Region 7, Division 1S Volume 4 // Issue 3
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EDITOR
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LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT
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PROJECTS
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PAST EVENTS
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UPCOMING & ONGOING EVENTS
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CONTACTS
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Editor’s Corner: I hope everyone’s enjoying their summer before we have to go back to school! Don’t forget to keep serving! -Kelly Le, Editor.
President Yerasly Duran is handing out activity sheets for the Finding Dory event at Barnes and Noble on July 8th.
Hello everyone! I hope everyone has had a great summer as it’s coming to an end! The new school year will be starting soon, so I wish everyone the best of luck. I’m very excited to begin the school year as the new president for NCKC and hope for better things to come! Remember to sign up for Remind101 to keep in touch with our upcoming events. Yours in service, NCKC President Yerasly Duran
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SAFEHAVEN STORYTIME
*Due to respect for the children, their faces are blurred out.
Article by: Yerasly Duran
was set. It was held on July 8th from 3 P.M. et. It was held on July 8th from 3 P.M. – 4 P.M.! During storytime, we basically pick a couple of books that we can read to the children. Then, we will provide a craft or activity sheets following the theme of the book! Our club has been doing storytime for many years at Barnes and Nobles on Saturday mornings. Finally, we are able to expand the event!
SafeHaven is a non-profit organization that helps domestic abuse victims. They provide people with a home and other necessities in order to start their new lives. In the past year, North Crowley Key Club has held a toy and clothes drive during the holiday season, all proceeds were donated to SafeHaven! This was such a huge success, so we decided to further help this wonderful organization! Throughout the rest of the school year and the summer, our club was organizing a new storytime at one of the SafeHaven locations. In order to do this, we applied to the YOF grant earlier in the year, and we ended up receiving the grant! This was a huge help since books and crafts supplies can get a bit pricey. After many emails and shopping trips for craft ideas, our first SafeHaven storytime was set. It was
On our very first SafeHaven storytime, I was a bit nervous since it was a new ongoing event. Also, our officers had worked so hard to pick crafts and books for the children. Thankfully, everything was a success in the end! Our theme for this week was superheroes, more specifically the Flash and Batman! For this theme, the children got to do some brown paper bag puppets, in which they had the choice of picking Flash or Batman, some even did both! Afterwards, we had coloring sheets pertaining to the superheroes. Those were also a big hit, and the kids highly enjoyed them! This event is going to be an ongoing event for the whole year, and it will be held the 2nd and 4th Friday of the month! Our second theme was Mustache Baby, and the kids got to design and decorate their own mustaches. Afterward, we read another book called How Much I Love You. For this book, our craft was heart necklaces! Both children and volunteers highly enjoyed the books and crafts! This event has been one of my favorite events so far, and I'm greatly excited to see what else we will do with SafeHaven!
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FINDING DORY EVENT
Article by: Kelly Le
On June 8th, NCKC’s president, Yerasly Duran, and I attended the Finding Dory Event at our local Barnes and Noble. At this Barnes and Noble, North Crowley Key Club has our ongoing event of storytime every Saturday. In this event, we would read books and have craft time afterward with the kids! This event usually lasts from 10 A.M. to 12 P.M. However, this night was particularly unique because it was held in celebration for the new release of the movie Finding Dory! It was my first time attending a special event at Barnes and Noble, so I greatly anticipated it. The event started at 7 P.M., but we arrived there an hour early. When we walked in, I noticed that there were Finding Dory decorations adorning the store. There were fish stickers on the wall and seashells taped to the floor. The seashells led to the juniors section, where the event will be held. We followed them and made our way there where we met the manager. He explained to us what the event was about and what our duties were. There were activity sheets on a table, and we were to hand them out to the attendees. The sheets consisted of crossword puzzles, coloring sheets, and word puzzles. Furthermore, to get the kids engage in the event, we would ask them questions related to the movie. Then, as volunteers, we were given flower wreaths to wear! Mine was a yellow one while Yerasly’s was orange.
over 30 children in the juniors section, and the floor was packed! Most of the kids were focused on their activity sheets while others roamed around and looked at books. To start off the night, there was a storytime! The story revolved around Finding Dory, and every time Dory’s name came up, they made fish faces which was amusing to see. Most of the kids were attentive to the story while others focused on their activity sheets. After storytime was a treasure hunt! When the kids heard about this, they were extremely excited. They cheered with enthusiasm and was ready to begin! This treasure hunt was about, you guessed it, finding Dory! A plush toy of Dory was hidden around the store, and whoever found it would win a prize. It wasn’t before long before a girl found it, and she received the plush and a book! The event ended shortly after the treasure hunt, and everybody had fun! I greatly enjoyed it and can’t wait to attend a Barnes and Noble special event again.
When the event started at 7 P.M., the number of children with their parents started accumulating. Before we knew it, there were
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BARNES & NOBLE STORYTIME
Article by: Oanh Nguyen
My first time going to Barnes and Noble Storytime during the summer was on July 9, 2016. I was put in charge, which meant part of my responsibilities was to manage the club members who attended. As usual, I asked for the materials and books for storytime. As I looked around, I noticed that I was the first member to arrive! I sat down in the junior section, began to organize the supplies, and looked through the books given. One was called Mayzie Head Daisy and the other one was Curious George. In addition to the usual activity sheets, we also had a Curious George costume! During the time I spent preparing, I met a little girl who comes to our Barnes and Noble Storytime every week. I was elated to know that a little girl is devoting her time with us every Saturday! As storytime got closer, I grew a bit
nervous seeing that I'm the only member attending the event. I wanted someone to wear the costume for the kids. It was going to be the first time I attended a storytime with a costume, and I wanted to experience it. Luckily, my nervousness disappeared when I saw our club’s secretary, Andrew Moon, arrived with his sister, Anne! The costume was finally going to be worn. Since I was greatly excited for the costume, I volunteered to wear it myself! With the help of Andrew and Anne, I was able to put on the costume and was ready to go. I wore the costume with the help of Andrew while Anne read both stories. Following storytime was the coloring activity. Even in my costume, I enjoyed participating in the event! I played the silent game only using motions to interact with the kids. It was a bit difficult to communicate since I couldn’t talk, but it was greatly enjoyable. I also took lots of pictures with the kids! Furthermore, I even participated in the activity sheets while in costume! I successfully completed a maze and cross word puzzle to show characteristics of Curious George. This time at Barnes and Noble Storytime, I gained another valuable experience. It included wearing a costume for the first time and discovering that we have a devoted storytime fan! These experiences are what encourage me to volunteer more. Spending times with kids during the craft time allow me to learn more about them. Children are so carefree that it makes it easy for me to become a kid at storytime myself!
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MEALS FROM THE HEART
Attending Meals from the Heart was a truly exceptional experience since this is my first time attending the event. As I was the first person to enter, I was given the opportunity to be the first to meet and greet the people who worked inside. I was then greeted by the Kiwanis staff members, whom explained to me my duties. At first, I was expecting that this was going to be a similar service like the Agape Meals, a service to give food to the less fortunate. I was surely proven wrong.
Thirty minutes after the call time, Yerasly and Kelly arrived. They helped me prepared the salad and cookies. However, since they had to leave early, I was the only Key Clubber left in attendance. That was the moment when we had to begin serving. As I waited, expecting to see people who have been longing for a meal, a different set of people walked in. I saw family with children, perfectly clothed, in good health,
and with no indication of being less fortunate. However, the thing that hit me was that a majority of the kids were bald, or had little to no hair on their heads. At first, I was confused, but then it hit me. These kids were here because they are ill. I then stood there, slowly realizing the realities that these kids go through. Their families must be devastated while trying to keep their children strong. I felt a connection with these families, for I recently had a deceased family member. I knew how it felt for them, to fear of the possible pass of their child. It’s heartbreaking to know that cancer is simply unfair. It can happen to anyone who could potentially make the world a better place. I tried to ease this feeling by talking to the elders among me. Striking conversations with Kiwanians who’ve done almost everything. However, the fact is that I could never distract my mind from the reality that was happening around me. Some of those children in that room, I might never see again. Meals from the Heart will continue to resonate in my mind and soul. This is why I joined the Key Club. Not to make my college application looks good nor for the scholarships I can earn, but to do everything I can. To help that one child, and to help many more, who are suffering from unimaginable pain. I strive to do what I can to make their lives better, one step at a time.
Article by: Clarence Manglal-Ian
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ICON 2016 EXPERIENCE
Article by: Jordan Peyton
I attended ICON this year as a high school graduate, a bittersweet end to my Key Club years. I greatly enjoyed the speakers they brought in this year. However, what resonated most with me was what Anne Mahlum did. Mahlum was working your typical office job and suddenly quit. She saw an opportunity to change her life and immediately took it! Even though she was offered a job at a major company with amazing perks, she declined it and followed her passion. What Mahlum did was she started running a club for the homeless, the first ever in Philadelphia! Eventually, the news caught onto Mahlum’s club, and now, an organization grew out of this small project! It has grown all throughout North America, and Mahlum continues to speak about homelessness today! Through her MTV documentary, featuring in a book, countless news broadcasts, and public speaking, she shows that finding your happiness, social change, and leadership can be just the change you need in your life.
grew long bored of her routine. Hearing Mahlum’s experience completely changed my perspective on my future. Why would I want to settle for routine when there are so much more to life? I want to aspire to do something greater than sit in a chair and type away my life behind a computer screen! Much like Mahlum, I too want to help change the world in every little way I can. Her inspiration made me think of how I can continue to grow in many ways. I don’t have to just work toward one goal in my life, but I can expand and reach toward multiple goals at once! As an attendee of ICON for the last time as a Key Clubber, I'm glad that I had the opportunity to listen and learn from so many great speakers during the event! Each and every one of them left a lasting impression on me as a growing person. They definitely changed my outlook toward my future. They made me believe that I too can help change the world, and Anne Mahlum was just one of the many I encountered during my trip!
The words of Ann Mahlum continue to stay in my mind. I have always thought that I would be fine working a nine to five job routinely. I mean, it sounds so safe. I would just have to wake up, work, come home, and then sleep. That’s it! However, I quickly learned that I would eventually come to hate such routine. Mahlum had your average nine to five office job, but she hated it! Sure, it brought in the money, but she soon
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BACK-TO-SCHOOL SHOPP
PING clothes and supplies! The student that I received named Savannah, and she was elated to start shopping! Since this event took place 2 hours before opening time, we had the opportunity to roam around without worrying about other shoppers.
On Saturday, July 30th, at 8 A.M., North Crowley Key Club volunteered at the Sears inside Hulen Mall for the annual back-toschool shopping. Sears hold this event twice in the summer right before school starts, and each event is offered for different groups. On this Saturday, the store hosted it for the Boys and Girls Club of Fort Worth. I attended this event for the first time and can’t wait to do it again! Back-to-school shopping is done for the children in our area who are in need of school uniforms and supplies. When we began, the children were split with a volunteer. Then, we were given a two-hundred-dollars gift card. This money was used to purchase the child’s school uniforms and school supplies. Furthermore, Sears was generous enough to give us an employee discount and tax exemption toward the purchases! This meant that we could actually purchase the kids two-hundred-and-fifty-dollars worth of
The kids were so excited for this event! They searched around the store looking for their favorite type of uniforms, shoes, their backpacks, and other necessities they might have need. Samantha definitely filled our shopping cart up really quick! She picked out multiple pairs of jeans, a jacket, four uniform shirts, a beautiful baby blue backpack, and some extra clothes. Unfortunately, we went over the budget; however, we were given extra money from the kids who were under the budget to cover the cost! After all the shopping was done, we went into the employee’s breakroom. Inside this breakroom, Sears provided the children a large breakfast! The breakfast consisted of tons of donuts, fruits, and juice. We had a busy morning of shopping, so the kids went straight in and ate until their hearts contented! I greatly enjoyed this event, mostly because I had fun going shopping. Also, what’s better than being given money to go shopping with someone? After the event was over, we helped the Boys and Girls Club carried their shopping bags back to their bus and wait for them to depart from the store. All the children were super excited for their new clothes, and I was happy to have helped them.
Article by: Yerasly Duran
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MY FAVORITE SUMMER SE
Article by: Vincent Berardi
ERVICE PROJECT I would say that the best summer service projected I worked on was the Texas Rangers games! The games took place over the month of June, and it was a great chance to get out of the house and make something useful out of myself. I volunteered to help a fast food stand that sell to hundreds of customers on a daily basis. While the whole event required hard work, it was also greatly enjoyable and eye opening on how things work in the fast food industry. I was initially reluctant to volunteer at the Texas Rangers, scared almost. I had never worked before and had zero experience in fast food. The idea of having to serve food to the potential thousands of people was extremely nerve-racking! Thankfully, we had our Kiwanians volunteering by our side and simultaneously informing us how to do our part in making a successful food stand! The work was relatively straightforward: you were either a cook, a runner, or prepared food. The cook grilled sausages, hamburgers, and hotdogs, as well as frying French fries. All food made by the cook went to the people who prepared the food, such as salting fries, putting slices of cheese on hamburgers, and wrapping hotdogs. Then the food would be given to the runner, who brought orders to Kiwanianmanned cash registers. Over the course of the month, I worked every single position.
luckily managed to work hard and fast enough to make it to the end! Not to mention, we got to watch the games for free, and the hype for the Rangers kept all of us going. When the games were finished, we cleaned up our stand, took inventory of the supplies, and counted the money we made. This was all in preparation for the next day of volunteering. Texas Rangers gifted me the experience in working at the fast food industry, which is certainly helpful. But more importantly, it reinforced the tenets of communication and perseverance! Communication was key in efficiency. It wasn’t about one person; it was about the whole team! I believe that this is the same for our Key Club: if we want to make a difference in our community, we have to work together and recognize that progress is best achieved as a collective! All in all, Texas Rangers was exhausting, but in the grand scheme, I’m grateful for the work experience and the reinforcement of Key Club values!
Everyone was a cog in a well-oiled machine, which allowed us to keep pace with the orders. The amount of orders spiked during rush hour, and I was on the edge. However, I
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Article by: Kelly Le On Saturday, July 30th, North Crowley Key Club attended the Harry Potter, “The Countdown to Midnight Magic Party”! This event was held at our local Barnes and Noble, where we have our ongoing event of storytime every Saturday morning. Unlike any other event at Barnes and Noble, this event was notably special. It was held for the new book release from the Harry Potter series called Harry Potter and the Cursed Child! Yerasly and I arrived on time at the event, which started at 6 P.M. We then made our way to the music section where we met other volunteers and the store’s managers. There was a total of 12 volunteers, 7 of which were NCKC members. The managers went over what our duties were, how they expected the event to go, and safety procedures. Furthermore, we were gifted with a Starbucks voucher, which meant we could get a free Starbucks drink! Then, we were split into teams to be in charge of different booths. The different houses in Harry Potter represented our booths. Yerasly, Tina, and I were in charge of the Hufflepuff booth! Our booth had many activity sheets, such as coloring sheets, word puzzles, and “guess the word” game. Another type of game that we had was “guess the character” game. This game was similar to the game
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Heads Up. A player would have to guess who their character was by questioning other players. Finally, if the player rightly guessed their character, then they win. The most exciting part of this event was when the Fort Worth Zoo made a special appearance. They brought live animals! There were 3 snakes, 3 owls, 2 tarantulas, mice, and a toad. Everybody went nuts because of the animals! Furthermore, thanks to the Fort Worth Zoo, our booth became the busiest place. Then, halfway through the event, we received pins and magnets of each house! Even though I’m not a Harry Potter fan, I decided to collect them all. Shortly after, the Fort Worth Zoo left, and we then began wand making! Glitter, gems, ribbons, and wands were provided for the attendees. Even volunteers could create their own, so some of us did. At around 11 P.M., people started lining up for the book. The line stretched all the way from the front to the back of the store! Everybody eagerly waited for the book as they chatted among themselves. Finally, seconds before midnight, we started the countdown. Everybody chanted down the seconds, and when the clock struck midnight, the whole store erupted in cheers! Overall, everyone enjoyed the night and was excited for the new book release!
UPCOMING EVENTS
BACK-TO-SCHOOL SHOPPING: Saturday, August 13th from 8 A.M. - 10 P.M. at Sears in Hulen Mall.
AUGUST DCM/SOCIAL: Saturday, August 6th from 2 - 5 P.M. at Camp Smith Park in Watauga.
ONGOING EVENTS
BARNES & NOBLE STORYTIME: Every Saturday from 10 A.M. - 12 P.M. at Barnes & Noble on Hulen.
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AGAPE MEAL: Every Thursday from 5:30 - 7:30 P.M. at Broadway Baptist Church.
A G A P E
B & N
CONTACTS President, Yerasly Duran: nckcpresident@gmailcom Vice-President, Vincent Berardi: nckc.vicepresident@gmail.com Co Vice-President, Cheyenne Capuchino: nckc.covp@gmail.com
Editor, Kelly Le: nckceditor@gmail.com
Webmaster, Fawaz khan: nckc.webmaster@gmail.com
Secretary, Andrew Moon: nckc.secretary@gmail.com
Vice-Secretary, Clarence Manglal-Ian: nckc.secretary@gmail.com
Treasurer, Jailine Contreras: nckc.treasurer@gmail.com Historian, Sandy Nguyen: nckc.historian@gmail.com
Officers-At-Large: Brian Tran & Tina Tran
Parliamentarian, Iggy Previto: nckc.parliamentarian@gmail.com
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Division 1 South’s LTG, Nithure Rema: ltg1s@tokeyclub.com District Governor, Dianna Cardenas: governor@tokeyclub.com
District Secretary, Mackenzie Merbach: secretary@tokeyclub.com
District Treasurer, Leia George: treasurer@0tokeyclub.com
District Secretary, Sophia Tran: editor@tokeyclub
Convention Liason, Chris Do: cl@tokeyclub.com
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