Kiwanis Club invites all to October 22, 2018 meeting

SOUTH ORANGE /MAPLEWOOD - To kick off our 2018-19 service year, the Kiwanis Club of South Orange-Maplewood is having a presentation by the Isaiah House (a shelter in East Orange) at the main branch of the Maplewood Library, 51 Baker Street, at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, October 22. Come find out about how Isaiah House helps transition people back into mainstream life! All are welcome.

For the 2018-19 Service Year, the Kiwanis Club of South Orange-Maplewood has adopted improving the kitchen at the Isaiah House as our emphasis project. We started with a donation of $3,500 for two new ranges, plus considerable volunteer efforts by a designer and trades people. Our next effort will be a Comedy Show fundraiser to support these efforts on November 2, 2018 at The Woodland.

The Kiwanis Club of South Orange-Maplewood was organized with 50 members on February 8, 1922. It is presently the 5th oldest Kiwanis Club in New Jersey. In its early days, the club raised $20,000 (equivalent to $300,000 today) to construct a World War I monument for South Orange. In 1927, the club raised $10,000 (equivalent to nearly $150,000 today) to construct a Girl Scout Camp, which still exists today (The Oval at South Mountain Reservation). The club has always strived to help underprivileged boys and girls in the community. In 1998, the Kiwanis Club of South Orange-Maplewood started the Maplewood Annual Duck Race on Memorial Day in Maplewood Memorial Park. They ran it for 17 years, until it was taken over by the South Mountain YMCA in 2016.

The Kiwanis Club of South Orange-Maplewood sponsors the Key Club in Columbia High School. Key Club is the oldest and largest student-led service program for high school students in the world.

Kiwanis is always seeking new members. Annual dues are $125, but they are reduced to $75 for former Key Clubbers or Circle Kers ($50 if the member is under 30). For more information, check out our Facebook page, or contact Gordon Meth at gmeth@optonline.net.

About Kiwanis

Founded in 1915, Kiwanis International is a global organization of clubs and members dedicated to serving the children of the world. Kiwanis and its family of clubs, including Circle K International for university students, Key Club for students age 14–18, Builders Club for students age 11–14, K-Kids for students age 6–12 and Aktion Club for adults living with disabilities, annually dedicate more than 18.5 million service hours to strengthen communities and serve children. The Kiwanis International family comprises more than 702,000 adult and youth members in more than 79 countries and geographic areas. Visit www.kiwanis.org for more information.

Pictured above: Angela Phalen and Gordon Meth from the South Orange-Maplewood Kiwanis Club and Nancy Hicks, Deputy Director of Isaiah House.