News and Updates

Ms. Lisa Guilliams, Twigs Founder and Chief Dreamer, attended the Belleville Kiwanis weekly meeting to discuss the Twigs program. She was introduced by member Creag Banta, who learned of the splendid work performed by Twigs and thought it may be a good fit our Club. As it turns out, it is.

Twigs is a summer lunch program and school-year pack-a-sack program in multiple communities in Illinois that was launched in 2011. It provides a free summer lunch program for children that begins the day after school lets out in the spring until it begins again in the fall. Lunches are distributed Monday – Friday.

After a thorough discussion of the details on how to best support Twigs, the Bellville Kiwanis has information on how to volunteer at their lunch locations this summer and the Club bought 288 meals for the Belleville kids.

The Southwestern Illinois College held the SWIC Student Art Show from April 26-May 10. Each year, the Belleville Kiwanis awards a cash prize to a promising young artist. This year’s winner is Ashley Sower with her 3D art entitled “Tower of Thoughts”.

“Belleville Kiwanis made a difference in this student’s life. As you can see from the photo, Ashley Sowers was a very happy student,” said Nicole Dutton, Curator of the William & Florence Schmidt Art Center at SWIC.

The Belleville Kiwanis is a strong supporter of student art. In addition to the SWIC Student Art Show, awards are provided for the High School Student Art Show & Congressional Competition as well as the Art on the Square held in Belleville each year.

The Belleville Kiwanis Club served a BBQ Pork Steak meal including potato salad and baked beans near the Sky View Drive-In on Saturday. The Kiwanians had no shortage of summer fun as they smoked the pork smothered in BBQ sauce, chilled the potato salad, and baked the beans over laughs and banter as they served those hungry for lunch. The food was so good that many came back for more.

They were joined by the Bellville Firefighters who were on hand to show the kids and parents the tools of their trade. These professionals were all smiles and energy as they interacted with the Kiwanians and those who stopped by.

All the benefits of this BBQ go to the Downtown Belleville YMCA Summer Learning Program, which helps prevent learning loss during summer break. Lively activities and creative study keeps participants engaged in continued learning that support cognitive and educational development, along with physical and social-emotional growth. They do all this in the spirit of summer fun.

The Belleville Kiwanis meets every Tuesday at 6:30pm at Crehan’s Irish Pub, 5500 N. Belt West, Belleville.

Dan Wolford hosted the 2018 Annual Kiwanis/Key Club outing that celebrates all the work the Key Clubbers did throughout the year as they prepare for the summer.
The Clubbers were fishing and everyone reeled in a catch. The most impressive catch for the evening was a 96 pound Bass. It was almost 6 feet long. After they finally pulled the catch to shore, five Clubbers were holding it proudly for a photo.

Continue reading “Belleville Kiwanis & Key Clubbers Get a Head Start on Summer”

 

Members of the Belleville Kiwanis Club witnessed the officers and leaders of the Bellville West Key Club bestow honors upon their fellow “Clubbers” at the 2018 Key Club Banquet held on April 25, 2018. The Banquet was opened by outgoing President Grace Roerick.

Faculty Advisor, Ms. Jennifer Stauffer, presented awards earned at the District Convention to include Distinguished Officers and 1st Place for Oratorical Speech. Jennifer also presented decorations to graduating seniors. This neck medal honors those who served the Key Club. Continue reading “Belleville West Key Club Banquet – Changing of the Guard Announced”

Abigail Scott from Belleville West High School won the Kiwanis Art Award with her darkroom photography entitled “Light Torture (Millstadt School). The award was presented at the SWIC Schmidt Art Gallery on March 22 during the opening reception of the 2018 High School Student Show and Art Competition.  Sean Louth, Secretary, and Rodger Allison represented the Belleville Kiwanis Club at the event. Art Teacher Dan Kraus accepted the award on Miss Scott’s behalf.

Representatives from Key Clubs at the Belleville West High School and the Governor French Academy attended the 68th Annual I-I District Key Club Convention & Leadership Conference on March 9-11, 2018. They were joined by Faculty Advisor Jennifer Stauffer along with Officers and members of the Belleville Kiwanis Club, Patti Thomas, President, Al Thomas, Treasurer, Gary Heath, and Susan Grimmer.

Continue reading “BELLEVILLE KIWANIS SPONSORS AWARD WINNING KEY CLUBS”

A stalwart group from the Belleville Kiwanis Club made the trek to the Park Avenue Ronald McDonald House in St. Louis to prepare meals for the families staying there. The Ronald McDonald House provides a comfortable place to stay for the families of seriously ill children being treated in nearby hospitals. Continue reading “Kiwanis Feeds Families at the Ronald McDonald House in St. Louis”

For Purse Bingo on Sunday, February 18, 2018:

For Purse Bingo on Sunday, October 1, 2017:

The Belleville Kiwanis Club held its second Designer Purse Bingo last Sunday at the Quail Club in Belleville. Everyone had a wonderful time and a lot of ladies left the event with smiles on their face and a bounce in their step. Continue reading “LOTS OF WINNERS!!”