Alabama
Kiwanis
Kourier
Summer 2013
Published by Alabama Kiwanis Foundation
24 pages
Blast off for Huntsville By Patrice Stewart Kiwanis Kourier Editor
The Huntsville Marriott next to the U.S. Space & Rocket Center will be the site of meetings, workshops, Interclub Luncheon and Governor’s Banquet during the Alabama Kiwanis District Convention July 26-28. About 121 Kiwanians and 25 guests had registered by July 12. The Kiwanis Club of Huntsville is hosting the convention, with Past Governor Ernest Hulsey heading the committee. The theme for this 95th Alabama District Convention follows the motto of International President Tom DeJulio this year: “Our Children, Their Future” -- Inspire, Advocate, Connect. (See HUNTSVILLE, Page 4)
The “Audio Radiance” barbershop quartet will be one of three barbershop groups singing while Kiwanians enjoy barbecue under the Space Shuttle at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center July 26 as the District Convention opens in Huntsville. Members are Jerry Wilhoite, baritone; J.D. Horne, bass; Larry Focht, lead; and Ken Reed, tenor.
Delegates make history in Vancouver By Patrice Stewart Kiwanis Kourier Editor
District Governor Wayne Sisk of Anniston, left, led the Alabama delegation at the Kiwanis International Convention in Van couver. Sue Petrisin of Michigan, above, was elected the first woman vice president and is expected to serve as president in 2015-16 — a first among big service organizations.
VANCOUVER, B.C. -- Several historic votes took place here June 28 when delegates to the 98th Kiwanis International Convention elected the first woman vice president and the first president from Austria. During the nearly five-hour business session on June 28, Gunter Gasser of Spittal an der Drau, Austria, was confirmed as 2013-14 KI president. His term will begin Oct. 1. He was elected vice president at the 2011 convention in Geneva, Switzerland. He indicated he will focus on building clubs and adding members during his year with the theme “We Build Bridges for Children to the Future.” (See VOTING, Page 7)
KI will turn 100 in 2015. Alabama District history begins on Page 20.
Alabama Kiwanis Kourier, Summer 2013
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Do your part, and change lives
Here we are, friends, just two months from the end of your club year. Are you where you want to be, and are you close to accomplishing your goals? I hope you are, and I wish you success in the months ahead. It has been a great year for Toni and me as we have visited many of you and gotten involved in celebrating your successes. Keep up the great work and see your plans through, because what you are doing makes a tremendous impact in your community and is changing the lives of children for the better. If you didn’t make it to the 98th Kiwanis International Convention held in Vancouver, Canada, the last week in June, you missed what I thought was the best ever. The site was spectacular, and the convention programs were meaningful and well presented. The Alabama District had a pretty good showing, but it could have been much better.
Plan for Japan
I hope that next year you will make every effort to attend the 99th convention in Chiba/Tokyo, Japan. The AsiaPacific District has promised a show like no other. The promotional video makes it look very appealing, and as always the workshops will be something that you can use to boost the performance of your club experience. Make plans to attend and get your club board to send incoming officers. It will go a long way toward their
Alabama Published by
From the Governor By Wayne Sisk
growth as effective leaders. I want to thank Pat Manasco, our wonderful District Secretary, for her hard work in planning our district event in Vancouver, a dinner cruise around the harbor. We took the most beautiful scenic tour of Coal Harbor around Stanley Park, out into the Pacific and up the Flint River. The evening skyline of the beautiful “City of Glass” was amazing. To top off the event, we had great conversations with new friends as well as old. Thank you, Pat -- the dinner, the music and the food were simply perfect.
Head to Rocket City
Now our Alabama District Convention is just weeks away. Many preparations are being made for your arrival in Huntsville for the July 26-28 event at the Huntsville Marriott and the Space and Rocket Center next door. This is going to be a great Kiwanis experience. The Huntsville committee has worked extremely hard
Kiwanis Kourier
Alabama District Kiwanis Foundation
Address news, photos and other correspondence to:
Patrice W. Stewart, Editor
256-303-1668 n kiwaniskourier@gmail.com Design and technical assistance by Steve Stewart, assistant professor, Troy University
Wayne Sisk, Alexandria (wayne.sisk@energen.com) ����������������������� Governor Bill Phillips, Pell City (phillipsjr@centurytel.net) ���������������������� Governor-elect Brian Rodgers, Indian Springs (brianrodgers@gmail.com) ����� Vice Governor Tammy Driskill, Gadsden (tsdriskill@aol.com) �������������������������� Past Governor Pat Manasco (patriciamanasco@bellsouth.net) ������������������� District Secretary DISTRICT OFFICE: 85 Bagby Drive, Suite 206, Birmingham, AL 35209 Phone (205) 945-1334 or (800) 745-1334, Fax (205) 942-5348; alabama.kiwanis.org
to ensure you come away with training and information that will send your clubs out of this world. It isn’t too late to register if you have put it off, but don’t wait any longer. You will not want to miss it!
Just ask
While Kiwanis membership numbers are still in a lull, we have time this club year to bring new members into the greatest civic organization in the world. There is no other organization that makes as big an impact as Kiwanis does around the globe. Let’s tell others what we are about and the wonderful things we do that improve the lives of our children. Remember, their futures depend on our stewardship. Who wouldn’t want to help the little ones? Remember, “Just Ask.” And if you ask enough, eventually someone will say yes to joining. Then get them involved where they can see the value of their investment of time and resources. Caring folks, like you and I, just want to make a difference in the lives of others. Service is the answer to that need. Give someone you know who has that same desire the opportunity they have been looking for. With more members we can provide more service, and as a result more needs will be met. Kiwanis should be looking for communities where Kiwanis isn’t present and form clubs there. Let me know where you see an opportunity, and we will pursue it.
Get involved with K Family
It has been a great year for growth in our Circle K, Key Clubs, Builders Clubs and Aktion Clubs. They have been adding clubs and members all year and need us Kiwanians to help support them. They are one of the biggest reasons we are here -- to build young leaders for our future. And these young folks desire your involvement. Make it a point to find out where and when they meet and also include them in your service projects and then return the favor and help with theirs. They appreciate you showing interest in them. Many times we hear a story about a caring (See GOVERNOR, Page 3)
You can still register for the Alabama District Convention, scheduled July 26-28 in Huntsville
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Florence Kiwanis awards $10,500 in scholarships The Florence Kiwanis Club recently awarded $10,500 in scholarships to students in Lauderdale County high schools. Juli Moritz, president of the Florence club, said the club continued a tradition of awarding scholarships with part of the funds raised by the club at its annual Pancake Day and Peanut Day fundraisers. Selections were made by a committee of club members chaired by Jim Durrett. Scholarships are awarded to students based on scholastic performance, extracurricular activities, community service and Key Club or Circle K participation. Scholarship recipients for 2013 are:
Brooks High School, Erica Blackstock, $1,500; Central High School, Kristin Spiller, $1,500; Florence High School, Anna Dillard, $1,500; Rogers High School, Tyler Delano, $1,500; Wilson High School, Brett Black, $1,500; Shoals Christian High School, Bethany Triplett, $1,500; University of North Alabama, Bonnie Brzytwa, $1,500. Scholarships may be applied toward the student’s tuition, books, fees or expenses at the college or university of the recipient’s choice. To be eligible for this scholarship, the student had to be a graduating senior at one of the above high schools, a member in good standing in
the Key Club or Circle K, and have maintained not less than a “B” average. The Scholarship Committee awarded the scholarships to the students it deems the most suitable applicants considering many factors including, but not limited to, scholastic performance, extracurricular activities, Key Club or Circle K participation, and future goals. The committee picked the recipients by evaluation of the application, student essay, and letter or letters of recommendation. —Don Rohling, Florence Kiwanis Club
Governor
(From Page 2) Kiwanian who changed a life. We need them to fill our shoes and to carry on the Kiwanis legacy of service. Make it something they will want to be a part of for life. You can make a difference; participate today.
Step up for Eliminate
Thank you for what you are doing and for the generosity you are showing towards the Eliminate project. I would love to see more Model Clubs, as well as more $100K Clubs, step up in Alabama. Tammy Driskill and the many coordinators are working hard to meet the goals set before us. Talk to your club boards and tell them that you would love to see your club do more to help save the lives of the 61 million mothers and babies that need vaccinating against maternal and neonatal tetanus. This disease can be prevented with 3 shots that cost a mere $1.80. It is a shame to see a baby die every 9 minutes from a preventable disease. This is a campaign that is very important to me, and I hope you will generously support the project to eliminate this preventable disease around the world by the year 2015. We are not there yet, and there is much more to do. Please promote it and give generously. I wish you so much success in this final stretch of our 2012-13 club year. It isn’t time to relax because it is almost over; it is actually time to roll up your sleeves and finish strong. You can accomplish more than you think; it is just a matter of putting your minds to it. Remember, your division lieutenant governors are there to assist you in any
Alabama District Kiwanis Governor Wayne Sisk and wife Toni have enjoyed making new friends through Kiwanis, as they did during this visit to Monroeville for a Division 12 gathering. (Photo by Jim Kane) way, so don’t hesitate to call on them. I will see you in Huntsville in late July. Meanwhile, take care and God bless you. Remember the reason we do what we do is because they are “Our Children” and it is for “Their Future.” Thank you for being a leader with a servant heart.
Wayne Sisk
Alabama District Governor, 2012-2013
Have questions? Call the Kiwanis District Office in Birmingham at 205-945-1334
Alabama Kiwanis Kourier, Summer 2013
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Huntsville
(From Page 1) Board members of Reading Is Fundamental, as well as Kiwanis officers, lieutenant governors and Alabama Kiwanis Foundation board members, will meet at the Marriott on Friday afternoon. The Friday evening fellowship event will be held next door at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center. A reception will start at 6:30 p.m., followed at 7 by barbecue and barbershop quartets. Three barbershop quartets from the Rocket City Chorus will provide strolling entertainment as Kiwanians gather under the Space Shuttle. The Sugar Pops, The Slide Rules and Audio Radiance each have their own repertoire of songs, but you will probably hear a wide variety, with some old favorites such as “Let Me Call You Sweetheart,” “Wild Irish Rose,” “Zippity Doo Dah,” “Sitting on Top of the World,” “Ain’t Misbe havin’,” and “After You’ve Gone.” The Huntsville Metro Kiwanis Club will host the hospitality room throughout the convention in Room 727 of the Marriott (see schedule on Page 5). Saturday morning, three breakfasts at the Marriott will begin at 7. One is for past and present governors, one for lieutenant governors and club presidents, and one for Reading Is Fundamental. The general session, with Kiwanis business and other topics, will start at 8. Three sets of workshops featuring topics of current interest to clubs are planned. Beginning at 9:15 a.m., those attending can choose from these topics: The 30-minute Presidency, for 2013-14 club presidents; Key Leader program; Eliminate Project; and Attitude Is Everything. The 10:15 a.m. workshop topics will be Growth in 12 Easy Steps; IRS Issues for Non-profits; Aktion Club; and training for 2013-14 club secretaries. After lunch, at 1:30 p.m., Kiwanians can choose from these sessions: Eliminate Project team meeting; Reading Is Fundamental; and training for 2013-14 and 2014-15 lieutenant governors. The Interclub Luncheon is scheduled to start at 11:15 a.m. and include the Interclub roll call, honors and reports, and a keynote speaker on the Eliminate Project. An Honors Reception will begin at 6 p.m., followed by the Governor’s Banquet at 7, when new officers will be installed. Musical entertainment is planned. A non-denominational memorial prayer breakfast will be held at 8 a.m. Sunday. A meeting of the 2013-14 board will
Two Kiwanis Club of Huntsville officers promote the coming Alabama District Convention during the Kiwanis International Convention in Vancouver. Richard Elmes, left, second vice president, and Ed Courtney, center, pres ident-elect, describe Huntsville convention activities for incoming Division 6 Lt. Gov. Luther Jarmon of Birming ham’s Vulcan Kiwanis Club. (Photo by Patrice Stewart)
follow at 9:45. Kiwanians must be pre-registered for all meals; note that the Interclub Luncheon is included in the registration fee (fees are explained online and in the spring Kourier, but the early bird mail-in fee has expired). Add fees for guests, as well as other events you plan to attend, such as breakfasts and the Friday and Saturday evening dinners. Through July 21, you can access online registration at a basic cost of $130 from the district website, alabama.kiwanis.org, or by going to www.cvent.com/d/5cqtv7. If you prefer to walk in with a registration form and check, the basic cost is $145. Hotel reservations should be made directly with the Huntsville Marriott, 256-830-2222 or 1-888-299-5174. People who would like to see some of Huntsville’s attractions are in luck because the U.S. Space & Rocket Center is close by, with many exhibits and IMAX movies. Ask about discounted rates for Kiwanis during the convention. You also might check out the Huntsville Botanical Garden, Bridge Street Town Centre, the downtown lake, Huntsville Museum of Art, Constitution Village, Huntsville Depot and EarlyWorks Children’s History Museum. See the spring 2013 Kiwanis Kourier on the district website for a list of many more things to do in Huntsville.
Bring elephants (and tigers) to Huntsville for silent auction Donate items for the silent auction in Huntsville and then be sure to shop and buy to help raise funds for Jean Dean Reading Is Fundamental and other projects of the Alabama Kiwanis Foundation. Clubs may want to request items from their local businesses or Kiwan ians’ companies and send them with delegates to the Alabama District Convention in Huntsville July 26-28. Some ideas include themed baskets, vacation rentals, memberships to places like zoos and science centers, and
gift certificates. University keepsakes sell well, too. “White elephants” also can be auctioned. “This is not something you need to spend money on — it is an opportunity to ‘pass on’ a gift you can’t use or an item you thought you wanted but never used — or something donated by a business in your community,” said Cathy Gafford, executive director of Jean Dean RIF. “Businesses like to do this. They get good publicity from it and a tax deduction.” Items can be turned in on Friday,
when the convention starts, and the auction will be held all day on Saturday. Proceeds are split 50/50 between the Alabama Kiwanis Foundation and Jean Dean RIF. You can obtain a donation form from jeandeanrif@gmail.com and fill it out in advance. Donors will then receive a thankyou letter with the item named and the tax ID number of the Alabama Kiwanis Foundation for their tax records.
Email news and photos to the Kiwanis Kourier, kiwaniskourier@gmail.com
Alabama Kiwanis Kourier, Summer 2013
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Huntsville District Convention schedule All events at Huntsville Marriott, except Friday reception and barbecue at adjacent Space & Rocket Center Friday, July 26
Registration, noon to 6 p.m. Hospitality suite (Room 727), noon till 6:30 p.m. RIF Advisory Committee meeting, 1 to 2:30 p.m. District Foundation Board meeting, 2:45 to 4 p.m. District Board meeting, 4 to 6 p.m. Silent auction setup, 3 to 5 p.m. Reception, 6:30 to 7 p.m. (under Space Shuttle) Barbecue dinner, 7 to 8:30 p.m. (under Space Shuttle) Hospitality suite (Room 727), 9 to 11:30 p.m.
Saturday, July 27
Registration, 7:30 a.m. to noon Hospitality suite (Room 727), 8 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Exhibits, 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Silent auction, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Breakfasts, 7 to 7:45 a.m. n Governors n Lt. Governors n Jean Dean Reading Is Fundamental General/business session, 8 to 9 a.m. Workshops, 9:15 to 10 a.m. n The 30-minute Presidency, Past International Trustee Joel Williams (for 2013-14 club presidents) n Attitude Is Everything, International Trustee Warren Mitchell
n Key Leader program, Jamie Brabston, administrator n An Update on Eliminate, Past Capital District
Governor Jeffrey Wolff Workshops, 10:15 to 11 a.m. n Growth in 12 Easy Steps, Past International Trustee Joel Williams n Training for 2013-14 club secretaries, Paul England and Colean Black n IRS Issues for Non-Profits, Mike Brumfield n Aktion Club, Glenda Selman, administrator Interclub Luncheon, 11:15 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. Workshops, 1:30 to 2:15 p.m. n Training for 2013-14 lieutenant governors, Bill Phillips and Pat Manasco n Training for 2014-15 lieutenant governors, Brian Rodgers n Reading Is Fundamental, Cathy Gafford n Eliminate Team meeting, Tammy Driskill and Jeff Wolff Honors reception, 6 to 7 p.m. Governor’s Banquet, 7 to 10 p.m. Hospitality suite (Room 727), 10 to 11:30 p.m.
Sunday, July 28
Non-denominational Memorial Prayer Breakfast, 8 to 9:30 a.m. 2013-2014 District Board meeting, 9:45 to 11 a.m.
Trustee adviser, Capital District leader to speak Kiwanis speakers and workshop leaders will be coming to Huntsville from the Rocky Mountain and Capital districts. Attending the convention and leading a Saturday morning workshop titled “Attitude Is Everything” will be the Alabama District’s new trustee adviser for 2013-14, Warren F. “Mitch” Mitchell of Greeley, Colo. Elected to the Kiwanis International board in 2011, he has served as counselor to the Indiana, Southwest and Wisconsin-Upper Michigan districts, along with advising Key Club International. A 36-year member of the Greeley Kiwanis Club, Mitchell was 1988-89 governor of the Rocky Mountain
Warren Mitchell Jeff Wolff
District. A life member, he is a charter Walter Zeller Fellow, a George F. Hixson Fellow and a recipient of the Kiwanis International Foundation’s Tablet of Honor. Keynote speaker for the noon Saturday Interclub Luncheon will be
Jeff Wolff of the Tysons Corner, Va., Kiwanis Club, who is immediate past governor of the Capital District. Wolff, who is president of the 201112 class of governors that includes Immediate Past Alabama Governor Tammy Driskill, recently made a visit to Cambodia to see the Eliminate Project at work. He will talk about his trip and the KI worldwide service project. He will also lead a workshop session on Eliminate. Wolff is a product of the Kiwanis Service Leadership Program and has served as Circle K District Administra tor. He took “Distinguished” honors in his roles as club president, lieutenant governor and governor.
Send your club’s incoming president, secretary and other officers to Huntsville to train and prepare for the 2013-14 Kiwanis year. Deadline for the fall edition of the online Kiwanis Kourier is Oct. 1, 2013
Alabama Kiwanis Kourier, Summer 2013
Support for Tuscaloosa Kiwanian spreads after assault, coma in N.Y.
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By Patrice Stewart Kiwanis Kourier Editor
Kiwanians and other friends and family are rallying to help Jason McNeil, a Kiwanis Club of Tuscaloosa officer who went into a coma after being assaulted after a Kid Rock concert in New York state on July 5. McNeil, the incoming president for the club year beginning Oct. 1, was in the Intensive Care Unit of Erie County Medical Center in Buffalo, N.Y. Meanwhile, prayers and “hang in there” messages were flying through cyberspace to McNeil and his family, a stream of visitors arrived at the hospital, and a fundraising site and bank account were set up, along with a website for condition updates. “Jason visited his family in Buffalo for the Fourth of July and attended the Kid Rock concert near there on July 5,” said David Womack, a fellow Tuscaloosa club member and Alabama’s Circle K administrator.
‘Praying for the best’
“He was assaulted and knocked out by a person they did not even know,” Womack said. “He hit his head on the pavement and is in a coma with bleeding and severe trauma to his brain. “The prayers of all in Alabama would be appreciated. … We are praying for the best in Tuscaloosa.” The Tuscaloosa News reported July 9 that the 43-year-old businessman was in critical condition following a “random act of violence” after a concert at the Darien Lake theme park between Buffalo and Rochester. According to media reports, a 34-year-old man from Ontario, Canada, was charged with misdemeanor third-degree assault after punching a victim unconscious at the concert in Genesee County, N.Y. McNeil “suffered a closedhead injury of the worst kind, and when he wakes up, he will endure months or more of intense rehabilitation,” his sister-in-law, Tina Courtney Christian, wrote on a fundraising Web page set up for his family. She said McNeil is the At the Alabama Kiwanis convention in Montgomery a sole provider for his wife, Pam Courtney McNeil, and year ago, Jason McNeil was presented the Mercer Barnett their two young daughters. Fellow honor of the Alabama They are staying with family in New York for now and District Foundation.
Jason McNeil reads to children at Tuscaloosa Head Start in this photo that ran on the front page of the Kiwanis Kourier Winter 2011 issue. He served as the Tuscaloosa Kiwanis team captain for Jean Dean Reading Is Fundamental.
are not sure how long they will need to be there. The News said McNeil grew up in Alden, N.Y., in the Buffalo area, but has lived in Tuscaloosa for many years. He is the owner/operations manager of Synchronous Industrial Services, an automotive supplier that provides warehousing services, transportation and other support. In addition to Kiwanis, he is a board member of United Cerebral Palsy of West Alabama. Womack said he contacted Eric Paul from Buffalo, a former New York Circle K governor he has known since the late 1970s. He asked Paul to see if there was anything Kiwanians there might be able to do to assist Jason’s wife, Pam, and his sister, who lives in New York, in caring for Jason and the girls.
International president helps
“I also Facebooked Kiwanis International President Tom DeJulio, since he is from the New York District, and asked if he could contact people or clubs in the Buffalo area to see if they might be willing to assist or just let Pam know Kiwanians were in the area and willing to help,” Womack said. “Jason was originally from Buffalo, but he is a phenomenal civic leader here in Tuscaloosa.” DeJulio contacted New York Kiwanians Candace Corsaro and Paul, and they quickly made plans to go by the hospital to introduce themselves to Jason’s wife and sister. (See McNEIL, Page 24)
Keep up with the KI worldwide service project at www.TheEliminateProject.org
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Petrisin rose to leadership through K-Family cultures, generations and technology that deterSue Petrisin, a 25-year member of the Kiwanis Club of East Lansing, Mich., is the first woman mine how and where we will succeed. We need to elected to serve as president of Kiwanis Interna again focus our time and efforts on the single most tional — or any of the largest service organizations powerful expression of Kiwanis life — our clubs.” in the world, including Rotary and Lions Interna Petrisin has served on the Kiwanis International tional. board for the past three years. She also served as During the 98th annual Kiwanis International Con the vice chair of The Eliminate Project (Kiwanis vention in Vancouver, B.C., she was elected vice presieliminating maternal and neonatal tetanus) overdent. She will serve her term as Kiwanis International seeing activities for Key Club, CKI, Builders Club, president during the 2015-2016 Kiwanis year. Aktion Club and K-Kids. She also will be the first person in Kiwanis Inter Sue Petrisin She holds a master’s degree in human resources national’s history to serve as Key Club Governor, and labor relations and a bachelor’s degree in food Circle K Governor and Kiwanis Governor. science and dietetics from Michigan State University, East “I am deeply honored to be the first woman elected to Lansing. She is associate director for the Michigan State serve in this role,” Petrisin said. “Kiwanis has always been University Alumni Association and is active in service to about inclusivity and service beyond self. But to be viable in our next century, we need to recognize the differences in the university and her community.
Voting
(From Page 1) Sue Petrisin, a 25-year member of the Kiwanis Club of East Lansing, Mich., is the first woman elected to serve as president of Kiwanis Intern ational — or any of the largest service organizations in the world, including Rotary and Lions International. John R. Button, M.D., a member of the Ridgetown, Ontario, Kiwanis Club, was elected president-elect. He was chosen vice president a year ago in New Orleans and is from the Eastern Canada and the Caribbean District. Delegates in Vancouver also elected these trustees for the United States and Pacific Canada Region for three-year terms: Patti Barsotti, California-NevadaGunter Gasser Hawaii District; Kevin Dean, West Virginia District; and Patrick R. Ewing, Pacific Northwest District. The new KI trustee for the AsiaPacific Region will be Florencio C. “Poly” Lat of the Philippine Luzon District, who was elected to a threeyear term in March at the 2013 AsiaPacific Convention in Hiroshima, Japan. Serving the Europe Region as a new trustee will be Marcel Kreienbühl of the Switzerland-Liechtenstein District, who was elected to a three-year term during the Kiwanis InternationalEuropean Federation Convention in
Berlin, Germany, May 30-June 2.
Amendments approved
During the same business session in Vancouver, delegates from around the world voted to approve these amendments: No. 1: Provide for earlier publication of proposed amendments and resolutions, allowing clubs to take advantage of early convention registration rates. No. 2: Provide that district house action shall be the normal method of endorsing candidates for Kiwanis International board offices, while allowing district board endorsements under extenuating circumstances. No. 3: Provide that a district governor must finish his/her term before officially announcing his/her candidacy for Kiwanis John R. Button International trustee. No. 4: Discontinue the dues rebate for clubs that have grown at least 25 percent. No. 8: Clarify provisions regarding conduct unbecoming a Kiwanis International officer. No. 9: Clarify that clubs are the constituent members of federations. No. 10: Allow flexibility in the composition of a federation’s governing board. No. 13: Provide that criminal background checks conducted by a district will be accepted by Kiwanis International.
Defeated amendments
These proposals were defeated by the delegates: No. 6: Allow clubs a varying number of delegates at district conventions, based on the number of club members. No. 12: Limit campaign spending and campaign practices for Kiwanis International board offices. No. 14: Reduce reimbursements for Kiwanis International past presidents. No. 15: Change the motto of Kiwanis International.
Withdrawn or referred
Two proposed amendments were withdrawn from consideration: No. 5: Discontinue the dues waiver for new members of clubs who were former members of Kiwanis’ Service Leadership Programs. No. 11: Waive Kiwanis International dues for certain members experiencing hardship circumstances. Proposed amendment No. 7 was referred to a committee for rewording. It reportedly would help protect clubs and the youth served by clubs from members whose behavior involves moral turpitude or whose behavior with minors has previously been found to be illegal.
Resolutions approved
Two resolutions were approved, including an administrative resolution to continue new forms of Kiwanis membership. A memorial resolution paid tribute to past Kiwanis Inter national President Ted R. Osborn, who died this year.
Check out the Alabama Kiwanis website at alabama.kiwanis.org
Alabama Kiwanis Kourier, Summer 2013
Alabama Kiwanians receive info, inspiration in Vancouver
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By Patrice Stewart Kiwanis Kourier Editor
VANCOUVER, B.C. — More than 50 from Alabama took in inspiration and information, along with sessions and scenery, during the Kiwanis International Convention here June 27-30. The delegation included many current or incoming club presidents from around the state, along with district leaders, spouses and other guests. Governor Wayne Sisk and wife Toni of Anniston walked across the stage for introductions, along with other 2012-13 governors. However, this was a year when the Alabama District did not have a Kiwanis International trustee to be introduced on stage. Pam Fleming of Sheffield completed a three-year term on the Kiwanis International board of trustees Sept. 30. Ed Humphries of Tallassee/Dadeville is a member of the KI Foundation board but was unable to attend the Vancouver convention. The KI board asked Joel Williams, a Troy attorney and chairman of the KI Committee on Resolutions and Bylaws, to preside over an afternoon review of proposed amendments and resolutions, as well as that segment of the convention business session. He has served on the KI board of trustees and as governor of the Alabama District.
Alabama teen on program
Also ably representing Alabama was Rebecca Riley of Homewood, Key Club International president for 2012-13. The teen addressed a general session of Kiwanis International and also led two workshops, “The Power of Key Club International,” talking about growing membership numbers and projects with impact (photo on Page 18). The Sisks went to a session with 2012-13 KI President Tom DeJulio and wife, Rosemary, of Bronxville, N.Y., while Governor-elect Bill Phillips and wife, Jean, of Pell City met with KI president-elect John Button and wife, Debbie, of Ridgetown, Ontario. Alabama’s Immediate Past Governor Tammy Driskill, 2011-12, and 2010-11 Governor Colean Black were recogCanadian singer-song writer Sarah McLachlan was presented the 2013 Kiwanis World Service Medal at the Vancouver convention in recogni tion of her dedication to providing music educa tion to underserved, inner-city youth.
Joel Williams, a Troy attorney and chairman of the Kiwanis International Committee on Resolutions and Bylaws, presides over discussion of proposed amend ments and resolutions during the convention business session. He is a past governor of the Alabama District and past member of the Kiwanis International Board of Trustees. (Photo by Patrice Stewart)
nized in a booklet of Kiwanis Distinguished Members for 2011-12.
Recruitment a hot topic
Alabamians attended many workshops designed to help improve clubs and exchange ideas with other district leaders. They found standing-room only in a session titled “Recruiting in the 21st Century,” showing that Kiwanians all over the world are concerned about this topic and want to know more about new techniques to connect with prospective members. Some attended sessions on Key Clubs led by Riley, while others heard about KI leaders’ April trip to Haiti to see the Eliminate Project in action against maternal and neonatal tetanus. Inspirational speakers included Rick Hansen, a Canadian who has been in a wheelchair since his teen years, when his spine was crushed in an accident while riding in the back of a pickup truck. He resumed playing sports from his wheelchair, competed in the Paralympics and is an activist for those with spinal cord injuries, raising aware(See INTERNATIONAL, Page 9)
Email news and photos to the Kiwanis Kourier, kiwaniskourier@gmail.com
Alabama Kiwanis Kourier, Summer 2013
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Koshiro Kita zato, governor of the Japan District of Kiwanis, and others invited Kiwanians to Japan for the 2014 Kiwanis International Convention, July 17-20. A Japanese drum performance closed the Vancouver con vention.
International (From Page 8)
ness and funds for those facing physical challenges. During the Leadership Luncheon June 27, he told the audience to never give up on their dreams, because no matter what happens to you that you can’t control, you can still control your attitude about it. John O’Leary also faced many physical challenges after playing with fire at age 9 resulted in an explosion at his home and burns on 100 percent of his body. His chance of survival was less than 1 percent, and he lost his fingers and endured dozens of surgeries and years of therapy. He told of the impact of one man visiting a boy in the hospital, giving him autographed baseballs and promising trips to the ball park if he’d pull through. Then he credited 1987 Baseball Hall of Fame member Jack Buck with his survival and future as a motivational speaker and business owner. “That man changed my life, because when you receive gifts of love from others it inspires you” to do more for others, said the St. Louis man. He issued a challenge to “Rise above,” ignite your possibilities and change your world (see his website, www.rising-above.com). Nick Katsoris, an attorney whose children’s books feature a lamb who wants to make the world a better place, addressed the Faith and Humor Breakfast June 29, while Caryl Stern, president and CEO of the U.S. Fund for UNICEF, was the keynote speaker for the Eliminate Project Luncheon the same day. “We have leaders in Kiwanis — and they don’t all have titles — who are the ones that do the work day in and day out,” said KI President Tom DeJulio at the Leadership Luncheon. He recognized Reid Allen, who was about to celebrate his 90th birthday. “He had a dream that if Kiwanis supported the Tournament of Roses Parade with a float, it would send a message about Kiwanis,” said DeJulio. And this year, all K-Family clubs wore the same branding, enlarging the message. Kiwanians got a glimpse into the world of Sarah McLachlan at the closing session, when she sang and also introduced a performance by some of her students. She was given the 2013 Kiwanis World Service Medal for starting a Vancouver music school that is free for at-risk youth.
She got an early boost in her own music career as a winner at the 1987 Nova Scotia Kiwanis Music Festival. Kiwanians were entertained the evening of June 28 by The Midtown Men, a group including many former “Jersey Boys” cast members. During convention sessions, entertainers ranged from Canadian bagpipers and Japanese drums and drummers to comedic magician and TV personality Justin Willman. In addition to the sunset harbor cruise with dinner for the Alabama District, delegates were able to take in sights close to the grass-covered Vancouver Convention Centre, such as the 2010 Olympic Cauldron, which was lit when more than 350 Kiwanis and Circle K members participated in a fundraiser walk for the Eliminate Project. Also nearby were a whale sculpted of Lego blocks, seaplanes taking off and landing on the harbor, cruise ships docked at Canada Place, and an antique steam clock amid the shops and sidewalk cafes of the Gastown district. Only a short ride away were the public market and jazz music at Granville Island, the Capilano Suspension Bridge with cliff and treetops walks, Grouse Mountain ski area with gondola ride, and Stanley Park with its totem poles, beaches, restaurants, sculptures and Kiwanis Rose Garden. Following the convention, several Alabama Kiwanians boarded a ship for a Kiwanis-organized cruise to Alaska and glaciers. Others took a British Columbia ferry for a ride to Victoria and Butchart Gardens. Kiwanians were inspired by convention speakers such as Rick Hansen, a Canadian in a wheelchair who compet ed in the Paralympics and is an activist for those with spinal cord injuries (see www.sup portinmotion.ca). Kiwanis International President Tom DeJulio, right, introduced Hansen at the Leadership Luncheon on June 27.
Deadline for the fall edition of the online Kiwanis Kourier is Oct. 1, 2013
Alabama Kiwanis Kourier, Summer 2013
June 27-30
Photos by Patrice Stewart
Support Reading Is Fundamental with readers and donations for books and other needs
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Alabama Kiwanis Kourier, Summer 2013
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Vancouver Photos by Patrice Stewart
You can still register for the Alabama District Convention, scheduled July 26-28 in Huntsville
Alabama Kiwanis Kourier, Summer 2013
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Vancouver Photos by Patrice Stewart
Start planning now to attend the Kiwanis International Convention in Japan July 17-20, 2014
Alabama Kiwanis Kourier, Summer 2013
Dinner cruise at Vancouver convention
Photos by Patrice Stewart
Email news and photos to the Kiwanis Kourier, kiwaniskourier@gmail.com
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Alabama Kiwanis Kourier, Summer 2013
Alabama District caucus
Preparing to vote on KI issues during Vancouver convention
Photos by Patrice Stewart
Deadline for the fall edition of the online Kiwanis Kourier is Oct. 1, 2013
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Alabama Kiwanis Kourier, Summer 2013
Alabama Circle K members receive awards in Vancouver Circle K members from the Alabama District won awards in Vancouver, B.C., and saw an Alabama proposal affecting two-year college dues pass the House of Delegates. The Circle K International Convention was scheduled in the same city at the same time as the Kiwanis International Convention, and some sessions and speakers overlapped. District Governor Zach Nolen of the University of Alabama at Birmingham and District Secretary Meggie Hall of the University of Alabama headed to Vancouver June 25 and returned July 2. “A high point of the convention was the honors breakfast when clubs and district officers were recognized for all of their hard work for the 2012-2013 year,” said Nolen. The University of Alabama Circle K won first place for club achievement in the silver division. President for that year was Forrest Ford. Nolen received the Distinguished Secretary award for his service in that office last year. “The trip was filled with so many wonderful experiences such as meeting new friends, electing the new Inter national Board and helping make decisions that will guide the organization into the future,” Nolen said. One of those decisions was to lower the club fee for twoyear colleges to have a Circle K club, he said. This was proposed by the Alabama District. The Alabama Circle K’ers spent much time talking with other districts to rally support for the amendment. When it was time to bring it to the floor of the House of Delegates, the amendment passed almost unanimously, said Nolen. They brought back to Alabama “all the things that were learned in Vancouver, and we plan to use them to better the Alabama District,” he said.
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The Circle K International Convention was held in Vancouver at the same time as the Kiwanis International Convention, with the college members attending some of the Kiwanis events and vice versa. In the Vancouver Convention Centre are the Alabama group, from left: Meggie Hall of the University of Alabama, District Secretary of Circle K; Zach Nolen of the University of Alabama at Birmingham, District Governor of Circle K; and David Womack of Tuscaloosa, Alabama District Circle K Administrator.
Circle K officers train at Bevill State College The conference was divided into three sessions: a club officer training session, a team Nearly 50 Circle K’ers from building session, and a club across the state gathered April development session. 27 on the campus of Bevill The conference started with State Community College in District Governor Zach Nolen Jasper for the annual Club welcoming everyone to the Officer Development conference and encouraging Conference. them to learn all that they could throughout the day. This annual conference is Zach Nolen designed to train the incoming Attendees were then divided club officers for their upcoming year up based on the office that they held of service, leadership and fellowship. to attend training workshops where The conference was planned and they would learn how to better fulfill enacted by the Alabama District Circle their responsibilities and what was K Board of Officers. expected of them. There was also time By Zach Nolen Alabama District Circle K Governor
for exchanging ideas for service projects and fundraisers, as well as what has worked for their clubs in the past. After the officer training session, everyone reconvened for the team building session. For this session, attendees were divided into groups based on clubs. Each group was then given a classic Disney song for which to prepare a brief interpretive dance to perform for the entire group. The exercise was designed to take attendees out of their comfort zones and have them rely on their other club officers to accomplish a common goal. (See CIRCLE K, Page 16)
Support Reading Is Fundamental with readers and donations for books and other needs
Alabama Kiwanis Kourier, Summer 2013
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Circle K
(From Page 15) The District Board provided an example by performing several Disney songs. Then groups were given time to prepare their performances, which were done in an American Idol-style exhibition. After a lunch break, attendees chose from several workshops for club development. These workshops provided information and ideas on membership recruitment, working with other Kiwanis Family clubs, and club marketing. At the closing session, presentations were given on International Convention and the Eliminate Project. Then members of the District Board were auctioned off to be pied in the face with all proceeds going to the District Project: Jean Dean Reading is Fundamental. Overall the event was a success. We tried to incorporate some new ideas and other things to refresh the conference. I think that everyone really enjoyed themselves and was glad they came.
Alabama Circle K officers for 2013-14 include District Governor Zach Nolen of the University of Alabama at Birmingham; District Secretary Meggie Hall of the University of Alabama; and District Treasurer John Chancellor. Regional lieutenant governors are Jessica New, Savannah Slater, Nikki Reed, Jessica Bloom, Heather Brady, Kristin Blanchard, Alison Beasley and Haley Greathouse.
When it was time to say goodbye, several attendees were seen exchanging information with their newfound friends and making plans to have interclubs over the next year.
The Circle K District Board can now start gearing up for the next event we will host, Alabama Leadership Academy, which will be held at Camp Lee in Anniston in early November.
Send officer information to District
Kiwanis Rose Garden
In addition to serving as Alabama District Circle K administrator, David Womack of Tuscaloosa is a horticulturist and Master Gardener. It’s not sur prising that he took in the beauty of Vancouver between attending both Kiwanis and Circle K convention meetings and snapped this photo in the Kiwanis Rose Garden in Stanley Park. Vancouver Kiwanis Club members started the rose garden in 1920, and now it has 3,500 bushes. The park also has a memorial for U.S. President Warren G. Harding, who joined his home town Kiwanis club not long before taking the oath of office. He died of a heart attack in 1923, just one week after addressing a crowd of 50,000 in Stanley Park.
The District office needs names and contact information for newly elected club officers, especially presidents and secretaries. Clubs should send name, title, address, telephones and email for each officer to: Pat Manasco District secretary patriciamanasco @bellsouth.net Alabama Kiwanis District 85 Bagby Drive, Suite 206 Birmingham, AL 35209
You can still register for the Alabama District Convention, scheduled July 26-28 in Huntsville
Alabama Kiwanis Kourier, Summer 2013
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We’re halfway there in thwarting tetanus By Caryl M. Stern President and CEO of the U.S. Fund for UNICEF
Globally, the progress toward eliminating Maternal and Neonatal Tetanus (MNT) has been nothing short of remarkable. In 2000, MNT was a public health threat in 59 countries. Thanks to the efforts of UNICEF and partners, we have now surpassed the halfway point. With the recent news of elimination in Iraq and Coté D’Ivoire, MNT has now been eliminated in 31 of those 59 countries. The worldwide march toward global elimination keeps picking up pace! This momentum would not be possible without the membership of Kiwanis International and The Eliminate Project. The efforts of Kiwanis’ volunteer leadership are delivering results and inspiration around the world. We
have achieved tremendous progress together, and we are thrilled to continue our work together to advocate, educate and fundraise for The Eliminate Project. No mother should have to watch her baby die of a cause we know how to prevent, and together we will protect the connection between a mother and her child. Together, we can ensure that zero babies die of a preventable disease like tetanus.
Worldwide Report Day lays out commitments to women, babies By Randy DeLay
Kiwanis International Eliminate Campaign Chairman
A mother and child in Stoang dis trict, Cambodia. (Kiwanis Interna tional photo)
The Kiwanis Eliminate Project campaign team rallied together for Worldwide Report Day on May 23, allowing nearly 6,000 volunteers to publicize their districts’ commitment to save women and babies. District coordinators shared fundraising goals totaling $92,706,860 toward our $110-million goal. We have 429 Model Clubs, a $137.63 district per-member average and a 59-percent district club participation average. In addition, we have 173 pending Model Clubs. The average Model Club size is $24,000. The 173 pending Model Clubs at $24,000 equal $4,152,000 in total funds pending for Model Clubs. Thank you to all of the campaign volunteers who made our third
Worldwide Report Day a tremendous success. I am truly grateful to all of those who called in on behalf of the districts for your participation today and for your dedication and hard work all year to save or protect millions of mothers and babies. The success of today, much like the overall success of the campaign, requires the involvement of each person on the campaign team. For the first time, we received each district’s fundraising goal, generating a road map that will prepare us to achieve and surpass our $110 million goal. The reports received today reflect our remarkable progress to date, as well as where we have great potential for growth. I appreciate all who watched the results live on the website and all who helped ensure our success. Together, we will eliminate MNT.
Email news and photos to the Kiwanis Kourier, kiwaniskourier@gmail.com
Alabama Kiwanis Kourier, Summer 2013
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Facts about the Eliminate Project Keep these facts in mind as you raise funds to help the Kiwanis worldwide service project to Eliminate Maternal and Neonatal Tetanus (MNT): n MNT kills nearly 60,000 newborns and a significant number of mothers every year. n MNT kills one baby every nine minutes. n MNT targets the poorest, most underserved women and children on earth. Tetanus spores, found in soil everywhere, enter the bloodstream. Because of a lack of access to sanitary birthing conditions and other factors, the fatality rate can be as high as 100 percent in underserved areas. n There is a solution: A series of three vaccine doses costs $1.80. Kiwanians are helping raise money to provide the vaccine. n Once vaccinated, women will be protected through many of their childbearing years. n Immunity is passed on to their babies. To save or protect more than 61 million women and their future babies, Kiwanis needs to close the funding gap and raise $110 million.
Mariama Tahirou gets her tetanus shot in the village of Radi (district of Madarounfa), East Niger. She found the vaccination team because of the town crier, and she said that all women in her neighborhood were coming to get vaccinated. (UNICEF photo)
Workshop suggestions: Pledge, raise money, get community support
At the Leadership Luncheon in Vancouver are, from left, Key Club International President Rebecca Riley of Homewood; Kiwanis International Eliminate Campaign Chairman Randy DeLay of Houston, a past governor of the Texas-Oklahoma District; and Alabama District Past Governor Tammy Driskill of Gadsden, who is heading the Eliminate campaign in Alabama. Riley, who held offices in Alabama before election as international presi dent last summer, addressed a KI convention session and led two workshops. (Photo by Patrice Stewart)
The Eliminate Campaign was the focus of several workshops and came up during many general sessions at the Kiwanis International Convention in Vancouver June 27-30. Rosemary DeJulio, Kiwanis International First Lady, described her firsthand look at the worldwide service project during an April trip to Haiti with her husband, KI president Tom DeJulio, and others. Cherice Gilliam, a multi-division Eliminate coordinator for the Cal-Nev-Ha District, said in a talk that Kiwanians should motivate their clubs and communities to raise money; share The Eliminate Project with everyone; employ a variety of methods in fundraising; and always end with a specific request for support. “Nothing is stopping a club or individual from changing the world,” she said. She suggested working within your club first and then drawing on community support. Some ideas: (See SUGGESTIONS, Page 19)
Deadline for the fall edition of the online Kiwanis Kourier is Oct. 1, 2013
Alabama Kiwanis Kourier, Summer 2013
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During trip to Haiti in April, Kiwanis International President Tom DeJulio and his wife, Rosemary, encourage mothers to take the teta nus vaccine.
International president finds heartbreak, inspiration in an Eliminate visit to Haiti Kiwanis International President Tom DeJulio and wife Rosemary visited Haiti to see the Eliminate Project in action in April, just after he spent time in Alabama to address the big Birmingham and Montgomery clubs and see their projects. He sent this report on Haiti to Kiwan ians, bringing this response from Alabama District Governor Wayne Sisk: “It just shows how important it is for Kiwanis to be there to help save lives.” Dear friends and family, Our role in Haiti was to launch the two-week vaccination “kanpay” (campaign in Kreyol) to reach 1.2 million mothers between the ages of 14 to 49 in the most remote mountainous regions, and in the public and private schools and health centers near Port-au-Prince. We made six stops and personally witnessed thousands of vaccinations. One young woman’s life may have been saved. While obtaining her vaccination for tetanus, we along with our UNICEF party noticed a terribly infected hand with bone protruding. She said it was a cut and she had been treating it
for weeks with herbs. We can only hope the community leader to whom we spoke and offered some cash could persuade her to go down through the mountains to the nearest moped (taxi) station and then to a health facility 5 miles away through the rockiest and most circuitous of roads. While it is uncertain she will go, she took the tetanus vaccination because the health station came directly to her village on that day and she wants to deliver a healthy baby. That’s just one of many heartbreak-
ing and inspirational stories to tell, with more photos and video to follow. We are leaving tomorrow morning for Ottawa in an attempt to connect with members of Kiwanis there and the Canadian Parliament to do more to provide basic health services to the poorest of the poor in Haiti. Thanks for all your prayers during our visit, and feel free to share this photo to help everyone keep things in the right perspective and be grateful for our many blessings. —Tom DeJulio
Suggestions
n Attract gifts and pledges from local businesses. Kiwanis International continues to seek Model Clubs that will pledge to raise a per-member average of at least $150 per year for five years. Each member will save or protect more than 416 lives. The Eliminate Project also needs more 100K Clubs; these Kiwanis Clubs will save or protect more than 55,000 lives.
(From Page 18) n Generate gifts with service projects and fundraising activities. n Inspire club members to commit individual gifts or pledges. n Make gifts or pledges from the club treasury. n Give or pledge from the club foundation.
Keep up with the KI worldwide service project at www.TheEliminateProject.org
Alabama Kiwanis Kourier, Summer 2013
Alabama District Kiwanis history
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Kiwanis will turn 100 on Jan. 21, 2015. Start planning a celebration now, and learn about our service organization by reading each segment of the history that Past Governor and International Trustee Bob McCurley of Tuscaloosa, a past governor and International Trustee, is preparing for every quarterly issue of the Kiwanis Kourier from now until the centennial.
The early years: Bob McCurley
$17,500 ‘Alabama Purchase’ settled control issues
Compiled by Bob McCurley Past Alabama Governor and Past Kiwanis International Trustee
Kiwanis will be 100 years old on January 21, 2015. To commemorate this centennial, the History of the Alabama District is being revised to remember the vital part the Alabama District has played in making Kiwanis the civic club we know today. In 1993, ALABAMA DISTRICT OF KIWANIS HISTORY “The First Seventy Five Years” was published. To coincide with the 100-year celebration of Kiwanis, a revised and updated Alabama District Kiwanis History will be published in January, 2015. Each Kiwanis Kourier beginning with this edition will feature excerpts of a different era from chapters of the book. The entire history will be available for members and clubs at the Centennial Celebration in Alabama.
Preface
D
ec. 7, 1914, Allen S. Browne, discontented from his job as a regional organizer of Moose Clubs, envisioned a new kind of club, a club strictly for businessmen composed of members from various classifications of business, an organization for both fellowship and fraternal. On that day, Allen Brown signed up his friend Joe Prance as the first member. A new organization was born, “The Supreme Lodge of Benevolent Order of Brother, referred to as “BOB.” Before the State of Michigan granted a charter on Jan. 21, 1919, the name had been changed from “BOB,” which many of the new members thought was silly, to “Kiwanis,” an Indian name with dubious interpretations.
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Chapter 1. “The Early Years”
n the fall of 1918, the Alabama-Florida District was organized. The clubs within these two states remained as one district until the International Board met in 1924, when the two states were made independent and separate districts of Kiwanis International. During these formative years the first six clubs in Alabama were: Birmingham, Mobile, Gadsden, Huntsville, Selma and Montgomery. To many Kiwanians, Kiwanis as we know it today actually had begun in 1919 in Birmingham, Ala., with the “Ala bama Purchase.” The Alabama Purchase “Grant that in our deliberations we may be guided by the spirit of love, and of justice, and of truth. Grant that we may know each other better that we may love each other better . . . .” Those words, uttered by the Rev. M. I. Barnwell, in the course of his invocation opening the 1919 convention of Kiwanis International being held at the Tutwiler Hotel in Birmingham, Ala., proved to be prophetic. Kiwanis had come to a time of unavoidable crisis and inevitable decision; and most of the delegates, as they arrived in Birmingham on the night of May 19, knew that the fate of their organization — whether it would stand or fail — would be determined within the next three days. They all realized, with the possible exception of some of those who represented new clubs formed since the last International Convention meeting, that the only salvation for Kiwanis was a definite understanding with Allen Browne and his control over Kiwanis. Without harmony within the leadership and a solid front in resolving this control problem (See HISTORY, Page 21)
Have questions? Call the Kiwanis District Office in Birmingham at 205-945-1334
Alabama Kiwanis Kourier, Summer 2013
History
(From Page 20) Kiwanians and their Kiwanis buttons might well become mere souvenirs before the week was out. The atmosphere in the Birmingham’s Tutwiler Hotel ballroom was fraught with a certain amount of latent tension as Vice President Albert Dodge of Buffalo formally opened the fourth annual convention. “Some of the present forces of organizers,” he said, “still are building clubs on an exchange-of-business principle, but an actual investigation shows that every club so built has had to eliminate a big proportion of its members before it could actually succeed. Before a year had passed,” he emphasized, “such clubs had learned to reject the exchange-of-business principle as unworthy of primary consideration.” . . .
O
n the evening of Tuesday, May 20, 1919, hundreds of delegates were entertained and it was a night of politicking and negotiation. “Listen, Brownie,” said George Hixson, the first Presi dent of Kiwanis International, to Allen Browne (a native of Detroit, father of the Kiwanis organization concept and who was receiving $5 per new member) “… let me tell you something -- you are all through! You have been discredited … and you can never get ahead. So there is only one thing to do -- get all you can, and get out and say goodbye to it.” . . . In fact, Browne, on the afternoon of the convention’s first day, had let the word get out that he might go into court the next day and ask for an injunction to prevent the organization from carrying on under the Kiwanis name if he was ousted, and there were some who feared that the threat, if carried out, might halt convention proceedings. “Let’s stop this thing,” said Alabamian Mercer Barnett. “Let’s go around and see all the judges. I know every one of them, and maybe I can get them not to issue an injunction in case an application is made.” They did just that, and were informed they need not worry about disruption of the convention because, even if an injunction should be asked for, there wouldn’t be ample time for a court hearing before the convention actually was over. Browne then consented to meet a committee organized to purchase Kiwanis from Browne in a hotel conference room. Browne continued his defiant attitude. When pressed to name a sum of money he would consider for sale of his contract, Browne said that he might be induced to sell for $20,000 and drop his plan for court action, but he wasn’t quite sure about that at the moment. “Listen, Browne,” a committee member said. “I’m going to be perfectly blunt and tell you that if we can’t work out a satisfactory agreement with you, Kiwanis will take steps to disband and create a new club, under another name. That’s how we stand, so take it or leave it.” Browne was visibly surprised. . . . This possibility simply had not occurred to him. He abandoned all thought of bringing an injunction action. He decided to follow the advice of his friend George Hixson -- to get all that he could and get out. . . . The board members made an offer of $12,500. Browne held out for $20,000. The bargaining went on. It was 2 o’clock Wednesday morning before they reached a settlement of $17,500, a sum roughly equal to one dollar for
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every member of Kiwanis. “I’ll take it,” said Browne, “but on one condition, the money must be turned over to me by Thursday noon and in cold cash.” . . . Stripped of all its legal terminology, the paper simply boiled down to this: that upon receipt of the $17,500, Browne would surrender to the organization “the use of the word Kiwanis or any idea connected therewith” and “absolutely and forever sever all relations that have at any time existed between the parties hereto as fully and completely as though the same had never at any time been actually or impliedly entered into.” That was the way matters stood when Vice President Dodge, at 10 a.m. Wednesday, called the convention to order and announced “because of some things of vital interest to the organization,” there will be a change in business procedure. He meant, of course, the purchase of the Browne contract, but not before the convention made a few minor constitutional revisions. Consequently, it was almost 11 a.m. before Trustee Ross of Toronto arose to present the resolution that everybody had been waiting to hear: “... that this convention in meeting assembled hereby ratifies and confirms the action of its Board of Trustees in settlement and arrangement with Allen S. Browne, and the contract covering the settlement in its form as before this meeting is approved.” The convention lost no time in adopting, without a single dissenting vote, both the purchase resolution and the proposition for the per capita tax increase (by $2). A wave of check writing by delegates started with enthusiasm.
K
iwanis bought itself that Wednesday morning in half an hour’s time. Allen Browne’s deadline of Thursday noon had been met with almost 24 hours to spare. The International Secretary then passed the money along to a representative of the Kiwanis organizer, who delivered it in the early afternoon to the hotel room where Allen Browne had remained in seclusion from the organization he had founded as the delegates ratified the agreement. Kiwanis International now stood in its own shoes as of Wednesday noon, May 21, 1919, in Birmingham. After that, Kiwanis heard very little of Browne until his death at Dallas, Texas, in 1934. First Vice President Mercer Barnett, writing in the October 1919 issue of The Torch (the Kiwanis publication of the time), said: “Kiwanis, organized on a basis of trade, has found for itself a basis of service; and today, instead of the motto We Trade with which our work was begun, the words that best express the things we stand for are these: We Serve (later changed to We Build). Anyone who has old pictures of the Tutwiler Hotel or 1919 Kiwanis Convention is asked to share them for inclusion in the published edition. Also in Chapter 1, “The Early Years,” is a his torical background of the first six clubs: Birmingham, Mobile, Gadsden, Huntsville, Selma and Montgomery. Anyone who may have pictures of or information about these early clubs is asked to send them to Bob McCurley, rlmccurley@gmail.com, or to District Secretary Pat Manasco, patriciamanasco@bellsouth.net). Future editions of the Kourier during 2013 and 2014 will include excerpts from other decades, along with articles about our Sponsored Youth Organizations and District Leadership.
Start planning now to attend the Kiwanis International Convention in Japan July 17-20, 2014
Alabama Kiwanis Kourier, Summer 2013
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Lieutenant Governor Mar garet Murphy (both photos) and others planned a division dinner. Guests included Governor-elect Bill Phillips (cen ter in left photo) and Governor Wayne Sisk (both photos), who received a key to the city of Monroeville from Bob Crawford, Monroeville Kiwanis Club president.
Monroeville hosts Gov. Wayne Sisk, holds Eliminate Project fundraiser The Kiwanis Club of Monroeville hosted the Alabama Kiwanis Governor’s visit to Division 12 on Feb. 9, along with an auction fundraiser for the Eliminate Project. The club’s regular meeting location, the Vanity Fair Golf Club in Monroeville, was decorated with a Mardi Gras theme for this Saturday night event with spouses and guests invited. The Kiwanis Men’s Chorus, made up of Monroeville members, provided entertainment. They began with the National Anthem and presented several favorites before closing with “Good Night Songs.” Past Lt. Governor Jeff Kirkland of Brewton led the Pledge of Allegiance. The Rev. Sandra Mayer gave the invocation. Division 12 Lt. Governor Margaret Murphy was in charge of the meeting and invited all division clubs to send an interclub. Andalusia, Brewton, Evergreen, Jackson and Tri Cities, Florala, were represented, along with Monroeville. Each club reported on current programs and accomplishments. Alabama Kiwanis Governor Wayne Sisk of Anniston, who attended with his wife, Toni, gave the keynote address. Governor-elect Bill Phillips and wife Jean of Pell City also visited. “The governor seemed most pleased that he was given
the key to the city of Monroeville — the first key to a city he had ever received,” said Murphy, who welcomed him to Division 12. He was welcomed by the club and the city, with Bob Crawford, president of the Kiwanis Club of Monroeville, handling both duties since Mayor Mike Kennedy was in Washington, D.C., on business. He was also welcomed by the county and by Al Brewton, president of the Monroeville Area Chamber of Commerce. The clubs attending brought items to auction in a fundraiser for the Kiwanis International Eliminate Project, with credit going to the club that donated the item. A total of $487 was raised to provide vaccines for the worldwide service project of eliminating maternal and neonatal tetanus, with an estimated 270 lives saved. The auction was handled by Division 12 Eliminate chairman Laura Allen and Monroeville club secretary Phil Allen. Casey Blankenship, president of the newly formed Circle K Club at Alabama Southern Community College in Monroeville, displayed the auction items. About 70 attended, including several area Circle K and Key Club members.
Photos on this page and the following page were taken by Monroeville Kiwanian Jim Kane
You can still register for the Alabama District Convention, scheduled July 26-28 in Huntsville
Alabama Kiwanis Kourier, Summer 2013
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Governor’s Division 12 visit Monroeville (see story on previous page)
Photos by Jim Kane
Remember your annual club gift of $5 per member to the Kiwanis International Foundation
Alabama Kiwanis Kourier, Summer 2013
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Decatur club serves steak to prospects
Recruiting members is not easy, so clubs are trying all kinds of techniques. The Kiwanis Club of Decatur offi cers and board booked a water-view pavilion for May 30, invited members and prospects, and served grilled steaks with baked potatoes and desserts. The club normally meets at noon on Thursdays at Decatur Country Club, but it canceled one noon session in favor of a Thursday
McNeil
(From Page 6) “Kiwanis is our family no matter where we are in this world,” Corsaro said. The comments about McNeil on the sites online show how well-liked he is by those he has met, often through Kiwanis and Kiwanis projects. “I met Jason while working with United Cerebral Palsy of West Alabama,” one wrote. “He is one of the nicest people you will ever meet! He’s the type of person who gives not just from his pocket but from his heart and soul. Anyone who ever meets him can’t help but be swept away by his passion for life and love of his family.” Another wrote, “I have known Jason for many years,, and he is a kind and
evening steak night and asked those planning to attend to reserve steaks in advance. Following dinner and fel lowship, president Steve Sasser told about the club, ser vice projects and fundraisers. If your club has tried new ideas to increase membership, service or fundraising dol lars, share them with all clubs through the Kiwanis Kourier by emailing kiwaniskourier@gmail.com.
caring father and husband and has devoted countless hours to our community here in West Alabama. …” Another person said, “I have worked with Jason on many serviceoriented projects. He is always taking care of the needs of others. God bless Jason, Pam and the girls. Please take a moment to visit the website and give up a soda or an evening out to pay forward the gift of giving — as Jason has done many times before.” About $4,770 was given in the first five hours after the site was set up. One week after McNeil’s injury, the amount raised was at $34,244 — after Kid Rock and family reportedly donated $5,000. See Giveforward.com or bit.ly/150tuyH. A Jason and Pam McNeil Fund has been set up at Robertson Bank in Alabama. Donations can be made at
any Robertson Bank, including Tuscaloosa, Demopolis and Linden. Jason McNeil updates can be found on a special Facebook page: www. facebook.com/JasonMcneilUpdates. “We met with the doctor yesterday, and he said Jason has a lot of positive things in his favor,” the July 12 update said. “He can’t give a time frame as to when he will awake from the coma, but he said to remain hopeful and continue the prayers and support for him and his family. He is pleased with the progress to this point. Jason once again had many visitors yesterday, which is a true testament to what a great man he is!” The previous day, the update said, “It is so amazing to see all the support he and his family are getting. Thank you everyone for that, because it definitely helps with the healing process.”
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