Corning Kiwanis:

The Kiwanis Club of Corning, NY, (sponsored by the Kiwanis Club of Elmira) was organized on January 27, 1939, as the 2000th Club of Kiwanis International with Otto W. Lutz installed as the first president of the “crew of 43” members at a dinner at the Baron Steuben Hotel. The club is part of Kiwanis International. For more information go to www.Kiwanis.org

Visit our Facebook page.

Ongoing projects for youth:

RIF program for preschool, Head Start and Kindergarten children. We purchase books to give to every child and then we spend time reading to the children in the classrooms four times a year. At present we are doing this at Severn school.

Support and pay the dues for Key Club at the High School. This is a service club for grades 9-12. For more information go to Keyclub.org

Fund scholarships to four high school seniors at the high school’s awards night.

Christmas party for the Salvation Army after school program. This includes Santa, Mrs. Santa, Elves (played by the Key club members). We also sponsor a Magician to entertain them.

Leadership Conference for 60 sophomores for one day on the first Friday of November for the last 21 years.

Sponsor at 1-3 high school students’ tuition to go to the Key Leadership conference at Livonia, NY in May for a weekend.

Hold a high school basketball awards luncheon at the Radisson on a Tuesday noon which includes cheerleaders, JV and varsity boys and girls teams.

Our club Christmas party includes the Madrigals from the high school singing songs of the season.

The Salvation Army summer program ends with a picnic at the park and our club furnishing the ice cream from the Hokey Pokey truck. The club members enjoy it with them….rain or shine.

Sponsor the Randy Naylor Wooden Bat Tournament.

The current International Kiwanis project: funding through UNICEF tetanus shots for 3rd world mothers so to prevent further deaths of infants and mothers due to tetanus.

Community Service Projects:

Each spring we hold an “Every Day Hero” award luncheon for a worthy recipient from our community. The event is held as a surprise to the guest of honor.

The Corning Kiwanis, Lions club and Rotary Club collect money from the people attending the Fireworks for the funding of the following year’s fireworks. One of our members does the organizing and soliciting local businesses for funding of this event.

We help the Gaffer district in the downtown cleanup in the spring.

Heart to Heart – provided assistance to bag items for Heart to Heart needy children’s Christmas gifts.

Spencer Crest entrance garden (provided plantings and maintenance several times).

Participate in Parade of Lights with a float and children aboard.

Fund raisers:

October: Selling of “Rottery” tickets (drawing every day in November)

December: selling hotdogs and roasted chestnuts at Sparkle on Market Street, ringing the bell for the Salvation Army at Walmart.

January and February: Selling tickets for and serving breakfast at Applebee’s on a Sunday morning sometime that month.

March: Selling tickets and then putting on a Spaghetti dinner at the American Legion

April: selling tickets for a Mothers day basket drawing.

July and August: volunteering at the Watkins Glen events where the Glen pays the club an hourly wage and the participant gets tickets to the events free.