St. Mary's Kiwanis Club
by Glynnis Schmidt
Donates to Camp D.A.R.E.
The Kiwanis Club of St. Mary's County invited Sheriff Tim Cameron as a guest speaker to one of their member meetings earlier this year, and presented him with a donation to the Sheriff's Office for $200 to be used for programs supporting children and families in St. Mary's County. From left: Bob Owen (Kiwanis President), Sheriff Cameron, and Mary Lynn Whetstine (Kiwanis Treasurer). The funds went to support Camp D.A.R.E. which is a day-camp for 5th and 6th grade students organized free of charge through the St. Mary's County Sheriff's Office. Campers are taught important health, safety, and decision-making lessons, while participating in arts and crafts, recreational competitions, and public safety-related demonstrations.
Kiwanis Gives Free Bicycle Helmets to K-Kids and the Community
The Kiwanis Club of St. Mary's County distributed over 200 free bicycle helmets to children in May. The first distribution took place at the annual Kiwanis Health & Safety Fair, and later that month Kiwanis visited their sponsored K-Kids Club at Lexington Park Elementary School Boys & Girls Club and gave away more helmets. At both events, Kiwanis volunteers fitted each child properly with a helmet, and gave a safety briefing to each child on how and when to wear their helmet. The St. Mary's County Sheriff's Department and Cpl. Ronald Gray Maloy assisted at the Safety Fair with the demonstrations. The Health Department mascot, Opie the Otter, was also on hand at both events showing off his own custom-made bicycle helmet and encouraging the children to wear their helmets when riding this summer. The Kiwanis Club and the St. Mary's County Health Department were awarded a $3,000 grant from the Maryland Department of Health & Mental Hygiene, Office of Injury Prevention. Helmets and a variety of educational materials were purchased with funds from the grant. The Kiwanis Club plans to expand the bicycle safety program to a full bicycle rodeo in the future.
Below photo: Cpl. Ronald Gray Maloy and Opie the Otter stand with two children who received helmets at the Kiwanis Health & Safety Fair in May.
Below photo: Cpl. Maloy fits a boy with a properly sized helmet, and gives him a safety briefing about the importance of wearing the helmet every time he rides.
Kiwanis Partners With St. Mary's County Public Schools: Awards Grant for $1 Million for After-School Programs
The Maryland State Department of Education awarded recently a competitive, three-year grant worth a total of $1.1 million to St. Mary's County Public Schools for after school programs. The funding comes from the Federal 21st Century Community Learning Centers program, which will be used to continue the Dream Team / Boys & Girls Clubs at two elementary schools, one middle school, and a new after-school program at a local recreation center in St. Mary's County. St. Mary's Public Schools primary partner in the project is the Boys & Girls Clubs of Southern Maryland. Additional partners on the grant application and after-school program include the Kiwanis Club of St. Mary's County, St. Mary's County Recreation and Parks, St. Mary's College of Maryland, the 4-H Cooperative Extension Program, and the St. Mary's County Memorial Library.
St. Mary's Kiwanis is pleased to be a partner with the public school system as they continue to increase the number of Service Leadership Programs in St. Mary's County (currently at six local schools). The Kiwanis Club of St. Mary's County has been partnering with the local Boys & Girls Club since long before the partnership between Kiwanis International and Boys & Girls Clubs of America announced formally in 2008. The K-Kids Club at Lexington Park Elementary School is part of the Boys & Girls Club there, and the same is true at the Builders Club at Spring Ridge Middle School. The Boys & Girls Clubs have allowed the Kiwanis Club and co-sponsoring CKI Club at St. Mary's College the responsibility of handling all the service leadership elements of their curriculum and encourage students to participate in K-Kids and Builders Club. It is a very exciting time to be part of the after-school programs in St. Mary's with the announcement of this $1.1 million grant that will further help local after school programs.
Below photo: K-Kids Officers at Lexington Park Elementary School Boys & Girls Club. L-R: Kayla Welch, Rose Capro, Sean O'Roark, DeAundra Green, and Viviana Buentello.
Kiwanis Receives Donation from Local Bicycle Club Toward Safety Program for Children
The Kiwanis Club of St. Mary's County was given a donation in the amount of $1,500 from the Oxon Hill Bike and Trail Club. The money will support the Kiwanis Club's bicycle safety program for local children. The check was presented at the Kiwanis Division 22 Council Meeting at Lenny's Restaurant.
Below photo: Three-way hand shake! Bob Owen (President of the Kiwanis Club of St. Mary's County), Dan Donahue (member of the Oxon Hill Bike and Trail Club), and Sam Perry (President of the Oxon Hill Bike and Trail Club).
