Wagner Rotarians received a warm welcome from President Jamie Soukup on Wednesday October 22, 2025. Guests introduced were Josh Woods, husband of Rotarian Alison Woods and Deb Houseman guest of Gerrit Juffer. The membership sang Row, Row, Your Boat in a roundtable fashion with two verses led by Song Leader Rachel Woods.

Rotarian Patty Frei continued updating the membership on World Pollio Month for all Rotarians. (See the accompanying photo) This haunting photograph from 1950 captures a moment of silent struggle: children lying inside enormous machines known as iron lungs. These devices were their ONLY chance of survival, helping them breathe when polio had paralyzed their muscles. Polio was a terrifying disease, especially for children, often leaving them paralyzed or unable to breathe without mechanical assistance.

The iron lung worked by creating rhythmic pressure that pushed air in and out of the body, mimicking the movement of healthy lungs. It saved countless lives, but life inside it was deeply isolating. The children could move only their heads and depend entirely on nurses for everything---eating, reading, even playing. Then came a breakthrough that changed history. In the 1950s Dr. Jonas Salk developed the polio vaccine. Overnight, the disease began to vanish. What had once been a global fear became an almost forgotten chapter thanks to science and compassion. This photograph is more than a glimpse into the past. It is a reminder of how far we’ve come and of how vaccines have spared millions from suffering.

Together, we end polio. This World Polio Day, October 24, join the global movement to eradicate polio and ensure no child is paralyzed by this preventable disease.

Sergeant at Arms Gerrit Juffer levied the following fines: $1 to Linda Soukup, Craig Krsnak, Jamie Soukup for having Halloween decorations outside of their home; $1 to Linda Soukup for having a nice FB picture of her family, $1 for her phone ringing during the meeting; Happy Fines of $1 came from Jeannie Crowe who has a new grandchild named Willow May, $1 from Jamie because he has a daughter also named Willow; $2 from Becky Brunsing for Jamie picking up the meals for her for the meeting; $5 from Jamie Soukkup for Bill doing the cans; $5 from Kathe Henke who noticed there were six men and eight women present for the meeting; $10 from Bryan Slaba for his daughter becoming engaged; $4 from Patty for the four Rotarians from Wagner that made it to the District Conference; $2 from Alison Woods for finishing her MBA program; $2 from Rachel Woods for her nephew turning one year old; $1 from Gerrit Juffer for the news from the conference that a Friendship Exchange will be coming from Southern Brazil and New Zealand soon.

The Queen of Hearts deck just keeps getting smaller. Gerrit held the lucky number but asked Deb Houseman and Josh Woods to draw for him and they picked the Ace of Clubs for him. Gerrit lost $699.00 on that drawing.

Secretary/Treasurer Craig Krsnak announced that Alison Woods attendance team has six misses and Joshua Christensen’s attendance team has nine misses. Football book winners were Tory Thaler sold by her husband Tim Thaler and Katherine Koenig sold by Jordan Weber. Krsnak also informed members that he had received a printout of Wagner Rotarians that are on the Paul Harris Fellowship list and if anyone is interested in seeing it to contact him.

Rotarian Becky Brunsing introduced her program for the day, which was Chole Kocer, (husband David) who together with her friend Alison Woods have been interested in wine and holding wine tasting sessions with friends and relatives. Kocer has attended classes at the University of Missouri and is interested in obtaining certification. There are various levels of certification: Introductory, a two-day course followed by an examination; Certified, which is a more challenging, one-day exam with a lower pass rate that includes tasting, theory, and a practical service component. Then it is on to Advanced which is a comprehensive exam with a low pass rate that requires a significant amount of self-study after passing the Certified level. The final and most difficult level consists of three parts (oral theory, blind tasting, and practical service, with an extremely low pass rate.

Chole gave the group tips on learning how to taste wine, tips on visiting a vineyard, and learning how to pair wines with certain kinds of food. She gave an abundance of factual information to Rotary. Rotarian Becky Brunsing also had several distinct kinds of sweets, nuts, cheesecake etc. to help the group experiment with the various kinds of wines that were open and available.

You are welcome to contact Chole if you would like more information about wines or are interested in having a demonstration such as she gave to the club. The club adjourned by reciting the Rotary Four-Way Test of the things we think, say, or do: Is it the TRUTH? Is it FAIR to all concerned? Will it build GOODWILL & BETTR FRIENDSHIPS? Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned?