Happy 90th Anniversary, Kiwanis! January 21st, 2005 is Kiwanis International’s $17,500 in one-half hour to buy Kiwanis administrative offices from Chicago where 90th birthday! Our New York District is cele- from founder/organizer Allen Simpson they had been since 1959 to a new 60,000 brating this very special event with a year- Browne. square feet building in Indianapolis, Indiana. long observance including a special focus by • 1922 – The first convention held outside • 1983 – Delegates to the Houston, Texas all Kiwanis levels on improving our club’s the United States was in Toronto, Canada, convention elected Frank J. DiNoto of image in the community through better proj- with over 4,000 people attending. Newport Beach, California the 72nd ects well publicized, and better club meet- • 1924 – Kiwanis’ six permanent objects, President of Kiwanis International, a Roman ings with good programs and good fellow- unchanged to this day, were adopted at the Catholic, following 71 WASPs. ship. Hopefully your club has also planned a Denver, Colorado convention. special birthday party meeting on or close to • 1925 – The first Key Club was instituted by that date. the Sacramento, California Kiwanis Club. Originally for boys only, Key Club officially went coed in 1977. 90th Anniversary • 1936 – Our first Washington D.C. conven- Tony Kaiser tion was attended by U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt. • 1993 – The Nice, France convention, only • 1940 – The Kiwanis International the second to be held outside of North Foundation was created. America, is especially noteworthy for the • 1943-45 – Due to World War II, these three announcement by incoming President Art years were the only ones in our 90-year his- Swanberg of our first Worldwide Service tory in which no real International Project, IDD and our partnering with UNICEF Conventions were held. Necessary business to implement it. To date, Kiwanis has raised was conducted at an International Council over $78 million for IDD and saved millions meeting or a small administrative convention of children and adults from mental retarda- with very limited attendance. tion, cretinism, goiter, and other serious ill- • 1946 – The Atlantic City, N.J. convention nesses. Also, 1993-94 saw the first female Trish and Ian Perdriau District Governor in our history: Marycel Engracia of our Philippine South District. • 1987 – At our second convention in • 1994 – Elected in New Orleans as our 80th Washington D.C., U. S. President Ronald International President, Ian Perdriaus from George F. Hixson Reagan attended and addressed over Melbourne, Australia was our first non-North 12,000 delegates and guests. After numer- Rochester Club American president. ous unsuccessful attempts over many years, First International President • 1916-1918 • 1995 – Our second non-North American delegates voted to permit Kiwanis clubs president and the first from Europe, Iceland’s Another major part of our celebration will worldwide to welcome women as members. Eyjolfur “Eddie” Sigurdsson immediately fol- be the May 6, 2005 concert to be held at the Also adopted was a worldwide plan for lowed the first. Eddie later joined the staff Tilles Center for the performing arts on the regional representation on the International heading up our European Federation office in C.W. Post Campus of Long Island University Board of Trustees. Tony Kaiser was elected Ghent, Belgium and still later became in Brookville, L.I. It promises to be a gala the 73rd International President, the first International’s Executive Director in event and your presence and support will New Yorker since our district was formed in Indianapolis. guarantee its success. All net proceeds of 1918. The traditional photo of the the evening will benefit the Kiwanis Pediatric International President on the cover of the Trauma Center at Schneider Children’s October issue of the Kiwanis magazine for Hospital at North Shore. (see Page 9) the first time included the First Lady, Mim. To celebrate this milestone anniversary On all subsequent October issue covers here in the pages of our award-winning except one (see1990) the First Ladies were Empire State Kiwanian, from among the sev- Mim and Anton J.“Tony” Kaiser included. eral perspectives from which our organiza- • 1990 – The St. Louis convention celebrat- tion’s history could be viewed, let’s trace its with nearly 10,000 people present broke all ed the 75th anniversary of Kiwanis and saw evolution into the Kiwanis we now know. previous attendance records. the election of Dr. Will Blechman, the first Perhaps nowhere is there more evidence of • 1953 – The convention in New York City, Jewish International President. This influen- changing times and changing attitudes than held 37 years after the first International tial president became the driving force in what has occurred at and as a result of Convention, in Cleveland, was the first (of behind our first ever three-year Major our International Conventions. only two) held in our New York District. Emphasis Program ”Young children Priority • 1955 – After an incredibly long and com- One!” which evolved into our Worldwide 90 Years of Selected Historic plex development period (33 years), the Service Project – Iodine Deficiency Disorder Highlights Kiwanis International Board unanimously (IDD) and then into our permanent organiza- • 1916 – Our first convention, May 18-19 in voted to officially recognize Circle K clubs. tional focus, “Serving the Children of the Cleveland, Ohio (only 16 months after our The Pullman, Washington Kiwanis Club is World.” It is a measure of Wil’s commitment “birth” in Detroit and after the fledgling credited with sponsoring the first Circle K and zeal that he insisted that, rather than put Alice and Juan “Ito” Torres organization had already changed its “We Club. his and First Lady Rachel’s photo on the Trade” business-oriented purpose into a • 1961 – After some 40 years of debate, del- cover of the October 1990 issue of Kiwanis • 1997 – Walter Sellers of Xenia, Ohio elect- community service – philanthropic one) uni- egates to the Toronto, Canada convention magazine, which had become a tradition, the ed at the Nashville, Tennessee convention fied the existing 24 clubs into “The National voted to expand Kiwanis beyond the U.S. and cover be devoted to “Young children Priority was our 83rd President and the first African- Kiwanis Club”, adopted a constitution, and Canada. The following year clubs were One”! American. elected George F. Hixson, a Rochester, N.Y. organized in the Bahamas and Mexico. • 2001 – The first convention in our Asia- attorney to the first of his two terms as the • 1963 – In February, the first European Pacific Region, in Taipei, Taiwan, was also president of the National Kiwanis Club. On Kiwanis Club was formed in Vienna, Austria. noteworthy for the election to the the following November 1st, Kiwanis - 1964 – Kiwanis expands to Asia (Tokyo, International Board of Texan Lisa McCoy as became International with the organization Japan, Manila, and the Philippines). the first female Board member. At the St. of the Kiwanis Club of Hamilton, Ontario, • 1965 – Celebrating Kiwanis’ Golden Louis convention in 2004 Lisa’s bid to move Canada, with our Buffalo club as sponsor. Anniversary, for only the second time the up to the office of Vice President/Treasurer, • 1917 – In February, the first International convention was held in New York City setting which would have led to her being tour first magazine was published, edited in Buffalo a new high with more than 18,000 people female president, failed. and printed in Rochester. attending. • 2002 – Elected in New Orleans, Dr. Ito • 1918 – Delegates to the Providence, R.I. • 1967 – Kiwanis expands to New Zealand, Torres was our first International President convention authorized the formation of dis- Australia, South America, and Central from the Philippines. tricts. On September 27th at a meeting in America. • 2004 – For the first time, our current Syracuse (our first New York District “con- • 1975 – Breaking all attendance records, International Board includes two female vention”) representatives of the nine existing nearly 20,000 people attended the conven- Trustees: Grete Hvardal from Norway filing New York clubs elected Clarence A. Nelson of tion in Atlanta, Georgia, still an all-time high. the mandated 3-year seat of Region 3 Utica our first District Governor. Also, the first Builders Club was chartered. Continued on Page 9 • 1919 – Kiwanis declared its independence • 1976 – Kiwanis expand into Africa at the Birmingham, Alabama convention. In (Nigeria). EMPIRE STATE KIWANIAN a flurry of check wring, attendees raised • 1982 – Kiwanis International moved its Walter and Irene Sellers JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2005 7.