Austin Jaycees on verge of shutdown; needs new members

The Austin Jaycees are on the verge of shutting down, but hope remains high that the group will recover.

Jaycees President Amie Klouse called a meeting Wednesday night to figure out ways to gather more members. The Jaycees chapter needs to have a minimum of 20 members to stay active, but currently has 19.

“Basically, we only need one more member by the end of the month,” said Jaycees member Danielle Nesvold.

There are four to five members who are about to “age out” of the Jaycees by exceeding the age cutoff of 40 years, and they will need to be replaced by younger members, she said. Only one needs to be replaced right now, but each of the other members has to renew on the anniversary of the month they join, and those dates will trickle out one at a time.

Nesvold said that while calling Wednesday’s meeting had everyone prepared for tense circumstances, the tone ended up being one of excitement. The group etched out ways to encourage new members, including getting word out through Facebook, and future projects it could do.

“We’re not worried about replacing the ones that are aging out, but we’re looking forward to some new blood,” Nesvold said.

Austin Jaycees has been floating between 20 and 25 members for the last three or four years, she said. She expects the number will be back above 20 soon.

“We’re definitely getting a lot of interest from people wanting to join,” she said

The Jaycees do service work for the community geared toward children, including raising money for Christmas gifts, gathering money for school supplies and running a children’s fishing event. The organization helps members build leadership skills along the way.

“I find it a very valuable membership for me,” Nesvold said.

SportsPlus

Brownsdale

Cedar River project makes use of local company’s hardware

Education

‘How can I make a difference?’

Education

Photos: Austin HS holds mock election

Mower County

In Your Community: International Paper awards $2K to fire department

Mower County

In Your Community: Brownsdale Study Club enjoys Winona outing

Mower County

In Your Community: Horticulture Society invites public to next meeting

Mower County

In Your Community: Duplicate Bridge

Mower County

In Your Community: Mower County Senior Center

Crime, Courts & Emergencies

Convictions: Oct. 14-21

News

US employers added just 12,000 jobs last month as hurricanes and strikes sharply reduce payrolls

Mower County

Rochester man charged with criminal sexual conduct

News

Musk tests the role of money in U.S. politics with multimillion-dollar effort to back Trump

News

Should Minnesota continue to put lottery dollars toward the environment?

Mower County

Photos: Tricks, treats and smiles at Comforcare

Crime, Courts & Emergencies

Woman in pull-tab scheme to serve jail time

Crime, Courts & Emergencies

APD searching for armed robbery suspect

Mower County

Active Transportation Planning Assistance grants now available

Blooming Prairie

Local FFA Member Awarded National American FFA Degree

Mower County

Austin Noon Lions kick up a party with 80th anniversary Hootenanny

Mower County

Austin Page Turners make selection for 23rd annual city wide reading event

Business

Kilpatrick selected as CRC’s newest regional business manager

Education

10 tutors needed in Austin to help students with reading, math

Business

KSMQ selected for Public Media Digital Transformation Program

News

A decade of racial justice activism transformed politics, but landmark reforms remain elusive