Lt. Gov. Early Harris called the meeting to order at 7:08 p.m. at the Fellowship Baptist Church where the Lake Jackson Club had moved its meetings.
Present were representatives of Capital City, Lake Jackson, Madison, Monticello, Tallahassee, Tallahassee Killearn, and Tallahassee Northside Clubs.
Lt. Gov. Harris led the pledge to the flag and Cleveland White of Northside said the prayer.
The Council approved the minutes of the March 14, 2003 meeting as shown on the Council website and approved the financial statement.
Lt. Gov. Harris pointed out that the International Convention elected former Florida Gov. Bob Moore as international president for 2003-04, approved a $17 per member per year dues increase, allowed dues for clubs outside the United States to be adjusted based on income, and established a requirement for a person in office to finish the term before running for a higher office. It rejected proposals to allow convention delegation size to be based on club membership and to allow transfer of some project funds to the administrative account. Concern about the dues increase came from the Monticello and Tallahassee clubs. Others expressed concern about Kiwanis International’s expectations of support of overseas as well as local projects. Lt. Gov. Harris handed out a report on clubs’ participation in the IDD project. The Florida District has raised $2 million of its $4.2 million pledge.
Lt. Gov. Harris urged attendance at the District Convention Sept. 4-7 at Daytona Beach.
Club Reports:
CAPITAL CITY-The club is working with ECHO’s Bethany Family Apartments to help children who reside there and to build a park.
KILLEARN- The club continues sponsorship of the Aktion Club that meets monthly at St. John’s Episcopal Church and supports the nesting rooms at TMH. It has two new members.
LAKE JACKSON-While busy moving to a new meeting place, it has added a member.
MADISON-Its Take Stock in Students program has awarded its seventh scholarship. The club collected more than 400 clothing items for the needy.
MONTICELLO-Its first membership chairman developed a list of 68 potential members. The Watermelon 5K run earned $1,700. The club gave three $500 scholarships to high school graduates, held an auction of member donations to raise administrative money, and is raising project funds with a raffle that includes turkey and deer hunts.
NORTHSIDE-In a project other clubs could easily emulate, it collected clothing abandoned in Lincoln High School gym lockers at the end of school, washed them and took them to the Greensboro Club for distribution to migrant workers. The club also supported Senior Major League baseball and girls basketball teams. It has two new members plus an honorary member in former regular member Police Chief Walt McNeil.
TALLAHASSEE-It continued providing outstanding student awards at all high schools in Tallahassee, came out well on its golf tournament, and is helping Tree House home for battered spouses to build a children’s play area. It has added 7 new members this year.
Several members agreed to look into the Ralph Davis Scholarship House’s need for roof repairs.
Ben Fuller of Killearn brought the Council up to date on the Partners for a Better Beginning project, the Diaper Drop to supply diapers to needy families. He asked that the Capital City, Killearn, Northside and Tallahassee clubs each provide two volunteers for the program kickoff and festivities at the Albertson’s parking lot on Thomasville Road and five volunteers each for the major work of rewrapping and sorting the diapers on Oct. 4 at the Second Harvest Food Bank. The Lake Jackson Club will cook the hot dogs and hamburgers at the kickoff. Jo Willis of Madison expressed disappointment that the project’s first year was limited to Leon County. Ben Fuller said the concern was to start the program slowly and expand, however, if Madison wishes to participate it may have worth organizations seeking diapers to submit applications to the project and they will be considered. The application and other information on the Diaper Drop are available at http://mywebpages.comcast.net/diaper-roundup.
ELECTION-The Council elected Jim Wylie of Capital City to be lieutenant governor for 2003-04 and Jo Willis of Madison to be lieutenant governor-elect.
Incoming Lt. Gov. Wylie said his club had been working hard and making contributions to build a park at ECHO’s Bethany Family Apartments so the 100 needy children who live there will have a place to play. The facility is for the homeless and other families in need. He asked that the Council consider undertaking development of the park, expected to cost $22,000, as a project.
Lt. Gov. Harris said he had been asked by a lieutenant governor in South Florida to have the Council give $100 for a gift for Gov. Larry Krasulak at the convention.
The meeting adjourned at 8:16 p.m.
Minutes prepared by Jere Moore