Food – Page 2 – Nebraska Wander Freunde Trailblazers

Workers’ Walk Feb. 24th – cancelled!

The view in Pottawattamie County, IA at the beginning of the blizzard

Due to today’s blizzard, we are cancelling the Workers’ Walk scheduled for tomorrow, Sunday, February 24th. Stay home and use that energy to shovel out your driveways and sidewalks, so that walkers in your own neighborhoods can safely walk!

Support TWO great causes when you come to our Soup Walk, next Saturday, March 2nd at Children’s Square, N 6th St & Ave. E, Council Bluffs, IA 51502. The registration fee is two cans of soup AND $2 for Fun Walkers or $3 for Credit Walkers.

We donate one can of soup to a local food pantry and use the other can of soup to mix into our 2 big steaming hot pots of either chicken or beef broth based soups. Warm up after your 5k or 10k walk with a bowl or two of soup!

Try your luck at our raffle! Raffle proceeds will go to the annual fundraiser for the national organization to which we belong, AVA – America’s Walking Club. Without support from our national headquarters, we can’t bring you local walks.

Happy new year of walking!

It’s a brand new year, with brand new opportunities for walking for fun, fitness and friendship! We’re still putting the final touches on our 2019 brochure of walking events, but we want you to get these dates on your calendar now:

January 19th – Annual Meeting and Dinner (previously announced in https://www.nebraskatrailblazers.com/2019-annual-meeting-announcement/)
January 26th – Westroads Mall Meet and Eat, starting at 8:30 a.m., 5k or 10k option – all inside! Meet at the interior space between Dick’s and Penney’s, pay your $3 if walking for credit (stamping books) or $2 if not, walk and then eat together at Panera Bread in the mall.
March 2nd – Annual Soup Walk – Children’s Square,
N 6th St & Ave. E, Council Bluffs, IA 51502 starting at 9 a.m. Register anytime between 9 and noon, off the trail by 3 p.m. Group Walk starting at 9:30. Bring 2 cans of soup (chicken or beef broth based) – one for the pot and one for the Food Pantry. Cost is $3 if walking for credit (stamping books) or $2 if not .

We’ve got the latest newsletter for you here, below, with lots to see from last year and a description of what’s coming up for next year. Have a great new year and we would love to see you soon!

NWFT Jan-Feb 2019 Newsletter

2019 Annual meeting announcement

2018 Annual Meeting – one table of walkers

The Nebraska Wander Freunde Trailblazers holds an annual meeting each year, where friends mingle, club officers are installed and the identity of the Walker of the Year is revealed. Plan now to attend this year’s meeting on Saturday, January 19, 2019, at Valentino’s Pizza, 5022 S 108th Street, Omaha, NE 68137 . Social time starts at 5:30; dinner (buffet-style) at 6:00 p.m. The meeting follows the dinner.

Club members pay only $12. Non-members pay $17. All should send in their reservations by January 12th to the club address: NWFT, PO Box 8147, Omaha, NE 68108. You can also pay Butch Spaulding at the event. Do be sure to drop Butch an email with the number attending so that we have enough tables and chairs set up . If you don’t have his email address, send it to netrailblazers@gmail.com, and it will be forwarded to him.

Upcoming walks

The Lincoln Volkssport Club’s annual Wyuka Walk is still scheduled for tomorrow, Saturday, October 27th. Registration takes place at the City Impact Building, 1035 N 33rd St, Lincoln, NE 68503, from 8:45 a.m. to 11 a.m. Fun Walkers are FREE; Credit Walkers (people who get their books stamped) pay $3. The LVC asks walkers to be off the trail by 1 p.m., so arrive early enough to enjoy this annual stroll through peaceful Wyuka Cemetery and surrounding neighborhoods.

The Workers’ Walk for the Rita Eldrige Memorial Pie Walk will be held on Sunday at 3 p.m. Walkers should be advised that the restrooms will not be available before the walk and to arrive early enough to complete the registration process by 3 p.m. Two 5k loops will be featured.

The Blair Pie Walk on Saturday, November 3rd will honor the memory of Rita Eldrige, longtime Volkssporter and an integral member of the Nebraska Wander Freunde Trailblazers nearly since its beginning almost 40 years ago. Bring a pie to share and registration fees and enjoy walking in Blair, Nebraska! The registration point will be the Blair Police Department’s Training Center, right next to the police station at 1730 Lincoln Street. Registration will take place from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., off the trail by 3 (but if you come that late, the pies will be gone!) Registration is $1.50 for Fun Walkers and $3.00 for Credit Walkers. We donate leftover pie to the New Visions Homeless Shelter in Council Bluffs.

Those wishing to walk as a group should plan to set out at 9:30 a.m. for one or both 5 kilometer loops.

August 25th Club Outing – new dinner location

August 25th Club Outing – Ashland, NE Art Walk: Meet at Parker’s Smokehouse, 16880 US-6, Ashland, NE 68003, at 4 p.m. for an early supper, then stroll the streets of downtown Ashland as part of their Art Walk. No fee to participate; you are responsible for your own meal and any purchases you make.

Note: The previously announced meeting place was Cheri O’s in downtown Ashland.

Summertime 2018 happenings

Between our club outings and Meet and Eats, we’ve got a full line-up of summertime activities and walks planned. Come join us!

June 23rd – Meet and Eat – “5k Giving Walk”: Meet at the Gallup Parking Lot at 10 a.m. for a 5k walk celebrating our club’s 39th birthday. The twist? We’re giving the presents! Extras to give will be available. Lunch afterwards TBD. Fun Walkers pay $1.50; Credit Walkers pay $3.00.

July 4th Club Outing – Nebraska’s 4th of July City – Seward, NE 5k/10k: Meet at Seward’s Civic Center, 616 Bradford St, Seward, NE 68434 at 9 a.m. to walk the 10k, 9:30 a.m. to walk the 5k. Lunch afterwards at 11 a.m. at the Civic Center. Stay for a day of parades and fireworks! Fun Walkers pay $1.50; Credit Walkers pay $3.00.

August 25th Club Outing – Ashland, NE Art Walk: Meet at Cheri O’s, 1404 Silver St, Ashland, NE 68003, at 4 p.m. for an early supper, then stroll the streets of downtown Ashland as part of their Art Walk. No fee to participate; you are responsible for your own meal and any purchases you make.

September 7 – 9 Regional Roundup – North Central Region’s 6 walks and evening socials near Minneapolis, MN: Our club’s Butch Spaulding will be speaking in his role as the AVA’s Deputy Regional Director for the states of ND, SD, MN, WI, IA and NE during the Saturday evening social. Brochure available here: NC Regional Roundup – 2018

September 10th Club Meeting – Morning Star Lutheran Church: 7 p.m. club meeting starts with a speaker, is followed by club business and concludes with treats and social time. Lower level of the church at 331 S 85th Ave, Omaha, NE 68114. No fee.

September 15th – Malvern, IA Art Walk 5k/10k: Register between 8 and 11 a.m. at Classic Café, 315 Main St, Malvern IA to do either route. Stroll through a charming small town (Malvern) and open countryside (Wabash Trace Nature Trail). Walk past artist venues participating in the Southwest Iowa Art Tour, through the restored historic downtown and see many beautiful historic homes. Trail has both paved and crushed rock sections. Fun Walkers pay $1.50; Credit Walkers pay $3.00.

Club Events emails

Our club has added a biweekly email “Nebraska Trailblazers Club News” to remind you of upcoming events. Did you get yours yesterday? You can email us at netrailblazers@gmail.com to be added to the list. If you’re not on the list, the current email is available at our hosting service, MailChimp: https://mailchi.mp/8603d4208fac/upcoming-events?e=ea1bca85fb

We don’t want you to miss out on the upcoming great opportunities to walk – tomorrow’s Meet and Eat, Saturday, April 21st in Shelby, Iowa or the regular walk on Saturday, May 12th in far southwest Omaha. Subscribe today – and never miss a walk with the Trailblazers!

Happy New Year! 2018 walking opportunities

Happy New Year! Was one of your resolutions to do more walking? Our national organization, AVA: America’s Walking Club, has been promoting an online challenge called. “Invest in Your Health: 401k”. Look for more details at AVA.

Locally, you can join one of our Meet and Eats in January indoors at the Westroads Mall at 8 a.m. on January 20th. Walk 5k or 10k – then join the group for a Food Court late breakfast, early lunch or brunch!

Later that day, the NWFT holds its Annual Meeting and Dinner at 5:30 p.m. (social time for the first 1/2 hour – don’t miss it!) at Valentino’s Pizza at 5022 S 108th St, Omaha, NE 68137. Members pay only $12, non-members pay $17. Reservations are due to Butch Spaulding by January 12th, so make your reservation today! Enjoy a lovely evening with friends, celebrate with our 2017 Walker of the Year and close out last year’s business with the installation of our slate of club officers for 2018.

Members should be looking in the mail for their 20 page booklet full of walks and activities for 2018. What’s a non-member to do? Wait for an email – or better yet, join today! A membership form is available here.

Traditions – Old and New

Our club is fast approaching its 39^th birthday in March 2018 and has established traditions over the years. For example, there’s the March Soup Walk, the September Breakfast Walk, going to Lincoln for their annual Wyuka Walk, the November Pie Walk* and the December Lights Walk. There’s the annual “Walker of the Year” award, voted on by club members as having made a significant difference in the club’s operations that year. (Hey, have you sent your nomination to club president Lee Frantz yet?)

(If you know of or have access to a location that would be a great place to hold our Soup or Pie Walks, please let Sandy Spaulding know right away. The Committee is planning the club’s roster of 2018 walks and those are the 2 hardest walks to schedule, due to needing a kitchen and/or sinks and tables.)

New traditions respond to new trends in communication, walking, and enjoying the outdoors. For example, the National Trails Day Walk, the first Saturday in June, is a national walking and hiking day, which the club has put on a few times. There are our somewhat monthly “Meet and Eats”, promoting an extra walk in a month of one of our year-round walks or that of a neighboring club. And we’re rolling out a new “tradition”, that of #OptOutside.

#OptOutside is the hashtag, or identifier, used on Twitter to make a term searchable by other social media users. This one refers specifically to the idea of walking, hiking or enjoying the great outdoors on the Friday after Thanksgiving, rather than giving the day over to shopping. Our club and other walking clubs across the U.S. are organizing to offer #OptOutside events.

Our event will be a group walk of the Hanscom Park/Ford Birthsite Year Round Walk, either the 5k or the 10k. Folks will meet at the Hanscom Park Pavilion at 9:45 a.m. on Friday, November 24^th to sign paperwork and pay fees. ($1.50 Fun Walkers, $3.00 AVA/IVV credit, exact change much appreciated.) Groups will set out at 10 a.m. to work off some of that Thanksgiving turkey. Lunch together is a possibility – the Greek Islands or the 11-Worth Café are both nearby and local favorites.

*Reminder: Our annual Pie Walk is coming up on Saturday, November 4^th at Divine Shepherd Lutheran Church, 15005 Q Street, Omaha, NE from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. Off the trail by 3 p.m., but those pies will be packed up around 1, so if you’re planning to come later, plan to eat pie before you hit the trail. Where do all the pies come from? From walkers like you! Leftover pie is taken to a local homeless shelter, so non-cream pies travel best. Or eat the cream pies first!