteville YMCA from 1970-1974. From 1974-2001 George served as a Regional Consultant for Community Based Alternatives with the NC Department of Juvenile Justice and as State Coordinator of Teen Courts. In this role, George promoted the expansion of the Teen Court Program throughout North Carolina. He served as a past board member and past president of the NC Juvenile Services Association. He has served at Snyder Memorial Baptist Church as a youth basketball coach and member of the recreation committee, and in the YMCA’s Indian Guide and Princess (Father-Son/Daughter program.)
George received NC’s highest honor in 2001 being inducted into the Order of the Long Leaf Pine for his exemplary service to the State.
