New club kickstarts student success

New club kickstarts student success

Jul 21, 2026 | Club building, General interest, Kiwanis Children's Fund, Service projects | 0 comments

A Children’s Fund grant helps the new Kiwanis Voices Club of Mírame launch a signature project. 

에린 챈들러

The Kiwanis Voices Club of Mírame, Panama, is one of the latest clubs to apply for and receive a Kickstarter grant from the Kiwanis Children’s Fund. As a result, the new club — part of the Kiwanis Voices program, which creates Kiwanis clubs for adults ages 18-26 — will help local students stay in school.  

Thanks to the Kickstarter program, a club that charters with 30 or more active members is invited to apply for a grant to help fund the club’s signature project — the service, event or fundraiser that the club will become known for in the community. For the Kiwanis Voices Club of Mírame, that project is Backpacks with Dreams (Mochilas con sueños), which will address the issue of school absences and damaged school supplies due to seasonal weather. 

Currently, when students walk to school during Panama’s rainy season, their supplies get wet and deteriorate. This has a negative effect on academic performance while also increasing school absenteeism and the financial burden on families who must replace supplies.  

Thanks in part to the Kickstarter grant, the Mírame club will partner with local organizations and the Ministry of Education to deliver waterproof backpacks and school supply kits to primary and pre-secondary students at the Ciri Grande Educational Center. Club members will be involved in every step of the project, including planning, purchasing and sorting supplies, and distributing the backpacks. They hope the project will help 100 kids in its first year. 

Club President Isai Meléndez shared some thoughts about the experience of launching the project as a new Kiwanis club. 

What led your club to choose Backpacks with Dreams as your signature project?
We believe education is one of the most powerful tools for changing lives. As a newly chartered Kiwanis club, we wanted our first signature project to reflect our commitment to serving children while creating a meaningful and lasting impact. After learning about the challenges faced by students in rural communities who lack access to basic school supplies, we knew we could make a difference by providing the resources they need to begin the school year with hope, confidence and dignity. 

What excites you most about your club’s first signature project?
What excites us most is turning a shared dream into a reality that directly benefits children and their families. Backpacks with Dreams represents the beginning of our club’s legacy and proves that even as a new Kiwanis club, we can make a meaningful difference in our community. Our favorite part is the distribution day, when we see the excitement, joy and hope on the students’ faces as they receive a backpack prepared especially for them. It reminds us that even a small act of kindness can open the door to great opportunities. 

What challenges, rewards or surprises have you experienced as a new Kiwanis club?
One of our greatest challenges has been introducing our club to the community, strengthening our organization and securing the resources needed to carry out meaningful service projects. We have also learned that coordinating volunteers, building partnerships and planning every detail requires commitment and teamwork. At the same time, the rewards have been incredible. We have seen individuals, businesses and organizations come together to support our mission, proving that when people believe in a meaningful purpose, they are eager to help. One of our biggest surprises has been discovering how much can be accomplished when passionate people work together to serve others. 

What advice would you give to other new Kiwanis clubs, especially those considering applying for a Kickstarter grant?
Our advice is to dream big and never let being a new club hold you back. Focus on identifying a real need in your community, develop a clear and well-planned project, involve every club member and document your progress along the way. Most importantly, tell your story with authenticity and clearly communicate the impact your project will have. The Kiwanis Children’s Fund Kickstarter Grant is an incredible opportunity to turn ideas into meaningful service. With teamwork, dedication and a genuine passion for helping children, even a new club can create a lasting impact in its community.

Find more information

  • Learn more about Kickstarter grants. Remember, the Kiwanis Children’s Fund will invite all eligible clubs to apply — but you still need to fill out the application!  
  • Email [email protected] with any questions about this or any Children’s Fund grants. You can also call 1-800-KIWANIS (U.S. and Canada) or +1-317-217-6225 (worldwide). 
  • Learn about Kiwanis Voices, our pilot program for creating Kiwanis clubs that consist exclusively of members who are ages 18-26 years old. 
Plan a project to help newborns 

Plan a project to help newborns 

Jul 20, 2026 | General interest, Service projects | 0 comments

These Kiwanis club initiatives offer ideas and inspiration. 

줄리 사에트레

For many Kiwanis clubs, service to children starts at the very beginning of life. After all, the first months and years set the tone for all that follows. And helping new parents is one way of helping newborns. If your club is looking for ways to support babies and their families, here are a few ways that other clubs have done it: 

  • Provide safe sleep or host a diaper drive. Safe Kids Worldwide, a nonprofit organization working to reduce preventable injuries to infants, children and youth up to 19, reports that nearly 3,500 infants die each year in the United States alone from sleep-related incidents. Florida Kiwanis members purchase and donate portable cribs, fitted crib sheets and wearable blankets to provide families with safe sleeping options for their babies. And because diapers and other supplies can pose a significant financial burden to families of young children, Florida Kiwanians hold diaper drives for Healthy Families Florida, a nationally accredited home visiting program for expectant parents and parents of newborns experiencing stressful life situations. 
  • Donate at a maternity ward. On Christmas Day each year, members of Kiwanis International Division 23 East in Jamaica visit moms and new babies in the maternity ward of a local hospital. It’s all part of the division’s Baby Love project, which has been praised by Jamaica’s minister of Health and Wellness, Dr. Christopher Tufton. In 2025, the Kiwanians delivered 61 gift baskets to Victoria Jubilee Hospital in Kingston — one for each mom in the ward.  
  • Collect baby wipes. In February 2026, the Kiwanis Clubs of Bend and Redmond engaged in the Battle of the Buns — a friendly competition to collect baby wipes for families in need. All collected wipes were donated to Central Oregon Baby Resources, which distributes essential items to families throughout a three-county area.“The biggest concern is always going to be for [their] children and making sure they have what they need,” Central Oregon Baby Resources founder and director Kiersten Moen-Wertheimer told Central Oregon Daily News during the drive. “Once we get that taken care of, then they can focus on what they really need to focus on, whether it’s getting a job [or] going to school.” 
  • Host a community baby shower. For the past 11 years, the Kiwanis Club of Newburgh in New York, U.S., has held its Warm Beginnings baby shower. The club asks for donations of diapers, wipes, baby blankets and clothing — as well as items such as toys, books, bathing items, breast pumps and baby monitors. All donated items are given to a local hospital’s maternity and neonatal intensive care units. By relieving some of the financial stress of having a newborn, the Newburgh club allows families to focus on what’s really important: bonding with their babies. 

Looking for more ideas? Explore one of these:  

  • 지역 병원에서 신생아를 위한 아기 담요나 부티를 뜨세요.
  • Interview parenting experts and distribute parenting-tip worksheets to organizations helping inexperienced moms and dads. 
  • Provide new slow cookers, healthful recipes and pantry staples to families in need. 
  • 새 책이나 중고 유아용 보드북을 초보 엄마를 지원하는 단체에 기부하세요.

And don’t forget about The Possibility Project. Many projects and initiatives like the ones above happen because people give to the Kiwanis Children’s Fund. See what’s possible when you and your club join our fundraising campaign to help Kiwanis reach 10 million kids around the world. 

조던 드 라 크루즈, 마크 H. 리트왁 리더십 유산상 수상

조던 드 라 크루즈, 마크 H. 리트왁 리더십 유산상 수상

2026년 7월 16일 | 일반 관심사, 리더십, 뉴스, 봉사 리더십 프로그램 | 댓글 0개

그 d지구 a교육구장은 키 클럽 동문으로서 표창을 받았다 이자 모범적인 지도자로 선정되었다. 

By 데스티니 체리

키 클럽 미시간 지구의 지구 행정관인 조던 드 라 크루즈는 지난 7월 미국 텍사스주 댈러스에서 열린 2026 키 클럽 국제 대회에서 ‘마크 H. 리트왁 리더십 유산상’을 수상했다.

리트백상은 탁월한 리더십 자질을 발휘하고 자신의 직업과 커뮤니티에 크게 기여한 전 키클럽 회원에게 수여하는 상입니다.

드 라 크루즈는 리더십에 익숙한 인물이다. 그녀는 현재 워시타노 카운티 보안관 사무소에서 응급 신고 접수 담당자이자 중대 스트레스 관리 팀의 코디네이터로 근무하고 있다. 그녀는 고등학교 시절 키 클럽(Key Club)에 가입해 클럽 회장과 부지사를 역임한 후, 캐나다 콩코르디아 대학교에서 서클 K 인터내셔널(Circle K International) 클럽을 창설했다.  

미시간으로 돌아온 후, 드 라 크루즈는 잠시 지역 고문으로 근무한 뒤 현재 맡고 있는 미시간 지구 행정관 직책을 맡게 되었습니다. 

미시간 지구 사무국장인 주히 바트(Juhi Bhatt)는 “조던의 리더십 방식은 키 클럽(Key Club)의 핵심 가치와 완벽하게 부합한다”고 말합니다. “그녀는 경직된 정책에 얽매이기보다는 개별 사정을 면밀히 검토하여, 우리 지구의 운영 방식이 키 클럽이 추구하는 연민과 포용의 정신을 반영하도록 했습니다. 그녀는 조직의 필요와 개별 회원에 대한 진심 어린 배려 사이에서 균형을 잘 잡는 능력을 갖추고 있으며, 바로 이 점이 그녀를 뛰어난 행정가로 돋보이게 합니다.” 

키와니스 가족과의 활동 외에도, 드 라 크루즈는 정신 건강 분야에 깊은 열정을 가지고 있으며, 이를 계기로 중대 스트레스 코디네이터 역할을 맡게 되었습니다. 이 직책의 목표는 도움을 구하는 것을 약점이 아닌 강점으로 여기는 환경을 조성하는 것입니다.  

응급 출동 담당자로서 드 라 크루즈는 침착한 의사소통과 신속한 의사결정 능력을 갖추고 있습니다. 그녀의 배려심 많고 공감 능력이 뛰어난 성격 덕분에 그녀는 지역 사회와 키 클럽 미시간 지구 모두에서 사랑받는 구성원이 되었습니다. 

데 라 크루즈는 타인을 먼저 생각하고, 키 클럽의 이상을 몸소 실천하며, 지역 사회 구성원들이 인생에서 가장 힘든 시기를 겪을 때 곁을 지켜주는 데 끊임없이 헌신해 왔으며, 바로 이러한 점들이 그녀를 2026년 마크 H. 리트왁 리더십 유산상(Marc H. Litwack Legacy of Leadership award)의 당당한 수상자로 만들었습니다.