Club notes — Jan. 17

Altrusa Club of Portales

The Altrusa club of Portales met on Jan. 11 at noon in the Zia Room at the Central Annex. President Cozetta Moore called the meeting to order at 12:10 p.m. and the opening ceremonies were conducted. The minutes were approved. There were 21 members and 2 guests present. Moore drew for the Queen of Hearts. Secret pals were thanked.

Tawna Luscombe and Grace Coy, Portales Public Library, presented a program on services offered by the library.

Sue Bracksieck, assisted by Sheryl Borden, Judy White, Pat Willis, Vaunceil Turnbough and Nellie Dyer, conducted an initiation for two new members: Suzanne Thomas and Tommye Anderson.

Announcements were made of upcoming meetings and projects. Gaynelle Thomas was elected as the club’s nominee for the District Ten Nomination Committee.

Those serving on the hospitality committee for the meal were Bette Martinez, Vaunceil Turnbough, Cozetta Moore and Dannah Brown.

The meeting adjourned at 1p.m.

Portales Woman’s Club

Portales Woman’s Club met on Jan. 13 with President June Ferguson presiding. Melissa Phillips gave the invocation, and Erinn Burch led the pledges and collect. There were 18 members and one guest present.

Correspondence was read and the treasurer’s report was filed for audit. Gaynelle Thomas won the door prize.

Civic Chair, Doncella Caywood distributed a sign-up sheet to deliver Meals on Wheels in February.

In honor of the club’s 113th birthday, Ferguson and other past presidents conducted the candle lighting ceremony, which was established at the club’s 75th anniversary. Others assisting were Thomas, Sheryl Borden, Teresa Howard, Jan Smartnick, and Noelle Bartl.

Lori Dunn, program chair, introduced Michelle Ontiveros, military and family life counselor with CAFB, who talked about mindfulness and self-care. The club donated books to Ms. Ontiveros in appreciation for her program.

Beth Banda introduced others on the hostess committee: Gaynelle Thomas and Noelle Bartl.

The remainder of the meeting consisted of discussing the club building situation, and a vote will be taken at the February meeting.

The next meeting will be on Feb. 10 at noon at the club building.

Kiwanis Int’l of Portales

Every third Tuesday of the month at noon, the public is invited to attend Kiwanis International meetings in the Aztec room of the Campus Union Ballroom at ENMU. Lunch is available through Sodexo.

One of KI's initiatives is ELIMINATE, dedicated to literally eliminating maternal and neonatal tetanus (MNT) from the world. Every 11 minutes, one innocent newborn dies from MNT after suffering painful convulsions and extreme sensitivity for up to 7 days. According to the latest figures, MNT has been eliminated from 38 of the original 59 countries by providing a three-vaccination series for expectant mothers which protects the mother, the unborn child, and any future children born to her. The cost of each shot is only 60 cents.

An extensive traveler, Dr. Elliott is a retired Air Force Superintendent, and aviation science professor at ENMU. During the next KI program on the 19th, he will be giving an exciting presentation, “Asian Travels,” highlighting experiences from his recent trips to Thailand and China.

To learn more about the effects of MNT and how Kiwanis is helping visit http://sites.kiwanis.org/Kiwanis/en/theELIMINATEproject/home.aspx