The month of September this year is shaping up to be a momentous one for the Kiwanis Club of St George - the service club will mark 30 years in existence with various celebratory events.

The highlight will be a gala banquet on Saturday 29 November. It is anticipated that several ‘charter members’ of the club will be in attendance, five of whom are still active members. Those five active charter members are Evadne Caesar, Fanny Churm, Gary Kent-Smith, Harold Millett, and Lily Oatley.

Under Kiwanis bye-laws all officers and directors take office on October 1, but clubs can have their formal installations at any time. This banquet will have three features – first will be the end-of-year report with various awards being presented; the 30-year celebration follows; and the evening will wrap up with the installation of the incoming Officers and Directors.

For administrative purposes, the Kiwanis Club of St George’s, along with all the Kiwanis organizations in Bermuda, is part of the New England & Bermuda District of Kiwanis.

One special guest for the banquet will be the Governor of the New England & Bermuda District, Dan Bennett, who will be here especially for the event. He will be accompanied by his wife, the District’s “First Lady”, Janet Bennett.

The incoming leadership team will be President, Gary Kent-Smith; Vice President, Daron Lowe; Treasurer, Craig Outerbridge; Immediate Past President: Scarlett Pottinger; along with Directors David Burgess and Buddy Fleming.

With the overall thrust of Kiwanis being “Serving the Children of the World”, Kiwanis St George has carried out many projects aimed at improving the life of children around Bermuda.

These projects have included financing the supply of hundreds of atomizers for children suffering from asthma; the purchase of a car for the mother of a fully disabled child; and helping a child suffering from cancer to fulfill a ‘dream’ (a visit to Disneyworld).

In addition to projects aimed directly at children, the Kiwanians in St George’s have also assisted other charities in such things as tag days, and they have also provided recognition to some who have accomplished major achievements, and those who have made contributions to the community at large.

For the past few years, in November/December, Kiwanis St George has arranged a “grief counseling” workshop aimed at those who have lost loved ones. The philosophy behind this is that while losing a loved one at any time is traumatic, when that loss occurs late in the year (close to the Christmas season) the loss feels even heavier.

The club does not ignore the younger members of our society and has helped established a K-Kids Club at the St George’s Preparatory School. These youngsters have undertaken numerous projects including one which involved the securing, wrapping, and delivering scarves to residents at some of the Seniors’ Homes in St George’s.

Last fall, the club arranged to send two containers of relief goods – adult and children’s clothing, household items, and bottled water – to the hurricane-stricken island of Barbuda. Kiwanis St George Vice President Buddy Fleming stated that “it would have been difficult to stand by and do nothing while our fellow islanders to the south were suffering”.

In November the club honoured war veterans at a special dinner, and presented each of the veterans with a certificate of appreciation for their service.

Earlier this year, Kiwanis St George re-instituted the “Hero of the Year” award, by presenting a plaque to Sydney Mello, who has actually risked his life in saving three persons who fell into difficulty while swimming. Club Secretary Daron Lowe explained that it was important “to honour those deserving while they were still young enough to appreciate it”.

In mid-September Kiwanis St George will hold an evening of Jazz Under the Stars – this will take place on Saturday, 15 September, at the historic Fort St Catherine. This will serve as a launch for the club’s 30th anniversary celebrations. Various local jazz artists will be featured, including “Paradise”, “Downbeat”, “Dos Amigos”, and “Wave”.

Kiwanis is a global organization of volunteers dedicated to improving the world, one child and one community at a time.

• Press release from the Kiwanis Club of St George