Kiwanis is a global organization of volunteers dedicated to changing the world, one child and one community at a time.
Kiwanis Name
The name “Kiwanis” means “we trade” or “we share our talents.” It was coined from an American Indian expression, Nunc Kee-wanis.
Kiwanians are volunteers changing the world through service to children and communities. Kiwanis members help shelter the homeless, feed the hungry, mentor the disadvantaged, and care for the sick. They develop youth as leaders, build playgrounds, raise funds for pediatric research, and much more. No problem is too big or too small. Why? Because working together, members achieve what one person cannot accomplish alone. When you give a child a chance to learn, experience, dream, and succeed, great things happen!
As Kiwanis clubs and members, we see it everyday!
Kiwanis Name
The name “Kiwanis” means “we trade” or “we share our talents.” It was coined from an American Indian expression, Nunc Kee-wanis.
Kiwanians are volunteers changing the world through service to children and communities. Kiwanis members help shelter the homeless, feed the hungry, mentor the disadvantaged, and care for the sick. They develop youth as leaders, build playgrounds, raise funds for pediatric research, and much more. No problem is too big or too small. Why? Because working together, members achieve what one person cannot accomplish alone. When you give a child a chance to learn, experience, dream, and succeed, great things happen!
As Kiwanis clubs and members, we see it everyday!
Kiwanis is a global organization of volunteers dedicated to changing the world one child and one community at a time. Our members develop youth as leaders, build playgrounds and raise funds for pediatric research. We help shelter the homeless, feed the hungry, mentor the disadvantaged and care for the sick. Working together, members achieve what one person cannot accomplish alone. And along the way, club members share friendship and laughter.
Kiwanis’ Service Leadership Programs provide service and leadership
opportunities for young people and adults with disabilities around the world.
Elementary school students Kiwanis Kids (www.kiwaniskids.org) provides three programs—K-Kids, Terrific Kids and Bring Up Grades—for students ages 6 to 12. In each, children learn to plan, set goals, work with others and celebrate successes.
Teens Kiwanis offers three meaningful, interactive programs that allow students
to discover their own leadership potential—Builders Club (www.buildersclub.org),
exclusively for middle and junior high school students; Key Club (www.keyclub.org), the largest high school service club in the world; and Key Leader (www.key-leader.org), a weekend leadership experience for students age 14–18.
Young adults Circle K International (www.circlek.org) is the premiere university
and college service organization in the world, with clubs on more than 500 campuses in 17 nations.
Adults living with disabilities Aktion Club (www.aktionclub.org) is the only
community service club that provides these members opportunities to become
integrated in their communities while developing initiative and leadership skills.
Global results Kiwanis’ Worldwide Service Project is a Kiwanis-family initiative to make a positive difference in the world on behalf of children. In its first Worldwide Service Project, Kiwanis worked to virtually eliminate Iodine Deficiency Disorders (IDD), the leading preventable cause of mental retardation. Today, about 70 percent of the people in the developing world have access to iodized salt, and UNICEF has hailed this project as one of the greatest public health triumphs of the 20th century. The next Worldwide Service Project will launch in 2010. Learn more at kiwanis.org/wsp.
Membership
- About 8,000 clubs in 96 countries
- More than 260,000 adult members
- Approximately 320,000 youth
Mission
To serve children of the world.
Service
Each year, clubs:
- Sponsor nearly 150,000 service projects.
- Raise more than $107 million.
Global Results
Members and clubs have contributed more than $80 million toward the global elimination of iodine deficiency disorders (IDD), the leading preventable cause of mental retardation.