EL CAJON VALLEY HOST LION’S NEWSLETTER
Aug 11, 2025, Members: __35_ Guests: _1__
Facebook: El Cajon Valley Host Lions Club
Volume 2026 _____ Issue 6
CALL TO ORDER: ____Ron Nevels
Invocation: __PP Phil Smith_
Pledge of Allegiance: PP Walter Simmons__
Patriotic Song: PDG Mercy Walters and PP Chris
Song: America the Beautiful
HELEN KELLER QUOTE BY: _1st VP Bob Sanchez
“Our greatest glory is not in ever failing, but in rising every time we fail.”
GUESTS:__Madeline Nation_______________________________
GOOD TO SEE: ___PDG Mercy Walters________________________
COMMUNICATIONS/ANNOUNCEMENTS:
_August 18th will be a regular meeting; it’ll be the services for Ray Hackworth, so I hope we can all show up.
We’re going to move the regular business meeting to August 26th.
CALENDAR OF UPCOMING EVENTS:
AUG Board Meeting: August 14, 6:00 PM, Elks Conference Room.
AUG 30 at 3 PM: ECVHL STEAK FRYE: Tom Hoban’s house, 1692 Hidden Mesa Rd., El Cajon, CA 92019
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU
TOM NORMANDIE (8-15-47) PAUL WALTERS (8-19-47)
RON NEVELS (8-19-54) CANDICE THIEM (8-02-86)
GOOD CHEER: _________________________________________________________
If you know of any members who are in distress, sick, or in the hospital, please notify PP Yvonne so our good wishes can be conveyed to them. 619/838-4262
August EXEMPT BADGE: ___PP Yvonne Paris
VICE PRESIDENT REPORTS:
1st VP Bob Sanchez:
__________Pancake Breakfast on Sunday October 5. 2025____________________________
2nd VP Penny Duane: _Paul and I were contacted by the El Cajon Valley High School. Leos Club.
has been nominated for Club of the Year.
I’m going to respond. They’re asking what type of activities and things the Leos did.
Leo’s Advisor
I would normally do it, but my bank is in the process of going through a merger acquisition, and we meet on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 11 to 1, so that’s why I can’t do it.
So if anybody else here would be interested in being the advisor for the Leo’s Club, please let
Grant Theim the third
________________________________________________________
3rd VP Grant Theim III _____Steak Fry Signup sheets were put on the tables. If you are planning to come, let Grant Theim know
MEMBERSHIP: Paul Walters:
Okay, we’d like to talk about Jeffrey Smith.
Congratulations on completing 10 years as a Lion.
We will recognize you for your service
_________________________________________________
LCIF: PP Yvonne Paris: _________________________________________________________
HAPPY DOLLARS/FINES: TT _Bob Acker____________________________
Bob Acker
Well, I’ll tell you what we’re going to do is talk about
Bob Troisi was the Director of General Services for the City of Oklahoma during my tenure, and he retired a little after I retired.
I have lunch with him now and then, and whenever I have the opportunity, I talk up the Lions Club.
I talk up the Lions Club, and so he has always supported Lions during our fundraisers; whatever it is, he will always buy tickets.
And then, like I said last year, he gave $3,000.
On Wednesday, he asked if I could go to lunch, so I went to lunch.
He said I got a check from the Alliance. Well then, four grand.
And It goes along long way, and people are quite impressed, you know, they would give eyeglasses to the kids and guide dogs to the blind, and I think you know, in between that would go a lot so talk it up, and it seems to go a long, long way, so anyway to the foundation.
How about inviting him for lunch? I don’t think he can because of his schedule.
I would.
announces a donation by Bob Troisi $4000.00 to the Lions Foundation
Paul Walters $5.00 It’s very good to see Jeff Smith here and one of our newest members, Ken Sanders.
Bob Sanchez $10.00
I just got back from Reno summer nights.
I don’t know if any of you guys have ever been out there.
It’s all the casinos in the town.
I partake in a big car show that has been going on for like 30, 40 years.
And it keeps going every year.
Last year, I don’t know if the count was this year, but last year they had 800,000 participants that came to the show.
And it’s an event that
city just literally caters to the hot rod and a car enthusiast and people are lining the streets and almost like when we’re driving down the parade lines and they’re just of people just on 5D, 6D, trying to get a peek at the car so we get to cruise down and we get to play like we’re the
celebrities waving at people.
PP Chris Bramwell $25.00
He appeared with a brand new, I guess it was new to you, Bentley SUV
PDG Mercy Walters $20.00
I don’t have anything intelligent to say, so… Nice to see all of you fellow lions.
PP Gary Sims $1.00
Oh, I have a dollar because I don’t need to go see fancy cars in Reno.
I just go to Chris’s garage.
or Tom Hoban’s garage.
Who needs Reno, baby?
When you get that kind of thing.
PP Phil Smith $20.0
I just did a Yellowstone Vacation.
Oh, that’s 21 dollars.
That’s very good.
Yeah, that’s a little extra.
You won’t be able to get down for a while.
I’m going to go back to work now.
Work.
What is it?
Work.
Beautiful places up there.
South Dakota, Mount Rushmore.
You’re on the road.
Yeah, I’m on the road.
So, I went to Mount Rushmore, Devil’s Tower.
Have you ever been there?
That’s really cool.
They made a movie there.
No, that’s a problem.
Yellowstone, Jackson Hole, I don’t know,
Anywhere near Sturgis.
Sturgis.
Oh yeah, Sturgis.
Sturgis.
I’ll never forget Sturgis.
Oh, yeah.
I mean, there we are.
We’re about Sturgis.
Is this like… Were you there at the proper time?
Yeah, it was.
Oh, yeah.
Day one.
Yeah, so, but I didn’t get arrested this time, so I’m happy about that.
So you see Bud Light display this year.
Yeah.
It was empty.
Was it empty?
Was it?
Yeah, it has been empty for two years now.
PP Tom Normandie $100.00
The Alaska trip, I recollect that we got a little advance money on the Alaska trip.
Yes, you did.
Yeah.
I went there and saw a lot of Alaska, which I love.
It’s kind of one of my favorite places these days.
It was a lot of fun.
Did you dive up or go on a cruise?
No, I flew up and had a friend who’s got an Airbnb, stayed there, actually helped him and his mother put together the furniture.
So I spent two days working, and then I got four days with the free car and free room and board.
Free car and free room and board.
I know I can almost afford five dollars.
Yeah, if you got it if you got to think Bobby, what I’ll do is I’ll put it on a hundred dollars
And you were right, there was a little more money laying here.
Yeah, you’ve got to be careful of that.
Okay, good enough.
Yeah, well, it’s my 78th birthday, and so I’m willing to celebrate on that.
Sure.
Dyna Jones $20
I just got voted as the top small business
At Asian American International
Business Expo.
Jeff Smith $20
I moved from the Allied Gardens area to the Santee area.
Closer to my granddaughter
Grant Theim $20
I just wanted to let the club know that Diana Jones offered and accepted the task of being the Leo’s Advisor
So I was going to put $20 in for my son, because I know that’s going to be quite a relief for him
Mike Raney $10
So, I went to Australia, I attended an all-boys school, and I lived close to the school.
Right next to the river, and this guy had an old car line, and there was a Volkswagen bus there, and I walked by going to school, and I never saw it, but it said, Buy me, buy me, buy me.
So I bought it.
It was a 1954 bus with a 55 engine.
Warren McKenna $5.00 Padre Game
I had the opportunity to take Bob and Mary Zulkoski from the
LaMesa Lions, who won the baseball Padre vs Red Sox tickets at Gunsmoke, and we had a great time. They’re going to come back to Gunsmoke, last time they gave an 800 bucks donation, but maybe they’ll come to Gunsmoke and give a thousand , so I was
really happy to donate my tickets.
Ron Nevels $5.00
There was a big concern about the organization and what’s going on here.
Now, isn’t the lion tamer supposed to put the flags out and put the American flag out?
And we’re saying the pledge allegiance to no flag.
Absolutely.
Whose responsibility is that?
I don’t know.
Whose responsibility was that?
Who is the lion tamer?
I don’t know.
The president is… Oh, well, ultimately, yeah.
Carl Ruiz $5.00
Yeah, we’re happy to be here with all you fine people.
Paul Trembly $5.00
Yeah, we’re happy to be here with all you fine people.
Bob Sanchez $5.00
got another $5 because one of the things being a car enthusiast We all follow different programs and builders and we’re sitting down on Saturday and it’s a big event, right, and I’m sitting there with the cars, and my buddies are all there, and we all have cars, and it’s kind of a game of a, you
know, my car is better than yours, we’re always jabbing each other with it, right?
So I’m sitting there, and this gentleman walks up by himself, and I’m looking at him, I can see his face, but I don’t quite… I know him, but I don’t know him.
Chris Vembo.
No, it’s Chris.
So I’m sitting there and I’m looking at him.
He studies my car for a second, he looks and he’s kind of looking at it and he starts there.
He just puts his, turns around, he looks at me, and he goes, nice car.
I said, thank you.
And all the guys here, right?
And all of a sudden it dawned on me.
The guy was, his name is Hector, and he’s in a TV show called Full Custom Garage.
So he’s one that has done like numerous shows and then all of a sudden as soon as he starts to walk away, it hit me and I immediately jumped out of my chair and I said, oh shit, you know who that guy is?
And then all of a sudden the guys go, no, who?
So I said, that’s Hector from Full Custom Garage, and everybody whoops around my group, and now I go chasing after him, and I stop him, and I said, hey, thank you so much, I appreciate you, you know, and then I said, I said, I just realized who, look, you know, who you were, I said, but you look
different, he goes, He goes, I lost 50 pounds.
And I said, and that’s why I didn’t recognize it.
I said, oh man, I told him how much I appreciated him.
Recognizing my car, I was like up here riding his high, you know.
So then I said, do you mind if I take a picture with you?
And he says, no, absolutely.
So he goes, why don’t we take it in front of your car?
So I had all my buddies there looking at me and they’re all, they’re all like, so anyway, that was made my weekend.
UPCOMING PROGRAMS:
Bob Moreau
I just want to do a recap on Ray’s memorial next Monday.
He’ll be here, and we’ll be here from 12 to 2, just like one of our regular meetings.
Ray and I were friends for many, many years, even before he got on the Lions Club.
And this memorial means a lot to me, I’m sure it means a lot to you, and I hope that all of you here are able to make it.
In terms of attire, if you have a lion’s shirt, like I got here, or a pen, or a vest, wear it.
Jerry Dressler was Ray’s conservator.
and he’s the one who’s helping us put this on.
Ray had made a program with Upload Mortuary, and they have a small room there where they have memorials.
And I suggested, since he was such a big part of this club, let’s have it here.
And there are going to be 30 of his family members and friends, plus our club.
So I have about 75 people here next Monday.
And Ray used to talk to him about our club and what it meant to him.
I think I mentioned you before, right after Ray passed.
He had made provisions for this club.
He gave $100,000 to our foundation.
Wow.
That’s quite a donation for the foundation.
He thought a lot of this club during his last year. Ray couldn’t drive, and I would pick him up at his home every week and bring him to these meetings.
And one of his last jobs here was to… tell the jokes.
And we waited for the joke.
Now Dick is going to be a joke teller on behalf of Ray at the Memorial Service on Monday.
He just mentioned that to me.
We’re going to have, I don’t want to talk too much, but some of these things I’m going to say on Monday.
But Jerry Dressler is going to do his eulogy , and I’m going to have a few words to say.
And it should be a good time for his family and all of us who knew him for all these years.
wear your pin, wear your shirt, be comfortable.
You don’t have to wear a suit.
I mean, if you want to wear a suit, wear a suit.
But never saw Ray wear a suit.
He was always a comfortable guy.
And this is a good goodbye for our dear friend.
Sure.
If we have these extra people coming, are we going to be able to feed them and have extra food allowed for them to… I’ve already made arrangements for that.
They’ve been given the extra numbers; they’re all ready for us.
And we’ve been planning this for almost a month now.
So I’m hoping for a very good turnout and I would ask for advice for Ray and his family.
Yes ?
I went to see Ray quite a few times, and he would say, Did you bring the cookies?
Thank you.
So then I brought him cookies next time.
Ray said, Don’t come back unless… You bring the cookies, chocolate cookies.
All right,
AUG 18: Regular Meeting. Noon.
SERVICE FOR PP RAY HACKWORTH
ATTENDANCE DRAWING: _____Zack Nation_____________ $___Not Here_____
50/50 OPPORTUNITY DRAWING: __Dick Nasif_________$_52.00_______
TODAY’S RIB TICKLER
Lead to serve and serve to leave
AP Singh, International Lions President