A MESSAGE FROM
2020-2021 Governor Mary-Lynn Desjarlais
“You can’t go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending.”
C.S. Lewis
It is hard to believe that we are in June already. I am so happy that many of our Kiwanis members have been vaccinated and they feel comfortable meeting in person again. Our Lieutenant Governors are reporting that our clubs are meeting in person and many are meeting in person and on Zoom (hybrid meetings). We need to get in the habit again of meeting in person. There is more energy, more synergy and more fellowship when we gather together. Too many people have become “zoom lazy.” It is time to get out of our chairs and get moving again!
I was very please at how many Florida Kiwanis members signed up to attend virtually the Education and Leadership Conference to replace the 2021 Kiwanis International Convention (ICON). The cost is $39 to attend virtually - you can still sign up! Do it quickly and do not procrastinate. The 2021 board elections will be conducted by the Kiwanis International Council. Joe and I are attending in person to campaign for our own Chuck Gugliuzza in his campaign for Kiwanis International Vice-President. Chuck has ALWAYS voted for what was best for the rank and file members of Kiwanis, he has always been fiscally sound and careful with our Kiwanis dues and how they are spent. He is a phenomenal membership generator and it was my great pleasure to serve as his Fundraising Chair when he was the Florida Governor.
Let’s get moving on attending our Florida District Convention. Your club should have voted on your officers (make sure your secretary reports the election results). Please meet and decide on your club delegates for the District Convention. FLORIDA DISTRICT CONVENTION (DCON) is going to be in person August 5-8, 2021. Registration is open. We are using the Key Club Keymmunities program, so you will see the Key Club mentioned. All the links you'll need are below. We have a super venue at The Diplomat Hotel in Hollywood. They just finished a $100 Million renovation, and we have the super price of $129 (plus taxes) per night. It is time to celebrate together and network as Kiwanians! Register soon for the room as nights are filling up.
Deb McNulty, our Education Chair, and I have developed a New Member Orientation to help our new members figure out our acronyms, what we do at District and International level, and all sorts of useful information. Please read her article and encourage your members to attend. Come join us on June 5th or June 9th. Each club should have their own New Member Orientation to let your members know about your projects and the club expectations for their involvement.
I personally sent emails to all of the recent new members using the emails sent to KI. Basically the email said “Greetings NEW KIWANIS MEMBERS! You now have another "family" and I want to personally welcome you into the Kiwanis Family. You have recently joined (in the last 1.5 years the COVID years), and we want to give a special introduction to you explaining what Kiwanis is and how much fun you can have in the organization.
Remember what you get out of Kiwanis, is a direct result of what you put into Kiwanis! You CAN change the life of a child, and through Kiwanis the lives of MANY children. Come join us and learn about how Kiwanis works and what you can do to help!”
I am committed to finishing strong for the end of my Governor year. Let’s start working on setting up a BUG program next year at our elementary schools. We need to be VERY involved with our Key Clubs to help them start meeting again, joining in our projects, their projects and support them in their membership efforts. CKI is working hard on revitalizing after the colleges and universities basically shut them down. They need our help.
Remember WHY you joined Kiwanis. We are reemerging after COVID. Let your club blossom and grow. Think about how much we can help and improve our community.
“You can’t go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending.”
C.S. Lewis
Go Kiwanis!
Mary-Lynn Desjarlais
Governor - Florida District of Kiwanis International
#KidsNeedKiwanis #HelpKiwanisHelpChildren
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DCON Registration is OPEN! |
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Use the buttons below for direct access to: |
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Our annual Caring Corner event will be held at the Florida Kiwanis District Convention on August 5th - 8th.
We will continue the tradition of hosting a silent auction with amazing baskets and other items to raise funds for our Service Leadership Programs (SLPs). All proceeds from Caring Corner will assist our Service Leadership Programs with leadership and development training. Today we need your leadership and participation more than ever. Below are ways you can help!
Club Donations: Please join us today in supporting future leaders at the $250 level or higher for the clubs that have not donated. If this is not feasible, your club can show your dedication to our SLPs with your financial contribution in any amount. Please make checks payable to “Florida Kiwanis Foundation” and write Caring Corner on the memo line. All checks should be mailed to Florida Kiwanis Foundation at 1001 Mayport Rd. #331433 - Atlantic Beach, FL 32233.
Gift Baskets: I am excited to be working with the Lt. Governors on their division gift baskets for the silent auction. LET’S STAY TOGETHER!
Again, thank you for your ongoing participation in the Caring Corner!
Sincerely,
Sharon Moody - Vice Governor and Caring Corner Chair
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ICON Registration Extended! |
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Virtual Registration ends June 7th! Register now! |
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News From Your District Chairs |
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My name is Heather Locke, and I am the new District Administrator for the Florida District of Key Club International. I am excited to update all of you on the latest happenings from Florida Key Club. Since April, our 21-22 District Board has been hard at work; all of our Lt. Governors have sent out monthly newsletters and have begun hosting their first Divisional Council Meetings. Our District Governor, Arianna, alongside our Executive Committee, has been focused on planning an exciting and educational Leadership Training Conference for our District Board in June.
As we are hopefully nearing the end of COVID-19, our Key Clubs need the support of their sponsoring Kiwanis Clubs more than ever. During the summer months, I hope all Kiwanis advisors can meet with their Key Club officers and faculty advisor to begin strengthening relations for the 21-22 service year. During these meetings, you should discuss how your Kiwanis club can support Key Club, what projects you would like them to help with, and even begin planning a joint event together. This is a great time to invite them to your events or provide them with more information about them. When we all come together to work under one common goal, our impact is limitless.
As your Kiwanis Club begins drafting the 21-22 Budget, I hope you can all allocate some resources to support your sponsoring Key Club(s). Your Kiwanis club can help sponsor Key Club members to go to DCON, support their service projects, sponsor their installation ceremony, and much more. When Kiwanis advisors meet with their Key Clubs, they can discuss this critical topic with the club board and Faculty advisor.
Thank you all so much for all the hard work you do to support our students!
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My name is Selin Kavak, and I am a rising second-year student at the University of Florida studying public health. This year, I have the honor of serving as the Florida CKI District Governor. This year’s Governor’s Project is called Building Back as it lays the foundation for a recovery and recruitment plan for our District to bounce back from the effects of the pandemic, including a membership decrease. The project has a three-tier focus that addresses the member, club, and district level equally. Focusing on recruitment, club engagement, and community involvement, we are emphasizing Kiwanis Family relations and fellowship. Our board set goals of 520 members, 10 new or reactivated clubs, and 8,840 service hours. Our service goal is based on an average of 17 service hours per member. Our board is looking forward to working towards these goals and growing our District.
Kiwanis has an important role to play in CKI’s growth goals. What is needed to attract and retain members in a CKI club is like what is needed in a Kiwanis club. College students want to be involved in community service and look for organizations that are active. Kiwanis clubs can assist by inviting CKI clubs to participate in their projects, even plan joint projects, and you don’t have to sponsor the CKI club you engage. College students are particularly interested in hands-on projects. In addition, Kiwanis help in reactivating inactive clubs and chartering new clubs will help assure success in Florida CKI achieving its growth goals. If you would like more information on how your Kiwanis club can partner with CKI or charter or reactivate a club, contact Governor Selin or District Administrator David below.
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How can Kiwanians help to prevent childhood drownings?
Sponsor a
Life Jacket Loaner Station.
This program began in 1997 in Alaska to reduce the number of drownings on boats. It has expanded to beaches, lakes and anywhere where families and children gather near the water. Families borrow a life jacket, use it, and put it back when done.
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Collier County has been a model for expanding this program. The East Naples Kiwanis Club sponsored the first station at Sugden Park and continues to sponsor it. There are 15 stations throughout Collier County, and they are sponsored by various organizations and businesses.
The station costs approximately $1,500 unless donations are received to reduce the cost. Many of these stations have lumber donated by Lowe’s or Home Depot with private builders donating their labor. Some of the stations have been built by the parks and recreation departments of the county. West Marine gives a deep discount on the life jackets, costing approximately $14 per jacket with 20 jackets per station. They are replaced approximately every 7 to 9 months.
The sign above the station indicates that “Kids Don’t Float, Give Them Something That Does." An additional sign lists the donors of the station. In Collier County, the Coast Guard Auxiliary helps to maintain the station, to let the organization know when the life jackets need to be changed or the station needs to be repaired. It is recommended that you partner with as many organizations as you can to support the station.
As you may know, drowning is the number one cause of death in children ages 1 to 4, and it is 100% preventable. Our KDPP program has 3 Critical Facets: Education, Service and Fundraising. They include layers of protections such as swim lessons, door alarms and other safety devices, learning CPR, sponsoring Life Guard training, educating preschoolers to “Never Swim Alone” and more.
Through your Kiwanis club and your Key Clubs, you can save children’s lives by funding swim lessons, purchasing door alarms to give to your community, sponsoring education seminars for parents about water safety, and holding fundraisers. Your Key Clubbers can learn to be life guards and swim instructors so that community pools can hold more swim lessons, and they can fundraise to pay for swim lessons for children.
To date in 2021, there have already been 41 child drownings – 71% of them being under 3 years old. It is imperative to help families understand these statistics, and to help them protect their children. Our Kiwanis clubs can do that! To follow these statistics, please go to www.myflfamilies.com to see if any of these child drownings are in your county. To learn more about Collier County’s life jacket loaner stations, go to www.watersmartcollier.com. Please contact me below regarding dimensions and other specific information.
Thank you to all the Kiwanis Clubs who have taken on a Drowning Prevention Program and to those who will do so in the near future. Together, we can all save lives, and I am happy to help you accomplish that.
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Visit the Kiwanis International partners page to review some great partners that Kiwanis has aligned with to help the clubs with fundraising or discounts for members. Please check often as they do change with adding new ones or delete some that are not working for our benefit. Some of them offer large discounts for the clubs that are doing projects
Please also remember to attend our
Corporate Partnership workshop at DCON!
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New Member Orientation
Introducing Quarterly New Member Training
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Finding new members presents Kiwanis Clubs with a big enough challenge, but for some, finding the time to properly introduce their new members to “everything that is Kiwanis” can be even more daunting. Fundamental knowledge about “Serving the Children of the World” can easily fall through the cracks.
That’s why Florida Kiwanis Governor Mary Lynn Desjarlais and her Education Chair, Debbie McNulty, have developed a unique and engaging New Member Training to cover everything from basic Kiwanis structure to club dues to behind-the-scenes operations. There is even a section on “Beyond your Home Club” to encourage new members to get involved in SLP projects, interclubs, DCMs and even District Convention.
This new program kicks off with a choice of one of two ZOOM sessions, each approximately 90 minutes long:
Saturday, June 5th at 9am
Tuesday, June 8th at 7pm
Invitations have already been sent out to more than 400 members, all of which joined the Kiwanis family in the last 18 months. Please encourage your recently added members to participate. It is our hope that this training instills a passion for new members to get actively involved with their new-found Kiwanis family. Individual clubs are still encouraged to provide their own new member orientation to introduce each club’s unique character and focus, but we hope that this District-sponsored training will help move new members to an enlightened understanding of what Kiwanis is and why Kids Need Kiwanis!
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Club Leadership Education |
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Submit Club Election Results Online
The May 15th deadline for your elections has passed! If your club has not yet completed your elections, please do so as soon as possible. These elections can be done in person or virtually on a platform such as Zoom. Once you have elected your officers, the Secretary will need to complete the Election Report in the Kiwanis portal so we can ensure all incoming officers have an opportunity to train.
Are you ready to lead?
Club Leadership Education Part 1, hosted by Kiwanis International, will be held live online during the week of July 19th for all Presidents, Secretaries, Treasurers, and Membership Committee Members. The training is only 1 hour and is specifically geared toward how to perform the
duties of those specific positions. These sessions are open to all Kiwanis members.
Part 2 of CLE, the District Interactive Training, will be hosted by Florida CLE trainers and held between July 24th and July 31st. The District Interactive Training will be a hands-on meeting to help your club plan for success in the
new Kiwanis year. So, if you want to get the most out of the event and the future Kiwanis year, we encourage you to invite your potential leaders in addition to your incoming officers and make this training a mini club retreat!
Keep an eye out for communication from your local Lieutenant Governor
and CLE trainer for the date, time, and logistics for each Division’s specific training. Both trainings are mandatory for incoming officers.
Become a Trainer
We are always looking for experienced members to help train the future leaders of Florida Kiwanis. If you have served as an officer of your club and have a passion for Kiwanis you may be eligible for a 3-year appointment to train other officers in your Division. Being a past Lieutenant
Governor is recommended but not mandatory. If you are interested, please reach out to Prairy or Jeremy below.
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Foundation: Jubilee Webinar Series |
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As the kick-off to its 50th anniversary celebration, the Florida Kiwanis Foundation is launching four-part Jubilee Webinar Series focusing on early childhood development hosted by Dr. Wil and Rachel Blechman.
Each of the webinars will take place at 7 p.m.
on June 30, July 7, July 14, and July 21.
“We are thrilled to have Dr. Wil and Rachel host this webinar series,” said Florida Kiwanis Foundation Executive Director Alison Lauer. “The Blechmans’ lifelong passion for education advocacy, and research of childhood development has impacted the way Kiwanians view these critical early years. They have served Florida, our nation and our international
community for more than 30 years.”
Dr. Wil, the 2018 Chiles Advocacy Award recipient for his decades of work on behalf of children, served as President of Kiwanis International, 1990-1991, during which time he introduced the Young Children Priority One (YCPO) program to Kiwanis clubs around the globe. It was Rachel’s college background and ongoing interest in early child development that served as the stimulus that led Dr. Wil to introduce YCPO, which focuses on children from the prenatal period to age five.
The first webinar on June 30 was entitled ‘Why Early Childhood Development?’ and focused on the significance of ages 0-5 in the development of the individual and his/her impact on society. Dr. Wil was joined by Dr. Peter Gorski, pediatrician and professor at Florida International University. Subsequent webinars are titled ‘Why Are Early Childhood Educators So Important? (July 7), ‘What Steps Are Needed For Optimal Early Childhood Development?’ (July 14) and ‘What Can We Do?’ (July 21).
In addition to kicking-off its 50th anniversary celebration, the exciting webinar series also highlights the Wil and Rachel Blechman Fund which has several levels of giving opportunity for individuals, clubs and divisions to honor the Blechmans. Monies raised for the Blechman Fund will be awarded in the form of grants to Florida Kiwanis clubs for projects specifically benefitting children 0 to 5 years old.
“The Wil and Rachel Blechman Fund represents the continuation of Young Children Priority One here in Florida and should be supported by Kiwanians, clubs and divisions throughout the District,” said Florida District Governor Mary-Lynn Desjarlais. “After all, helping kids is our Kiwanis mission.”
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Young Children: Priority One |
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Check out this amazing TEDTalk by Liz Huntley:
Be A Game Changer!
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Liz Huntley, a successful lawyer and children's advocate, didn't start out where you might expect. Born into abject poverty, she shares the story of how a game-changing teacher set her on the right path, and challenges us to see the opportunities for us to have a similar impact in others' lives. |
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Kiwanis Club of Stuart Raises Funds
for Sensory Garden, Park Renovation
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The Kiwanis Club of Stuart, one of Martin County’s most active and involved community service organizations, recently raised $71,000 that will go towards the construction of a Sensory Sensitive Garden Play area as part of a renovation of Kiwanis Youth Park at Woodlawn in downtown Stuart.
Partnering with March for Maddie, a fund established by Jeff and Malia Schramm in 2013 after their two-1/2-year-old daughter, Maddie, passed away from medical issues since birth, the two organizations held a Park After Dark dinner at Kiwanis Youth Park featuring dinner, auctions and raffles. The Sensory Sensitive Garden play area, which is geared towards children with autism, sensory or physical issues, will be named Maddie’s Garden.
According to Cher Fisher, president of the Kiwanis Club of Stuart, Maddie’s Garden will be just one part of the overall planned $700,000 renovation of the park built in the ‘90s. The renovation will also include a separate ‘tot lot’ for two-to-five year old children as well as an area for 5-12 year-olds which will feature a two-story slide, rock climbing wall and a ropes course.
“Kiwanis Youth Park is an extremely popular part of the culture here in Stuart,” Fisher explained. “But as the popularity has grown, so has the need to make certain areas more accessible to physically challenged kids and kids with sensory issues. For those children, Maddie’s Garden will be a small, quiet area for two or three kids at a time.”
So far, proceeds from the Manatee Island Ladies Fishing Tournament, online magic show and the Park After Dark event have raised a total of more than $112,000. Once Maddie’s Garden is complete, the remaining funds will go towards the renovation of the overall park.
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A gourmet dinner at the Kiwanis Youth Park at Woodlawn was part of the fundraising efforts of
the Kiwanis Club of Stuart.
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Unique gift baskets, artwork and fine wines were just some of the items auctioned off as part of the $71,000 raised in the Kiwanis Club of Stuart’s Park After Dark event. |
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A Kiwanis tree, featuring 28 Kiwanis ornaments, sold for $1,000 at the Park After Dark event.
Decorated by Kiwanians Mercedes Matthews and Virginia Hill, the unique tree was just one of dozens of items auctioned off during the evening.
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Division 23 & 24
Christmas in July
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One of the largest projects around the district is Christmas in July, a joint division project of Divisions 23 and 24 in Broward County, where clubs provide new underwear (including diapers, pull-ups, wipes), socks, shoes, clothing, school supplies, book bags, reading books, and toiletries on an annual basis to over 4,500 homeless children in living in shelters and foster group homes around the county.
Thankfully, the pandemic has not deterred these Kiwanians' efforts, as the event has continued to provide in 2020 and 2021, when distribution pivoted to a "drop-off" model. Christmas in July hopes to return to its day-of-fun distribution event next year, when clubs hope to be able to bring all the children to the BB&T Center to continue the fun traditions.
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