Find out what’s inside “A Century of Service,” the new book celebrating Key Club’s 100th anniversary.

By Erin Chandler 

To celebrate the 100th anniversary of Key Club in 2025, we decided to create something big: a hardcover “coffee-table” book full of pictures and fun facts spanning Key Club’s entire first century! “A Century of Service” is available for purchase now in the Kiwanis Family Store. 

Here are five things you can look forward to seeing in the Key Club centennial book: 

• Key Club history. Have you ever wondered exactly when and how Key Club got started? Who the Nininger Award was named for? When women first joined Key Club — and how they participated in service projects and conventions before that? All those answers and more can be found in the book’s timeline, profiles of Key Club heroes, lists of award recipients and tons of photos that give glimpses into Key Club history. 

• Evolving fashion. You only have to look at the gallery of past Key Club presidents to see how trends have come and gone. Behold how the excessive use of hair products in the 1940s gives way to the crew cuts of the 1950s, only to return in the first decade of the 2000s. Judge which era boasted the snazziest neckties. Compare the style of a 1978 dance marathon to one in 2012. Photos of vintage Key Club pins, sweaters and hats also appear throughout the book. In Chapter 4, you can even count the cowboy hats that have appeared at Key Club conventions — the one accessory that spans the decades! 

• Interesting service projects. In our collection of photographs, you’ll see which Key Club projects are truly timeless — clothing, food and book drives, for example — and which are rooted in a specific time and place — like participating in telethons. You’ll even find some unusual projects, such as cleaning a decommissioned battleship or dressing like superheroes for a holiday party. Maybe you’ll get inspiration for your next big Key Club or Kiwanis family project! 

• Celebrity cameos. Key Club’s dedication to service has drawn its share of celebrity attention over the years. In addition to notable Key Club alumni, including two U.S. Senators and current “Today” cohost Craig Melvin, the eagle-eyed reader will spot photos of comedians Soupy Sales and Jerry Lewis, actresses Kim Novak and Ginny Sims, First Lady Nancy Reagan, singer Pat Boone, astronaut John Glenn, boxer Jack Dempsey and gymnast Laurie Hernandez. See if you can find them all! 

• YOU? Paging through photos from 100 years of service, conventions, chartering ceremonies and more, it’s just possible that you might see yourself, a friend or a family member! There’s only one way to find out: Purchase your copy of “A Century of Service.” 

Christine Greene and Lauri Berry receive Key Club’s highest honor. 

By Destiny Cherry

Two Key Club International volunteers were recently recognized with the organization’s highest service award: The Key of Honor, which acknowledges a volunteer’s lifelong positive impact upon youth in general and Key Club specifically.  

The Key Club International Board presented Lauri Berri (above right) of St. Joseph, Michigan, U.S., and Christine Greene (above left) of Saco, Maine, U.S., with the 2025 awards during the Key Club International Convention in Orlando, Florida, U.S., in July. 

Christine Greene
Greene’s Key Club journey began in 1985, when she became the faculty advisor at Hermon High School in Hermon, Maine, where she taught English for 31 years. In 2001, Greene joined the New England & Bermuda Key Club District Board as an area advisor. There she mentored Key Club International club officers, ran training workshops and helped edit member newsletters. 

Greene held her teaching, faculty advisor and adult area advisor positions until her retirement from Hermon High School in 2012. From there, she spent the next 13 years serving as a volunteer adult area advisor in her district. 

A former member of Greene’s Key Club and current lieutenant governor, Kayla Adams — as well as other former members and coworkers — had no shortage of compliments about Greene.  

“Mrs. Greene always strived to get the best out of her students,” Adams says. “For many she was more than just an advisor; she was a mentor and a role model. She always strived to push her leaders to be the best that they could be.” 

Greene is the first woman from the New England & Bermuda District to receive this award. Her dedication has also been recognized through the placement of her name on the Kiwanis International Tablet of Honor, which recognized recipients’ dedication to Kiwanis, their club or their community. 

Greene officially retired from her duties in April 2025 after 40 years of service to Key Club and 35 years of teaching.  

Lauri Berry
Berry currently teaches at St. Joseph High School. She became the founding faculty advisor for the St. Joseph High School Key Club in 2005, a role she has held for 20 years.  

Before founding her school’s Key Club, Berry offered guidance and mentorship to students as the culinary arts teacher, baking club advisor, blood drive coordinator and musical costume designer. Afterward, she added three new roles: Kiwanis International convention chaperone, district board parent volunteer and chaperone, and district convention awards coordinator and judge.  

Last year, Berry was awarded the 2024 Michigan District of Key Club Outstanding Faculty Advisor Award.  

She is also an active member of the St. Joseph/Benton Harbor Kiwanis Club. Renea Callery, a Michigan District past governor and Student Learning Programs chair, recalls Berry being “equally committed to the ideals of Kiwanis, fostering strong partnerships between the Key Club and our local Kiwanis chapter.” 

In her letter of summation for Berry’s nomination, 2024-25 Michigan District Secretary Layla Garcia wrote: “Mrs. Berry excels at inspiring students to become compassionate, responsible and engaged citizens, as shown by the international vice president, four district governors and countless other district board members who have come from her Key Club.”

The Kiwanian was honored as a Key Club alum with exemplary leadership qualities.

By Destiny Cherry 

Jeffrey Eble, a member of the Kiwanis Club of Medina, Ohio, U.S., received the Marc H. Litwack Legacy of Leadership Award in July during the 2025 Key Club International Convention.

The Litwack Award recognizes a former Key Club member who exemplifies extraordinary leadership qualities and has made significant contributions to their profession and community.

Currently the director of business services for Worthington City Schools in Ohio, Eble started his Key Club journey in 1970, when he joined the Medina High School Key Club as a charter member and treasurer. After graduating, he swiftly became the faculty advisor — a position he served in for 14 consecutive years before taking a statewide position as the Ohio District Key Club assistant administrator. After 18 years in this role, Eble became the Ohio District Key Club administrator.

Eble is also a two-time George F. Hixson Fellowship recipient from the Kiwanis Children’s Fund — and a Hall of Fame member of the 105-year-old Kiwanis Club of Medina. He is one of only two Medina members to earn Kiwanis’ lifetime membership, a status given to Kiwanians who perpetuate the objects of Kiwanis International.

“Mr. Eble truly embodies the Kiwanis motto of ‘Service Above Self,’” says Cynthia Champer, a former Ohio District governor and club secretary for I-Next Kiwanis. “His life’s undertaking has been working with student leaders, providing a guiding hand as needed and being dedicated to student leadership development. I’m confident that he will continue in this invaluable leadership role for today’s youth as long as he is able to do so.”

Outside the Kiwanis family, Eble has been honored as Ohio Business Manager of the Year, Executive of the Year by the City of Medina, and Medina Man of the Year. But he has never strayed far from mentoring and educating young people — with senior leadership positions in school districts across Ohio.   

Eble’s continued dedication to Key Club’s mission — building student leaders through service — paired with more than 40 years of support and service for Key Club and student leaders have earned him the distinguished 2025 Marc H. Litwack Legacy of Leadership Award.