KIWANIS

Good morning, good morning, good morning. Welcome, welcome, welcome. It is time now for our community connection right here on Kay one, the one you trust, Kawanas. It's a busy time of year, Jim sweezey, isn't it.

Good morning you sir, doing great?

It is very busy for you guys.

It is a busy time for sure.

We got something coming up well this weekend.

This weekend which you got this weekend we open our Center Junior Mini golf course.

Well, there you go.

A lot of people look forward to that every year and we do as well. We spend a lot of time getting it ready and always cleaning up and doing some improvements.

So looking forward to the crowds.

Now, I understand that we've already had some folks getting in on the preseason action. We had some private parties already breaking the course in for the rest of us.

That's right right now.

You've got undergone a lot of work in the last couple of years and it looks point does it ever look nice? And it plays well too.

It's fun.

And have you guys been did you make any additions to it this year?

Well, this year we've got a project which is still under completion. It's nearing completion. But Hold sixteen, which is the hill out there with the Brooklyn Bridge going over the low spot and then up the big hill, we did some work on that. We were having trouble with some balls getting stuck inside, so we opened it up and fixed the plumbing inside and added some new features.

Man, it's going to be great now. We do this every weekend in the summertime way, that's right. In private parties, yes.

Private parties all through the week day and evening, but Friday, Saturday, Sunday evenings or when our regular hours are.

When it gets cooler. We don't go out there in the heat of the day, that's right. We don't want to do that. We want to make it fun so everybody will come back. Now is a fun sport for everybody. Mini golf is even more fun because you rarely lose your ball, that's true.

That's true.

Yeah, you don't have to go looking through the woods to find that ball that's there somewhere close.

It's somewhere pretty close. But golfing and fishing, you're hitting me in my sweet spot here. Because we've got fishing derby coming up too, don't we.

That's right.

Yeah.

A week from Saturday is our annual fishing derby, our Kawanas Club has put on since nineteen fifty one, so we're proud to bring that again this year. And it's for the kids ages three through twelve. So there'll be three different divisions. We'll have trophies and we'll have ribbons and prizes, and everybody gets surprised. As long as they come out and have fun, they'll get a prize.

Now, this is really neat because you know, the lake or the pond, depending on what you want to call it, right, really looks good. There's a lot of greenery around there, and there's a lot of water in there. We don't worry about anything too. But this has always been a good one for kids, and especially I love to look on the kids who've never fished before, right because Mike, when they actually catch one, it's like whoa.

They get excited.

Yeah, some of them get excited for different reasons, but just as long as they come out and have fun, that's the main thing it is. And I didn't mention where it is for those that are new in town. It is at Joe Allen Low Park on Price Road. That is just east of the traffic circle on Price Road. So it's a lot of fun to go out there and get ready for those kids and have a good time.

And you know, could be told those scouts have a blast doing that.

I think so.

I hope they have a good time, but I know they do. Yeah, Yeah, it's a nice service for them to provide to the community. It's Troop six is who helps.

Us out there.

Now. Is there a get in on this?

No fee for the kids, And we do ask them to bring a parent with them so they can help yea and be a chaperone for this event. But they'll be scattered all around that little pond or lake whatever we want to call it.

And I just thought it pretty because it's really good looking this year.

Yeah.

Yeah, the city's done a nice job of working on the west side of the water. They trimmed some trees up so the grass would grow. They brought in a bunch of new sod and covered up the mud holes that develop it there over the years. So all you have to do is watch out for the ducks and the mess they leave.

Once you do that, you'll be at one with nature.

That's right.

That's really good. Now. Kawanas done so many good things. But one of the great things you do is you invest in youth. And that's pretty much it. If it has anything to do with the kids, you guys are around it. And you got a lot of scholarships.

Too, that's right.

Yeah, it's just that that time of year too, the schools are all setting up assemblies for their end of the year activities and awards, and Kawanas gives scholarships. We raise the money through the miniature golf course and we give out scholarships. I believe it's six different schools that we give for sophomores and seniors that we give awards to.

My goodness sakes. So you guys are working at working at working in order to make all that happen. Right, that's cool. Now, If anybody wants to become a member of the Quantas, is there a certain protocol.

We got to do well.

We don't have any strict initiation issues there, but we do ask that people are interested in their community and helping kids and other activities in the community to come and check us out. We meet at Tri County Tech every Wednesday at noon, unless the schools closed for some reason, then we find an alternate site. But actually we've adjusted our schedule a little bit. We have programs on the first and third Wednesday of each month. The other weeks

Now we think about the Quantas right here. You're so locked in with Bartleshell. And not only do we have the fishing derby. Not only have the Sooner Junior evolved, it's been a mainstay for a good long time, but we also have a couple of big holidays that we celebrate with the Quantas. That's right, Christmas and the fourth of July.

Fourth of July the big Freedom Fast that we have at Sooner part and the firework display that we provide for the community, and many of the local merchants and businesses around town. They provide the money for that through their sponsorship, and we do appreciate that. Karen Wilson does a great job of working with those businesses to make sure they're in line to help us out.

You know, when she comes and smiling and everything, it's hard to say no to a lady's really nice to you.

That's right.

I kind of understand what a caring there. You go, come on, let's go put on a show. So it really works for everybody's in good partnership, and that's really what it's all about. You know. The Christmas Parade, we do that every year too, and that's a thing gets bigger every year it is, you know, even during COVID it was big.

It's a good size event and we appreciate you guys being partners on that with us.

And we'd love casting that.

You know, it's one of those things that we wouldn't know what to do if we weren't a part of that. We really like working with Wantas and we really like working with our community and it's just a lot of fun. There are so many folks that come out and there's hardly a fair spot along the route if there is any but the folks who might be under the weather a little bit infirmed, they get to watch it. And

We get a few times a year that we get to rest. But we enjoy it. You know. We put in several hours, but.

We we enjoy it, and we have a good time out there no matter what we're doing.

So you know something, Jim, I've never seen a Kawanian with a frown, so it must pay the dividends in the field good right there in the hark that's right, My goodness, How long you been with him, that guy.

I've been with the club since January ninety eight, so that's a little bit.

It's been a while.

It must be worth your while because you're always you're always right in the thick of it, folks. If anybody knows anything about the fairways at Sooner, it's Jim here because you're the guy who goes out there and just level, put a little angle, puts a little slope. It makes makes the challenge all worth a while.

That's fun.

I enjoy that, and we have a big turnout every time we have a workday out there and get ready for the season. So we appreciate everybody pulling together for that.

You get a lot of volunteers that say, hey, how can we help you know, we.

Do get some we could always use more. There's these special events especially, but we have volunteers at work the nights that we're open there and Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and we're about to fill up our schedule I think this year for volunteers, but we always need some backups for these parties that we schedule. There's corporate events and the birthday parties and always something going on.

One story I got to tell on you guys a little bit sooner. Junior golf is so popular some of the movie stars. When Kildors of the Flower Moon were in town. We're not there just once, but often it's just to blow off steam and just to have a lot. Yeah. Yeah, and it had to be a blast having the movie people over there.

That was fun. Yeah.

Yeah, there was one fellow there, Steve, that grew up on Long Island, New York and still lives in that area. But he had a little golf course actually next to his grandmother's house on Long Island, and they improved that and just had fun with that little nine hole course they made. So everywhere he goes, he likes to go try out the minigolf.

Yeah, in Hollywood tested with a little bit of a New York accent. There we go. That's the Brooklyn Bridge right that you're working on.

That's right old sixteen. And it's.

The thing I'm looking forward to is when we get that wrapped up, there'll be these skyscrapers on each of the front corners and they'll have lights in them so the lights will shine out. Oh, we hope they'll give it a really fun effect.

There. Nice metropolitan field. That's right. Thanks for being with us today. Sure it's the Kuanas folks. Don't forget. It is a Sooner Junior Golf this Saturday. Next Saturday, it's the Fishing Derby. We're gonna have a little story on our website and they'll tell you all about it. Okay,