In the spirit of giving, the Kiwanis Club of Winter Haven prepared 100 bagged food items (stuffing, rice, instant potatoes, canned vegetables) to be distributed to families during Polk Sheriff’s Charities Inc annual Turkey Giveaway on November 17, 2023.

Thank you to Polk County Sheriff’s Office deputies who distributed the bagged food items for the Kiwanis Club.

Thank you to the WAWA foundation for providing funding to the Kiwanis Club of Winter Haven to purchase the bagged food items.

On November 18th, our club had a table at the WH Farmer’s Market. We provided the kids who were there the chance to make a turkey gram or a newspaper hat. We enjoyed having the WHHS Key Club there to help with this awesome activity.

Our club attended the first DCM of the 2023-2024 Kiwanis year on October 24th. The DCM was hosted by the Kiwanis Club of Wachula and their historical Train Depot. We heard from current Kiwanis International Trustee, Matthew Cantrall, on updates from Kiwanis International. We also heard from the current Florida District Governor, Priary Riehel, on her goals for the District. There was even a special presentation by Florida Kiwanis Foundation Division 15 Trustee, Nan Clark, for the recognition of Kelly Casey’s generous donation to the Will and Rachel Blechman Fund.

We enjoyed having the WHHS Key Club there to update us on their club and success this school year. Cauney Bamberg, CEO of Roar Florida, will speak with us at our December 12th meeting.

• November 18th – Kiwanis table at the local Farmers Market (old BB&T bank) from 8 am – 1 pm. We will have games and crafts for the kids visiting and promoting our Pancake Festival.
• December 2nd – Salvation Army Bell Ringing from 10 am – 4 pm (2-hour shifts) at the Publix next to TJ Maxx
• December 7th – Open House at SoCe Market from 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm. The theme is tackey holiday wear, and we ask members to bring friends and a toy to be donated to Toys for Tots. 
• December 16th – Salvation Army Bell Ringing from 10 am – 4 pm (2-hour shifts) at the Publix next to TJ Maxx
• Read Around the World – if you prefer certain schools, please contact Missy Joyce. 

Our club had the pleasure of attending two Trunk-or-Treats that were put on by two of our SLPs (Discovery HS Key Club and Winter Haven HS Key Club). We had a ton of fun at both events and enjoyed supporting our SLPs.

On Saturday, October 21st, was Kiwanis’ annual One Day event. This day allows for Kiwanis clubs to participate in various projects around the world and partner with other branches of the Kiwanis family. This year our club partnered with the Key Clubs of Division 15A (Winter Haven, Discovery, Ridge Community, and George Jenkins) to create foster care packs. These packs will be donated to the Heartland for Children, where they will be distributed to foster families. The packs included essential items for kids in the foster care system: a backpack, a towel, a blanket, clothes, toiletries, books, and a toy.

Every year the Cypress Gardens Water Ski Team hosts an event known as Adaptive Ski. This event allows individuals with a mental or physical disability the opportunity to learn how to water ski. The event takes place on the third Saturday of September at MLK Park on Lake Silver. This year we partnered with the Winter Haven High School Key Club to provide fun activities for the participants and they were able to win a prize.

We celebrated 88 years of serving the kids of the Winter Haven community. We recognized members’ years of service to this organization with our longest-standing member being Kelly Casey with 42 years. We welcomed four new members into our organization and installed our 2023-2024 officers. We also awarded our Kiwanian of the Year to the immediate past treasurer, Mary Venrick.

In May our club was fortunate enough to host the Divisional Council Meeting. This event allows for Kiwanis clubs in our Division to come together in fellowship and service. We heard from Dan Chesnicka, Producing Director of the Theatre Winter Haven, who spoke on the amazing programs and shows put on through the Theatre Winter Haven. We also heard from the current Governor-elect, Prairy Riehl, who shared her goals for the Florida District of Kiwanis which includes sponsoring new Service Leadership Programs (SLPs) and partnering with the Foster Care system. We would like to thank all those who attend and the Ritz of Winter Haven for hosting.

We had the pleasure of hearing from Ashley Page, Outreach Director, from the Breast Cancer Foundation of Central Florida. Breast Cancer Foundation of Central Florida (BCFCF) relies solely on the generous support of local businesses, individuals, and volunteers to provide resources and support to local, Central Florida individuals and families facing a breast cancer diagnosis. https://www.bcfcf.org/