Ideas
Congratulations! Your club has been helping your community for 25, 50, 75 or 100 years. It’s time to celebrate. Here are some ideas to get your club started:
- Form a task force. Determine how many members your club needs to plan its anniversary events, who could be involved and what the task force could do.
- Request a custom anniversary logo free from Kiwanis.
- Set growth, service and/or fundraising goals for your club. Such as: 100 members by the end of your 100th anniversary year. Fundraising for The Children's Fund or any youth leadership programs; serving 100 children; raising more money for a project. The list is endless. Make sure it has an impact on your community and Kiwanis as a whole.
- Brainstorm celebration ideas. Involve members. Decide when your club will celebrate. Review the celebration ideas below.
- Contact the media. Make sure the local media knows about your anniversary celebrations. Not sure how to start? Use the templates provided for
media releases,
letters to the editor,
proclamations and use our flier template. Also, email pr@kiwanis.org if you need additional help.
- Participate in events throughout the year. Schedule special observances at your district conventions, attend the Kiwanis International convention. Host an open house for the community to showcase your service projects and youth leadership programs, and use that as a membership recruiting tool.
- Watch the July 2021 Lunch with a Leader to get ideas on a project for your club’s anniversary celebration.
Celebration ideas
Before selecting a project, answer the following questions so your club can determine the best fit:
- How would your club like to observe the anniversary? A party? A project? Brainstorm with club members. Once you have the answers, you can establish a task force or a committee to help with the details.
- How much time and how many people will be needed to accomplish our goals?
- What is the estimated budget for your project, and how will you raise the funds?
- If your club decides a project is best, what skills or contacts can members bring to the project? For example, is there an expert landscaper or carpenter in the group? Does someone in your club have a contact at city hall?
- What facilities or organizations (community center, shelter, park, homes, etc.) would benefit from hands-on service?
- What signature project would leave a lasting mark on the community?
- What types of projects are your members passionate about?
- Will your club involve Service Leadership Programs?
- Will you ask others outside the Kiwanis family to participate?
- Will your project or celebration attract media attention?
- Will your project appropriately reflect 100 years — or 75, 50 or 25 years — of Kiwanis service?
- Will your project create pride in membership and in our Kiwanis history?
- How can your project or celebration attract new members to Kiwanis?