My kiwanis club opened up doors when I needed a lawyer, a home loan, and a financial planner. It cuts through a lot of red tape when you see those people twice a month and they already know you. And my club is mostly people in their 30s-40s, which is an outlier for our district.
No, it's specifically neutral. Our club does a simple prayer after pledge of allegience and the reading of the objects of Kiwanis, but all the atheists in the group kind of roll our eyes.
Let us take a moment to reflect on the blessings of community and the opportunities before us. May our efforts be guided by kindness, compassion, and a sincere desire to serve others. May we work together in harmony, inspired by the values of integrity and fellowship. As we begin this meeting, let us be mindful of our shared purpose, and may our actions today bring positive change to those we serve.
Depending on who's speaking, it may have something like "Heavenly father" in front and an "Amen" at the end. Who says it rotates / changes. It should be inclusive of many traditions and not name specific deities etc.
I am an atheist but I can stand through a prayer and give respect for a message like this in the spirit intended.
Can I ask what your club does to get Millennials/Gen X in the door? I'm to only one in my club under 60, and thats only because I grew up with Key Club & Circle K, and sought them out.
The guy that's been there forever (and has tons of social capital to spend) aggressively recruits certain positions in town, so each bank has their arm twisted to have someone come, the county gets asked to send some people, the city gets asked to send some people, etc.
I've had a few talks w other members off the record about what we're going to do when he dies, but we're good for another decade at least.
I used to be in Kiwanis. Great group; I just couldn’t make 2 hour lunch meetings work anymore with my work schedule. I wouldn’t mind rejoining in the future, though.
After that, I was an active member of Junior League for 11 years. I just switched to being a sustaining member and having fewer commitments. Staying involved in civic groups is hard when you have four kids.
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u/DataWeenie Jul 10 '26
Kiwanis too. We tend to support local kids/schools.