GACKI K-Family Day

The Kiwanis Family consists of all branches of the Kiwanis organization including: K-Kids, Builders Club, Aktion Club, Key Club, Circle K, and Kiwanis. During K-Family Day, all the Kiwanis Family organizations are encouraged to attend and participate together in social activities and service projects. On Saturday, November 20, 2013, the Georgia District held its first K-Family Day in Atlanta, Georgia.

Approximately two hundred Georgia Key Clubbers, Circle K’ers, and Kiwanians gathered together for a traditional tailgate lunch and the Georgia Institute of Technology’s football game against Alabama A & M. Some of the funds from the game tickets were donated towards the Eliminate Project, a project taken on by Kiwanis to rid the world of maternal and neonatal tetanus by 2015 which will celebrate the 100th year anniversary of Kiwanis International.

Altogether, there were five different Circle K clubs represented at the event, coming from the north of the state to the east coast: Young Harris College,  Georgia Southern University, Georgia College & State University, Georgia State University, and of course Georgia Tech.

We also welcomed a past Georgia Circle K’er as well as a potential member attending Emory University. Overall, the event was a terrific success, and we look to hold another K-Family Day next year! It will surely be a Circle K event to behold, so be sure to stay tuned for next year!

-Brittany Horton

Middle School Garden

Looking for a super easy and fun service project to do with your local Builders Club? Many Builders Clubs are in charge of taking care of the garden or courtyard or outdoor classroom area within their own school where they may grow vegetables or flowers. They can definitely use the help of some Circle Kers!

A Builders Club in the Capital District is completely responsible for the outdoor courtyard within their school. There is a large pond, native Virginian plants, as well as frogs and fish! The kids mow the grass, pull weeds and make sure any other work is done.

If this is something you can see your club getting involved in, please don't hesitate to contact me to get in touch with the Builders Clubs in your area! My e-mail is monica.wang23@gmail.com.

Quinte Mohawk Builders Club

The Quinte Mohawk Builders Club at the Mohawk Reserve in Deseronto, Ontario is quite the incredible club in the Eastern Canada District. I'm not even exaggerating! Chartered in 2008, this 20+ group of young volunteers have done some pretty amazing projects and they are listed below:

-In the fall of 2008, they began the Angel Tree Project to raise funds to buy Christmas gifts for the 60 or so children who would not get gifts at Christmas. They started by collecting Canadian Tire Money (coupons provided when purchases are made) and soon were being provided with cash donations which in the first year totaled $1,700. In the four Christmas seasons since June 2008, they have collected a total of $4,700 for this enterprise.

-When a local family was burned out, the children purchased clothing and books for the child of the family.

-They raised funds by holding school dances, having popcorn sales and making scarves to build a school in Kenya through a program called Free the Children. In three years, they raised $4,100 by holding spaghetti dinners. They have now reached their goal of $8,500 for this project. They have 27 students signed up to travel to Kenya in July of 2014 to witness and assist with the construction of the school they have funded. You can imagine this is expensive. The cost per student is $4,700. Wow!!!

-They sold school clothing and provided staff luncheons.

-One of their classmates was diagnosed this past year with leukemia. Her name was Paula. The children purchased a Teddy Bear which occupies her chair in the classroom. Each day one of the children communicates the day’s activities to Paula by e-mail. (Sadly to say, Paula has since succumbed to her illness.) 

-They donated $500 to the Haiti Relief Fund. 

-They have provided $3,600 worth of books to another native school in a remote Canadian community less fortunate. When the principal of Henry Coaster Memorial School got this news he was without words.

-The club has annually donated money to UNICEF to assist with its many world wide projects.

As you can tell, Builders Clubs are just as capable as us to raise hundreds and thousands of dollars for different causes around the world. I'm not sure about you, but I am THOROUGHLY impressed by what this Builders Club has accomplished in the past three and a half years! Try contacting your local Builders Clubs to see what kind of projects they're doing. You might be surprised.

Free the Children

The Tabb Middle School Builders Club in the Capital District does a very unique project that goes alongside their Kiwanis club's request to work for the ELIMINATE Project. A couple of years ago, they decided that if the ELIMINATE Project will be saving babies's lives, then there needs to be a way to education them.

Their faculty adviser was aware of a non-profit organization in Canada, called Free the Children, that could help build a school in a third world country where the ELIMINATE Project would be helping to save lives of children. They decided to raise $10,000 to build a school in Sierra Leone where many schools have been destroyed by civil war. Right now, the Builders Club has raised around $6,000 and hopes to finish this awesome project this year so children who have already been saved by the ELIMINATE Project can go to school.

If you would like more information about how to get more involved with Free the Children, please visit their website at freethechildren.com. According to the faculty adviser, they have provided wonderful assistance, leadership and tools to help with the project.

Helping the Homeless

Here is a very inspiring story about a Builders Club in the New York District that I wanted to share with all of you. I'm very touched by their passion for this cause and hope it inspires you to see what your local Builders Club has to offer!

At Thanksgiving time, a local Radio Disk Jockey would take a paper box, a sleeping bag and some food up onto a flat roof of a restaurant and stay there for the weekend, asking people to contribute money for the homeless.  My Builders Club (at a City School that had the highest poverty level in the city) Kids wanted to raise money to contribute to the DJ's efforts for the homeless.  They decided on a "Walk for the Homeless".  Our school was exactly a mile from Lake Ontario.  They planned a two mile (pre-paid) walk, from the school, down to the Beach and back.  They picked the Monday before Thanksgiving to do it.  The kids were all bussed into this school so they would have to start the walk the last period of the school day and then take a late bus home (one usually set aside for those doing sports, or having detention or needing extra help). The school agreed to this but said in order for a student to get out of 8th period to do the walk, he/she had to have brought in at least $5.00 (these kids were all poor, so that meant really getting a lot of small donations) and get written permission from their 8th period teachers.   The day of the walk, 22 of my 35 Builders Club members had turned in at least $5.00 and had written permission from their teacher.  Earlier that day,the temperature had plummeted to 20 degrees with a wind-chill index of about 5 degrees, it was snowing and we had about 5 inches of snow on the ground.  The 22 kids still wanted to do the walk, so off we went.  When we got to the beach, we stopped for a minute to get a picture to give to the DJ with the money raised.  I was so proud of the kids for insisting they do the walk, not just turn in the money, that I told them I would buy them all a cup of hot chocolate at a local burger place about a block away from the beach, but on the way back to the school.  The kids started off walking faster, knowing this, while I followed up the rear with the slower students.  When I got to the restaurant, all the kids were outside waiting, and very upset.  They had gone in, to use the bathrooms and wait for me.  The management had told them the restrooms were for "Paying Customers Only."  They explained they walk and that I was bringing up the rear with the slower walkers, but were still told, to use the bathroom or even be in the restaurant they had to buy something first!  When I arrived, they indignantly explained the situation.  I went in, placed and paid for 23 cups of Hot Chocolate and the kids were allowed in. On the way back to school, they ALL talked about how hard it must be really to be homeless, if people wouldn't even let you come in to go to the restroom!  It was not only a wonderful project for them to do (they turned in almost $500.00, much of it being brought in after the walk was over, when they told everyone how cold they had been, and their experience being turned away by the restaurant) but my Builders Club Members had a real passion to collect even more because of their experience. The experience had made the project very personal!

Making Tie-Blankets with Builders Club

A few months ago, my home club (University of Wisconsin-Madison Circle K) visited a local Builders Club that we've never met before at one of their meetings. This club was extremely energetic with an equally passionate faculty member for all things service and Kiwanis! 

Four members from my club (including myself) brought huge sheets of fleece to their meeting and was able to bond together over cutting and tying the fleece into blankets to be donated. We were able to learn a lot about them; we watched a video advertisement they filmed themselves to promote the huge food drive they hosted at their middle school and played a ton of fun games with them. We also taught them a lot about Circle K during a Q&A session where they asked us seemingly endless questions about what college was like, how we joined Circle K, what it was like and so much more.

These kids were incredible and I cannot wait to see them join Key Club, Circle K and Kiwanis when they grow older. I hope the rest of you can do something similar with the Builders Clubs nearest you as well!

Get Ready for Builders Club Month!

Hello Builders Club Month!

Who’s ready for month TWO of our Circle K International Kiwanis Family Relations Committee’s promotion for all the branches of the Kiwanis Family? Well you better get ready because here’s some fast facts about Builders Club coming right at you!

What is Builders Club?

Builders Club is the largest service organization for middle school and junior high students in the world! They have over 45,000 members… What? That’s even bigger than Circle K! The very first Builders Club was chartered in 1975 and today, there’s more than 1,600 clubs in countries all over the world, including Aruba, Australia, Barbados, Canada, Italy, Korea, the Netherlands, Philippines, the United States and so much more!

How Can I get more involved with Builders Club?

Volunteering and helping out at your local Builders Club is super easy! They do projects just like us and I’m sure they would love to have some older K-Family role models to serve with them. If you need help finding Builders Clubs in your area, please e-mail me at monica.wang23@gmail.com and I can help put you in touch with your district’s Builders Club Administrator.

You can also help co-sponsor a local Builders Club alongside a Kiwanis club! The Kiwanis club can help the Builders Club financially while Circle Kers can act more as the faculty advisers by attending meetings, going to their events and being any support they need.

Learn the Builders Club Pledge!

“I pledge on my honor to uphold the objects of Builders club. To better my school, my community, my nation, and myself. To aid those in need while enhancing leadership capabilities, and to encourage the fellowship of all mankind.”

Need more information? Check out their website at www.buildersclub.org! Builders Club is just like us so let’s show some love for this amazing branch of our family! If you have any specific questions about Builders Club, please don't hesitate to contact me at monica.wang23@gmail.com.

Forever Yours in Service,

Monica Wang

Builders Club Ambassador