The Pennsylvania District of Kiwanis International will hold its 91st Annual Convention in Altoona on August 14 – 17. The convention will be held at the Altoona Ramada Inn and the Blair County Convention Center.
The 2008 convention is hosted by the Altoona Kiwanis and the clubs from the surrounding area including Eldorado, Mainline West, Tyrone, Philipsburg, and Clearfield.
The purposes of the convention are to educate members on all aspects of Kiwanis community service, recognize outstanding service efforts by clubs and members, provide motivation, and take care of organizational business including the election of officers.
Approximately 400 Kiwanis family members and guests will attend. In Pennsylvania, there are approximately 21,000 members of the Kiwanis family of organizations.
“Many Kiwanis have fond memories of a similar event held during the last convention in Altoona in 1993,” said Sallie Swenson, Convention Chair and a member of the Clearfield Kiwanis Club.
Tyrone Kiwanis Club representatives have been meeting regularly over the past several months with Swenson for state convention planning. Pete Dutrow, Bill Ellenberger, and Deb Moore have been handling matters on behalf of Tyrone’s affiliate.
“Our Tyrone club, along with the other Kiwanis clubs, will be assisting to prepare ‘welcome bags’ for the conventioneers Wednesday, August 13, and help with convention registration on Thursday, August 15,” said Tyrone Kiwanis Club President Fred Miller.
The convention will kick-off on Thursday, August 14 with a reception and party at the Altoona Railroaders Museum. Friday morning, August 15, will be a busy day with a host of meetings and forums, including a special forum that involves a cooking demonstration from the chefs at the Blair County Convention Center.
At noon on Friday, there will be a lunch where various awards will be presented including the Kiwanis Hero In Service award. The award recognizes those members of Kiwanis who have provided extraordinary service to Kiwanis, community, and children.
Following the luncheon, there will be additional Kiwanis forums. Friday evening will be free so that members and guests can enjoy Altoona and Blair County.
Saturday morning will begin with the Pennsylvania Kiwanis Foundation breakfast, where information will be provided on the activities of the foundation as well as celebrating the past year of charitable giving by Kiwanis clubs and Kiwanis family members. Following the breakfast, there will be a final set of educational forums.
Saturday afternoon will be highlighted by the Business Session of the convention where Kiwanis members will consider amendments to the district by-laws and the election of officers for the 2008-09 Kiwanis year. The session will be highlighted by a keynote address from Rocco Scalzi, founder of the Beating the Odds foundation.
Among other speakers to address the convention will be Amanda Marfisi, Governor of Pennsylvania Circle K, the organization’s collegiate service leadership group, and Andrew Fishell, Governor of Pennsylvania Key Club, the organization’s high school equivalent.
Concluding Saturday’s events is a banquet where retiring district officers will be honored and new officers installed. Former Broadway performer, Greg Brandt, will entertain at the banquet. Conventioneers will also have the opportunity to view a baseball game at the Miracle League field in Altoona.
The convention will close on Sunday, August 18 with a breakfast highlighted by an address from Second Mile founder and former Penn State University Football Defensive Coordinator, Jerry Sandusky.
“We are honored to have Jerry Sandusky provide an address at our closing prayer breakfast on Sunday,” said Karen Terrill, Altoona Club Secretary and Ramada Inn Director of Sales.
Kiwanis International is a world-wide organization of individuals interested in improving their communities and the world at large with a focus on the needs of children and youth. The Kiwanis mission is to change and improve the world one child and one community at a time.
