It’s always a pleasure to write about those experiences in life that give you an “Ah Ha” moment. This past week has been filled with those moments, the first being my return to Minot AFB, and North Plains Elementary School to teach the Junior Achievement course sponsored by Minot Chamber/EDC.

A room full of 1st Graders is always an interesting experience, and I was introduced to 19 smiling young folks who were introduced to Mr. Wilson by their teacher, Ms. White. This is my second year of teaching Junior Achievement to first graders, but this group of kids were absolutely great! They asked questions, offered input, and did so very respectfully. Junior Achievement is 5, ½ hour sessions, and I can hardly wait to return for session #2. This week we learned about community. We started with family, went on to neighborhoods and finished with businesses, all very important to their community. All of the kids promised to read the Northern Sentry on Friday (of course they will), so hello to all of the students from Ms. White’s 1st Grade class at North Plains Elementary.

The Heart of a Lion
Because of my ties to downtown Minot, I was recently asked to join the Magic City Lions club, which meets every Tuesday at 7:30 AM at the Parker Center in Downtown Minot. I have been the guest speaker at several Magic City Lions meetings, and I was impressed with the energy of the club. My first three meetings I was able to witness three very important check presentations. 1) $10,000 to the Union Silo Project in downtown Minot, 2) $30,000 to Service Dogs For America and 3) $3,100 to the Minot Police Department for support of their K9 Unit with the purchase of a vest for the K9 officer.
If you are interested in joining Magic City Lions, they have both a web site, and a Facebook page. They end their oath with “They Shall Have The Heart of a Lion”. Even though many service clubs have decreased in membership over the years, they are a much needed part of the community with their donations of both time and money. So, to the Magic City Lions, thanks for asking me to join, and I look forward to being a part of your organization.

Downtown Minot Event Re-scheduled
It was once the “Just About St. Patrick’s Day” pub crawl. A chance to visit the many spots in downtown Minot that serve alcohol and food. Each of the participating businesses are offering a special drink for the evening. To participate you only need to go on downtownminot.com and register. The cost is only $10.00. Now the “Slightly After St. Patrick’s Day” pub crawl is scheduled for this Friday, March 24th. More information on both the Downtown Minot Facebook page and website.

A Great Experience
A lot of the ski resorts have experienced record breaking snow this year, and that includes Bottineau Winter Park. Still don’t have plans for the weekend? Just head north to the Turtle Mountains and enjoy skiing or tubing on what is described by many of my friends as “awesome snow”.

Best Kept Secrets
The city of Minot is host to iMagicon on April 28-30. Once again, the iMagicon group has gone out of their way to bring top notch talent to Minot, including John Ratzenberger, the voice of many characters and once Mailman Cliff on the sitcom “Cheers”. Tickets and information are available online.

Today’s Chuckle
Old pirates never die. They just become presidents of banks.