Back in 2002 Grand Vice President-Fraternal Kim Krueger, at that time her title was Fraternal Activities Coordinator, and Lee Vogel, the man who was Grand Vice President-Fraternal at the time, started a group for junior members called the Future Club. Its members are known as Shining Stars. The premise of the club was to encourage junior members of all ages to join, at no cost, so they could participate in contests and gather once a year to enjoy an outing with their Hermann Sons family. As of April 1, 2017, the number of members in this club has climbed to an outstanding 681.

The first Shining Stars Family Fun Day was held in the summer of 2003. The first few were held at Fiesta Texas and Sea World. Since I have been here (since 2008) it has been held at Schlitterbahn in New Braunfels.

When I first came to work at the Grand Lodge one of my first jobs in this department was to receive the new Shining Star applications, add them to the ever-growing spreadsheet and make sure that they were featured in an upcoming issue of the Herman Sons News. (For more information on joining the Shining Stars, click here.) Getting the photos and information on all these junior members was a fun part of my job.

As that first summer approached it was my job to help Kim with getting out the invites and making sure that all the tickets were mailed to the attendees. My kids were so excited to attend that year but with my littlest being 2 at the time and my oldest being in baseball that first Family Fun Day was quite the adventure for my family. (Kim and I have a great laugh about that every year!)

The event has grown in popularity every year and so after last year’s event Kim and I started talking about the possibility of opening up the event to all Herman Sons members – not just the Shining Stars. After talking with our representatives at Schlitterbahn we have made that a reality this year!

We invite all members to come and enjoy a day of family, fun and food with us! On June 17, all of Hermann Sons will have a Family Fun Day at Schlitterbahn in New Braunfels. Just complete the order form that has all the information on this upcoming event. Anyone wanting to attend may purchase a discounted ticket to Schlitterbahn that will include lunch. We will have a designated picnic area reserved for Hermann Sons all day at the Surfenburg location! This is where you can check in, find a place to put your stuff and come back later for the catered lunch. Last year we had more 475 people attend this event and we would love to see many more this year!

For more information please click on this link or call the Fraternal Department at 210-226-9261 or 800-234-4124 Monday-Friday from 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m.

We look forward to seeing all of you this year!