Kiwanis Grand Rapids

Hillary Sawyer with the Boys & Girls Clubs of Grand Rapids talked about their locations and Camp O’Malley. Membership is only $5/year. The clubs boast that 98% of members graduate high school, 84% maintain A’s and B’s in coursework.

Brenda, gave the club a two part talk on what she learned from the Kiwanis ONE (Ovation, Networking, Education) event that she attended. It featured discussions on the new Kiwanis Engage website, Amplify, Law Enforcement Career Academy, mental health programs and much more.

Maggie Lancaster and Nicolette Chambery from the Grand Rapids Children’s Museum gave us on overview of the museum, emphasizing the Museums for All and Pay What you Can Family Memberships. They offer reduced admission rates to encourage attendance by people of all income levels.

Sister Adriana Gazzera from the Consolata Missionary Sisters spoke about their mission and specifically their school in Djibouti. The School for All is for physically and mentally disabled children. They have between 25-30 students. consolatasisters.org

Kristy Blackmore from Paws With A Cause brought Chewy to our meeting. Started in Grand Rapids and are headquartered in Wayland with a network in more than 20 states. They can provide personal dogs for individuals and also facility dogs for schools, hospitals and workplaces.

Megan Erskine from Catherine’s Health Center gave us an update. They began as a volunteer-run clinic and have expanded to provide medical, dental, and behavioral health care at several locations. Recently they added a mobile health van to serve the homeless community.

Potential new member, Justin Balczak with Prime Edge Media, came to speak. He has a social media marketing system that helps businesses in the competitive marketplace. They create tailored content and strategic consistency to keep the brand in the public eye.

Instead of the in person speaker, this Thanksgiving week our president suggested this TED Talk: ted.com/talks/eric_coo…

Sgt. Joy Matthews with the Kent County Mounted Unit spoke about the history of the patrol. They enforce laws, perform crowd control to maintain public safety, search and rescue missions, and community policing effectiveness through high visibility with officers on horseback.

On Veterans Day we viewed two videos that commemorate the bravery, valor and dedication of Veterans to this country. youtube.com/watch?v=ARSOrB… youtube.com/watch?v=mrDJvw…

Virginia Scholtan with Young at Heart talked about their senior enrichment programs. They are supported in part by the Kent County Senior Millage. Adults over 55 engage with others and enrich their lives with activities like Tai Chi, woodcarving, cooking, and cultural events.

The Kiwanis of MI Governor Cindy Greening visited the club. She spoke about the declining membership in Kiwanis and the challenge to bring in new members. The district will have a Fall Leadership Conf. in Nov. She gave us examples of projects from her club supporting children.

After working with several nonprofits in NE Grand Rapids, Michelle Hatfield branched out on her own. She started, LIFT – Lifting Individuals for Today. One of her first programs is recreating a Christmas store where families can shop for presents at pennies on the dollar.

Marilyn Kehr with Family Futures talked about how they help children during the first 5 years of a child’s life, which are critical for development. They provide resources, education & support to parents and caregivers. In Kent County 10,000 kids are connected to their programs.

Tom Kozura with the FAA discussed the aircraft incident and accident investigations in the state of Michigan. His focus was on this fiscal year but he also discussed a few of his memorable events over the past decade.

The Key Club held their Division 4 Officer Training Conference. Bill Weitzel attended and met the future leaders of Key Club. He talked about the relationship between Kiwanis and Key Club and how we and work together.

Instead of the normal in person speaker we decided to have a video presentation and the club voted to hear “Overcoming the illusion of division in America” by Monica Harris. youtu.be/KDjVFv3_c_g?si…

Secretary Linda Paige gave Dr. Fahner our annual check of $3,000 for the We Do Care fund, which our own Frank Archer founded in 1986. It helps families with things like gas money, groceries, bus passes, hotels, and even childcare. Their annual golf outing raised over $25,000.

Dr. James Fahner provided the club with an update from the Helen DeVos Children's Hospital. The hospital is one place that never says ‘NO” to children and families. They will always find a way to help every child that needs care sometimes with new treatments and research.

Brenda spoke about the Kiwanis Great Lakes Conference in Kalamazoo. She attended several of the educational workshops and expressed the emphasis on building relationships and in turn growing club membership. Key Club members attended and even led the group in singing Karaoke.