It has been a time of change for the Kiwanis Club of Kirkland.
The club has been meeting at The Crab Cracker (a Kirkland landmark) every Wednesday at noon for the past 13 years.
But on Aug. 7 all that changed when the club moved to its new location – Hector’s in downtown Kirkland.
This is the 5th meeting place the club has had since it was formed in 1947. The Crab Cracker staff will be missed and the Kiwanis Club of Kirkland would like to say “thank you” for 13 great years.
While the club is adjusting to their new digs, Jay Henwood, acting president, will be relinquishing his title to Ralph Loveland on Sept. 6. Each presidential term is for one year beginning in September.
The “changing of the guard” takes place at an Installation Banquet which is the largest Kirkland Kiwanis social event of the year and is great fun for Kiwanians and their spouses.
“I am always amazed at what the people of the Kirkland Kiwanis Club accomplish,” said Henwood. “Everything we do includes having fun! With a 65-year tradition and a diverse group of great people, it is easy to directly help the children of our community, which is our main goal. Being in Kiwanis is by far the most rewarding thing I have ever done. I am honored to be associated with this great group of people.”
Moving forward into a new term, Loveland says he is ready to step up to the plate. He plans to build on the promising new programs introduced under Henwood’s presidency, as well as finding other ways to help children and young people in our community.
“This year the Kirkland Kiwanis Foundation introduced a new vocational scholarship program for young men and women who plan to study automotive technology at the Lake Washington Institute of Technology,” said Loveland. “We also sponsored an innovative new program introduced by the YMCA Youth Institute Program and the Kirkland Teen Union Center (KTUB) to provide in-depth training for young people who want to pursue careers in digital creative arts. Both of these programs are beneficial to the young people and the community. I look forward to the KCK being part of more programs like these in the upcoming year.”
For those interested in being a part of a group of community volunteers, attend one of their weekly Wednesday lunch meetings at 12:00 p.m. at Hector’s or visit their website at http://kirkland.kiwanis.org.
