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Forest City Kiwanis Club

Serving the Children of Our Community

Kiwanis Club of Forest City
Organized February 11, 1924

Foreword

The Forest City Kiwanis Club was officially organized on February 11, 1924, and the Charter was presented on May 26, 1924. Shelby Kiwanians sponsored the new club.

On February 11, 1974, our club celebrated its Fiftieth Anniversary. On that occasion, the late Stover Dunagan and his committee published a complete history of the first fifty years of the Forest City Kiwanis. This history included a list of Charter Members, Charter Members still active, New Members (by year), pictures of Past Presidents, and a Roll Call of Leadership – the recognition of Past Presidents, by year, with a short bibliography.

On the Seventy-Fifth Year year of service to the Forest City community, the History committee updated the history provided by the Fiftieth Anniversary celebration, and herein is the result of that update.

Many changes occurred during these seventy-five years. Kiwanis became a worldwide organization in 1961. Today Kiwanis is comprised of nearly 260,000 members, in more than 8,000 clubs, in 96 nations. In 1987, the International Convention in Washington, D.C. approved an amendment to open membership to women. By the end of that first year, over 15,000 women were inducted. Today there are more than 51,000 women members, and one in seven club presidents is a woman.

The Men and Women Who Wear the "K"

Kiwanis International: Serving the Children of the World

Kiwanis International is a global organization of volunteers dedicated to changing the world one child and one community at a time - locally through Kiwanis club-sponsored activities and programs and globally through the Kiwanis International Worldwide Service Project and other worldwide initiatives. Kiwanis members are service-minded men and women united in their commitment to and compassion for others.

Founded in Detroit, Michigan, USA, in 1915 by a group of businessmen, Kiwanis International is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. A year later the Kiwanis Club of Hamilton, Ontario was chartered, and Kiwanis International grew rapidly into a leading service club in these two founding nations. In 1962, worldwide expansion was approved and today Kiwanis clubs are active in every part of the world.

Since its founding, the organization has attracted a true cross-section of the business and professional community. While the original concept limited membership to top level executives and business owners, the shift in emphasis from promoting good business relations to community service brought many more men into Kiwanis.

Stated Purpose of Kiwanis: "Serving the Children of the World"

Stated Impact of Kiwanis:

Assist children, young adults, the aging, and the needy
Improve communities
Encourage international understanding

The Motto: "Serving the Children of the World"

The Name: The name "Kiwanis" was coined from an expression in an American Indian language of the Detroit area. Nunc Kee-wanis, which means, "we trade" or "we have a good time".

Kiwanis Family Impact

Kiwanis clubs sponsor Kiwanis-family organizations for young people and adults: K-Kids clubs in elementary schools, Builders Clubs in middle school and junior highs, Key Clubs in high schools, Circle K clubs at the collegiate level, Kiwanis Junior clubs for young adults in Europe, and Aktion Clubs for adults living with disabilities. These clubs teach future world leaders the importance of helping others.

Thousands of Kiwanis clubs support Young Children: Priority One —a continuing service program focusing on the needs of children, prenatal through age five, with projects in pediatric trauma, safety, child care, and early development.

The Worldwide Service Project - a Kiwanis-family initiative in partnership with UNICEF—aims to virtually eliminate the world’s leading cause of preventable mental retardation, iodine deficiency disorders.

Carolinas District

With nearly 8,000 clubs in 96 nations, Kiwanis International is divided into Districts based on how many clubs/members in an area. North and South Carolina are grouped together as the Carolinas District. Each District elects a Governor to serve for the administrative year which extends from October 1 to September 30 of the following year. The current Governor for the Carolinas District is Bill Yarborough of Clinton, SC. Each District is divided into Divisions, of which there are 27 Divisions in the Carolinas District. A Lieutenant Governor is elected from each Division to serve as the contact for resources, distribution of information, assistance for club building, and motivation for continued involvement. The Forest City Kiwanis Club is a part of Division 2. The Lt. Governor for Division 2 is Jim Bishop, a member of our Forest City Club. In addition to our club, the clubs included in Division 2 are: Black Mountain/ Swannanoa, Brevard, Fletcher, Golden K Hendersonville, Hendersonville, Hickory Nut Forge, Land O' Sky Hendersonville, Old Fort, Rutherfordton, Tryon, and Landrum, SC.

Statistics for the Carolinas District as of October 1, 2007:

Total Number of Clubs: 241 Kiwanis Clubs

Total Number Kiwanis members in Carolinas: 8,956

Sponsored Programs: 25 Builders Clubs and 225 Key Clubs

The First International Officer

Charles C. Erwin was the father of the "Key Club" program in Kiwanis. An educator, Mr. Erwin joined the Forest City club in 1926. After serving as President in 1933, he successfully ran for Lieutenant Governor in 1941. He became Forest City’s only District Governor in 1943. While serving as Chairman of the Kiwanis International Committee on Boys and Girls activities, he founded the Key Club Program.

Other District Officers

Eight other Forest City Kiwanians have served as Lieutenant Governors.

1930 – Rev. George Gillespie	1971 – James F. Marchman, Jr.
1951 – E.L. Walker	1985 – Capt. Wilbur J. Burgin
1961 – Dr. Trevor Williams	2000 – Dr. Doug Pearson
1971 – Robert W. Soens	2007 and 2008– Jim Bishop

Forest City Kiwanis Past Presidents (listed on Officers page)