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Kiwanis
Scholarships Each year, the Tuscola Kiwanis Club selects at least two graduating high school seniors for a $750 scholarship each. Candidates submit an application to the club, and a sub-committee reviews and selects the winners. The winners are announced during the Honors Night celebration at the high school. Previous winners:
Note: Four scholarships were awarded in 2009, our two regular scholarships plus an extra funded by five members who donated their election judge pay, and Sherrie and Tim Hoel who funded the fourth scholarship in memory of Mabel and Gale Hoel, Tim's parents and long-time Kiwanians. This fourth scholarship was earmarked for a TCHS Key Club member; the TCHS Key Club was chartered during the 2008/2009 school year. In 2008, four scholarships were awarded; our two regular scholarships plus an extra funded by Gary Weber in memory of his wife, and club member, Carole and another funded by Kiwanis International due to our club's growth achievement.
The Tuscola Kiwanis Club sponsors a Key Club at the Tuscola Community High School. There are two co-advisors from our Kiwanis Club and a faculty advisor, Darcey Helmick. Key Club is the oldest
and largest service program for high school students. What
makes Key Club so successful is the fact that it is a
student-led organization that teaches leadership through
serving their community and others. As members of the
Kiwanis International family, Key Club members build
themselves as they build their schools and communities.
The Key Club motto is “Caring: Our Way of Life.” Their mission statement is: “Key Club is an international student-led organization which provides its members with opportunities to provide service, build character and develop leadership.” Their vision is: “To develop competent, capable, and caring leaders through the vehicle of service.” Key Club membership is open to high school students who wish to provide service to their school, community and others. Membership provides opportunities for leadership development and scholarships. Every club elects its own officers annually - a president, vice-president, secretary, treasurer and editor. Every Key Club also has the authority to select its own service projects.
K-Kids is the youngest and fastest growing service organization for elementary students worldwide. These clubs are ideally suited for students in grades 1 through 5 (ages 6 to 12). K-Kids is a "student-led" community-service organization, which operates under school regulations and draws its members from the student body. The K-Kids' pledge:"As a K-Kid, I promise to serve my neighborhood and my school; I will show respect toward my environment; and I will try to make the world a better place in which to live." The K-Kids' motto is "We Build," and its objectives are:
During the school year, Tuscola K-Kids participate in community and world-wide projects. Previous projects have included donating and planting a tree at their school, raising money for Chernobyl children and washing teachers' cars during Teacher Appreciation Week. Tuscola Kiwanis club recognizes and thanks the Tuscola K-Kids with certificates and gifts. Club members host wiener/marshmallow roasts and ice cream parties during the school years for the K-Kids.
"BUG" "BUG" is a program that gives students a goal of improving their grades. East Prairie Elementary School and the Tuscola Kiwanis have teamed up to administer and support this very worthwhile effort. Students receive awards for making improvements in their grades.
The Tuscola Kiwanis Club is proud to be part of such a worthwhile program!
Making Trauma Dolls
for Kids in Need
Trauma dolls are
hand-made by club members for children. Currently, the club
provides our trauma dolls to Crisis Nursery in Urbana. the Douglas
County ambulance services and the Tuscola Fire Department. These dolls serve two purposes:
1) To comfort children whose lives have much turmoil 2) To provide
enjoyment and purpose to club members who get together to make the
dolls for this good cause. A member generously opens their home to other members for trauma doll workshops. A single workshop usually completes 25-35 dolls. Please join us for food, fun and fellowship with other Kiwanians when the next workshop is announced.
Showing the Kiwanis Spirit at Local Events
The Kiwanis Float for the 2005 Tuscola Harvest Fest Parade The Traveling Gavel Tradition Each October, the Illinois-Eastern Iowa District Governor presents each new Division Lt. Governor with a handsome, personalized gavel. The Lt. Governor sets up a schedule for the clubs in his or her division to pass the gavel from club to club within twelve months. The purpose is to generate Interclub visits. The gavel must be delivered in some unique way, and finally returns to the lieutenant governor before the end of his or her term. Great creativity or culinary expertise is appreciated when presenting the traveling gavel. Clubs have presented the gavel with customized chocolate and caramel gavels, built into a bird house packed with birdseed, frozen in a block of ice, suspended in a pan of lime Jell-O, dropped from an airplane in a bag of flour, and buried in a basket of Easter eggs. Clubs enjoy this tradition both for the creative ideas and the opportunity to enjoy the delivery! Meeting With Other Kiwanians An Outing It was a rainy, dreary evening on October 2005, when four brave souls assembled for a monthly experience. They were about to embark on an adventure of meeting people in a distant city and experiencing new people belonging to the same family. It rained during their entire journey on Route 36 West, it rained during the maneuvering through the city of Decatur and it continued to rain on the northern stretch of Route 51. Fortunately, our four brave souls had a great gps (global positioning system) in the person of their own poet laureate who seemed to know where they were going. They finally arrived at a little building in Clinton, Illinois, marked with our family emblem. Moving quickly from car to building, trying to avoid the water filled pot-holes, they made it safely inside. The room seemed to be ready for an interesting meeting with placemats announcing projects, fundraising proposals and activities for the coming year. As it happened, they were not the only visitors this night for these Clinton family members. There was another family group from Decatur delivering a “traveling gavel” to this family branch. In this particular delivery, the gavel was wrapped in layers and layers of duct tape so it took the president, who had to unwrap it, quite some time. The “traveling gavel” is like any gavel that a president of a family club would use to open and close a family meeting. However, the “traveling gavel” is moved from club to club (family to family) so that all the club families in a district receive it every year, and each club must deliver it to the next club as assigned by the district. Each club tries to make their delivery, with the gavel wrapped in an innovative way, so that it is fun and difficult to get to it. By visiting the other clubs in their district, and also in other districts, we meet other members of our KIWANIS family, and share ideas about projects and fundraising activities. The best way to do this is to sign up for an inter-club meeting! TUSCOLA KIWANIS CLUB THE friendliest club (so proclaimed by others; not our brag) Submitted by Ed Wachala Helping Out Other Worthwhile Causes Frequently, members volunteer their time to help the community with other activities.
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