A group of community-minded youth have earned top honours for the work they’ve done here in Chilliwack.
The GW Graham Key Club, a Kiwanis club for high schoolers, achieved Distinguished Club status as well as the Service Club of the Year trophy.
And that trophy doesn’t just cover Chilliwack, or the Fraser Valley, or even the province. It’s for a district that ranges from North California to Alaska, and everything in between.
“This is the highest honour a club can receive from the Key Club District, which comprises over 4,000 students from clubs ranging from the states of (northern) California, Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Alaska as well as British Columbia,” said Sheila Scoble, the Kiwanis Key Club Advisor for the Kiwanis Club of Sardis.
The award was given during the 70th annual Key Club Convention in Seattle, which ran March 8 to 10.
Scoble said the club received credit for their contributions to The Thirst Project, a well-building initiative in Africa, and the Kiwanis Children’s Cancer fund. At least 10 of the members also contributed a minimum of 65 hours of service, earning a 6 for 65 award.
The Key Club’s partnership with the Kiwanis Club of Sardis enabled them to accumulate hours of service at the monthly Saturday Soup Kitchen and the annual Kiwanis Children’s Christmas Party.
Their own fundraising efforts not only helped to defray costs to attend the convention but also allowed them to donate $1,500 to humanitarian projects.
All told, the GW Key Club gave more than 1,800 hours of service in the 2018-19 club year, earning them the Distinguished Club status.
It was their wide breadth of service — in the district, their school, community, and globally — that put them at the top of the field and earned them their Service Club of the Year trophy. Only one club in the district is chosen each year.
Key Clubs are a student-led service leadership program sponsored by local Kiwanis clubs to foster growth in leadership skills and provide opportunities for service, Scoble said. There are currently two Key Clubs in Chilliwack, and a Builders Club at the middle school level.
“The future is in good hands as these students learn how to make a difference in the lives of others, especially for the children in the community and the world,” Scoble said. “This is giving them the heart for service.”