The Sunset Sentinel

VOLUME III ISSUE I SPRING 2015

 

Table of Contents

Past Events…2 Upcoming Events…3 A Shark Tale…4-6

Meet the Divisional Leadership Team …7-9 Boards All Across the Sunset…10-18

April…20-24 May…25-29 June…30-37

Cheer of the Season + Announcements…38 Special Thanks…39

 

March

3.27-29

District

Convention

April

4.12

April

DCM

 

4.1

2015-2016

Term

begins

May

Past E

vents

5.3

Spring

Training

Conference

+May DCM

5.15

Kiwanis

Special

Games

 

June

5.16

UCSC

EOTYB

6.23-27

CKIx +

LSSP

6.12

SJSU +

De Anza

Joint

EOTYB 6.5

Sunset

Divisional

EOTYB

+June DCM

 

Future E

vents

July

 

August

7.19

District

Board

Meeting

7.25

July DCM

&

Service

project

8.13-15

District

summer

Service

Social

8.9-10

President’s

Retreat

August

DCM

7.31

Divisional

Shirt

Contest

Ends

 

A SHARK TALE Alas the day has come! It is so sad to bid

farewell to the home that has kept me warm with all the friendships I’ve made over the three years I have been in Circle K. If you don’t know who I am, my name is Kenneth Olidan, and I happily served as Sunset Division’s Immediate-Past Lieutenant Governor for the 2014-2015 term.

Where do I even start? Out of all the CKI

memories that I earned throughout the years, one stands out. It was the morning of House of Delegates during District Convention 2014 in Burbank, the day I became the third Lieutenant Governor of our Division. I remember everyone in the room standing up, looking at me in smiles, and me crying due to the emotions that built up in me throughout the weekend. That was the day that I fully took responsibility of an entire Division. It was heartwarming to know that the people of my Division entrusted me to be their Lieutenant Governor, and I was more than honored to serve them.

 

 

Something that not all of you knew was that the job of a Lieutenant Governor was a lonely one. You are not exactly part of a club per se, for my job was basically to govern five clubs in the area and report to the District about how you all were doing. It was if I was expected to take a step back and watch you all work hard to accomplish your tasks from afar. I was not specifically executing tasks, but I was there if someone needed their questions answered. It was difficult to transition to that early on in the term due to previously being a busy President of a club, executing tasks left and right, and managing a club. However, my worries quickly went away due to the warm welcomes I received by each club I visited. May it be travelling on 17 in the foggy evening to attend a University of California, Santa Cruz CKI general meeting, or fleeing the campus in between class to attend a general meeting at Foothill College, I was welcomed as if I was part of their home club and not some stranger from the District. With my easy going, and sassy personality, I was able to become closer with the members of each individual club. Thank you, all, for making my visits so welcoming!

When I look back to the term that I served, I can say that I am more than

content. I remember the spirit and record-breaking numbers that we brought to the first District event of the academic term – Fall Training Conference. I remember the endless support you all gave me by attending my monthly DCMs, and I will always remember crying at District Convention while I heard your club’s names called on to the podium to congratulate you all for your accomplishments. I just really want to thank you all for giving me the opportunity to be part of everything.

Although I will be transferring to Capital Division’s University of Nevada, Reno starting in August to continue my education and pursue a degree on Molecular Microbiology & Immunology, I want you all to remember that I will always be one of you. I will be there at District events, running from one corner to the other to cheer alongside you while Jane is on the stage for roll call. I will do my best to attend Divisional events when I come back home during the weekends. I will always be your Alpha Shark! If you are ever in the area, let me know and I would be more than happy to house y’all.  

 

Lastly, I want to recognize a few people that really made an impact on

me during my term. Without these people my term would not have been possible. I want to thank my Divisional Board, Monica Graham, Paula Nguyen, Peter Wu, Luke Melikian, and Brent DeMayo, for helping me execute Divisional tasks throughout the term. I appreciate you all attending all of my evening meetings, and helping me keep the Division organized throughout the term. I also want to give a special thank you to the person that inspired me to run for Lieutenant Governor in the first place, Grace Francisco. As my predecessor, I was thankful to have her to guide me throughout my term. I sometimes found myself not knowing a solution to an issue, but she was always there to help me resolve it. When I broke down she was always there to give me tough love (mostly love though lololol). Knowing that we are a relatively new Division, it was hard to work without much resource. I really cannot thank Grace enough for all of the help and advice she has given to me. Thank you all so much!

Kenneth Olidan 2014-2015 Sunset Lieutenant Governor

 

The Sunset Divisional Leadership Team works together to bring various aspects of CKI to you. From cheers, to socials, to service projects, the Divisional Leadership Team aims to make your

experience in the division the absolute best it can be. As the direct support to the Lieutenant Governor

they work hard in order ensure that even when we don’t have an immediate event they’re planning for

the next.

Meet the 2015-2016

LTG and Divisional

Leadership Team  

 

Hello Sunset Sharks! go For those of you who don’t know me, my name is Jane and I’m an incoming fourth year at UC Santa Cruz. I also am serving as your 2015-2016 Sunset Lieutenant Governor. I feel incredibly honored to have this chance to work with and get to know all of you throughout this year. So we are now in July, and when you think about it, that makes us 1/4th of the way done with the year. Isn’t that weird to think about?! Well, even with 1/4th done, I can’t wait to make even more memories with all you and see what other amazing things you can do.

But let me ask all if you something: do you know what makes this year incredibly special? Sunset has turned 4! That’s right our beloved Division is now in preschool and it’s time to shine like an anglerfish’s lure. Let’s work hard and achieve all the goals we have whether it is to get a certain amount of new members, to just attending as many service events as you can. I believe that all of you can work hard to succeed this year.

In just three months we have been able to have various DCMs, host a

Divisional End of the Year Banquet, start a Youtube, and break 1000 hours! Way to go Sharks! #doingthings

Besides all of this, I hope you enjoy the newsletter. There were some

amazing article submissions that I hope you all read. Because the Sunset Sentinel will only be coming out once every 3 months the newsletters are bigger and more elaborate than ever. The spring edition of our newsletter is showcasing our divisional theme for the year: Finding Sunset. So let’s keep swimming through the ocean as we keep ‘seaking’ for service. Jane Rivas

 

 

Biancka Dela Cruz Position: Sunset Service Lead Year: 2nd School: De Anza College

Joe Samson Position: Sunset Spirit Lead Year: 3rd Year Transfer School: San Jose State University

William Vuong

Position: Sunset Historian Year: 2nd

School: De Anza College

Giovanny Espinosa

Position: Sunset Social Chair Year: 4th

School: UC Santa Cruz

 

 

 

 

The 2015-2016 Boards

2015-2016 Boards Across Sunset

 

De Anza College

Ryan Wiseman Interim Year: 2nd    

William Vuong Administrative Vice President

Year: 2nd    

Brandon Roman President Year: 2nd    

Sumon Kyaw Secretary Year: 2nd

   

Justin Benjamin Treasurer Year: 3rd

 

Foothill College

Dominic Wong Secretary Year: 2nd

   

Luke Cheung Administrative Vice President Year: 2nd    

Wooju Choi Service Vice President

Year: 2nd    

Norman Wong President Year: 3rd    

 

San Jose State University

Peter Wu Administrative Vice President

Year: 3rd  

   

Tommy Dang Treasurer Year: 3rd

     

Kathy Le President Year: 3rd    

Mark Catolos Secretary Year: 2nd

 

Stanford University

Taylor Webb Co-President

Year: Grad Student      

Angelina Lo Secretary Year: 2nd

   

Feng Li Treasurer Year: 2nd    

Victoria Gomez Co-President Year: 3rd

 

Analee Monroe R&S Committee Co-Chair

Year: 2nd    

Catherine Borsting ELIMICEF/UNIMINATE Committee Co-Chair Year: 3rd    

Ana-Maria Istrate ELIMICEF/UNIMINATE Committee Co-Chair

Year: 3rd    

Jesus Guzman LC Committee Co-Chair Year: 3rd    

Tenzin Sangmo LC LC Committee Co-Chair

Year: 2nd    

Connie Huynh R&S Committee Co-Chair Year: Grad Student      

  UC Santa Cruz

Hannah Tuong President Year: 3rd

     

Alison Chan Treasurer Year: 4th    

David Liang Secretary Year: 2nd

   

Chris Hetzler Administrative Vice President

Year: 3rd

Aston Nalls Service Vice President Year: 4th    

 

Giovanny Espinosa Kiwanis Family Chair

Year: 4th    

Albert Chang Membership Development & Education Chair

Year: 4th    

Victoriya Balashova Historian Year: 3rd    

Camara Chea Publicity Chair Year: 3rd

     

 

Patty Garcia Fundraising Chair Year: 3rd    

Brandon Vasquez Spirit Chair Year: 3rd  

   

Tony Pan Technology Chair

Year: 3rd      

Michelle Tran Service Chair Year: 4th    

Norma Vazquez Membership Recognition Program Chair Year: 4th    

 

April

 

April DCM and Social

 

It was too early on a Saturday morning but the ride there was enjoyable. Garrett and Monica chatting away with Taylor Swift playing in the background gave me energy really quickly. The event started off with a spin as we turned many circles trying to find the right cemetery. The cemetery we had first pulled up to looked too nice to require any maintenance in comparison to the Evergreen Cemetery. The best way to describe Evergreen was messily cut grass with dirt paths in the middle of the forest. But in another perspective, it gave you that mysterious and mystical forest feeling you get when you see an abandoned temple in anime.

There we worked together with the Aktion Club, Kiwanis, and other volunteers to help weed the grass and make the paths more visible. As a bonus, we got some

neat granola bars and water bottles for rations.

It was really nice working together with everyone. It was moments like these that everyone really got to spend time with one another and chat. I made new friends

and strengthened old bonds learning things about people in the club I never even knew about. Something about working and talking with another person

made it that much more comfortable. Whenever I felt like I had nothing to say I could just keep weeding or raking with the excuse that I was working. Random

conversations would just spew out of nowhere. That kind of spontaneous communication made the pass time a lot more soothingly and friendly than forced

icebreakers.

After we finished up, a class had come to the cemetery with a speaker who told us all the neat facts about the cemetery’s history. Some of the most important

individuals of Santa Cruz as well as Chinese immigration workers from our country’s history were buried there. It was amazing to learn that people from different

cultural and racial background laid to rest here together. It gave you kind of a warm feeling that these people were not forgotten and gave you a sense of pride working here. The cemetery is now a tourist attraction and a nice shady

place to cool your head.

Kiwanis One Day Submitted by Albert Chang

 

 

Kiw

anis O

ne

Day

 

 

Challah for Hunger Submitted by Victoria Gomez

Challah for Hunger is a huge organization with over 70 chapters located in various colleges. Recently, Stanford Circle K has partnered with this organization in order to

fundraise for the ELIMINATE Project! This organization utilizes baking skills in order to generate funds for charities and

organizations. Challah for Hunger invites clubs on campus to help them bake challah every week to sell to the university’s students. In exchange, the club that volunteered

to help gets to choose where half of the profits go for that week. During Spring Quarter, Circle K was able to volunteer with Challah for Hunger. We chose to send

the profits to the ELIMINATE Project, which is devoted to eliminating maternal/neonatal tetanus from the world.

The process of making the dough, braiding and baking the bread, and selling the product was a long but rewarding process. Challah for Hunger is a very popular

organization on campus, always selling out quickly as soon as the challah is finished baking. We had an amazing time and can’t wait to work with this organization

again! Circle K thanks Challah for Hunger for giving us a great opportunity to fundraise for

a worthwhile organization while also learning the skills of baking challah.

 

May

 

Spring Training Conference Submitted by Joe Samson

Spring Training Conference North (STC North) was the first District event of the new term, and it was conveniently located at UC Davis. This is one of few events where my home club, Napa Valley College, will be able to attend district events

without paying for toll lol.

STC is an informative event where officers and general members have the opportunity to learn more about the various officer positions and attend unique

workshops host by other Circle K’ers from various parts of Northern California.

As a first timer at STC, I didn’t expect this event to be very casual than other conferences that I have attended in the past. Going through the motions of

attending workshops and participating on my first workshop panel, I realized that I still have a lot to learn about how to run the world’s largest collegiate service

organization at a community college and a four-year university.

Being a part of the small and new club panel, I was able to give and obtain some ideas about how to a run a club that is small and new. Many of the advice

came from a mixture of the panelists and past officers of clubs.

Lastly, planning for the panel helped me feel more involved with the organization and brought me closer with people I worked with in the panel. The planning stages actually helped me figure out how to shape Napa Valley CKI as an

established club. The advice given to the officers of small clubs can hopefully help them create a better vision for their respective clubs.

 

 

Kiw

anis S

pecial Games

ft. Golden G

ate

 

 

The Homeless Garden Project is amazing! This was my first time going and, if my allergies let me, I will definitely be going back.

It’s probably the most relaxing service event I’ve been to because all you do is basically gardening. Sure it’s hard work, pulling weeds and carry compost around, but you have the

whole time to talk with other members and, afterwards, you get to see the beautiful work you’ve helped create. The HGP is by far

one of the most rewarding, satisfying, and team building service event we have. I recommend everyone attend this event at least

one time while they are in the club.

Homeless Garden Project Submitted by Chris Hetzler

 

June

 

There's no better way to end a stressful finals week than with our

favorite graduates and sushi! (Which is exactly what we did!) In a final hoorah to send off those leaving UCSC (our

graduating seniors and our one-and-only dearly-beloved sleeping-SVP, Vivian Tran), we gathered at a local sushi

restaurant in Downtown Santa Cruz in commemoration of their memorable CKI journey! As 'I Love Sushi' also features a karaoke room, let's just say, we had our fair share of 90's teen angst that night. Overall, the bill wasn't extremely obnoxious and CKI clearly outshined ΑΦΩ in the karaoke sing-alongs ... it was just a great

night.

Too bad we can't keep our seniors (or Vivian) for another year! But, we're glad they'll go off into the world with something to look back to and smile about. We wish them the best of luck... and to

remember to come back with stories to share!

Seniors and Vivian Tran�Farewell Dinner

Submitted by Hannah Tuong  

 

Sunset EOTYB

 

UCSC EOTYB

SJSU and DA EOTYB

 

Every year in June, a special event called CKIx takes place where Circle K'ers from around the world gather in one location to focus deeply on our tenets of Service, Leadership and Fellowship. This year, the event took place in Indianapolis, Indiana, the home of Kiwanis

Headquarters. During this week, members participate in both the Large Scale Service Project, and International Convention.

This year, we celebrated our 15th annual LSSP by serving various organizations and

neighborhoods in the Indianapolis community. All attendees were divided into carefully organized teams, headed by Team Leaders from around the world. We broke a record by having 400+ members in attendance from around the globe! These teams spent the week

getting to know each other through fellowship activities and served alongside each other at various service projects. Circle K'ers were disbursed into the community to serve at almost 30 different projects ranging from food banks to park restorations and everything in between. Every team had the opportunity to participate in two full days of service at two or more projects. Serving as a chair on the Large Scale Service Project committee this year, it was

very rewarding to see the entire event come together. The committee worked incredibly hard to satellite plan the entire event, so to see everything in action was very exciting! Thousands

of service hours were completed in just two days of work.

Different from years past, the ICON days were interspersed with LSSP days. On Wednesday and Friday we did service, and on Thursday and Saturday we participated in activities like

caucus and House of Delegates (ICON is much more focused on the politics of Circle K.) During ICON, the new International board was elected, and amendments to the by laws were made. This portion is very similar to what happens at our DCON every year. Congratulations to all the new International Board members, including CNH member Jenny Park (UC Riverside)

our Sub-Region B Trustee!

This year's CKIx was also special in that we were able to celebrate the 100th birthday of Kiwanis International in tandem with our event! There were events planned that allowed Circle K members to interact with Kiwanians, Aktion Club members and Key Clubbers from around the world. We attended a huge pancake brunch, wandered around the Kiwanis World Fair and went to a minor league baseball game together. Overall, it was a very special week, and it

served as a wonderful reminder of the sense of community our organization embodies.

If you are interested in learning more about LSSP and the CKIx experience, feel free to ask any of the wonderful Sunset members who attended! Brandon Roman (De Anza), James Chen

(SJSU), Jane Rivas (UCSC) or myself! Next year, CKIx will be taking place in Toronto, Canada. It's never too early to start planning!

LSSP at CKIx 2015 Submitted by Gracie Francisco

 

 

 

CKIx was an opportunity to highlight the accomplishments of our entire organization and our members, as well as educate tomorrow's leaders with the knowledge and passion necessary to continue the impact that we make every day in communities around the world. Throughout the course of this event, we embodied our three tenets: service, leadership, and fellowship in every

activity that we did. There was so much that we did and so much to explore that this one article is not enough to capture the experience that I had. Each Circle K member was brought closer together with the bonds they created, the knowledge they gained, and the service that

they did.

6/23: This was the first day that we began our convention activities and had our kick-off with a celebration of service and our Large Scale Service Project (LSSP). I got to meet with members of my LSSP team which comprised of Circle K members from Cal-Nev-Ha, Ohio, New Jersey, and

more; it was wonderful to serve with them in the two projects that we had! Shout out to my team, the Swaggy Service Squad (S^3), for their friendship and hard work.

6/24: This day was especially unique because this was the day that the Kiwanis World

Showcase and CKI Service Fair opened up. Kiwanis and Circle K members from all over the world set up booths and vendors to educate attendees about their communities and the

services that they do. The Kiwanis store had a lot to offer (postcards, tote bags, polos, office supplies, and much more), but there were a lot of free items and prizes to be won too! Each

day was filled with bustling activity, and it was a time to interact with all members of our Kiwanis Family to learn what each branch had to offer. During general session that night, we were updated on the state of our preferred charities and had an exciting Leadership Academy presentation. Further, we were able to meet candidates for the international president, vice president, and trustee positions. This prepared us for the long day of business that we had

ahead!

6/25: Thursday was a long day of business for us with not one, but two rounds of caucus and House of Delegates! It was in our duties to represent our home club and actively participate in the election of our International Board. Each candidate offered their own flavor and charisma,

and we were all faced with challenging votes in the end.

CKIx 2015 By James Chen

 

Still, we all found time to celebrate. Kiwanis Family members all enjoyed a yummy pair of

pancakes at the Monument Circle in Indianapolis. Kiwanians worked tirelessly to make and serve pancakes but we all dined together and took a break from the business day we had. After we finished our business duties, we dined together once more as Subregion B met up

at the Granite City Food & Brewery for dinner. We enjoyed the company of our Rocky Mountain and Southwest sister Districts and we were met with wonderful service by our

waiters and waitresses! Later that night, we had our Kiwanis Convention Opening Celebration. Opening Session was inspiring and emotional, and I was awed by the diversity of everyone that spoke or performed. We reflected through Kiwanis International the past 100 years, and the audience was entertained by many performances and all the unique

stories our presenters had to share. There were moments when I was brought to tears because I was so overwhelmed by emotion and inspiration throughout that night. When you

find the time, check out the inspiring speaker we had: Tim Harris. Born in 1986 with Down Syndrome, Tim’s life has been defined by exceeding expectations and inspiring those around

him, and he travels the country to tell his story. "Oh yeah!"

6/26: On Friday, we were faced with rain, but that certainly did not stop us from continuing our celebration. Our Birthday Bash happened in the convention center, and everyone was

able to get their share of cake (I was carrying one for a friend, FYI) while continuing to enjoy convention activities and explore the World Showcase. During the evening, Kiwanis

Family members were able to enjoy a buffet meal at Victory Field, and watched the Indiana Indians vs. Syracuse Chiefs baseball game. After the game was over, fireworks were lit up to

celebrate and end the night!

6/27: By Saturday, we had a morning of workshops. For myself, I volunteered as a Workshop Support Committee member, so I was there making sure workshop supplies were in check and that all speakers got the gifts they deserved. There were three rounds of workshops with four workshops to choose from each round, but by the end of the series, everyone had learned something new. Later that afternoon, we met with our Kiwanis Family members once more. Circle K members sat with our CNH Kiwanis Family members and launched to the next 100

years of the Kiwanis Family. With our closing session afterwards, we celebrated the accomplishments and awards of our District leaders and our CNH clubs. Congratulations to Jennifer Park (UCR) in her election as our 2015-2016 Subregion B Trustee. Feel free to shoot

her a message and congratulate her at jpark.cki@gmail.com, and look forward to serving with her. Congratulations to Michael Zhou (UCB) for his successful term as our 2014-2015

Subregion B Trustee as well!

Final Thoughts: Click the hyperlink to check out some of the Kiwanis International Convention 100th Anniversary highlights! When the time comes, get in touch with your

Kiwanis club to help you with sponsorship and support you on your trip. I encourage all of you to get involved, represent the club you serve, and attend the 101st annual Kiwanis International Convention next year in Toronto, Ontario which will be a joint convention

with Circle K members once more!

If you would like to hear more about my experience, please feel free to message me at cki.jameschen@gmail.com! :)

 

Cheer of the Season

Announcements July 20th: Sunny TV Submissions

July 25th: DCM + Social + Service July 31st: Awards Experience Due

July 31st : Divisional Shirt Contest Submissions Due

Leader: Hey Sunset what’s that? Everybody: Oh look it is a shark attack! Shark

(x15)! Everybody! (repeat 1x)

 

Special Thanks to…

 

Albert Chang Camara Chea James Chen

Gracie Francisco Chris Hetzler

Hannah Tuong William Vuong

for article and photo submissions

Check out our Social Media!

Sunset Website: sunset.cnhcirclek.org

Sunset Division Facebook Page:

Facebook.com/groups/SunsetDivision

Sunset Division Youtube: Sunsetional TV

 

I pledge to uphold the objects of Circle K International. To foster compassion and goodwill towards others through service and

leadership. To develop my abilities and the abilities of all people, and to dedicate myself to the realization of mankind’s potential!