Dr. Roula Al-Dahhak spoke at the Ambassadors morning meeting at the Lake Saint Louis Community Association Clubhouse on February 3, 2012.   Dr. Al-Dahhak is a neurologist at SSM St. Joseph Hospital West.  She talked about sports traumatic brain injuries.  She said that we have to be more conscious about concussions!   The Centers For Disease Control estimate that there are 1.6 to 3.8 million sports related concussions per year in the United States affecting athletes of all ages.  These injuries result in emergency room visits, hospitalization, and deaths.  Common causes include bicycling, football, playground activities, basketball, and soccer.  Dr. Al-Dahhak reviewed some of the physiological and structural changes of the brain associated with traumatic brain injury.   Pictured with her is Ambassador Del Moeller who also is a physician on staff at SSM St. Joseph Hospital West.

Ralph Sidebottom, Ambassador and member of the Lake Saint Louis Board of Aldermen, spoke about water and sewer line issues at the Ambassadors morning meeting at the LSL Community Association Clubhouse on January 27, 2012.   The state has made it legal for cities to offer insurance for residents to cover water and sewer line repairs on their property between the house and the main line.  All residents must pay for this (if approved at the April election) through their real estate taxes.  The initial cost will be $28 for sewer and $12 for water lines.   A maximum reimbursement for qualifying repairs of $7500 has been set.  More information may be found on the City website (http://www.lakesaintlouis.com/index.asp?&SEC={5F99E8B5-A908-488F-8BCE-A5D97DD6B978}).  Additionally, citizens will vote in the April election on a Board of Alderman recommendation to increase the City sales tax for repairs of storm water infrastructure needs and for infrastructure upgrades at City parks.   More information about this ballot issue may be found at http://www.newsmagazinenetwork.com/2012011814031/town-hall-set-to-explain-sales-tax-measure-on-lake-saint-louis-ballot/

Perry Eckhardt, Forester with the Missouri Department of Conservation, spoke at the Ambassadors meeting on January 20, 2012 at the Lake Saint Louis Community Association Clubhouse.   He answered many questions from members about issues with trees and shrubs around homes and elsewhere in Lake Saint Louis.  He covered proper ways to plant and care for trees, native and invasive species, and tree parasites and diseases - including the emerald ash borer.  Perry provided members with literature from the Missouri Department of Conservation.  More information can be found on the Conservation Department's website.

Jim Sharkey spoke about Lake Saint Louis Community Association By-Laws changes and the upcoming vote by membership at the Ambassadors morning meeting at the LSL Community Association Clubhouse on January 13, 2012.   Jim was appointed to an ad hoc committee of nine CA members to review the By-Laws beginning back in March 2011.  Proposed changes represent their good work as a committee, public hearings with CA members, and discussions with the CA Board.  The upcoming vote on changes to the By-Laws represent the highest priority items recommended by his committee.  Many of these items deal with spending strategies and authority of the Board.  The suggested changes, approved by the current Board, will increase CA  member participation in decisions, increase Board accountability, and safeguard CA funds.   Jim's committee also spent some time reviewing the CA  Covenants and Restrictions, past Board Resolutions, and the CA  Articles of Incorporation.  More information about the By-Law changes and membership vote may be found on the Community Association website.

Marty Limpert, Public Information Officer for the St. Charles County Ambulance District, spoke at the Ambassadors meeting on January 6, 2012, at the Lake Saint Louis Community Association Clubhouse.   Marty served as a police officer for many years before joining the ambulance district.  He said that the St. Charles County District is the largest ambulance district in the state and handles about 40,000 calls per year!   He took the time to describe two special programs:  File for Life (which provides medical information to first responders) and Rapid Access (which provides quick entry to homes through special locking devices).  More information may be found on the District's web site.  He also mentioned the importance of adding an ICE (In Case of Emergency) phone number to your cell phone address book.  First responders do check for this phone number!

On December 16, 2011, the Ambassadors had their annual holiday meeting with a performance of the Green Tree Elementary School Choir.   The presentation again was arranged by Ambassador George Humphries and directed by the school's music teacher, Julie Albertson.  Also attending were parents, brothers and sisters, and friends of the students.  Festive songs were sung and all enjoyed breakfast treats after the performance.

Andrew Vikman spoke about Wentzville School District's Ratchet Rockers Robotic Team on December 9, 2011, at the Ambassadors morning meeting at the Lake Saint Louis Community Association Clubhouse.   He talked about the student make-up of the team and its recent success (31st in the 2011 international competition held in St. Louis).  The Wentzville team is among 2100 teams around the world of which about 340 enter formal competition.  Andrew provides his mentoring as a parent volunteer because he recognizes the importance of this activity to student development in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics.  The Boeing Company is a sponsor of the Wentzville Robotics Team and features an article and video of the 2011 competition on its website.   For more information, including funding opportunities, check out the teams website.

Assistant Chief of Police of Lake Saint Louis and newly-published author Chris DiGiuseppi spoke at the Friday morning meeting on December 2, 2011, at the LSL Community Association Clubhouse.    Assistant Chief DiGiuseppi has spent 19 years in law enforcement including training at the FBI National Academy and Northwestern University School of Police Staff Command.  He described to the Ambassadors his experiences with his book, The Light Bringer, recently published by  Health Communications, Inc., of Deerfield Beach, Florida.  The book is fiction but based on real events in the life and work of Chris and co-author Mike Force, Chief of Police of Lake Saint Louis.  The book focuses on death, dealing with grief, and the "after life"; and captures the impact of police work on officers and families.   Chris and Mike plan three books on this topic.   Click on the book title to go to the authors' website.

Keith Stone, manager of the Lake Saint Louis office of Cuivre River Electric Cooperative, spoke at the Friday morning meeting on November 18, 2011, at the LSL Community Association Clubhouse.   Keith talked about current power plants that provide electricity to CREC and their use of coal and natural gas.  He said that CREC is committed to helping members of the cooperative conserve electricity to avoid future expansion of power plants.  CREC provides home and business energy audits and many useful ideas for saving energy and dollars.  This information is available on their website.  He also described CREC use of more sustainable sources of energy including wind, solar, biomass, and hydroelectric generation.

The Ambassadors were privileged  to hear a presentation by Roger Sandstedt, Lake Saint Louis resident and World War II veteran, at the Friday morning meeting on Veterans Day, November 11, 2011, at the LSL Community Association Clubhouse.   Mr. Sandstedt recounted some of his thoughts and missions as a gunner on a B-29 airplane in many parts of Asia.  He is the author of a 2003 book titled My B-29 Story:  A Top Gunner's World War II Experiences (click on the title to read more about this book).  Mr. Sandstedt held everyone's attention during the presentation and received a standing ovation at its conclusion!

Sarah Hoffman spoke at the Friday morning meeting on November 4, 2011, at the Lake Saint Louis Community Association Clubhouse.  Sarah is the manager of the US Bank facility in the Schnucks Grocery Store in Lake Saint Louis.  She said that her branch is a full service facility.   She enjoys her role in solving customer needs and problems, and told us that US Bank makes sure to hire staff that enjoy their jobs and are focused on customer relations and satisfaction.  She reviewed different types of accounts and services at US Bank and the ease of using debit cards.

Ambassador Scott Ellis spoke at the Friday morning meeting on October 28, 2011, at the Lake Saint Louis Community Association Clubhouse.    Scott picked this meeting at Halloween time to talk to members about the bats of Missouri.  He showed pictures of common species that occur in the state and described their summer and winter habits.  All Missouri bats are insect eaters and catch their prey using echolocation.  Mostly this occurs at night while both bat and insect are in flight.  Many species migrate to caves during the winter and hibernate.