Recent extreme weather events and natural disasters throughout the world have caused devastation in many areas. These events have prompted Kiwanis International and the Kiwanis International Foundation to issue a special plea for contributions to the Disaster Relief Fund. 

?Kiwanis has received numerous messages of concern for the well-being of those affected by natural disasters,? said Kiwanis International President Dave Curry. ?As a result, we are asking people to donate to the Disaster Relief Fund, particularly to help and support children, who have been so tragically affected.?

Working with clubs within the affected areas, Kiwanis will ensure contributions are directed to help children who have the greatest immediate and critical needs.

Contribute to the relief efforts or send your support to the Kiwanis International Foundation Disaster Relief Fund, 3636 Woodview Trace, Indianapolis, Ind., USA 46268.

?Our thoughts are with the countless children suffering because of these disasters,? said Kiwanis International Foundation President Jane Erickson. ?We can be the ones to make a difference by helping them when they need it most.?

Planning to attend the 93rd Annual Kiwanis International Convention in Orlando? Book your hotel room by May 27 to receive special convention hotel rates. And remember, Kiwanis shuttle bus service will only operate among official convention hotels. Reserve your room today! 

Heading to the 93rd Annual Kiwanis International Convention in Orlando? Consider volunteering for the sergeant-at-arms committee. Sergeant-at-arms play a major role in the success of the International convention by providing logistical assistance and support at all convention sessions, forums, and events. Volunteering for this committee is enjoyable and lets you play a behind-the-scenes role?while still allowing plenty of time to enjoy your favorite convention activities and the Florida sunshine.

Read the latest news releases for updates on happenings at Kiwanis International?including new hires at the International Office.

Do you want to take a more active role in deciding the future of Kiwanis International? Now is the time to talk with your Kiwanis club president or secretary to voice your interest in becoming a delegate at the 93rd Annual Kiwanis International Convention, June 26-29 in Orlando, Florida.

Each Kiwanis club in good standing can send two delegates to convention. One representative from each club should fill out the delegate form and submit to Kiwanis International by April 30.

Register for the convention before April 25 to take advantage of early-bird rates.

Orlando offers seven of the 10 most-visited theme parks in the entire world. Do you plan to visit any during your trip to Florida for the 93rd Annual Kiwanis International Convention?

If you don?t have plans, make them?there?s no better time than now to sit in the ?Splash zone? at SeaWorld or rub elbows with Goofy at Walt Disney World.

How can you get in on the fun? Purchase your attraction tickets at a discount from gate admission prices. Sign up for the convention now to take advantage of early-bird registration rates.

When Kiwanis-family members are called upon for a day of service, it?s amazing what they can accomplish.

In Curacao, Netherlands Antilles, Kiwanians spent many hours in the hot sun painting a school for the second annual Kiwanis One Day. In Jamaica, more than 600 people attended the Mini Expo and Speakers? Forum to bring global and national climate change to center stage. In Pennsylvania, Kiwanis members teamed with other organizations to offer 3,000 children and adults The Biggest Bedtime Story event, where kids got books, storytimes, and snacks.

What did your Kiwanis club do for Kiwanis One Day? Fill out the Kiwanis One Day Event Reporting Form to let us know all about it! Be sure to submit the form before June 1 to receive your Kiwanis One Day banner patch.

It's exciting when the entire Kiwanis family comes together for an event to help the children of the world, and the Kiwanis International Foundation has the perfect event: Skip-A-Meal.

What's it all about? Kiwanis-family members are asked to skip at least one meal during the final week of April and send the cost equivalent to the Kiwanis International Foundation. Support from this program funds a growing number of grants provided through the Kiwanis Children's Fund.

Stomach grumbling aside, it's easy to take part. Simply report your success and mail your donations.

Reminder: Any individual with diabetes who is either on insulin therapy or taking any glucose-lowering medication should not take part in Skip-A-Meal. People under a physician's care should consult a doctor before participating in this activity. In this situation, participation can be accomplished by a cash donation.

Planning to hit one or all of the special events during the 93rd Annual Kiwanis International Convention in Orlando, Florida? If you are, you'd better act now-tickets are limited and are going fast.

Tickets are available on a first-come, first-served basis for the following events:

• Key Leader for Adults, June 25. $40.
• Live On-Stage with Bob Newhart, June 27. $25 each adult, $10 for those ages 12 and younger.
• Fellowship Breakfast with Dr. Crawford Loritts, June 28. $25.
• 2nd Annual Party for a Purpose, June 28. $115. Ticket price includes food, drinks, entertainment, and transportation. All proceeds benefit Service Leadership Programs.

You must be registered for the convention in order to purchase tickets. Sign up for these special events on your convention registration form; by calling Kiwanis International at 1-800-549-2647, ext. 411, or 1-317-875-8755, ext. 411; or by e-mail at memberservices@kiwanis.org.

Kiwanis International makes history April 15 when KiwanisOne, Kiwanis' new member portal, becomes fully functional, grouping together all the information and resources needed for Kiwanis clubs and members to be effective service leaders. For the first time, Kiwanis' administrative resources will not be mixed in with the public site.

The portal offers four primary areas:

• Kiwanis Leader, a place where anyone can go to find out what's happening in the world of leadership, especially Kiwanis-style leadership.
• Club Management, an area featuring monthly online reporting and club management software modules; a subscription-based service offering club newsletter and Web site templates; and e-mail services.
• Member Resources, which includes marketing and PR resources, club-building and growth tools, and other resources considered the "nuts and bolts" of Kiwanis.
• Kiwanis-community, a social-networking area.

With the member portal fully activated, the old Kiwanis Web site, also known as the Kiwanis Classic Web site, will be closed down. Kiwanis' public Web site-kiwanis.org-will remain as a communications hub. It will continue offering features for Kiwanian and non-Kiwanian alike, such as headlines, the club locator, and a calendar of Kiwanis events.

Looking for Kiwanis member information? Now it's easy to find.

See the big, round red button on the right side of the home page? See the red link on the left-side navigation menu? These are your tickets to a new site created exclusively for members of Kiwanis International: KiwanisOne.org.

KiwanisOne.org, also known as the member portal, is a gathering spot where Kiwanians can get anything and everything they need to improve the Kiwanis experience. Looking for a template to build a brochure for your club? How about information about Kiwanis graphic standards? Want to read CEO Rob Parker's blog? You'll find all this and more at KiwanisOne.org. Take a look around, then drop us an e-mail to let us know what you think.

If you've been to Orlando, Florida, you know it's jam-packed with hotels. And that may leave you wondering where you'll end up staying during the 2008 Kiwanis International Convention.

Well, wonder no longer.

To make your planning easier, check out our handy map of the 10 official Kiwanis International Convention hotels in Orlando.

And don't forget to register early!

Mark your calendar for some family time on April 5-Kiwanis family time.

Saturday, April 5, marks the second annual observance of Kiwanis One Day, a day when the entire Kiwanis family of clubs-Kiwanis, Kiwanis Junior, Circle K, Aktion Club, Key Club, Builders Club, and Kiwanis Kids-join forces for a day of hands-on service. More than 600 Kiwanis-family clubs participated in the inaugural Kiwanis One Day, and Kiwanis hopes to double that number this year.

What can your club do? Check out these ideas from the first Kiwanis One Day:

Horse around: Circle K'ers at the College of William and Mary did landscaping work for a horse ranch that provides therapy for children.

Be crafty: Members of the Waipahu High School Key Club participated in arts and crafts with children at a shelter in Hawaii.

What are you doing to celebrate One Day? Share your story!

Key Leader is gearing up for a busy spring, with more than 20 events from now through June.
If you haven?t registered a young person with leadership potential to take part in a Key Leader
weekend, now is the time.

Here?s your to-do list:

1. Find an event near you at www.key-leader.org.

2. Register a student who shows leadership potential.

3. Add a line in your budget to send at least one student to a Key Leader event.

If you don?t see an event near you and you?d like to talk about the potential of setting up a Key Leader event, please call us at 317-217-6124.

Six cents provides a mixture of sugar
and salt, called oral rehydration salts
(ORS), that saves lives during
episodes of rehydration.

It?s a staggering number: 1.1 billion people worldwide lack access to safe drinking water?and 4,500 children die every single day because of this.

To spread awareness of this global issue, and to raise funds to provide clean drinking water, Circle K International (CKI) and the US Fund for UNICEF teamed up this past year to establish Saving Lives: The Six Cents Initiative

And now, the CKI Service Committee has declared March 22, 2008, as Six Cents Day, in conjunction with World Water Day, an international observance begun by the United Nations in 1992.

Six cents may seem like just a drop in the bucket, but all those donated pennies quickly add up.

?Every day, many of us drink the equivalent of at least 1 to 3 bottles of water, and we don?t even realize it,? says International Representative Ralph Johnson. ?Yet, around the world, 1 billion people don?t have access to even a cup of clean tap water to drink or take care of personal needs. We, as members of the Kiwanis family, have the opportunity to make a big difference in our world by contributing just six cents to help make water safe and sanitary.?

How can the Kiwanis family help? Read the Six Cents Initiative Project Overview and Guide for more ideas, and for information on where to send donations.

Photo Credit: UNICEF HQ05-1711/Asad Zaidi