Newsletter Editor – Jeremy L. Davis, M.A. Newsletter Writer – Mary Rhoads President’s Corner May is a challenge for UKWF. Concession stand is in go mode and it is starting to get hot. Fortunate for our club, it is bearable because we have so many volunteers. Visiting with each other and with customers is delightful. I find it enjoyable watching preschoolers play unsupervised but safely in the intersection of four ball fields. I especially liked the three girls standing on the upper crust of wheel ruts with muddy water in the bottom. First one stepped on the rut. It was solid and didn’t fail. Second little girl stepped on the rut and tipped her toe in the water. The third little girl, a toddler, stepped right into the water. Kids are learning social skills by playing with each other. They are also learning science and physics like the little boys who were pulling on a lower tree branch and watching it fly back up when released. I love watching their little minds work. I also enjoy getting to know our sponsored Key Clubs and Circle K. These young adult have a fresh attitude and know the latest methods of communication. I learn a lot from them. I think there is a wealth of knowledge that we all could learn and benefit from these youths. Thank you Greg Randolph and Susan Marrs for stepping up to the job of organizing our Concession Stand this year. I personally was blessed to be a part of changing the World, One Child, One Community at a Time. I hope you all have a blessed, relaxing summer. Kathy Probst, President – University Kiwanis Club “And here’s the beautiful thing: when we give, we receive. Science backs this up. Giving triggers a surge of feel-good chemicals in the brain, dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin, the very stuff that boosts your mood, lowers your stress, and even strengthens your immune system. Generosity, it turns out, is one of the healthiest things we can do.” – Ron Kitchens, Wichita Falls Chamber of Commerce
Concession Stand Season Concludes The end of May saw the close of the concession stand for the season. The stand wasn’t open very many days in May due to the rain and threatening weather. Total hours open was 26. The last scheduled date was May 23, and that didn’t happen either as they moved the games to Lake Wichita Park with no notice to us. We’ll have to try for better communication from them next year. The Key Clubs were a big assistance to us in running the stand. A big thank you to them and to the Kiwanis members who volunteered. Susan volunteered over 52 hours at the stand.Weekly Program ReviewWe had several interesting programs in May. On May 7 Officers Trujillo, Arias, and Esquibel gave a program on their drone search unit as well as in house demonstrations in Fellowship Hall of the maneuverability of the drones. Very impressive!!! And terrifying. On May 21 the speakers were John Henderson, Wichita Falls Emergency Management Coordinator, and Dwayne Birkenfield, the Wichita County Emergency Management Coordinator. They gave insight on the sounding of the warning sirens and well as the general emergency management program. May 28 we were fortunate to have Jason Shepherd, Trustee Supervisor with the Wichita County Sheriff’s Department give the presentation. Jason and his band of trustees have been a life safer for our Kiwanis club in setting up and breaking down at the Pancake Festival. He reviewed the trustee program and how it works and for whom they assist. June 6 Nikki Davis, Director of the Wichita Falls Independent School District Foundation and PIE (Partners in Education) Coordinator, reviewed these programs with us. We have been approached to be a PIE partner for Cunningham Elementary, and we needed to know the expectations of being a PIE partner. Turns out, you can do as little or as much as you would like. We will need to set down with the school’s PIE person (Jessica Young) and see what assistance is needed. Most schools have multiple PIE partners; so there needs to be coordination between the partners and with the school so that the needs are met but not duplicated. The June 11 program was presented by Mike Luebke on the history of the club. The June 18 program was presented by Jack Browne on the Water Plan for Texas. The June 24 program was presented by Mark Schmalzried, president of the Booze Fighters motorcycle club. They have assisted with the Pancake Festival by cooking sausage. He gave a brief presentation of the history of the club and stated they enjoyed helping out at the Festival. Our most recent fifth Wednesday social was April 30 at Half Pint. There was good attendance, pizza and fellowship.
Our club has been asked to bring an item for the silent auction at the TO Convention to be held the end of July. If you have an item you can donate, perhaps something promoting Wichita Falls, please bring it to a meeting and give it to Susan or Mary or John. They will be attending the convention and will put together a basket. Or you can bring a single item worth $50 or more.
Board Elections At the June 18th meeting, club elections were held. Results are as follow: President, Woody Gossom President Elect—Greg Randolph Vice President—John Rhoads Secretary—Susan Marrs Treasurer—Mike Luebke Immediate Past President—John Rhoads Directors: Newly Elected for First Year of a Two-Year Term Jeremy Davis Jonathan Morgan Ananias Edwards Elected to Serve out the Two-Year Term of Douglas James—Keith Rice Second Year Directors continuing for their second year Sara Cox Kee Demitrius Williams Bill Bosworth Membership Committee We sadly lost Herbie Marchbanks as a member when he moved to Granbury, Texas. He will be sorely missed. We received a membership application from Carl Thomas, the Legacy Key Club advisor. The World Series Membership Drive has begun. Blue Devils should report to John Rhoads and Pink Panthers should report to Sara Kee. Playground Committee Legacy Key Club plans to have a Playground workday July 12. Please let Cathy Dodson know if you can assist with this workday. At least two Kiwanis members must be at the workday in order to comply with youth protection guidelines.
Cathy Dodson Honored Cathy Dodson was honored by the Chamber of Commerce for being a host with the Home Away from Home Program with Sheppard Air Force Base. She and her “match” Airman Aiyana White have bonded over their love of gardening. If you’re interested in being a host with this program, just ask Cathy and get the details. Volunteer Hours In the future, please turn in your volunteer hours to Susan monthly rather than putting them on the form when you pay dues. She needs to report monthly our service hours. Service Leadership Program/Youth Clubs University Kiwanis Club Service Leadership Program Team Program Coordinator – Mary Rhodes Memorial High School Club Representative – Greg Randolph Memorial High School Staff Representative – Katie Nolan Legacy High School Club Representative – Cathy Dobson At our May 7 meeting we hosted the Key Club Scholarship winners and their families and made presentations to them. The awardees were Trae Steele from Memorial and Giorgio Tiffoli and Elizabeth King from Legacy. There were multiple applicants this year, making the selection difficult. Trae was the president of the Memorial Key Club and will be attending Texas Tech University. He had 56 volunteer hours and assisted at the Pancake Festival, Fantasy of Lights Boot Collection, and other volunteer events. Giorgio was the Key Club lieutenant governor of this district, completed over 66 volunteer hours, and will be attending Midwestern State University or the University of Texas at Dallas. Elizabeth fulfilled multiple functions for the Legacy Key Club, completing over 50 volunteer hours this year. She ranked third in her class. She plans to be a nurse and will also be attending Midwestern State University. The Food Bank announced in May that they needed help sorting 38,000 lbs of food collected by mail carriers. The Legacy Key Club assisted with the sorting. It is unknown if they still have food to sort. Join Us Every Wednesday!
Newsletter
University Kiwanis Club May-June 2025 Newsletter
Newsletter Editor – Jeremy L. Davis, M.A. Newsletter Writer – Mary Rhoads
President’s Corner
May is a challenge for UKWF. Concession stand is in go mode and it is starting to get hot. Fortunate for our club, it is bearable because we have so many volunteers. Visiting with each other and with customers is delightful. I find it enjoyable watching preschoolers play unsupervised but safely in the intersection of four ball fields. I especially liked the three girls standing on the upper crust of wheel ruts with muddy water in the bottom. First one stepped on the rut. It was solid and didn’t fail. Second little girl stepped on the rut and tipped her toe in the water. The third little girl, a toddler, stepped right into the water. Kids are learning social skills by playing with each other. They are also learning science and physics like the little boys who were pulling on a lower tree branch and watching it fly back up when released. I love watching their little minds work. I also enjoy getting to know our sponsored Key Clubs and Circle K. These young adult have a fresh attitude and know the latest methods of communication. I learn a lot from them. I think there is a wealth of knowledge that we all could learn and benefit from these youths. Thank you Greg Randolph and Susan Marrs for stepping up to the job of organizing our Concession Stand this year. I personally was blessed to be a part of changing the World, One Child, One Community at a Time.
I hope you all have a blessed, relaxing summer.
Kathy Probst, President – University Kiwanis Club
“And here’s the beautiful thing: when we give, we receive. Science backs this up. Giving triggers a surge of feel-good chemicals in the brain, dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin, the very stuff that boosts your mood, lowers your stress, and even strengthens your immune system. Generosity, it turns out, is one of the healthiest things we can do.” – Ron Kitchens, Wichita Falls Chamber of Commerce
Concession Stand Season Concludes
The end of May saw the close of the concession stand for the season. The stand wasn’t open very many days in May due to the rain and threatening weather. Total hours open was 26. The last scheduled date was May 23, and that didn’t happen either as they moved the games to Lake Wichita Park with no notice to us. We’ll have to try for better communication from them next year. The Key Clubs were a big assistance to us in running the stand. A big thank you to them and to the Kiwanis members who volunteered. Susan volunteered over 52 hours at the stand.Weekly Program ReviewWe had several interesting programs in May.
On May 7 Officers Trujillo, Arias, and Esquibel gave a program on their drone search unit as well as in house demonstrations in Fellowship Hall of the maneuverability of the drones. Very impressive!!! And terrifying.
On May 21 the speakers were John Henderson, Wichita Falls Emergency Management Coordinator, and Dwayne Birkenfield, the Wichita County Emergency Management Coordinator. They gave insight on the sounding of the warning sirens and well as the general emergency management program. May 28 we were fortunate to have Jason Shepherd, Trustee Supervisor with the Wichita County Sheriff’s Department give the presentation. Jason and his band of trustees have been a life safer for our Kiwanis club in setting up and breaking down at the Pancake Festival. He reviewed the trustee program and how it works and for whom they assist.
June 6 Nikki Davis, Director of the Wichita Falls Independent School District Foundation and PIE (Partners in Education) Coordinator, reviewed these programs with us. We have been approached to be a PIE partner for Cunningham Elementary, and we needed to know the expectations of being a PIE partner. Turns out, you can do as little or as much as you would like. We will need to set down with the school’s PIE person (Jessica Young) and see what assistance is needed. Most schools have multiple PIE partners; so there needs to be coordination between the partners and with the school so that the needs are met but not duplicated.
The June 11 program was presented by Mike Luebke on the history of the club.
The June 18 program was presented by Jack Browne on the Water Plan for Texas.
The June 24 program was presented by Mark Schmalzried, president of the Booze Fighters motorcycle club. They have assisted with the Pancake Festival by cooking sausage. He gave a brief presentation of the history of the club and stated they enjoyed helping out at the Festival.
Our most recent fifth Wednesday social was April 30 at Half Pint. There was good attendance, pizza and fellowship.
Our club has been asked to bring an item for the silent auction at the TO Convention to be held the end of July. If you have an item you can donate, perhaps something promoting Wichita Falls, please bring it to a meeting and give it to Susan or Mary or John. They will be attending the convention and will put together a basket. Or you can bring a single item worth $50 or more.
Board Elections
At the June 18th meeting, club elections were held. Results are as follow: President, Woody Gossom President Elect—Greg Randolph Vice President—John Rhoads Secretary—Susan Marrs Treasurer—Mike Luebke Immediate Past President—John Rhoads
Directors: Newly Elected for First Year of a Two-Year Term Jeremy Davis Jonathan Morgan Ananias Edwards
Elected to Serve out the Two-Year Term of Douglas James—Keith Rice Second Year Directors continuing for their second year Sara Cox Kee Demitrius Williams Bill Bosworth Membership Committee We sadly lost Herbie Marchbanks as a member when he moved to Granbury, Texas. He will be sorely missed. We received a membership application from Carl Thomas, the Legacy Key Club advisor.
The World Series Membership Drive has begun. Blue Devils should report to John Rhoads and Pink Panthers should report to Sara Kee. Playground Committee Legacy Key Club plans to have a Playground workday July 12. Please let Cathy Dodson know if you can assist with this workday. At least two Kiwanis members must be at the workday in order to comply with youth protection guidelines.
Cathy Dodson Honored Cathy Dodson was honored by the Chamber of Commerce for being a host with the Home Away from Home Program with Sheppard Air Force Base. She and her “match” Airman Aiyana White have bonded over their love of gardening. If you’re interested in being a host with this program, just ask Cathy and get the details. Volunteer Hours In the future, please turn in your volunteer hours to Susan monthly rather than putting them on the form when you pay dues. She needs to report monthly our service hours. Service Leadership Program/Youth Clubs
At our May 7 meeting we hosted the Key Club Scholarship winners and their families and made presentations to them. The awardees were Trae Steele from Memorial and Giorgio Tiffoli and Elizabeth King from Legacy. There were multiple applicants this year, making the selection difficult. Trae was the president of the Memorial Key Club and will be attending Texas Tech University. He had 56 volunteer hours and assisted at the Pancake Festival, Fantasy of Lights Boot Collection, and other volunteer events. Giorgio was the Key Club lieutenant governor of this district, completed over 66 volunteer hours, and will be attending Midwestern State University or the University of Texas at Dallas. Elizabeth fulfilled multiple functions for the Legacy Key Club, completing over 50 volunteer hours this year. She ranked third in her class. She plans to be a nurse and will also be attending Midwestern State University.
The Food Bank announced in May that they needed help sorting 38,000 lbs of food collected by mail carriers. The Legacy Key Club assisted with the sorting. It is unknown if they still have food to sort. Join Us Every Wednesday!
Upcoming events
Division 18 Lt. Gov. Keith Rice
Club Business Meeting
John Rhoads birthday
Anthony Watkins The ARC of Wichita County
Keith Rice birthday
Club Social - TBA