Ahoy, me harties from Michigan!

Yo ho ho! Ahoy, mates!

I wanted to take a quick second to hop online and send you pirate love from the amazing Michigan District of Circle K! This evening and weekend have sure been a lot of fun and I am very blessed to have had the opportunity to spend this weekend in such remarkable company. I've always been impressed by the potential and sparks of enthusiasm that occur when people gather for one common purpose and this District Convention is no exception. This weekend through Penny Wars, Costume Contests, games of "Guess how much Booty is in the jar?" and other friendly competitions the clubs of Michigan have come together to raise money for the Six Cents Initiative. As soon as Governor Ashley gives me an update on the Penny Wars I will surely keep all of you posted with how much they raise. I always love it when I can visit some place and immediately feel welcomed as if I was at home. It was also great to see our CKI Director Erin Fischer visit to lead the Michigan District's advisors and Kiwanians in Advisor Leadership Bootcamp: Fischer Style! Thank you to the Michigan District for being such a "warm home feeling" place, attending my early 7:20 am Officer Workshop with the District Exec Board (remember, "I AM SO NOT TIRED!"), and participating in this DCON.

This evening continued with a Keynote Address from Jim Dreyer, a world class swimmer who has swam all 5 of the Great Lakes, a few tid-bits of motivation from moi, and well deserved awards. In addition, I also got to meet in person a huge group from the amazing CKI Club at the University of Michigan who is renowned for their 24 hours of Service and large dues-paid roster.

Prior to attending District Convention I only knew about the University of Michigan for 3 reasons. 1.) The school is mentioned in my all time favorite movie "The Break Up" 2.) I bought a U of M shirt one time at Steve & Barry's for the sole reason that I knew they had a Circle K Club, and 3.) meeting our fabulous IP Blood Drive Committee Chair Jenna Dahn at ICON last year. However, this evening I was able to witness first hand the true testament to the type of leadership they foster with their 163 member CKI Club. I say I got to witness this because at this evening's award ceremony the entire 2008-09 Leadership Team for U of Michigan CKI received Outstanding Officer Awards! Congratulations to U of Michigan for becoming such a well oiled service machine and to all of the clubs who won awards including Central Michigan for growth, Wayne State for Scrapbook, and Michigan State CKI for their distinguished officers.

The evening ended with a dance and you can bet that Editor Kristina Croes, myself, and Governor Ashley Malmsten did the Leadership Academy dance to "The Way I Are" in honor of our friends from Leadership Academy as well as the Alligator Dance (shorts and all!) dedicated to Sub-region C! ;) I promised the UMich CKI Club that I would wear my lovely UMich shirt and sing their fight song with them if they donated $6.00 to the Six Cents Initiative (I know, cheap but it's still a lot of lives) and returned the District gong. Although I will admit that I butchered it because I couldn't remember where I put down the lyrics I did however know the beginning line and the last one "the champions of the west!" It is my goal before International Convention to learn it in it's entirety so that I can sing along with them at the CKI Tailgate at our Birmingham International Convention.

Tomorrow morning the House of Delegates will reconveign at 7:00am and then I will be off to catch an early flight out and return back to Syracuse before the CKI Board meets for our evening bi-weekly phone conference.

Lastly, shout out to my fantastic roommates: Governor Ashley, 0910 Michigan State President Karen, and 0809 Michigan State President Kate for a great time guarding the gong, printing ridiculous amounts of paper, complaining about the lack of lighting, and overall just having a plain awesomely great time.

Weigh anchor and hoist the mizzen!

--Kristen