Kiwanis Club Of Camarillo

Archive for the ‘Camarillo News’ Category

I had the distinct pleasure of meeting with Kiwins Turquoise Division Lt. Governor Chan Kwon one evening earlier this week over coffee at Element Coffee in Camarillo to talk about what’s going on with the Kiwins Club at Camarillo High School.  Mr. Kwon shared a lot of good information with me that is good for the Kiwanis Club of Camarillo members to know about, as well as the community of Camarillo at large.

The Turquoise Division has been a division of one school, that being Camarillo High School, for a long time, but they are looking to increase by one more school soon.  Mr. Kwon advised that he has approached Foothill Technology High School in Ventura and the administration at that campus is very receptive to having a Kiwanis Sponsored Leadership organization there.  Once formed, the new club would be part of the Turquoise Division.

The Kiwins of Camarillo High School, which now has over 100 members, not only has as a member the Division Lt. Governor, it also has the Kiwins Governor of the Cal-Nev-Ha District.  That is a lot of strong youth leadership coming out of just one Kiwanis Sponsored Leadership club.

As with any Kiwanis organization, the function of Kiwins is to make the world better one child and one community at a time.  This is accomplished in two ways:  1) by teaching leadership skills to youth through Sponsored Leadership clubs like Kiwins, the mission of Kiwanis is achieved in that the youth belonging to the clubs are empowered to become tomorrow’s leaders and decision-makers with the needs of children and the community in mind; 2) by engaging in community service projects themselves, the Kiwins at Camarillo High School perform charitable works that benefit others.

To the end of the latter, the Kiwins at Camarillo High School are involved in a number of community service activities.  Given the limited amount of time they have to keep up their grades and serve their community at the same time, some of what they do is raise money for other causes.  This year, they have started a fundraising drive for the March of Dimes, placing donation boxes for coins in classrooms throughout the Camarillo High School campus.  The money collected will then be turned over to March of Dimes to help promote pregnancy and baby health.

Coming up in Fall 2010, the Kiwins will again be participating in Relay for Life with the Kiwanis Club of Camarillo, which makes a pancake breakfast for the volunteers walking in the event every year.  Around that same time, the Kiwins will be helping the Kiwanis Club of Camarillo with its annual Peanut Day fundraiser.  The following Spring, they will help the Kiwanis Club of Camarillo with its annual George Thayer 5K/10K Run.

The Kiwins at Camarillo High School also raises money for Pediatric Trauma Prevention, which is a cause taken up by Kiwanis Clubs throughout Division 42 of the Cal-Nev-Ha District.  In addition to this fundraising effort, the Kiwins recently participated in the Letter Carrier Food Drive in which local postal delivery people picked up bags of donated food from people along their delivery routes and dropped it off at Food Share in Oxnard.  Kiwins from Camarillo High School then sorted and packed the food for distribution by area food banks, which was quite a hands-on undertaking.

The governing board of the Kiwins Club of Camarillo High School recently voted in its new officers for the upcoming year and is currently planning its installation dinner.  The date is tentatively set for June 18, 2010, but could change.  Club officers are currently working to secure a location for the event, which could influence the date on which it is held.  We’ll post the actual announcement for the banquet once all the plans have been made.  The Kiwins would love to have members of the Kiwanis Club of Camarillo in attendance!

The Kiwins of Camarillo High School also have a Facebook Page and use it to communicate with each other.  Members of the Kiwanis Club of Camarillo are encouraged to become a Fan of the Kiwins Facebook Page.

On April 10, 2010, the Kiwanis Club of Camarillo held its 32nd Annual George M. Thayer 5K/10K Run to raise funds for college scholarships to local qualifying high school seniors and the other charitable activities engaged in by the club.

For the results of the 5K run, click here.

For the results of the 10K run, click here.

Thanks to all our great runners and volunteers who make this event a huge success every year!

This year’s George M. Thayer 5K/10K Run is mapped out!  Above is the route for both the 5K and the 10K.  There’s still time to register for the event.  Go to http://www.active.com/running/camarillo-ca/camarillo-kiwanis-32nd-annual-510k-run-2010 to register now!