Kiwanis Club of Greater Anaheim

07/17/2024

06/01/2023

May 31, 2023. We had 13 members and about 150 guests at our annual All Star High School Baseball Dinner in Santa Ana tonight and had a great time. The players were all presented to the guests and given copies of their team photos and a Kiwanis Tshirt. This being the graduation season many of the players had other commitments, so we were a little lower on the numbers of players in attendance. We were due to have our “Mr. Baseball”, Benji Medure, the Head Coach at Huntington Beach High School, speak to us but in his absence, due to an urgent family situation, we were well entertained by Jim Campanis, Jr., who stepped up to the plate and told us much about his baseball career. He gave some very good advice to the young players who will participate in the KCGA All Star Baseball Game at Glover Stadium in Anaheim next Tuesday, June 6th. at 6.15p.m. We also got to meet our Miss Kiwanis for 2023, Hannah Karanick.

05/25/2023

May 18, 2023. We had 12 members at our meeting today and we were entertained by the interesting address from Joe Baldo and Jordan Barrera from Higher Ground Youth and Family Services which is a 501 (c )(3) non-profit, founded in 2012 with the purpose of identifying youth at the elementary, middle and senior schools who are at ‘at risk’ and offering them a support system in a safe and friendly environment. Many of these children experience a variety of obstacles in their daily lives, such as poverty, discrimination, language barriers, abusive situations, addictions, unstable homes, difficulties in school, and peer pressure. Higher Ground aims to have a positive, uplifting impact on their lives through sports, educational support, vocational training, and mentoring programs.

05/11/2023

May 11, 2023. Today we had the pleasure of awarding five hardworking students of Anaheim High schools, with a KCGA Scholarship. The recipients were Jamie Brown from Esperanza; Alexander Garay from Esperanza; Benjamin Nguyen from Canyon; Hani Kazanji from Savanna and Hannah Karanick from Biola. We had the additional pleasure of recognizing Hanna as our Miss Kiwanis 2023 and she will be helping us out at our Baseball Banquet and later at our annual All Star Baseball Game at Glover Stadium in Anaheim on June 6th.

04/25/2023

April 20, 2023. A welcomed visitor to our Thursday meeting this week was John Irvine, a member of a local Rotary club. He was an active participant in our question and answer session, after our speaker, Kristen Maahs-Kolberg of Alzheimer's Orange County, made her informative presentation to our 13 members and guests. Kristen told us all how Alzheimer’s OC can help at many stages of this disease that is afflicting so many in their daily lives. It is the 6th highest cause of death in the US and 3rd highest in OC. There are many sources of assistance to sufferers and family members in Orange County, in the form of actual caregivers, multi-lingual support groups, veterans support groups, and there is a font of information on the internet to find assistance. The saddest thing is that there is no cure and the disease is progressive. There are hospice agencies which can help and they are doing their best to educate elected officials about the extent of the challenge.

04/25/2023

April 13, 2023. 14 Club members and one library guest, Angela Rodriguez, attended our Thursday morning meeting held, this week, at the Orange County Family Justice Foundation Center, where we were graciously welcomed by Letizia Alcibar, who was recently appointed as the Interim Executive Director. She previously worked there as Administrative/Program Coordinator and Youth Prevention Educator. While attending junior college she worked for other non-profit organizations as a lifeguard/swim instructor to children and adults of ages and children on the spectrum. In 2021, she received her bachelor’s degree in Anthropology from San Francisco State University and moved back to Orange County to explore a career helping adults and children in her Latino community. Helping her community has always been her passion. As a youth educator, she found it rewarding to be a mentor, support system, and resource to the families she served at the OCFJCF. In her new role, Letizia will continue to carry out the foundation’s mission and goals. She is excited and grateful to be able to embark on this new opportunity. Letizia takes an holistic approach – she wants to break the cycle of violence, prevent it and will concentrate on mental health, parental health, and bullying in achieving her goals. The OC Sheriff’s staff is very involved too. Thanks for your time and our tour of the facility, Letizia.

04/25/2023

April 6, 2023. We had 14 members and 2 guest speakers at our meeting today. Representing Bikers Against Child Abuse were Lil Trout and the Vice President of the Club. The Mission Statement of Bikers Against Child Abuse, Inc. (B.A.C.A.) indicates that they exist “with the intent to create a safer environment for abused children. We exist as a body of Bikers to empower children to not feel afraid of the world in which they live. We stand ready to lend support to our wounded friends by involving them with an established, united organization. We work in conjunction with local and state officials who are already in place to protect children. We desire to send a clear message to all involved with the abused child that this child is part of our organization, and that we are prepared to lend our physical and emotional support to them by affiliation, and our physical presence. We stand at the ready to shield these children from further abuse. We do not condone the use of violence or physical force in any manner, however, if circumstances arise such that we are the only obstacle preventing a child from further abuse, we stand ready to be that obstacle.” Once BACA has connected with a challenged child two BACA members are assigned as the child’s primary contacts and they remain in close support to the child and are available to be at court, their home, and their school. They also will provide funds to aid with the cost of therapy when other sources are exhausted. Thanks to all BACA members.

04/23/2023

March 30, 2023. We had 11 members, 1 Keyclub member Hani and our unexpected guest speaker, Michael Sistrunck from the Anaheim Library, at our meeting today. Michael willingly stepped in to entertain us when the scheduled speaker did not appear. Michael has three children including two currently serving in the US Army. He told us that librarian is a 2nd career for him. He was a divorce attorney for a number of years but abandoned that after starting his own law firm and discovering the feast/famine nature of the income. He joined the Anaheim Library system and loved it and earned his Masters Library Science degree last year. He’s been at the Sunkist Branch for a number of years, including during the pandemic, when they were closed for a while then last year opened back to five days a week. His branch of the library has been very successful in winning awards and used innovative programs to draw customers back, including a couple of very basic computer training programs for those were displaced by the pandemic and had not learned to work computers in their prior job. It was clear that Michael loves libraries.

04/23/2023

March 23, 2023. Fourteen members and our guest speaker, Karla Legorreta – Senior Volunteer Recruitment Specialist for the American Red Cross, attended our regular weekly meeting today. The vision – “The American Red Cross (”AMR”) prevents and alleviates human suffering in the face of emergencies by mobilizing the power of volunteers and the generosity of donors.” The beneficiaries of the services that the organization offers are the major focus of this mission statement. This shows the value the institution places on people and this is what motivates the management to keep doing more. Perhaps the most well known service of the Red Cross is the collection, processing and storage of blood products and the later end delivery to a needy recipient. Apart from the regular services of the AMR there are services that we rarely hear about such as Acquatic and Water Safety Courses & Services including Learn To Swim and Water Safety: Lifeguarding and CPR for the Professional Rescuer.

03/16/2023

March 16, 2023. Twelve members of the club and one guest attended our meeting today and we were pleased to welcome Paula Kelley, Executive Director of the Kiwanis Family House as our Guest Speaker. The 32 Room facility, located in Sacramento, CA., is intended to accommodate individuals or families who are seeking medical treatment from UC Davis and for those who can pay, the charge is $50.00 a night. The facility has 43 clubs that provide regular financial support at different levels and about 200,000 nights a year are given away free. The Kiwanis Family House has a staff of 12 and the average annual support from Kiwanis Clubs is $1,000.00. Only persons who live 35 miles away or further are eligible to stay there. Last year they had 88 from Los Angeles County. It is something of a magical place intended to make those who make use of it feel at home. Thanks, Paula for all your useful information.

03/14/2023

We would like to extend a special invitation to all friends of KCGA to join us Thursday morning for a very special presentation by Paula Kelley, Executive Director of the Kiwanis Family House in Sacramento. Please RSVP by commenting on this post and we’ll get further details to you.

The mission of the Kiwanis Family house is to build a supportive, healing community around families who are impacted by medical emergencies.

03/14/2023

March 9, 2023. Thirteen members of the club were in attendance for our weekly meeting at which we had no scheduled visiting speaker. We were however entertained by our own Joe Dale who put on a program similar to ‘This is your Life’ during which Joe read from old minutes of long past Board meetings selecting appropriate bits and pieces of information on our Man of the Moment, Ken Crandell, who was then Club President. Joe, you put on a good show and Ken is to be congratulated for remaining calm and successfully avoiding the most dangerous of the slings and arrows sent in his direction. It was a fun meeting.