Local Kiwanis Club joins hands across world

Published 12:16 am Sunday, April 11, 2010

NATCHEZ — One set of hands can make a difference, but when hands all over the world are pitching in at the same time, a bigger difference can be made.

That was the goal behind the Kiwanis One Day on Saturday.

The local Kiwanis chapter did its part during Kiwanis One Day with a work day at Duncan Park.

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Club members, along with Key Club members and other volunteers, repaired and painted bleachers at the baseball fields, painted picnic tables and planted new flowers in flower beds.

Local president Wanda Frye said Duncan Park was the perfect place to do their Kiwanis One Day project since a large portion of the community utilizes the park in some way.

“When we were looking for a project to do, we wanted to pick something that would be beneficial to the most possible people,” Frye said. “We know that several of the area schools use these tennis courts and children take lessons out here and play out here.”

Frye said picking a project that helps local children was in line with the mission of Kiwanis to support and impact local children.

“Our mission statement is changing the world one community and one child at a time,” she said.

Club member Donna Sessions said she is happy knowing she is impacting the community in a positive way.

“The purpose is our club is to enrich lives and enrich our community,” she said. “This is one way of doing that.”

Kiwanis clubs all over the world — there are Kiwanis chapters in 87 different countries — worked on the same day in a united effort to make a difference.

Club member Agnes Holloway said project days such as Saturday were the reason she joined the club.

“We all got into this club because we believed in the mission and wanted to help the children in our community,” she said. “Plus when you are out here together it is fun.”

As part of their community service, the Kiwanis Club sponsors the Key Clubs in local schools. And that means getting those students involved in service projects as well.

Key Club member Colby Johnson, 16, from the Cathedral Key Club, said that is exactly why he came out to help.

“I thought it was a good chance to get out here and help the Kiwanis club on their project and also help the people that use the park,” Johnson said. “It had been fun.”