Kiwanis Club of Omaha Westside

E-mail this page Print this page Larger type Smaller type By Steven Matthews, Staff Writer 10:15 PM Saturday, February 4, 2012 MIDDLETOWN — Middletown High School officially has a new club.The Key Club — a high school version of the Kiwanis Club — celebrated its chartering Thursday afternoon where its 12 members received their pins and certificates, and future plans were announced.“We’re a philanthropy organization — giving back to the community and building students into leaders who have a philanthropist mind,” said club adviser Katrina Fugate, who teaches English at the high school.The Key Club originated last spring with the help of the Kiwanis Club of Middletown, and since then, the club has made an effort to attract new members as well as do community outreach projects.In November, the Key Club decorated the Dream Center downtown for its Thanksgiving meal, and for Christmas, it raised $1,500 to purchase gifts for three local families who have children in high school.The Key Club also planted 100 red tulips in front of the high school during Red Ribbon Week and did landscaping work at the high school two days before school started.“Last year we didn’t do much, but this year, we’ve helped more people, raised more money and we’re taking care of the school like we had planned,” said senior Shanell Malone, Key Club president. “I’ve built my personality in becoming a leader — give directions and take direction — and I also have responsibility.”Established in 1925, Key Club International is the oldest and largest high school service organization in the world. It currently has more than 250,000 members in 5,000 clubs in 30 countries. The Kiwanis Club of Middletown has also sponsored Fenwick’s Key Club for several years.“Key Club really teaches students how to be adults,” said Kiwanis Middletown President Duane Gordon, “how to have meetings, how to manage meetings, how to work on committees, how to host fundraisers to help other people. There are a lot of lessons that students need to have once they’re out in the adult world; a lot of skills they don’t learn in the classroom, but extracurricular activities like this teach them how to do that.”The Key Club has a 5K race planned for April 14 at the high school to raise money so the members can attend an overnight Key Club leadership convention in Columbus the following Saturday.Contact this reporter at (513) 755-5113 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . User comments are not being accepted on this article.

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