Friday, November 27, 2009

Thanksgiving 2009

Thanksgiving 2009 (CKI)

For those of you who were there for our UNLVCKI 2009 installation banquet, first of all I’d like to say thanks. Thank you for putting up with that hellish night and for staying with us this long. I hope you have found a home in Circle K and will continue to stick with our awesome organization. Welcome to the club!

Second of all, if you were listening during my service speech rundown, the theme went along the lines of “take a step back”. I talked about looking back at our history, how our club has grown, the impact we have been making on our community and our members, and the awesome service we have done in the past year. Well, I want to take this time out to really “take a step back” and look at what I am so very grateful for in CKI.

Ok, I first have to give thanks to my parents. I don't have a job, and I have no clear direction of where I'm going with my academics, but they still allow me to dedicate so much time, effort, and money to this club. We are going through some rough times right now, but I am glad that I have spent all this time with CKI and I hope my parents will see the fruits of what I have done with this great organization. Thanks Mom and Dad for being so patient with me.

Second, I want to give a special thank you to my board brothers. The board of 4/19 a.k.a ESF (Executive Sausage Fest) has a great chemistry and we work very well with each other and get our stuff done as best we can. Francis, you are doing an awesome job leading us. I know the position of President is stressful and you are often busy with other business, but you always seem able to do what you need to do for the best of CKI. Kevin, my wifey, you are always so busy and working hard on managing our chairs and big events. Your understanding of organizational infrastructure and functionality is surpassed only by your knowledge of fun and video games. Mike, somehow you really do make being secretary a sexy position - you're doing a great job. Also, your energy and enthusiasm, something unheard of in a typical secretarial type person, helps make not just our board, but our club even more loud and awesome. Glen, suave and cool as you keep our checkbook and paper trail neat and organized. You keep professionalism in line along with your quirky jokes and UNLV spirit. Thank you so much guys for making this year friggin epic! We survived the hell months! WOOOOOOOT!

And lastly, but not leastly...THE MEMBERS! Yes YOU, average member! But YOU are not so average in my book. YOU, the member that I see sitting anxiously at the meetings, taking note of the club activities and service projects. YOU the member that I have served with setting up a race, tutoring kids, spreading awareness, making boo boo bunnies, cleaning up the environment, serving ice cream to the elderly, and doing all the service stuff we do. YOU, the member that I have laughed with and played battle ax with or sang karaoke with at a social. YOU, the member who is always asking if they can help or be involved. It is because of YOU that our club is so awesome, that our club has done over 4,000 hours of service and really impacted our community, that our club can be considered a family to other members, that our club is platform from which future leaders can rise....

Thank you. You have really made this year friggin awesome!!!!

As I take this STEP BACK, I am reminded to be thankful for all of this and more. You new members have taken your first STEP FORWARD amongst many into becoming greater people. I am proud and very thankful to be able to aid you, to walk forward with you, in this journey that you have chosen with Circle K.


~Ryan Max Ocampo
UNLVCKI Vice President of Service

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