Today’s Speaker: – Bryson Peterman – Owner of Bootleggers Brew Shop
Future Speakers:
September 5th – Rick Capozzi – Preparing for an Active Shooter Survival Mindset
September 12th – St Vincent De Paul Society’s Financial Aid Office
September 19th – No Meeting
Whacha’ May Have Missed Last Week:
Tim Obrien – Director of the Central Pennsylvania Chapter of Young Life was our guest speaker last week. Tim, who has been a part of Young Life for 33 years, stated that YL has had staff in the Altoona area since 1979. Tim said that simply stated…..”Young Life goes where the kids are”. He went on to say that in today’s technology driven society, kids know more about local and world events and consequently their problems are amplified. The availability of drugs and alcohol are greater today and social media makes the stresses of trying to be perfect…..a turbulent time for kids. Young Life was founded in 1941 as a means to reach out to kids to try to find solutions for their issues in a caring and Christian manner. Locally YL has weekly club meetings where kids can enjoy music, games, food, and develop friendships. Each meeting, which in Altoona can number 100-125 in attendance and around 65 in the Hollidaysburg meetings; always ends with a message that reflects God’s love for them. Accompanying Tim to our meeting was Hollidaysburg Area High School Senior, Andrew Moyer, who talked about his experiences with YL and how much he enjoyed this summer’s YL camp. The local Young Life contingency of 46 guys and girls attended this year’s camp in Lake Champion, New York. At camp, Andrew and his fellow campers enjoyed a pool, water slides, zip lines, disk golf and most importantly the comradery obtained from discussions with leaders and fellow campers. Andrew stated that YL has provided him with relationships that he knows will last a lifetime. Tim answered a number of questions at the end of his talk including a discussion of funding sources for their local budget of $195,000. Approximately 10% comes from businesses, 10% from churches and the balance from individual donations. He concluded by promoting their 24th annual golf tournament set for Friday September 22nd at Park Hills Golf Club. Ambuc Tim Parnell, who has sat with Tim on the YL board for many years, echoed Tim’s comments on the organization and suggested that the Ambuc members consider forming a team for the upcoming Young Life golf tournament.
Guests of the Day:
…..Lisa Drzal introduced her guest, Tracy Wilt, a fellow Re/Max agent
…..Kristan Zolnoski introduced her guest, Amanda Imler, a therapist at ProCare Health Services
News of the Week:
…..We had two very special Amtryke presentations last week. First, eleven year 
old Caleb LaVanish of Tyrone quickly seated himself onto his new Amtryke. Caleb has a pervasive developmental disorder, resulting from an extra half chromosome. Caleb, shown here peddling along, was accompanied to our meeting by his mother and brother.
Our second recipient was eight year old Colton Heidler, of Altoona who has Down syndrome. Colton was accompanied by his mother to our meeting. After donning his helmet, Colton began motoring around on his Amtryke with the assistance of his therapist, Amanda Imler. It was a great day at club last week as these two boys were all smiles.
Three other Amtrykes were given out recently to children whose parents could not attend one of our meetings. The first went out to two year old Jonathon Stoltzfus of Readsburg, whose club feet prevent him from riding a regular bike. It is hoped that the Amtryke will strengthen his legs. Another Amtryke was presented to ten year old Maria Grippi of Everett who is autistic and is in need of strengthening her muscles. And lastly, an Amtryke went to twelve year old Aydan Yoder of Altoona, who is also autistic. His Amtryke should assist him with balance and weak muscle issues.
…..As promised, Tony Miller distributed a sign-up sheet for the picnic social at Ed Farabaugh’s home on Saturday September 23rd at 6:30 PM. The club will be providing some food (which Tony has no idea as to what it will be yet) and he’s asking if attendees can provide a dessert. Tony’s promising more information soon…..so stay tuned.
…..Lisa Drzal and Dave Aikens met with four representatives from the VA Hospital last Wednesday to discuss ways that AMBUCS can help our veterans. She and Dave discussed both volunteering time each month for a craft/game time with the residents and what possibilities there might be in providing some adult Amtrykes for those veterans that could benefit from them. I’m sure at tomorrow’s meeting Lisa and Dave will be providing more details about their visit. Contact Lisa for more information or to sign up to help with the monthly visits to the VA.
…..A sign-up sheet has been passed around the last several weeks for the annual “33 Club”! The cost is $40 to get a team. In addition to the possibility that you win money when your team scores
33 or is the opponent of a team who scores 33; all “33 Club” members can also attend the club’s annual Super Bowl party at no cost. The cost for the “33 Club” can be billed on your dues if you would like. Sign up this week….the season’s ready to begin!
…..Our guest speaker, Andrew Moyer, pulled the winning raffle ticket of Sandy 
Gregory. With all of the confidence in the world, Sandy carefully chose her card. Lo and behold….SHE CHOSE THE JOKER! She won $394. In a note to Treasurer Paul, Sandy graciously donated back $100 to the club…..a very nice gesture on her part! This Tuesday we’ll start over with a new deck, two Jokers and $50 in the pot. To be a winner like Sandy…..you gotta play.
In Closing: After the last two week of presenting six Amtrykes to needy children in our area…..it seems only fitting to give a huge thanks to our Ambuc members and to all of the sponsors that donated monies to our efforts. In the words of Mahatma Gandhi…“The best way to find yourself, is to lose yourself in the service of others.”