Kiwanis Club of Chatham-Kent Supports Teen Transition Fair

Marsha Summerfield, treasurer of the Kiwanis Club of Chatham-Kent, and Antoon van der Reijden, vice-president, presenting a cheque to Stephen Stokely, manager with Community Living, and Tiffany Irwin, occupational therapist with the Children’s Treatment Centre, in support of the Teen Transition Fair for teens with diverse abilities

The Kiwanis Club of Chatham-Kent is pleased to announce its support for the upcoming Teen Transition Fair, scheduled to be held in October 2023, specifically tailored for teens with diverse abilities. To demonstrate its commitment to this important event, the Kiwanis Club of Chatham-Kent has made a generous donation of $1000.

This funding was made possible through the club’s active participation with Charitable Gaming Chatham-Kent, and serves as yet another example of how money spent at the local Riverview Gaming Centre directly benefits the community.

Read More

Grant Enables Kiwanis Club of Chatham-Kent to Exceed 5,000 Books Milestone for Children’s Literacy

Pictured here are Stephanie Dries (CKCF South Kent Wind Community Fund) and Ruth Hook (Chatham-Kent Community Foundation) presenting the cheque to president Kelley and vice-president Antoon.

The Kiwanis Club of Chatham-Kent is thrilled to announce that we have received a generous grant of $10,000 from the Chatham-Kent Community Foundation and the South Kent Wind Community Fund. This grant will enable us to surpass our goal of sending 5,000 books to children in the Chatham-Kent area within a year through our partnership with Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library.

As our motto states, “Children are our Focus, Literacy is our Goal”, we are dedicated to promoting early childhood literacy and fostering a love for reading among young children. Through our collaboration with Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, we have been able to provide free, age-appropriate books to registered children, helping to improve literacy skills and ignite their imaginations.

We are immensely grateful to the Chatham-Kent Community Foundation and the South Kent Wind Community Fund for their incredible support. This grant is a testament to their belief in the power of education and literacy in shaping a brighter future for our community.

We are committed to investing in the future of our children, and this grant will allow us to continue our important work in collaboration with Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library. Together, we will provide even more children in Chatham-Kent with access to high-quality books that ignite their imaginations and inspire a passion for reading.

Stay tuned for more updates as we embark on this exciting journey to make a difference in the lives of our young readers! Thank you to everyone involved for supporting our mission of promoting early childhood literacy.

Where is my first book?

We have had several parents reach out to us wondering if their book got lost in the mail. The reason why they asked was that according to their account on the Imagination Library website their book had shipped!

From the attached screenshot it is clear that the child had just been registered in May 2023, but further down it says that this month’s book was mailed on June 1, 2023.

Unfortunately that is incorrect.

Once a month, right before “processing date”, our club will go through the list of registered children and make sure all the information is correct. Based on that list, the Dollywood Foundation will prepare the shipping list and invoice our club. This shipping list will be for the following month.

In other words, if a child is registered in May 2023, the shipping will be prepared in June, for mailing in July 2023. In most cases the child will receive as their welcome book “The Little Engine That Could”.

The good news is that after the first shipment, the information in your account on the Imagination Library website will be correct.

Please let us know if you have any questions or concerns at info@dpil.chathamkiwanis.com.

Support TD Summer Reading

Representatives from the Kiwanis Club of Chatham-Kent, including Antoon van der Reijden (Vice President) and Marsha Summerfield (Treasurer), are seen alongside Tania Sharpe and Donna Gaumond from the Chatham-Kent Public Library in a photograph. The Kiwanis Club presented a $500 donation raised through their participation with Charitable Gaming Chatham Kent, specifically designated to support the TD Summer Reading Program. These funds will provide incentives for children enrolled in the program and exemplify how money spent at the local Riverview Gaming Centre benefits the community.

Scholarship recipients 2023

scholarship recipients 2023

At their meeting on June 21st, the Kiwanis Club of Chatham awarded scholarships to three outstanding students. Pictured here is scholarship committee member, Derek Robertson, along with the three award winners, each receiving $1,000 to pursue their post secondary education. (From left to right), Cora Holt received the Elaine Robertson Memorial Scholarship, while Olivia Grubb and Iman Faizi received Kiwanis Foundation of Canada matching scholarships.

Each of these local high school students from Chatham Kent demonstrated exemplary academic achievement while participating in school activities and volunteering in community service.

At the Kiwanis award ceremony, Robertson commented that this year’s scholarship applicants were the strongest he has seen since being a scholarship committee member.

Want to make a donation in someone’s name?

Do you want to make a donation to the Imagination Library in somebody else’s name? While on the Donate page check the checkbox next to “Make this donation in honor, memory, or celebration of someone?”

When you check the box next to “Yes, I would like to send an email to notify someone of this donation”, a special email will be sent automatically to the “recipient”. You may add a special message to this email.

Read More
MENU