Kiwanis elects new officers

The Sisters Kiwanis Club installed a new president and slate of officers on September 27. Suzanne Carvlin assumes the president's role for the next year.

"It is an honor to lead the Sisters Kiwanis club and its 75 members," Carvlin said. "Our club has been a driving force for good in our community for 36 years. One of my main goals is continuing work focused on our club mission: to support our community with an emphasis on children and youth. I'm proud to belong to a group that embraces both men and women who serve our community. It's noteworthy that Kiwanis International just elected the first female president, ever, of a global service organization."

Jan Failing was honored as Kiwanian of the Year for her five years as club secretary, her work in the dental van and countless volunteer hours on many club services and projects.

2015 is the 100th birthday of Kiwanis International and, to help celebrate, Kiwanis created the Centennial Award, which honors members with commitment and service to the Kiwanis mission. Tom Worcester was honored with a Centennial Award for his 25 years of extraordinary service to Sisters Kiwanis.

Shirley Lalli was honored with a Walter Zeller Fellowship awarded by Kiwanis International to members who served The Eliminate Project with distinction. Eliminate is an international effort by Kiwanis and UNICEF to "eliminate" maternal and neonatal tetanus worldwide.

Kiwanis officers for the coming year include Carvlin, Doug Willis, Roxanne Lenahan and Jack McGilvary.

Members of Sisters Kiwanis contribute to the Sisters community in a variety of ways. In the past year, the group:

• Operated the Sisters Food Bank that distributed food to hundreds of people, with no paid staff.

• At Christmas, the food bank gave food vouchers to 75+ families that allowed these families to have a traditional Christmas dinner.

• Sisters Kiwanis made a significant financial contribution to The Eliminate Project.

• Kiwanis donated funds to Sisters organizations including Sisters Park & Recreation District, Family Access Network, Outlaw Sports, Little League, Boy Scouts and many

others.

• Kiwanis financially supported a dental van that visits Sisters once per month to provide free dental services.

• In June, Kiwanis awarded scholarships to seven Sisters High School seniors.

• Kiwanis awarded scholarships to three adults to support their career change. This scholarship, known as the Career Opportunity Fund, is continuously available to local adults.

• Kiwanis provided many volunteers who donated time and energy to projects at A Home To Share, Ronald McDonald House, the Fir Street Park pavilion, Highway 20 cleaning and many more.

To support these contributions to the Sisters community, Kiwanis operates fundraisers such as the Buckaroo Breakfast, the Black Butte Challenge Race, the Christmas See's Candy Sale and the Memorial Day Antique Sale.

If your group or organization is seeking a speaker, Kiwanis can present a 20-30 minute talk on its Food Bank operation and other community projects.

For more information visit www.SistersKiwanis.Org, email [email protected] or call 541-588-6441.