Next Meeting - Tuesday Jan. 15, 2019, on the Mezz at Festival Foods, at 11:30 AM as usual. Our first Program Meeting of the new calendar year, FINALLY. The holidays pretty well wrecked our schedule for two months, and it will be a while before we have a regular meeting again, so you best show up before we forget what you look like.

The important things do get done in spite of everything, and that includes the scheduling of our program for next Tuesday. MELISSA NOVINSKI is the Program Host, and the speaker will be Dr. Neil Binkley with the UW Osteoporosis Research Program on the topic of “bone and muscle loss with aging.” This something we all face (and some of us are already dealing with) and it is the sort of information that you would want and will need. It probably will explain why all the neighborhood strolls become uphill both ways, something with which the Editor is painfully familiar. It may also explain Schar's First Law of Retirement, “Everything takes three times as long as before.”

Our last meeting, all the way back on Dec. 18, opened with an old quote from a kid years ago that set off the series of events that resulted in Lions Camp At Rosholt - “Blind kids can't go to outdoor camps and stuff like that.” Your Editor recalls pausing outside the dining hall on his first visit, during lunchtime. The usual noise and chatter was clearly audible outside and everyone was obviously enjoying themselves. I thought “sounds just like my old Boy Scout Camp.” Exactly! Blind kids can enjoy camping just like anyone else, and we Lions provide them with that experience.

We got reports on Drinks With Santa and our Holiday Party, both of which went well. We had about 20 people at the Holiday Party, and the food, beverages, music and conviviality were enjoyed by all. Weather was good for December, and those who were there had a good time.

No one was quite sure about what to expect at Drinks With Santa, but it turned out great. There were a lot of people in the bar, we made about $150 for our Service Fund, and everyone had a good time. DALE MUELLER did the Santa costume bit, and SCOTT GROVER was the Lion of the hour. It's safe to say that both characters had some interesting moments, but playing those roles is like being TailTwister - it takes preparation, nerve, and a ready wit, and both of them were up to the job. There is some talk of a similar session with the Easter Bunny. If the planners hop to it, maybe we can come up with something.

We got a Thank You note from the Braille Library for our donation.

Speaker Julie Baglama, from Madison-Monona Lioness Club, told us about the new Challenge Course at the Camp, and updates on the other programs and plans. It is constantly improving and changing, a far cry from the primitive facility we started out with, and PHIL INGWELL is doing the planning for a trip for us to visit during the camping season next summer, possibly with a joint visitation with the Lionesses. (your Editor still thinks that Lion and Lioness are singular, and the plurals are, or should be, Lions and Lionesses. In Wisconsin, he seems pretty much alone in that.) It's likely to be a Wednesday afternoon, and keep the idea in mind for summer.

Calendar for January:
• January 15 - Program Meeting
• January 18, 19 - Marshall Lions 2019 Ice Fisheree
• January 20 - District Cabinet Meeting
• January 22 - Board Meeting
• January 26-27 - 27-D1 Bowling - Oregon Bowl
• Feb 23-24 MD27 State Bowling in Grafton, WI
• March - 27-D1 convention in Middleton, WI
• May 17-19 MD27 State Convention in WI Dells, WI