Were you aware that UW-La Crosse had a Cheese Club? Well, you do now. Â Read more to find out what exactly this club is all about and all about the brothers who started it, including Joe Sokovich, president of the Cheese Club. There is more to this club than meets the eye!
What is your year in school? 5th year senior
When will you graduate? Fall of 2015
What is your major/minor? Accounting
Hometown: Watertown, WI
Tell me about the Cheese Club. What is its mission/purpose? What kind of events/activities does it involve, etc.?Â
The purpose of the Cheese Club is to offer students a place where they can enjoy and appreciate cheeses both from Wisconsin and around the world. We usually meet every other week, and there is always a different type of cheese to taste at each meeting! Last semester, our big event was hosting a cheese curd crawl where we visited five local businesses, tried their cheese curds and collectively voted to choose our favorite curd. This semester, we are organizing three events: a visit to a cheese factory, a Mac N Cheese Bake-off and a community involvement event where we will be providing cheese for a La Crosse Children’s Museum program called “Adult Recess: Say Cheese!”.
How did it all start? When was the Cheese Club founded, and how did you get involved? Were you one of the founders?
The Cheese Club was founded last spring. I was one of the founders along with my brother, Sam. Initially we only had a few members, and while we are still a fairly small club our membership has been increasing as we had over 20 people at our last meeting. Last year, I was the vice-president of the club but took over as president this year as my brother transferred schools.
What inspired you to start a Cheese Club?
My brother, Sam, really took the initiative to get the club started. He came up with the idea after talking to one of our friends who was involved in the Cheese Club at UW-Madison. We are both huge fans of cheese and felt that every campus in the state should have some club that shows appreciation to cheese. Once we had the idea, we became more inspired and excited as we thought about the many fun events that we could bring to the campus.
What do you hope to achieve with the Cheese Club?
I only have a semester left in school, but I hope to leave the Cheese Club with a solid foundation that it can build on by continuing to increase our membership throughout the semester. We have a great group of members that I’m sure will carry the club on in the future, but for now the goal is to host fun events and raise awareness for our club around the campus and the community.
What kinds of reactions have you gotten from the idea of a Cheese Club?
It has been awesome to see the reaction to the club. My brother and I had no idea if anyone would want to join a Cheese Club, and in our first semester we had trouble getting people excited about joining the club. However, we have continued to gain credibility and interest this semester. Our first meeting of the semester was packed with new members, and I have gotten numerous emails from other people interested in joining the club. I am hoping that this positive reaction continues to grow so that more people can enjoy our fun events and taste great cheese!
What do you enjoy most about the Cheese Club?
What I enjoy the most about the Cheese Club is that it is all about having fun. Our meetings are laid back and are focused on simply enjoying the cheese and the company of each other. The highlight for me was the cheese curd crawl last year. We had a blast walking around to the different businesses and eating a bunch of cheese curds. It was pretty cool to be a part of that afternoon and to see everyone enjoying the cheese and hanging out together.
Are you involved with anything else on campus?
I played four years of college basketball and was also involved with the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee on campus for two years. Unfortunately, I am out of eligibility for basketball now, but that has given me more time to focus on running the Cheese Club.
What is your favorite type of cheese, and what is your favorite food that involves cheese?
My favorite type of cheese is a 3-year aged cheddar. It has just the right combination of a crumbly texture and great flavor! My favorite food involving cheese is probably deep-fried cheese curds.
What plans do you have after you graduate?
I am fortunate to have a job lined up upon graduation at an accounting firm in Chicago called PricewaterhouseCoopers. I also plan to pass the CPA exam and become a certified accountant.Â