The Wagner Rotary club held a weekly meeting on Wednesday, February 15, 2023. President Rachel Woods called the meeting to order with a rap on the Rotary Bell. President Rachel Woods offered a prayer of blessing upon the meal and for the recovery of a Club member, who is absent due to illness.

Song Leader Jeff Doom lead the Club in a songful prayer, followed by the Club’s best effort at the ole standby, “Smile.” A Membership Minute was forgone until next week.

Sergeant at Arms Jordan Weber levied the following fines: Jeff Doom for seeking relief in questionable places ($5); hefty fines to Kansas City Chiefs fans – Scott McAdaragh, Jerry Weber, and Jerry Henke ($10 each); for predicting the Chiefs’ win - Kathe Henke and Patti Frei ($5 each); Jaime Soukup for being named with wife and children as the Knights of Columbus family of the year 2022 ($20); Amanda Bechen for being among the first to arrive at today’s meeting ($2); Bill Frei for complaining about the Sergeant’s luxury parking spot at the hospital, causing Frei to walk even further for hospital care ($2); Scott McAdaragh for forgetting to coordinate a program ($2); and Jerry Henke and Joe Stedronsky for twinning in similar outfits (flannel shirts and warm vests) ($2 each).

HAPPY FINES were offered from Rachel Woods for a missed field goal, which provided monetary reward ($10); Patti Frei for a dress shopping day with daughter ($5); and Bill Frei for avoiding said dress shopping day ($5).

Jeff Dooms’s ticket was then drawn for a chance at the Queen of Hearts, but he drew only the Jack of Diamonds, forfeiting $298.

Secretary/Treasurer Craig Krsnak shared an attendance report, noting 13 misses for the Jordan Weber team, 6 misses for the Jaime Soukup team.

Other business: Rachel Woods proposed an evening Club-meeting in March at an area business. Patti Frei volunteered to cover Rotary-Minute responsibilities, as needed. The Club then committed to being prayerful and supportive of each other through all stages of our beautiful lives.

Program Chair Scott McAdaragh introduced his (last-minute fill-in) program: reader-Rotarian Jeff Doom. Doom recommended several books he’s recently read.

The Bomber Mafia is a 2021 book by Malcolm Gladwell that examines the US Bomber Mafia of World War II. The Bomber Mafia were a close-knit group of American military men who believed that long-range heavy bomber aircraft in large numbers were able to win a war. The bomber mafia succeeded in their goal to have extensive bomber fleets in the US military, but they failed in their wish to achieve pinpoint targeting precision during World War II.

Band of Brothers by Stephen E. Ambrose is an examination of a parachute infantry company in the 101st Airborne Division in the European Theater during World War II. The book concentrates on the lives of the soldiers in and associated with the company. The book was later adapted into a 2001 miniseries for HBO by Tom Hanks, Erik Jendreson, and Steven Spielberg, also titled Band of Brothers.

Lost Moon: The Perilous Voyage of Apollo 13 is a 1994 non-fiction book by astronaut Jim Lovell and journalist Jeffrey Kluger, about the failed April 1970 Apollo 13 lunar landing mission, which Lovell commanded. The book is the basis of the 1995 film adaptation Apollo 13, directed by Ron Howard and starring Tom Hanks as Lovell. Apollo 13 was NASA's third moon-landing mission, but the astronauts never made it to the lunar surface. During the mission, an oxygen tank explosion almost 56 hours into the flight forced the crew to abandon all thoughts of reaching the moon.

Doom then credits author Peter Zeihan for authoring the following books: The Accidental Superpower; The Absent Superpower; and The End of the World is Just the Beginning: Mapping the Collapse of Globalization. Zeihan is an American geopolitical analyst and author. Zeihan points out in his analysis that access to navigable rivers, or access to the oceans, along with reliable road or rail, make a critical difference in a nation’s power. Zeihan notes that the US has many such advantages over other global powers.

Following Doom’s presentation, the Club adjourned in its usual fashion.

OF THE THINGS we think, say or do: Is it the TRUTH? Is it FAIR to all concerned? Will it build GOODWILL and BETTER FRIENDSHIPS? Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned.