Global day of service benefits children and communities
The Kiwanis Club of Bloomington will help the Illinois Route 66 Parkway by hosting the Kiwanis One Day Project on October 23, 2021. The Project will take place from 8:30am-12:00pm in Towanda. The activities are part of Kiwanis One Day, a global day of service that unites the entire Kiwanis family, including Kiwanis, Aktion Club, Circle K, Key Club, Builders Club and K-Kids. On the fourth Saturday of October — this year on October 23 — volunteers in Bloomington-Normal will join Kiwanians around the world as they all devote a time to hands-on service.
The Bloomington Kiwanis Club is partnering with the Illinois Route 66 Parkway for the local Kiwanis One Day project again this year. Volunteers will be providing general clean-up and maintenance of Route 66 and its bike path in Towanda. Specifically, volunteers will be staining the decking of the bridge, benches and picnic tables, as well as trimming trees and shrubs, and picking up trash. Visitors from all over the world come to this bike trail, exploring the old famous Illinois Route 66. The Parkway is the only location on Route 66 that has a map of the route painted on the path itself. There are markers on the trail, such as tree markers (memorials) and our Bloomington Kiwanis Club’s marker for our donation and care of the trail.
Kiwanis International estimates that the annual Kiwanis One Day event will contribute nearly 1 million service hours to communities around the world in just 24 hours. “Communities need Kiwanis, in Bloomington-Normal and around the world, and this is our way of making sure kids and organizations here in our community have what they need to thrive, prosper and grow,” said Bloomington Kiwanis Club member, Bob Starckovich. “The energy, commitment and camaraderie surrounding this single day of worldwide hands-on service is so gratifying for our members as they make an immediate, measurable impact on our local community.”
Kiwanis One Day also provides an opportunity for community members to join in the fun. “We’ve found that inviting community members to our service projects is a great way to show who we are and what we do and provide an opportunity for them to join us as a new member,” said Starckovich. Kiwanis One Day was designated by Kiwanis International to unite youth and adult members from different parts of the Kiwanis family in service together. For information on how to participate, or join a Kiwanis club, visit www.kiwanis.org or www.bloomingtonkiwanis.org.
More information about the One Day Project can be found at http://route66towandail.com. Questions can be directed to Fred Walk at fhwalk@ilstu.edu.
The Bloomington Kiwanis Club is part of Kiwanis International, a service organization whose mission is to change the world, one community and one child at a time. The Bloomington Kiwanis Club meets every Monday at 12pm for one hour at Eastland Suites Hotel and Conference Center in Bloomington. Lunch and a program are included at each meeting. More information can be found at www.bloomingtonkiwanis.org.
