My First Men's Club

For a number of years, and of various circumstances, I have been invited to join the Men's Club of St. Joseph. And in those occasions, I would flatly turn them down and say I wasn't ready. Recently, a fellow SBARA board member and ham, Al (WT6K), who is also an active parishioner at St. Joe, asked me if I have ever attended a Men's Club meeting. I told him that I have been invited many times, and I have turned them down as many times as well.

A couple of weeks ago, at Bell's Suds for Duds event, Chris, another St Joe and Bellarmine dad, asked me the very same question. This time I grinned and said maybe I would. He was one of the many who had tried to bring me into the Men's Club, as far back as 7-8 years ago. I asked him a few questions to satisfy my curiosity, and he responded with confidence and enthusiasm,

The Men's Club of St. Joseph, basically, provides church ministry in the areas of spirituality, service, and fellowship. All the throughout the year, there are various activities and projects that the club is involved in, and they have become regular fixtures in parish-wide functions and events. They meet every first Tuesday evening of the month, over $5 pizzas, $2 beers, and $1 sodas & water. Aside from the regular fellowship, a guest speaker is invited to present on various topics of general interest.

Tuesday came. From work, I made sure everything was all set at home, and that Jake had his dinner ready. Then I headed to the parish hall for the meeting. I didn't hesitate nor had any apprehensions about coming. As a matter of fact, I was excited and was eager to get a  glimpse of what a typical Men's Club meeting looked like.

As I entered, I was greeted by familiar faces -- men I knew more intimately and those that I regularly saw at church. For a while, I thought they were more surprised to see me there than were glad that I came. When I arrived, Al was there and he seemed surprised in a good way. It was just recently that he asked me about attending, and now, I was there. When Chris arrived, he sure was happy to see me. All these time, he had been inviting me to come, and after a very long wait, I was finally there.  It was a mixture of surprise-to-see-you-here and glad-you-could-make-it.

As a guest, I didn't have to pay for pizza or beer or soda. What perks?!?! There were about 20 or so members at the meeting. And the guest presenter was Dave, a retired Milpitas police commander, who talked about the outsourcing plans of police, fire, and emergency communication services in Milpitas. I knew Dave's wife, Debbie, more than him because she was the more visible and more popular personality within the parish.

As the meeting got underway, I didn't realize that Al was the current club vice-president, and was the incoming president for 2014. On the agenda was the club's election of officers, among others, and I was there to witness this exercise. I was also surprised to find out that Chris was a past president of the club as well. I was the only guest that evening, and I was introduced by another past president, Tom. Once introduced, and as if on cue, Chris stood up and shared with the rest of the members some information about me and what our relationship was.

The presentation was quite interesting but it took longer than expected. The election went on rather quickly and without a hitch, and the rest of the evening's business was completed in rapid succession. By then, it was close to 9pm, and the meeting was adjourned.

I had a pretty good experience as a first-timer, and the members were welcoming. I was glad that I attended. It certainly gave me an idea of what the club is all about. Would I sign up?

Well, it's something I still have to think about.......