the empire key winter 2008
DESCRIPTION
The 2008 Winter Issue of The Empire KeyTRANSCRIPT
EMPIRE KEY
Key Clubbers,I hope fall is suiting you well and you had an enjoyable Halloween. I thank those of you who seized the opportunity to Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF, your efforts aren't going unappreciated. I'm very proud of our district thus far this year and I know you will continue to astound me with your enthusiasm and dedication toward serving your homes, schools and communities. Last spring we set a goal to raise over $125,000 for our ten district projects. We already have over $75,000 accounted for and a little under half a year left to go! This is an amazing accomplishment and I know our original goal will be exceeded.However, I can't speak so highly regarding all of our district's totals. In March another goal was set detailing that 20,000 hours of community service would be preformed for my Governor's Project, "Going Green." We aren't where we should be at this point in the year. There are many people and resources available that will help you plan events to improve the environment. For ideas you may contact any member of the Governor's Project Committee, your Lt. Governor or myself. Our contact information can be found on the district website, www.nydkc.org. Also, you may consult the committee's page on that website and there you will find many pre-made brochures and project guides. There is no excuse to not hold a project for "Going Green," our world needs your help!Last, but certainly not least, I'd like to speak about the 61st Annual New York District Key Club Leadership Training Conference (formerly DCON). This is an informative, fun filled weekend that gives the entire district, all 15,000 members and 300+ clubs, the opportunity to come together and grow as leaders and friends. You are encouraged to attend whether your club has attended year after year in the past or has never been never before. It will be held in Ellenville, NY at the Nevele Grand Resort. The dates for this crucial event are Friday, March 27th - Sunday, March 29th. All officers and members should consider attending! More information regarding costs and registration will be available online shortly. I look forward to seeing you there!
In the Spirit of Falling Leaves and Leadership,Governor Amy
NYD Governor Amy [email protected]
AIM- NYDGovAmy
Governor's Greetings
Note from the EditorWhat's up Key Clubbers?Welcome to the Winter Edition of the Empire Key!This is one of the most important issues to check out for a few reasons:1. DUES INFORMATION- This is highly crucial if you need help paying your dues, if they are not paid then your club is at risk!2. LEADERSHIP TRAINING CONFERENCE- This contains important information on the 2009 Leadership Training Conference, formerly known as District Convention.3.
Table of Contents:Leadership TrainingConference 2009......2Dues Information......3SAA Core Info........4InternationalUpdates...........4Executive Updates.....5CommitteeUpdates...................6-7The Key Chain**NEW**..................8-9Major EmphasisProject......................9Youth OpportunitesFund........................10Service Spotlight.....10ICON 2009.............11
November 2008
Official Publication of the New York District of Key Club International
Winter Edition
LEADERSHIP TRAINING CONFERENCE
2009When?: Friday, March 27th – Saturday, March 29th
Where?: Nevele Grande Resort: 1 Nevele Road Ellenville, NY 12428Cost?: $207. Start advertising/fundraising ASAP!
FAQ:1. It used to be called District Convention. Why the name change?
-The name of the event has been changed in an attempt to increase attendance. Leadership Training Conference sounds more formal and hopefully will be more appealing to school officials and advisors that have
been reluctant to send students in the past.
2. Are there any differences between the regular District Convention and the Leadership Training Conference? -Yes, there are a few. Though the structure of things will be different, this year will be just as fun and
memorable, if not even moreso, than years past. 1. Workshops will be structured differently, and will be known as seminars. Instead of being run by District
Officers, they will be run by adults/advisors from the International level. This will be more beneficial to the members. If there are any adviso rs who are interested in running workshops, please contact District
Administrator Andrew Lowenberg or Governor Amy Lorenc; contact information will be given at the end of this article. Officers, members or advisors who have any suggestions may contact those just mentioned as
well. 2. There will be no theme at the Conference. The use of themes in past conventions end up gearing appeal towards or against certain groups of people; some people may like the ideas they propose, others may not. Eliminating a theme will result in a universal appeal, as opposed to an unintentional focus on certain groups.
3. There will be no dedication at this year's Conference. However, this event will likely be brought back in the future.
4. The first dance of the event, usually with a costume-based theme, is being replaced with a meet and greet. Most attendees at the convention don't bring a costume at all, and it's just extra packing space. The Governor's
Ball on Saturday night will still be in place.
3. Is there any way I can help run the Conference? -Yes. Applications are available for the Sargent at Arms Core through Co-Chairs Jessie Gong and Shao Chen, and should be available on the district website soon. More information on the Sargent at Arms Core can
be found on page 4.Important Contact Information:
District Administrator Andrew Lowenberg- [email protected] Governor Amy Lorenc- [email protected]
SAA Co-Chair Jessie Gong- [email protected] Co-Chair Shao Chen- [email protected]
New York District Dues ProcessOverview: Every member of every Key Club in the New York District must pay a minimum of $11.50 (International Dues: $6.50 + District Dues: $5.00) as far as member dues. Each individual club can charge an additional couple dollars for club dues. After the club treasurer has collected all of the dues from his or her club members, his or her school then generates ONE check made out to Key Club International. Next, each club must update their club’s roster and generate an invoice online following the steps below.Updating Your Club Roster and Generating an Invoice:
Step 1: Go to http://soapmu.kiwanis.org/default.cfm?action=logon Step 2: Type in your "Club Key Number" and "Password" that was mailed to each club in
September. If you are missing this password, please contact District Administrator Andrew Lowenberg at [email protected] before continuing to step 3.
Step 3: Click on "click here to begin" located on the main page. And click "click here" on the next page.
Step 4: Verify that your Faculty Advisor information is correct. Click "CLICK IF YOU ARE FINISHED ADDING/UPDATING/DELETING ADVISORS" when you are done.
Step 5: You will brought to the "Deleting Members" page. If you have members from last year, that are no longer in the club check "yes" and click "submit" to delete those members. If you do not have members that need to be deleted, check "no" and click "submit".
Step 6: You will be brought to the "Add or Edit Members" page. Check "yes" and click "submit" to edit or add members. Fill out the information for EACH member, clicking "Add" for each member that needs to be added.
Step 7: You're almost done! Check "yes" and click submit on the page that asks if you are done. Step 8: On the next page, Check "yes" and click "submit" to generate your invoice to submit to
Key Club International. ONLY GENERATE YOUR INVOICE IF YOU ARE COMPLETELY DONE DELETING/ADDING/EDITING MEMBER AND ADVISOR INFORMATION.
Step 9: Print off several copies of the invoice, because once the dues process is complete, you WILL NOT be able to print off another invoice for this year.
Step 10: VERY IMPORTANT: Click the big yellow box to complete the dues process!
Final Steps: After you have done all this, you should make a copy of the dues check. Send this copy and one of the copies of your invoice to Mr. Jim Farrell. Finally, send the actual dues check and a copy of the invoice to Key Club International by DECEMBER 1ST, 2008.
Mr. Jim Farrell Key Club International PO Box 237 PO Box 6069 - Dept. 123 Eastport, NY 11941 Indianapolis, IN 46206-6069
Created by New York District Treasurer Jeff Panosian [email protected]
LEADERSHIP TRAINING CONFERENCE-
SARGENT AT ARMS CORE!!!The “Police Force” of the Leadership Training Conference.Maintain control and be a leader!Go a day early and pay less to go!Contact Jessie Gong or Shao Chen for more information on applying! Spots are limited!!Jessie- [email protected] Shao- [email protected]
INTERNATIONAL UPDATES-International President from the NYD- Kia Albertson-Rogers
What's up, New York? Here's the down low on what's up in Key club International.
The Key Club Video Magazine starts up again in January, and we'd really like people to start watching it. A lot of money is spent on it, and Cantaloupe
T.V. will be making 12 videos next year, so check it out! More good news, we are in the process of deciding the New UNICEF
Initiative. Although I'm not allowed to disclose what our options areat this time for the upcoming project but they're awesome! One little
goodie I can tell you is that it will have a focus on South America. Just so you know – this year we have had the most YOF applications turned
in, EVER! Around 80ish, if you turned one in, awesome! We're having a great year so far, let's keep it up, New York!
Happy Holidays! ~Kia~
International Trustee to and From the NYD-Jessica Morris
Greetings New York District!I hope you've all had a great time Trick-or-Treating for UNICEF, and I hope you're all
ready for our next project.This month, we will be taking part in our first sister-district project.
The week of November 17-21, we will be selling yellow ribbons at $1.00 each for Children's Miracle Network. Then, on Friday, November 21, everyone will wear their
ribbons. Clubs from all over New York, New Jersey, and New England will be participating in this,
and it will help to support one of our service partners as well as spread awareness. There are so many people who don't know what Children's Miracle Network is, and it is
so important that they find out!Please take the time to participate in this project, and I hope that you have fun with it!
Yours in caring and service,
Jessica Morris
International President
Kia Albertson RogersInternational Trusteeto and from the NYD
Jessica Morris
District Secretary Vincent DubayHello New York Secretaries! The holiday season is approaching, but with less than 5 months left until the end of your term it’s now time to get everything running smoothly. Paperwork totals have been excellent these past few months and so far the only charity with zero dollars is Pediatric Lyme. Try to contact your local Kiwanis Club for information on how to raise money for this charity. Contact your respective LTG to ask about the Distinguished Secretary Award. Another factor for this month is UNICEF box totals; make sure you send in a copy of the Donation sheet that came with your UNICEF package. This sheet will act as proof for the amount of money fundraised, but remember you only need to send this proof if the amount was over 600 dollars. Attach the sheet with your Monthly Report Form for November. If you have any further questions email me at [email protected]
Webmaster Allen YuHey New York…how do you feel?
Can you believe that we’re more than halfway through our Key Club year already? I know I can’t! As your District Webmaster and Technology Chair, I have been working tirelessly to help make your year easy and successful. I am so happy to say that our District website (www.nydkc.org) has been visited by over 10,000 Key Clubbers thus far! Our new online report forms have been more efficient, and our NYDKC Mailing List has greatly eased communication between our District to our every member. I want to remind all clubs to continue sending me articles and pictures from their service events so I can put them on our District website as an inspiration for clubs around the world. If you have any questions regarding technology or Key Club in general (even if it is learning how to copy-and-paste in Microsoft Word), I am ALWAYS here to help! Start thinking about the Leadership Training Conference in March, and I look forward to seeing you all in Ellenville! As for now, just keep up the smashing work and enjoy the snow! (and the snow days! =))
Happy holidays!
Yours ever in winter spirit, Allen Yu
EXECUTIVE UPDATES
NYDKC MAILING LIST
Joining this mailing list is crucial to making the best out of your Key Club year, providing valuable and easy to
access information!
How to sign up:1. Go to www.nydkc.org2. Click “Subscribe to the New York District Key Club Mailing List” on the right hand side of the page.3. Fill out the necessary information/follow instructions. It's that simple!!!Contact Editor Adam or Webmaster Allen with questions.
COMMITTEE UPDATES
District ProjectsLTG Div 8 Amy KongDearest New York District, With the holidays coming up, I hope you are all feeling the joy around us. Following the festivities, more of us are feeling added generosity. This is a great time to make a change in the world or help out in your communities; share the great feelings of this time of year! Currently, the District’s totals for the amount of money raised for our 10 district projects are on track J; however, it is crucial that we follow this path and do not get left behind. Continue fundraising and have fun at the same time. This is a great time to help local causes; go online to amazon.com or to the Barnes and Noble’s website (they have great clearance deals!) and purchase toys and books for the local school for disabled children. Simply print out the receipt online of how much you donated and include it on your next Monthly Report Form. You can use this idea to help children in Africa go to school during the holidays for our U.S. Africa Children’s Fellowship District Project. Go Christmas caroling for Kiwanis Pediatric Trauma Center (with a decorated basket for donations), hold a hot chocolate stand (don’t forget the marshmallows!) or sell purple ribbon pins for Alzheimer’s Association. Don’t forget to always tell those who are donating where the money is going and who they are helping. For more information on District Projects, check out the district website at www.nydkc.org. If you have any questions, I’m here to help; drop me an email at [email protected]. Happy Holidays! Yours in Caring, Service and Holiday Cheer,Amy KongLieutenant Governor Division 8District Projects Chair
AdvocacyLTG Div 2 Stephanie SpringerDear New York Key Clubbers, It’s the time of the service year that each Key Clubber needs to work his or her hardest! With only a few months left, we really need to work our hardest to achieve our District goal for advocacy! With only about 500 letters accounted for, we still have 4,500 letters to go until we reach our District goal of 5,000! 5,000 letters is a huge goal to expect from our District, and although I know the totals are a little low now, I know that the Mighty New York District will pull through and get our totals to reach the goal, if not surpass it! Here are some useful tips to help your club participate in advocacy:
Devote an entire meeting for writing advocacy! Have each member write a short letter concerning a problem that touches them personally, If there are a few letters that you would like to use for the whole club, ask the member if you can pass it around the meeting to be signed!
Have your club go online and find petitions that can be signed online. Send the link to each of your members and have each one sign it. Take a total of the members that “signed” the petition and send (either email or snail mail) the totals into either myself, or District Secretary Vince Dubay.
Go onto the New York District Website and find a prewritten advocacy letter that suits your club. Print it out and bring it to a meeting.
Please do your best to make our advocacy totals soar! If each member signs one letter at each club meeting our district would pass its totals in the blink of an eye! Lets get writing! Yours in Care and Service,Lt. Governor Stephanie SpringerAdvocacy Chair, 08
More on the next page!!!
Distinguished Key ClubberLTG Div 11 Nancy ZhangHey New York District! For the past couple of months, the Distinguished Key Clubber Committee has been working extremely hard to finish the Awards Booklet and the Distinguished Key Clubber Application. As of now, we have finished the Booklet and Application and are working on revisions and finalizations. Before you know it, our New York District Leadership Training Conference will be right around the corner. Please be sure to look in the Awards Booklet once it is posted on the www.nydkc.org website for other awards you can apply for. Know the criteria beforehand so you can make the necessary preparations! I encourage all of you to apply for the DKC award. By now, you should be working towards your finished application little by little. It is through your unwavering service that we can bestow this honor to each and every one of you. Keep working towards it! Yours in caring, service, and friendship,Lt. Governor Nancy ZhangDistinguished Key Clubber Committee Chair
Committee ArticlesPage 2K-Family Relations LTG Div. 23 Beth Malley
Mighty New York District, Another month of school has gone by and with it another month of Key Club. At this current time we only have 5 more months of the Key Club year! There has been an increase in hours but we still are very short of our goal. We have recorded 4578.3 hours which is 22.89% of our goal. We had just over a 7 ¼ percent increase in the past month. Please keep sending in your Monthly Report Forms to Secretary Vince so he can record your hours! Please read the Bi-weekly tips that your Lt. Governor should be forwarding to you. If you aren’t getting them check out the New York District Website at wwww.nydkc.org, go to Committees, then click on Kiwanis Family Relations. Don’t forget to plan projects with your Kiwanis Family. Key Club week has just passed, and hopefully you participated in a project with the Kiwanis Family. Ask your Kiwanis Clubs if they have any upcoming projects that they need help on. If you help them they will be more inclined to help you! If you have any question please contact me or any other Kiwanis Family Relations Committee member. Sincerely,Beth MalleyDivision 23 Lt. Governor
The ey ChainNew York District- #1
This brand new addition to the Empire
Key is a project in which District Bulletin
Editors from around Key Club
International are participating, providing
articles detailing what goes on in their
districts.
Southwest District Governor’s Project“Hoops of Hope”
Hey New York District, this is John Licas, the Bulletin Editor from the hot Southwest District to tell you about our Governor’s Project, Hoops
of Hope.On December 2004, at the age of ten, Austin Gutwein, shot 2057 free
throws. The amount of free throws represented the amount of children who lost their parents because of AIDS in Africa. He raised $3000
which helped 8 of these children in Africa. Austin knew that he could help more than just 8 orphans. Feeling unsatisfied, Austin recruited
other kids to shoot free throws on World AIDS day (December 1st). This Shoot-a-thon became known as Hoops of Hope. Hoops of Hope
has raised more than $125,000. This year the Southwest is encouraging all our Key Clubbers to do this incredible service project. To get a
school involved the first thing you have to do is to choose a date to do a shoot-a-thon. Setting up your own desired date is perfectly fine, but keep in mind that you can also choose one of the National Hoops of Hope Event Days. Then, you find a location to hold your event. Your school gym might be just the best place; however, you might want to tell your school administrators first and get their approval. After, you
will have to get sponsors for your event. The program works somewhat like a walk-a-thon. For instance, you can ask a sponsor to
pledge to donate a dollar for every free throw shot made. Austin Gutwein believed in helping those who lost their loved ones from AIDS. It is truly unfair for those who have to go through such an experience.
The Southwest is determined to help and join Austin in this battle against the trouble AIDS has done. We hope that you may also try to set such
an event up at your school. If you are interested and want more information on setting this incredible project up and getting sponsor
pledge donations please visit http://www.hoopsofhope.org/get-involved/. Yours in service, Southwest District.
Key ChainPage 2
Wisconsin-Upper MichiganHey New York District!
I’m Anna Sedlar, Wisconsin – Upper Michigan’s District Bulletin Editor. I live in the small town of Escanaba, Michigan where there is nothing to do. I’m a junior and I am in love with Key Club.
So I bet you’re asking, ‘hmm… what’s it like to live and serve in cheese country?’ well let me tell you! WI-UM is a district of 17 divisions (15 in Wisconsin, and 2 in Upper Michigan) and over 5,000 Key Clubber’s. Our district board is very young yet very ambitious, sadly (and randomly) a whole half of our year is snow-filled (this isn’t always a bad thing, but mostly it is). Us WI-UM-er’s are pretty dang cool. If you haven’t met one, you’re missing out. Our district just finished the RTC (regional training conference) season and cannot wait until DCON! Our DCON theme is music genres! Each division will get a theme – from country to metal - and will battle it out to win the spirit award. We are especially excited to have Devon Harris as our Keynote speaker. Devon is a 3-time Olympian and an original member of the 1988 Jamaican Bobsled Team. His inspiring story based the Disney Channel original movie ‘Cool Runnings’. Whoa!
Our governor’s project is ‘Service has no Boundaries – a Disability Awareness Project’. Club’s have the chance to help those living with disabilities by working with the Special Olympics, Good Will Industries, Aktion Club’s, and other disability friendly organizations. This is definitely something a district like your’s could do as well.
WI-UM is basically the most awesome district out there and hopefully this summer at ICON you just might meet a WI-UM-er!
Service with a smile , Anna Sedlar
WI-UM District Bulletin Editor
Be sure to check
this out next time
for more cool stuff
from different
districts!!
Major Emphasis Program 2008-2010: Live 2 Learn
From 2008 through 2010, the KCI Major Emphasis Program is “Live 2 Learn.” This program focuses on the educational and social development of children, specifically around ages 5 through 9. It is highly
beneficial not only for the wide range of service projects that encompass the goal, but it is also very important: after all, children are our future. Not only will you be gaining service hours through
participation in related projects, but you will be shaping the world of tomorrow. So how do you do that? It's easy. Getting involved in a Mentoring program at your school, reading books aloud, and even fun
things like finger painting and projects through group interaction, are just a few things on the endless list of activities you can do. So what are you waiting for?
Youth Opportunities FundTrying to organize a big-time service project but can't seem to afford it? Then check out the Youth Opportunities Fund! By sending in an application, you have a chance to receive a grant for anywhere between $200 and $2,000. Amazing, right?
The money for the Youth Opportunities fund comes from Key Club dues and G. Harold Martin Fellowships. Clubs can not apply more than three (3) years in a row.
Applications for the 2008-2009 Key Club year can no longer be sent in, but this year there have been as many applications, if not more, than ever before!If you're an underclassman Key Clubber and have some great fundraising ideas, think about it for next year. Check out www.keyclub.org for more information, and bring it up to your advisor(s). Make that dream a reality!
SERVICE SPOTLIGHT!Westmoreland Key Club
On October 5th, 2008, the Westmoreland Key Club hosted "Walk for a Child's Dream" at the High School. This was the 2nd Annual event that brings together the community and helps raise funds for Kamp Kiwanis.
Westmoreland Key Club makes this a great way to start the school year. Key club members and other students came to this event along with key club members from Proctor and Rome Free Academy. Everyone enjoyed the
wonderful baked goods and delicious refreshments while walking the new renovated track. There were a total of 24 people that came to help the same cause. The number of people doubled from last year. After the event, we played a friendly and fun game of castle tag. Even one of our advisors played! The 2nd annual "Walk for a Child's Dream" raised $250 for Kamp Kiwanis. The 3rd annual "Walk for a Child's Dream" will be in fall of 2009. We plan to have
more walkers and a better turn out next year, even though the event was a great success this year
Check out the Service Spotlight section at www.nydkc.org for pictures/more info oftheevent, and other clubs who have done outstanding service!!
International Convention2009
July 1st-4th 2009