dcon 2012 moves, new district project info - the jersey key - sept 2011

The Jersey Key

What You Missed in Phoenix

VOLUME 65 | ISSUE 1 SEPTEMBER 2011

International Board elections, awards, the Grand Canyon—an inspiring experience that will be more than just a summer memory

Our new

district project: District Convention

HOW TO MAINTAIN A HUGE CLUB

Tenafly’s Jared Greene

elected International Trustee Eliminate moves from Valley Forge

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THE JERSEY KEY September 2011

Fall Rally 2011

Sunday, October 9 Registration packets will be sent in the Back-to-School

Mailing to your president and club advisor.

Early Bird Registration: September 30

3 THE JERSEY KEY September 2011

The Jersey Key Volume 65, Issue 1 | September 2011

district

Our new goals for helping

Children’s Specialized Hos-

pital 4

2010-2011 District Project

outcome 4

New fundraising

focus: The

Eliminate Project 5

EVENTS Learn more about the

district’s goals for this year

at Fall Rally 6

Promote your club with the

help of The Public Relations

Handbook 6

New Advocacy Focuses 7

Divisional restructuring 7

CIRQUE DU SERVICE

DCON 2011 recap 8

EVENTS Fall Regional Training

Conferences 9

Why your club pays dues 9

EVENTS

District Convention

moves 10

clubs

k-family

Rowan Circle K hosts annual

K-Family Picnic 18

Immediate Past NJ Circle K

District Governor Rob

Acerra is elected Interna-

tional Rep. to Subregion F of

CKI 18

Build K-Family rela-

tionships with these

ideas for interacting

with your local clubs 18

Messages from NJ K-Family

leaders 19

Div. 12 Key Clubs work with

Kiwanis to help America’s

Grow a Row 20

Manasquan helps at com-

munity Fireman’s Fair 20

Brick Memorial organizes

Survivor’s Luncheon at local

Relay for Life 20

This November, what is

your club doing for Key

Club Week? 21

The Jersey Key is the official publication of the New Jersey District of Key Club International. Each service year, three issues are released. In 2010 at the 64th New Jersey District Conven-

tion, the House of Delegates voted that only one issue of The Jersey Key will be printed each year. The District Bulletin Editor is responsible for creating The Jersey Key and is elected into

office at District Convention. To submit articles to The Jersey Key, email the District Bulletin Editor at [email protected].

international

International

Convention recap 14

Three NJ District officers

teach workshops at

ICON 14

NJ takes home multiple

awards 14

Tenafly’s Jared

Green elected

International

Trustee 14

Do you know Key Club’s

Service Partners? 16

Major Emphasis Pro-

gram changes to

Major Emphasis 16

Meet Nick DePorzio, our

new International Trustee 17

The tomato—the

New Jersey district’s

official mascot 10

Meet the district board 12

leadership

How to maintain a huge

club 22

Test-taking tips 22

Why you need to go

to Key Leader 23

Use these strategies to at-

tract more members 23

Advice for working with your

dedicated advisors 23

How Warren Hills

has used the Youth

Opportunities Fund 21

Wall High School collects

clothes for tornado victims

in the South 21

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HEY THERE NEW JERSEY DISTRICT! MY NAME

is Nicole Darrah, and I’m serving as your 2011-2012 District Governor. I’d like to wel-come you to another year of caring, fun, and service. As many of you may be aware, our District Project has changed a bit from previous years. This year, the New Jersey District’s fundrais-ing aspect of our project will be the Eliminate Project. We are no longer fundraising for CSH, but our hearts are still with them. CSH is always welcoming Key Club volunteers to participate in recreational therapy visits and to donate new toys. Schedule a few days throughout the year for your members to interact with the patients at CSH. The New Jersey District is widely known in Key Club. It’s not because of our stereotypical fist pumping, or our extreme-hold hair gel, but because of our outstanding fundraising efforts, and our service to our homes, schools, and communities. I find it easy to say that New Jersey is definitely one of the mightiest districts within all of Key Club International. Each and every Key Clubber within New Jersey is beyond magnificent. I know each of you, from club president to general member, has changed your community through service in some way or another, and I ask that you keep up the absolutely incredible work that’s been shown in the past throughout this ser-vice year. I look forward to seeing you all at Regional Training Conferences, and our much antici-pated Fall Rally! Yours in caring, service, and friendship,

Nicole Darrah GOVERNOR NEW JERSEY DISTRICT KEY CLUB INTERNATIONAL

Continuing our

greatness

After clubs gave their final checks and participated at the CSH walk at Dis-trict Convention, we exceeded our fundraising goal of $85,401.65. We also surpassed our service goal of 15,700 hours by over 1,000 hours to a total of 16,162 hours Congratulations, Key Clubbers! Make sure to keep up these standards for the Eliminate Project this year! —2010-2011 DISTRICT PROJECT STEERING COMMITTEE

CO-CHAIR AMI SHAH [email protected]

2010-2011 District Project

goals surpassed

THIS YEAR, THE SERVICE ASPECT OF OUR

district project will go toward helping the Children’s Specialized Hospital. Key Clubbers will continue to participate in recreational therapy where we interact with patients, doing things like playing video games or simply talking to them. During the week of November 13-19, all the Key Clubs in New Jersey will dedicate

their services to the hospital with fundrais-ers, book drives, etc. to even further help the children. Our goal this year is to reach 15,600 ser-vice hours as a whole. If we all do our part and volunteer at least 100 hours per club, we will easily reach this goal.

Revathi is a co-chair of the 2011-2012 District Project Steering Committee. Email her at [email protected].

New goals for helping

Children’s Specialized Hospital BY REVATHI MEKALA, LT. GOV. DIV. 10

Don’t be in the dark Get district updates and

leadership tips from our

new social media connections

OUR NEW FACEBOOK PAGE

New Jersey District

of Key Club International

OUR NEW YOUTUBE CHANNEL

youtube.com/njkeyclub FOLLOW US ON TWITTER

@njkeyclub

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F OR THE PAST FIVE YEARS, KEY

Club has been dedicated to Chil-dren’s Specialized Hospital. For

this service year, though, the New Jer-sey District has decided to dedicate ourselves to two equally deserving causes—Children’s Specialized Hospital and the Eliminate Project. All service hours completed by clubs for the District Project will bene-fit CSH, while all fundraising efforts held by clubs will be donated to the Eliminate Project. The Eliminate Project is focused on eliminating the world of maternal and neonatal tetanus (MNT). Tetanus spores found in soil cause MNT. During childbirth, the spores come in contact with open cuts, and MNT is contracted. Tetanus affects more than 66,000 newborns and a substantial portion of mothers each year, a fact that is aston-

ishing considering there is a tetanus vaccine. With just three doses of a $0.60 vaccine, mothers can give birth to children already protected from teta-nus. Kiwanis and UNICEF have partnered to raise $110 million by 2015 for this fund. This will help immunize 129 million mothers and their future chil-dren, thus reducing the number of MNT cases to just 1 in 1000 births. As our contribution, the New Jersey Dis-trict aims to raise $79,180.38. Funds raised from Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF this year will no longer go to Project Uruguay, but to the Eliminate Project. Eliminate Hands fundraisers, dance-a-thons, and fundraisers previ-ously dedicated to CSH with will con-tribute to reaching our goal.

New fundraising focus: The Eliminate Project BY NICOLE VENTRONE, LT. GOV. DIV. 8

This year, our district will work to raise $79,180.38 to eliminate maternal and neonatal tetanus.

7 9

38

Days per week

we dedicate to the project Every

nine minutes, another child

dies to MNT. 180 $1.80 is the cost

of the vaccination.

The number of countries

that MNT still affects

$79,180.38

Find more pictures and other informational resources to educate

your club at theeliminateproject.org.

Nicole is a co-chair of the 2011-2012 District Project Steering Committee. Email her at [email protected].

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FOR FALL RALLY, KEY CLUBBERS

all over Jersey meet up at Six Flags Great Adventure for an afternoon to get excited for the service year ahead of them. On October 9, join the New Jersey District as we Swing into the Jungle of Service. The day

begins with a short information session, after which you can spend the rest of the day in the park during Fright Fest. Start planning now. Talk with your club advisor and officers to figure out some important details such as school bus transportation and registration fee collection. Send as many members as you can to involve them more in your club. Detailed registration informa-tion will be mailed to your advi-sor and club president in the Back-to-School Mailing.

Plan now to secure transportation and to meet the early registration deadline on September 30.

Learn more about the

district’s goals for this year

at Fall Rally BY DIANA HIRST, LT. GOV. DIV. 16

Want the official Fall Rally

logo to use on your club website and newsletter? Ask

your lieutenant governor for the file!

Diana is Fall Rally Programs chairperson. Email her at [email protected].

Early bird registration:

$33 received by Sept. 30 Late registration at Fall

Rally: $38

Season pass holders: $6

Promote your

club with the

help of The

Public Relations

Handbook BY AUDREY LEE, LT. GOV. DIV. 20

TO ENCOURAGE MORE CLUBS

to use their local press to pro-mote themselves, the district’s Public Relations Committee is creating The Public Relations Handbook. The handbook will serve as a resource for club officers and will be sent through their lieu-tenant governors by mid-November. To assess each club’s needs, lieutenant governors sent out a survey last June to all club offi-cers to figure out which articles to include. The handbook will include helpful tips on many topics like how to publicize events through local newspapers, how to set up a free mass texting service to alert members of club news, and more.

Audrey is a co-chair of the 2011-2012 Public Relations Committee. Email her at [email protected].

Nutley High School Key Club members make their presence known through their cheers and their club t-shirts.

At last year’s Fall Rally, the district sung the New Jersey District song.

Have your club donate

new school supplies at Fall Rally for the Commu-

nity Food Bank’s Tools 4 Schools program.

Invisible Children

and Autism New Jersey Advocate these causes this service year

THIS YEAR’S DISTRICT ADVO-

cacy Focuses are Invisible Chil-dren and Autism New Jersey. Advocacy means speaking on behalf of those who can’t speak for themselves. This year, elp child soldiers in Africa and fami-lies of children with autism by raising awareness about their lives. Have members research on the facts of the two organizations and present them to the club. Speak on school television an-nouncements about the causes. Brainstorm more ideas with your club!

Nidhi is a co-chair of the 2011-2012 District Programs Committee. Email her at [email protected].

BY NIDHI GURJAR LT. GOV. DIV. 13

THIS YEAR, A FEW DIVISIONS IN THE NEW JERSEY DISTRICT WERE

restructured. Division 3 was split into two separate Divisions—3A and 3B. This led to changes in the clubs from Divisions 3 and 4. From Division 3, Clearview, Gateway, GCIT, Pitman, Paulsboro, West Deptford, and Woodbury all moved to Division 3A. Cherry Hill East, Eastern, Triton moved to Division 3B. Also, from Divi-sion 3B obtained Burlington City, Burlington Township, BCIT, and Rancocas Valley Regional from Division 4. From Division 10, Piscataway was moved to Division 11. Glen Ridge from Division 17 was moved to Division 18. Finally, from Division 20, Morristown was moved to Divi-sion 19.

District adds new division Division 3 splits into 3A and 3B,

and other clubs move divisions BY RAVI CHAUHAN, LT. GOV. DIV. 3B

Invisible Children works to eradicate the abductions and the forcing of chil-dren to fight in wars in Uganda and the Congo. You can involve your club more by contacting Invisible Children requesting a visit from a guest speaker. You can also purchase the movie Invisible Children: Rough Cut and hold a showing to raise awareness. Visit invisiblechil-dren.com for more info.

Autism New Jer-sey is the largest network of parents and professionals who work to im-prove the lives of children with au-tism. It dedicates itself to ensuring that all people with autism obtain the service to maximize their growth poten-tial and to enhance the general public’s knowledge of au-tism. Visit autismnj.org for more info.

7

Sweeten

the world with service

South RTC

Sun., Sept. 18, 9am-1pm

West Deptford High School

North RTC

Sat., Sept. 17, 9am-1pm

Montville High School

Central RTC

Sat., Sept. 24, 9am-1pm

Piscataway High School

FALL REGIONAL TRAINING CONFERENCES

Insightful workshops and

important information

about the district’s causes

and goals for

this service year—

the event for officers who

want to make this the

sweetest service year ever

district

district

T HIS PAST SERVICE YEAR, THE NEW

JERSEY District of Key Club held its 65th annual District Convention from

April 8 through the 10 at the Valley Forge Convention Center in King of Prussia, Penn-sylvania. The weekend-long event themed Cirque du Service: Ride the Carousel of Service gathered 586 Key Clubbers from all over New Jersey to celebrate the end of an incredible service year and the start to that of a new one. Over the course of the weekend, Key Club-bers were entertained with workshops, dances, and contests. Keynote speaker Steve Meade, a hypnotist, opened the weekend with an engag-ing show. At the three sessions of workshops, Key Clubbers learned more about the organization and also about how to improve their clubs. There were workshops about the Eliminate Project and on club officer duties. There were also fun workshops like the Clowning work-shop. Aside from workshops, there was a talent show, plenty of opportunities to visit the King of Prussia Mall, as well as the impromptu

essay and oratorical contests. Krishna Patel from J.P. Stevens won the

impromptu essay contest, and Dhaval Mehta, also from J.P. Stevens, took first place in the oratorical essay contest. While workshops and dances were wonder-ful, the awards presentations really stroke a sense of camaraderie. Bloomfield achieved first place in the plati-

num level of both the Achievement and Sin-gle Service Awards, J.P. Stevens won for Club

Bulletin, and Egg Harbor Township placed first in the category of Tradi-tional Scrapbook. One of the most significant parts of DCON was the electing of the New Jersey District Executive Board—the positions of Governor, Secretary, Treasurer, and Bulletin Editor. This year, there were 11 candidates running for executive positions, the most in years. The candidates spoke in multiple caucus rooms Friday night before speaking in front of all the Key Clubbers together Saturday morning. Later that afternoon, two delegates from each club voted for the district’s new executive board.

The last day of DCON started with a walk for Children’s Specialized Hospital. During the closing session, the winners of the execu-tive board elections were announced, the new district board installed, and everyone return-ing home with a new energy for the service year.

OPENING SESSION Hypnotist Steve Meade entertained Key Clubbers on Friday night.

Cirque du Service

Hundreds of Key Clubbers

come together for District Convention BY AMANDA LUTICK, LT. GOV. DIV. 7

8

Talent show finalist Amanda Pell from MAST

performs “Lean on Me.”

Children’s Specialized Hospital Foundation Community Relations Director Beth Anne Myarick accepts the dis-

trict’s donation from the past service year.

Over 586 Key Clubbers and Kiwanis guests attended this year’s District Convention.

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$$$$ Pay membership

dues by November 1

Dues are impor-tant on the club level for funding

projects such as ice cream socials, movie nights, or community gar-dens. On the district

level, they’re even more impor-tant as they allow the district to run board meetings, charity events,

and large-scale occasions such as District Conven-tion. They also provide for stu-dent scholarships

and printed ma-terials, such as The Jersey Key. On the interna-tional level, dues go into travel ex-

penses and ad-ministrative costs. —DISTRICT

TREASURER KIMBERLY

LU [email protected]

How to Pay Dues

Complete all these

steps by December 1.

If you do by Novem-

ber 1, your club earns

the Early Bird Dues

Award.

1 Collect dues from

members. Tell

them to drop their

payments at your

advisor’s classroom,

and make them a

requirement for any-

one interested in go-

ing to Fall Rally.

2 The advisor or

club treasurer

should visit key-

club.org and find the

Membership Update Center.

Update the online

roster of every active

member. Print the

club’s invoice when

done.

3 Mail the invoice

and a check with

the required amount

to the address listed

on the invoice.

$17.50 $6.50 International

$5.50 District $5.50 Highest extra

clubs can charge

YOU MIGHT THINK YOU KNOW IT ALL. BY now, if you are an officer, you have been trained by your LTG, gotten advice from past officers, and attended officer meetings already. But what about your goals? To truly lead and improve your club, you are going to need new perspectives. And attending Re-gional Training Conferences is the perfect way to gain new perspectives! RTCs differ from any previous training by integrating members of many different clubs together. In turn, they have the op-portunity to share ideas, mistakes, and gain much more knowl-edge. This year, the theme is Sweeten the World with Service because, after all, that’s what we Key Clubbers do. Everything from admission to meals (breakfast and lunch) is free of charge. Officers, come learn from your counter-parts on the district board and attend more than 15 workshops on our wonderful or-ganization!

Improve your

leadership at Fall Regional

Training Conferences

The Fundraising work-

shop is my go-to place because the ideas are

different every time. To me, RTCs are like a

supermarket for events and ideas that

are going on in other Key Clubs.

CHRISTINA XIAO,

TENAFLY TREASURER

Jiayun is Regional Training Conferences chairperson. Email her at [email protected].

North RTC Sat., Sept. 17 Montville High School South RTC Sun., Sept. 18 West Deptford High School Central RTC Sat., Sept. 24 Piscataway High School

President, VP, Secretary, Treasurer, Editor, Webmaster Key Club 411 Fundraising Meaningful Meetings Club PR/Multimedia Club Building/ Recruitment Public Speaking District Project Major Emphasis/ Partners of Service K-Family Relations Advocacy Key Club Events DCON Contests

Insightful workshops

BY JIAYUN FANG, DISTRICT SECRETARY

T his service year, the 65th annual New Jersey District Con-vention will not take

place at Valley Forge Conven-tion Center as it has in previous years, but will move to the Ocean Place Resort in Long Branch. DCON 2012 will be the first held in New Jersey since the early 1970s. The Valley Forge Convention Center will begin installing slot machines this year, making it an unsuitable for a high school organization’s convention. The New Jersey District Board will be having their November board meeting at the Ocean Place Resort, as well as their Midwinter Training Conference. Midwinter is a weekend event organized by the outgoing dis-trict board to orient the follow-ing year’s new lieutenant gover-nors, as well as the candidates for district executive office. Although many Key Club members will miss the familiar Valley Forge Convention Cen-ter, the Ocean Place Resort promises beautiful facilities situ-ated right on the beach.

This past summer, the district board adopted a New Jersey district mascot—the tomato. The tomato is also the New Jersey Circle K dis-trict mascot, in reference to New Jersey being the Garden State. Other propositions included the lion, platypus, narwhal, cat, and knights. The second most popular idea was the phoenix. Some other Key Club districts have mascots. For example, the Cali-fornia-Nevada-Hawaii District’s mascot is the bee!

The tomato—the New Jersey

District’s new official mascot

WALKING THE BOARDWALK OF SERVICE District Convention 2012 will take place at the Ocean Place Resort in Long Branch from March 30 to April 1.

District Convention

moves to Long Branch Valley Forge Convention Center introduces slot machines,

making the venue unsuitable for students

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Donate new school supplies at Fall Rally and help the

Community Food Bank of New Jersey’s Tools 4 Schools program. Tools 4 Schools provides free school supplies for over 170 schools grades K to 12 in the state.

Last year our district collected 1,156 pounds of school supplies.

Donate new school supplies at Fall Rally and help the

Community Food Bank of New Jersey’s Tools 4 Schools program. Tools 4 Schools provides free school supplies for over 170 schools grades K to 12 in the state.

Last year our district collected 1,156 pounds of school supplies.

Early Bird Registration: September 30

Fall Rally 2011

Sunday, October 9 Registration packets will be sent in the Back-to-School

Mailing to your president and club advisor.

Meet the board

Secretary

Jiayun Fang Millburn High School

Previous positions:

Club Secretary, Lt.

Gov. Div. 14

Hobbies: Reading,

running

On her position:

“Because of Key club

this year, my com-

puter and I have

become best

friends.”

Treasurer

Kimberly Lu Nutley High School

Previous positions:

Lt. Gov. Div. 17

Hobbies: Cross

country, reading

Kafka, studying

physics

On her favorite

game show Jeop-

ardy!: “My favorite

part is a combination

of Alex Trebek’s

charm and the thrill

of trivia.”

Bulletin Editor

Andre Rosario Egg Harbor Township

High School

Previous positions:

Club Editor, Lt. Gov.

Div. 1

Hobbies: Learning

Spanish, riding bikes,

reading,

On roller coasters:

“I do not like roller

coasters, but it’s fine.

I’m still excited for

Fall Rally!”

Governor

Nicole Darrah Montville Township

High School

Previous positions:

Lt. Gov. Div. 19,

District Bulletin Edi-

tor

Hobbies: Long walks

on the beach, “flying

around on my Nim-

bus 2000”

Cool story, bro: It

took Nicole only four

days to read the

entire The Hunger

Games trilogy.

Lt. Gov. Division 1 Cecilia Kang

Egg Harbor Township High School

Previous positions: Club Committee Chair, Club Editor

Hobbies: Playing the piano, dance, singing

“I’ve taken violin and piano lessons. I teach myself guitar

and harmonica, and I recently started messing around

with drums. I sing too—I love music.”

Lt. Gov. Division 2 Paige Cresci Cumberland Regional High School

Previous positions: Club Secretary

Hobbies: Reading, her job at a custard stand, dance

Where she was last summer: “I love to do mission

work. I just came back from the Dominican Republic.”

Lt. Gov. Division 3A Ami Shah

Eastern High School

Previous positions: Freshman Class Director, Club Vice

President, Lt. Gov. Div. 3

Hobbies: Meeting new people, tennis, reading

Most coveted superpower: “Flying because I live in the

middle of nowhere!”

Lt. Gov. Division 3B Ravi Chauhan

Eastern High School

Previous positions: General member

Hobbies: Playing volleyball, DJing

Ouch! This past summer, Ravi fractured a finger by

kicking himself accidentally while dancing.

Lt. Gov. Division 4 Sarah Diefenbach

Steinert High School—East


Hobbies: Travelling, field hockey, swimming

Sarah is a triplet: “You always have someone to hang

out with.”

Lt. Gov. Division 5 Olivia Shanley

Toms River North High School

Previous positions: Club Treasurer

Hobbies: Horseback riding, singing, photography

Favorite thing about riding horses: "The bond be-

tween the horse and the rider. In other sports, it's just

you and an object. But when you ride, you're a team.

Lt. Gov. Division 6 Rachel Gardner Point Pleasant Beach High School

Previous positions: Club Secretary

Hobbies: Playing music, going to the beach, riding bikes

Rachel plays the saxophone, oboe, cellophane, and

the piano for her school band: "I'm the biggest band

geek ever!"

Lt. Gov. Division 7 Amanda Lutick

Wall High School


Hobbies: Running, tennis, reading

Amanda is a varsity bowler: "I started my sophomore

year with my friends as a joke and since then, we've all

grown to love the sport and have continued to play."

Lt. Gov. Division 8 Nicole Ventrone

Marine Academy of Science and Technology


Hobbies: Hanging out with friends, reading

This past summer, Nicole visited South America for five

weeks. She had the opportunity to swim with a penguin!

Lt. Gov. Division 9 Vani Ranganath

Holmdel High School


Hobbies: Acting, painting, dancing

Oops! "One time in India, I unknowingly agreed to be a

background person in a movie. I didn't understand the

language the person was speaking to me in."

Just as each individual club has a

group of elected officers to lead

it, each district has a group of

elected individuals who make up

the District Board of Trustees.

The New Jersey District Board

has 27 individuals working to

make sure that the New Jersey

District is connected.

Meet your 2011-2012 district

board —LT. GOV. DIV. 1 CECILIA KANG

Lt. Gov. Division 10 Revathi Mekala

J.P. Stevens High School

Previous positions: Club Committee Chair

Hobbies: Singing, playing lacrosse

Funky socks! “I love fun socks. My favorite pair has

frogs on it!”

Lt. Gov. Division 11 Katie Bryden

Somerville High School

Previous positions: Club Editor

Hobbies: Riding her Ripstik, photography, dancing

Cool story, bro: Katie once did a double backflip on a

trapeze.

Lt. Gov. Division 12 Zachariah DeGiulio

Voorhees High School


Hobbies: Hiking, running, photography

Yikes! "I'm scared of cats and fire (and cats on fire)."

Lt. Gov. Division 13 Nidhi Gurjar JFK Memorial High School

Previous positions: Club Vice President

Hobbies: Reading, helping others

“I’m a die-hard Harry Potter fanatic. He symbolizes loy-

alty, strength and bravery, traits all Key Club members

have.”

Lt. Gov. Division 14 Celina Baquiran

Union High School


Hobbies: Dancing, eating, shopping

"Dance to me is not just a hobby or a trend. It's my

passion, my lifestyle."

Lt. Gov. Division 15 Ashley Joseph

William L. Dickinson High School


Hobbies: Hanging out with friends, tennis, dancing

Cool story, bro: Ashley has been taking piano and classi-

cal Indian dance classes for eight years.

Lt. Gov. Division 16 Diana Hirst Tenafly High School


Hobbies: Writing, singing

Favorite food: "Avocado, despite my allergy to it."

Lt. Gov. Division 17 Jenn Braun

Bloomfield High School

Previous positions: Freshman Class Director, Club Sec-

retary

Hobbies: Swimming, reading

Cool story, bro: Jenn has a twin brother.

Lt. Gov. Division 18 Joseph Toumanios

West Essex High School

Previous positions: Club Vice President

Hobbies: Fencing, chess, tennis

Cool story, bro: Joe likes to dismantle old electronics and

make new things out of them.

Lt. Gov. Division 19 Jerry Zhang

Montville Township High School

Previous positions: Club Public Relations Director

Hobbies: Trying new foods, debating, tennis

Cool story, bro: Jerry is a Canadian citizen.

Lt. Gov. Division 20 Audrey Lee

Morris Hills High School

Previous positions: Club President

Hobbies: Baking, making mix CDs, reading

Top two favorite Food Network Shows: Iron Chef, The

Best Thing I Ever Ate

District Webmaster Wesley Yuan

Parsippany High School

Previous positions: Club Webmaster

Hobbies: Swimming, playing the trumpet

Favorite quote: “Let nothing stop your aspirations. No

one is stopping you from reaching them except yourself.”

Key Club International Trustee Nick DePorzio

Fountain Hills Junior-Senior High School

Previous positions: Lieutenant Governor, Southwest

District Governor

Hobbies: Harry Potter, science, climbing trees

Read more about Nick in the International Section of this

issue

Lt. Gov. Division 21 Ryan Clarkin

Vernon Township High School


Hobbies: Soccer, listening to music, photography

Ryan is the youngest on the board: “It’s helping me

realize more of the possibilities ahead of me, and that

excites me more than ever.”

10 number of board members

who were general

members last year

on last year’s board: 5

8

number of non-seniors

on this year’s board

on last year’s board: 10

1 division with the most clubs

Division 1 just chartered its

tenth club this service year at Cape May Technical

High School

19 division with the most board members

Three board members go to school in Divi-

sion 19—Governor Nicole, Lt. Gov. Jerry,

and Webmaster Wesley

### Numbers:

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international


INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION Touring Arizona, meeting Key Clubbers from all over, trading pins,

witnessing our own Jared Green be elected International Trustee,

and coming home tanned and with many awards to be proud of

ON THE EDGE Lt. Gov. Rachel Gardner and Lt. Gov. Celina Baquiran view the sunrise over the Grand Canyon.

BY RACHEL GARDNER, LT. GOV. DIV. 6 RYAN CLARKIN, LT. GOV. DIV 21 ANDRE ROSARIO, DISTRICT BULLETIN EDITOR

AT FIVE IN THE MORNING ON

June 25, the New Jersey Key Club-bers departed from Newark Lib-erty International Airport and began their adventure to Phoenix, Arizona, for International Con-vention. Before the convention, the 34 Key Clubbers toured the Grand Canyon, Sedona, and other sights around Arizona. The first day they watched the sunset over the Grand Canyon while exploring the surrounding area. The natural features of amaz-ing rock structures and hiking down the canyon were amazing. The next morning the group woke up early at 4:30 a.m. to

watch the sunrise over the can-yon. Though they were in the southwest, the temperature dropped to 39 degrees before the sun rose. On Monday, we spent majority of the day on the bus, traveling through desert with rocks, dirt and cacti. We hiked down a mountain where Native Americans once used to live, by carving structures in the side of mountains for protection. The history behind the rocks and beautiful view at Walnut Canyon National Monument, a site under the National Park Service in Flag-staff. At Walnut Canyon, there were man-made cliff dwellings

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international


that the Key Clubbers were even able to walk into. Finally, the tour stopped at Sedona. This town is in the mid-dle of a valley surrounded by inde-scribable features and was the perfect place to catch up on sou-venir shopping.

Convention begins The convention did not offi-cially start until Wednesday night at the Meet and Greet and pin trading, but New Jersey began making friends and enjoying their time the minute they stepped into the resort. Pin trading among districts is a convention tradition. “Too busy serving others to pump our own gas…It’s a Jersey thing” was the slogan on our district shirts and pins. The Meet and Greet was a time for all the districts to mingle with music, a mechanical bull, twister, a Vegas style marriage chapel and other corny activities. The first night was a blast, but not everything was merely fun and games. In the upcoming days, there was a walk for Eliminate which raised over $15,000, gen-eral sessions for Key Club infor-mation, hours of caucusing to elect this year’s international board, workshops, and numerous opportunities to bond.

At International, everyone is inspired through guest speakers but mostly they see Key Clubbers just like them with the same mo-tives for making a difference.

Three NJ District officers

teach workshops One of the training aspects of ICON is workshops. This year, three district board members presented workshops at conven-tion. Immediate Past District Secretary Kevin Sun also pre-sented the district secretary work-shop, which all district secretaries are required to attend. Governor Nicole Darrah and Immediate Past Lt. Gov. of Division 19 Neepam Shah presented a work-shop based on last year’s Generos-ity Rocks concerts on planning benefit concerts. Their workshop attracted many Key Clubbers, and their presenta-tion room was packed. New Jersey Key Clubbers who wanted to at-tend the workshop just to see Nicole and Neepam decided to leave only to make room for other members!

Awards Many of last service year’s dis-trict officers were distinguished. Eleven lieutenant governors earned the Robert F. Lucas Out-

standing Lieutenant Governor Award. For the second consecutive year, all four executive officers were distinguished. Immediate Past District Treasurer Devan Corona was the only treasurer who was distinguished in all of Key Club this year. Bloomfield High School was award the Distinguished Dia-mond Level Club Award, the highest distinction a club can receive. Bloomfield also came in second place for the Single Ser-vice Award in the Platinum Divi-sion. Nutley High School won first place in the Drawn Poster Con-test. The Marine Academy of Science and Technology took home second place. Also, Egg Harbor Township High School won second place in the Digital Poster Contest.

“WE HAVE A TRUSTEE!” Immediate Past Lt. Gov. of Divi-sion 16 Jared Greene was elected International Trustee. Jared was elected to be one of 11 trustees from a pool of 25 candidates. The last trustee from the New Jersey District was Eileen Lee, who served during the 2009-2010 service year and also received the Outstanding Board Member

Award from then President Abi-gail McKamey. Our new International Presi-dent is Annie Lewandowski the first from the Pacific-Northwest District. Our new International Vice President is Catt Lovins from the Southwest District. An-nie was a trustee last year, and Catt was the Southwest’s Secre-tary-Treasurer. Jared is assigned the Carolinas, Florida, and Bahamas Districts. He ran on the platform of “a more local International,” aiming to facilitate communication across all levels of the organization and also to make International re-sources more accessible to all members. After the new International Board was installed and the final farewell session of convention ended, the New Jersey District attendees lined up and hugged Jared, congratulating him on his election. Convention—sightseeing, bond-ing, being inspired, being en-gaged—makes members into active leaders. Those who went to con-vention left with a new energy for Key Club, ready to serve for the rest of the service year.

ROCKIN’ OUT Gov. Nicole Darrah and Immediate Past Lt. Gov. of

Div. 19 Neepam Shah prepare for their workshop on organizing con-

cert fundraisers.

2010-2011 Executive Officers Bul-letin Editor Nicole Darrah, Secre-

tary Kevin Sun, Governor Rachel Orbach, and Treasurer Devan Co-

rona were distinguished.

Lt. Gov. Div. 3A Ami Shah and Lt. Gov. Div. 10 Revathi Mekala sell

Eliminate hands at the service fair, where each district showcased their

district project.

Newly elected President Annie Lewandowski was a trustee last

year. Annie comes from the Pacific Northwest District.

Immediate Past Lt. Gov. of Div. 12 Aimee Meissner sung the Star

Spangled Banner during the Open-ing Session.

Jared (2nd from right) is the first Key Clubber from Tenafly to hold

international office.

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16

international


AS KEY CLUBBERS, WE DEDICATE our time to positively impacting the lives of children around the world as well as bettering the future for everyone. One of the ways we make this possible is through our Service Partners—Children’s Miracle Network Hospital, March of Dimes, and UNICEF.

Founded in 1983, Chil-

dren’s Miracle Network Hospitals aims to raise

funds for children’s hospi-tals and helps keep funds

in the community in which they were raised to help

local children. The or-ganization saves more

than 14 million children a year from birth defects,

cancer, life-threatening injuries, and other ail-

ments, and has over 170

affiliated hospitals around the country.

Wondering how you can help? Ask your school if

you can sell Children’s Miracle Balloons or set up

a sports tournament where the money will be

donated to Children’s Miracle Network Hospi-

tals. You can order bal-loons by calling (801) 278

-8900.

March of Dimes works to

raise prenatal health care standards, help the health

of mothers, and better the chances for survival

of premature babies. Did you know that 1 in

every 8 babies is born premature? Being born

early, even just a week, can cause severe birth

defects and is the primary cause of death during the

first month of life.

In an effort to help, Key Clubs all around the

country have been hold-ing fundraising efforts

since 1978. Host or par-ticipate in a March for

Babies walk or sell MOD cutouts! Contact your

local March of Dimes of-fice at 1-800-BIG-WALK

to receive your supply of paper ornaments at no

cost.

You have all heard of

Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF, which Key Club has been

involved with since 1994 and has raised approxi-

mately $160 million to date.

In the past, Kiwanis and UNICEF nearly raised $5

million to help rid of io-dine deficiency disorders

(IDDs) worldwide, and now we plan on doing it

again for this year’s Dis-

trict Project, Eliminate, which aims to eliminating

maternal and neonatal tetanus.

Your club will receive Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF

boxes this fall in time for Halloween!

Do you know Key Club’s

Service Partners? BY OLIVIA SHANLEY, LT. GOV. DIV. 5

Olivia is co-chair of the International Programs Committee. Email her at [email protected].

KCI’s Major

Emphasis

Program is

now just

Major

Emphasis BY ASHLEY JOSEPH

LT. GOV. DIV. 15

LAST FEBRUARY, THE Inter-national Board decided to abolish the Service Initiative and change the Major Em-phasis Program to just Ma-jor Emphasis. International realized that Major Emphasis really isn’t a program, and that taking out the Service Initiative gives each club the freedom to select any project that sticks with the theme of "Children: Their Future, Our Focus.” Read more about Interna-tional’s decisions by check-ing out their board meeting minutes on the Key Club website!

See you soon Continue to support

Children’s Specialized Hospital.

Schedule a recreational

therapy visit for the fall.

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17

international


Hello to the mighty New Jersey District! Thank you so much. Thank you for all that you have done already and will do this year in your quest to make a differ-ence, and thank you for allowing me to play a humble part in it all. In my years with Key Club, I’ve learned that a year in service is nothing short of an adventure. Never without its discouraging shortfalls but always full of valiant triumphs! Passion drives us forward. It allows us to unite and carry on our mission: to make a difference. If even the slightest improvement

is made in a year, we are making this world a better place. An individual Key Clubber can do so much, but together, we can accomplish so much more! So please remember that there are tons of people here to support you in your efforts. Myself as well as your phenomenal district board are here for you. Use us as much as you can! Feel free to Facebook me up, give me call, or shoot me a text anytime! Being a total self-admitted nerd, mention anything about science or Harry Potter, and we’ll be best buddies in a snap!

My wish is to see the service of every member blossom by being well supported and represented. Everything from resources to communication tools should be provided for you and to see what the International Board is up to I’m sure each of you possess nothing less than the deepest love, commitment, and passion for what we’re doing, so let’s shake things up this year and really make a difference! In the deepest friendship and service, Nick DePorzio TRUSTEE TO THE OHIO, NEW JERSEY, AND NEW YORK DISTRICTS KEY CLUB INTERNATIONAL

Meet our new International Trustee

Nick DePorzio Nick brings his experiences

as Immediate Past Southwest District

Governor to New Jersey

For International updates,

visit Nick’s website: trustynick.com

Hey, New Jersey Key Club! The 2010-2011 has been a year of many challenges and successes. It is with a heavy heart that I am writing to you for the last time, because Key Club has been an integral part of my high school experience that I wouldn’t trade for anything. The best consolation for me is that I know this organization will continue to grow, serving more children and bringing more mem-bers highly valuable experience. There are several things that I want to make sure everyone in New Jersey does, so that your district leads the way in making the organization even better. First, don’t forget your Kiwanis

Family. If Kiwanis fails as an organization, then Key Club also fails. Encourage people you know to not only join Key Club but also Kiwanis. It is up to new and ex-cited people just like you to make an impact on Kiwanis as a world-wide organization. Second, I recommend that each of you attend the Key Club Inter-national Convention at least once in your Key Club career. All four conventions I’ve attended have shaped my leadership. I realize that attending this convention can be expensive, so I encourage members to start saving for this event right away. I also recom-mend that you reach out for com-munity support to help pay your

way to future International Con-ventions. Finally, I say this: don’t forget this organization is about serving children. It is our top priority at Key Club members. This is both the most important and simple advice I can give you. Best of luck in the 2011-2012 Key Club year, I can’t wait to see how New Jersey continues in making caring its way of life. In passion for service, Will Robertson IMMEDIATE PAST TRUSTEE TO THE CAROLI-NAS, NEW JERSEY, AND PENNSYLVANIA DISTRICTS KEY CLUB INTERNATIONAL

A farewell from Immediate Past

International Trustee Will Robertson

Will is attending the University of North

Carolina at Chapel Hill this fall.

DISTRICT

18

k-family


BUILDLING RELATIONSHIPS

with your local K-Family clubs can lead to successful service projects. It can also allow you to meet new peo-ple and gain new perspec-tives. Consider these ideas and tips as you plan your service projects throughout the year:

1 Invite members from other branches to your

next Key Club meeting and attend other K-Family club meetings.

2 Host a K-Family Picnic in the fall and invite all

your local K-Family clubs.

3 Hold an ice cream party with your K-Kids.

4 Plan a service project with your Kiwanis or

Aktion Club.

5 Organize college advice workshop with Circle K.

6 Appoint a member as a K-Family Liaison.

7 Share your newsletters with your Kiwanis and

Circle K.

8 Create a Kiwanis/K-Family team at your next

March of Dimes or Relay for Life to get to know the other branches and their members.

Ideas for

interacting

with your

local K-Family

clubs BY SARAH DIEFENBACH

LT. GOV. DIV. 4

Immediate Past New Jersey

Circle K District Governor

Rob Acerra elected

International Representative to

Subregion F of CKI ROBERT ACERRA, A MONMOUTH

University student and 2007-2008 Lt. Gov. of Division 7 in Key Club, was elected Interna-tional Representative to Subre-gion F of Circle K International in June at their International Convention. For this service year, Rob will represent the Capital, Eastern Canada, New England, New Jer-sey, and New York Districts of CKI. Rob’s involvement in the K-Family started when he was in

high school. After graduating, he continued his service through Circle K. During his first year, he re-chartered Monmouth Univer-sity’s club and led it as its presi-dent. The following year he be-came District Treasurer, and last service year finished his term as District Governor. Rob ran for the office of Presi-dent of Circle K International. Steven Spriggs from Texas A&M University ultimately won the election.

This year, Rob has been using his experience to help our

district board at meetings and district events like RTCs.

AT THE BEACH On July 17, Rowan Circle K hosted the annual New Jersey Circle K K-Family Picnic in Toms River. Key Clubbers, Circle K-ers, and Kiwanians spent a sunny day at the beach participating in different activities and service projects. They were split into different teams that competed against each other in games like the sandcastle building contest, balloon toss, and tug of war. Circle K also organized a walk to remember Brian C. Kull, a past NJ Circle K Dis-trict Governor. There was also a collection for the NJ Circle K’s Governor’s Project, Students Team Up to Fight Hunger (STUFH). Those who came also repainted the playground at the beach in bright green and blue.

DISTRICT

19

k-family


Hi Key Clubbers, Looking forward to a great year. I heard Phoe-nix was wonderful! Hope you got a lot out of it while attending the work-shops. You probably made a lot of new friends. Since October is coming fast, let's keep in mind Fall Rally is coming up and we need to get all the Key Clubbers out this year. Let's make this year the best year! I have confi-

dence in all of you and I know you can do it. Keep in mind the Elimi-nate Project. Only $1.80

and three shots can save so many lives. Let's do it! Please let me know what projects you might be working on for the year. I know if I need any help, I can always rely on Key Clubbers. At the same time, please reach out to me if I can be of any help to you. I thank all the Key Club-bers for stepping forward to making New Jersey District the best district. Let's have a fantastic year! Yours in Kiwanis service, Rosemarie Gibardi 2011-2012 GOVERNOR NEW JERSEY DISTRICT KIWANIS INTERNATIONAL

A message from

the 2011-2012

Kiwanis District

Governor Mrs. Rosemarie

Gibardi

Mrs. Gibardi is from the Kiwanis Club of

Marlboro.

Hello NJ Key Clubbers! First I would like to say congratulations for all of the amazing service that you guys have worked together to accomplish this past year. NJ Key Club consistently blows me away when it comes to your level of passion, hard work, and man-power. But before I continue, I should probably intro-duce myself. My name is Jen and I'm serving as the 2011-2012 District Gov-

ernor of NJ Circle K. In the fall I will be a senior at Rutgers Univer-sity and I will be complet-ing my major in Market-ing. I intern as a photog-rapher and media man-ager for the Rutgers Me-dia and Marketing Team, and I am also a fashion intern in NYC for a so-cial media and digital marketing firm.

I also enjoy midnight trips to the beach and I believe a bucket of good ol' KFC can beat a five-star dinner in the city any day, any time. In Circle K this year, we're focusing on raising membership, increasing reported service hours, and dedicating our time to the Ronald McDonald House and Students Team Up to Feed Hunger (STUFH). Be sure to stay involved in your club. You are part

of such an amaz-ing or-

ganization which gives you the opportunities of a lifetime and the friends you'll never forget. Have an amazing year, and keep your love for service strong! Yours in caring and ser-vice, Jen Hsieh GOVERNOR NEW JERSEY DISTRICT CIRCLE K INTERNATIONAL

From

Rutgers

University,

meet Circle K

District

Governor Jen Hsieh

Her senior year, Jen was president of Bridgewater-Raritan High School Key Club.

Dear Key Club Member, Initially I would like to congratulate the eleven 2010-11 lieutenant gover-nors who were recog-nized by Key Club Inter-national with the Robert F. Lucas Outstanding Lieutenant Governor Award. Having 11 Lt. Governors recognized with this extremely pres-tigious award is an ac-complishment of which all Kiwanis members in the NJ District are truly proud. Also, all 2010-11 Ex-ecutive Officers were recognized by Key Club International with Dis-tinguished Officer Awards. The four Key Club Executive Officers truly did an outstanding

job in providing leader-ship to this district. If the awards men-

tioned above are not enough, many clubs re-ceived various awards for outstanding service and excellent presentation of their service activities by Key Club International. During the 2010-2011 administrative year I have been so proud of the success that the New Jersey District of Key Club International has enjoyed in all areas of its operations. Truly the Key Club program in the New Jersey District is the Kiwanis district’s success story. I wish the almost 11,000 Key Club mem-bers tremendous success as they begin the 2011-12 service year and fulfill the mission of the Key Club organization to enrich the existence of the world.

Marc H. Litwack 2010-2011 GOVERNOR NEW JERSEY DISTRICT KIWANIS INTERNATIONAL

A message from

the 2010-2011

Kiwanis District

Governor

Mr. Marc H.

Litwack

Mr. Litwack is from the Kiwanis Club of

the Chathams.

Circle K is in

11 colleges and

universities in

New Jersey, including

TCNJ, Rowan, and

Kean.

messages from our new jersey k-family leaders

DISTRICT

20

clubs


THE VOORHEES AND DELAWARE VALLEY

Key Clubs and the North Hunterdon-Clinton Kiwanis took two hours out of our day last spring to help plant string bean plants with America’s Grow a Row. They planted enough seeds to make about 6,000 servings of string beans. More than ever before, people are living on government-funded food stamps. According to America’s Grow a Row founder Chip Paillex, people on government programs only have about $125 a month to spend on groceries. This translates to cheap, unhealthy foods. Amer-ica’s Grow a Row hopes to eliminate that unhealthy diet. Mr. Paillex started in 2002 when he saw an ad in the newspaper from the local food

bank requesting that farms grow an extra row of food and donate it to their local food bank. He built a garden, and in that single year donated $3,000 worth of produce to the Flemington Food Pantry.

Now nine years later, Mr. Paillex’s organi-z a t i on h a s grown to four different farms. He has just purchased his own 138 acre farm in Alexan-dria, NJ, to serve the com-muni ty and donate more

food. Since 2002, America’s Grow a Row has donated over 1 million pounds of pro-duce to local food banks and continues to grow.

THE VOLUNTEER ENGINE COMPANY #2 ORGAN-

izies the Manasquan Fireman’s Fair each year. The fair started in 1974 and draws over 30,000 visitors over the course of the five-day event. This year’s Manasquan Fireman’s Fair ran smoothly from July 26 to July 30. The large abun-dance of activities going on at the fair requires many volunteers. Manasquan Key Club members help with fund-raising, fair set-up, games, ticket booths, raffles, and fairgrounds cleanup. The fair is one of the club’s most popular projects.

On June 4 at Windward Beach in Brick, the Brick Memorial Key Club volunteered at the annual Relay for Life event. Brick has volunteered at this event for the past four years. This year 12 mem-bers helped with setting up and running the Survi-vor’s Luncheon. The Survivor’s Luncheon con-sisted of various beverage choices, catered hot food and salads, along with multiple dessert-type items.

Voorhees and Delaware Valley

Key Clubs and North Hunterdon-Clinton

Kiwanis help America’s Grow a Row BY ZACHARIAH DEGIULIO, LT. GOV. DIV. 12

Learn more about America’s Grow a Row at

americasgrowarow.com.

America’s Grow a Row partners with farms in Pittstown, Annandale, Hope, and Chester, NJ.

BY ETHAN CARPENTER MANASQUAN HIGH SCHOOL KEY CLUB MEMBER

Manasquan helps at annual

community Fireman’s Fair

Brick Memorial

organizes

Survivor’s

Luncheon at

local Relay

for Life BY JENN KREDER BRICK MEMORIAL HIGH SCHOOL EDITOR

Write about your club’s events for the next issue of The Jersey Key!

Talk to your lieutenant governor and email District Bulletin Editor Andre

Rosario at [email protected].

DISTRICT

21

clubs


EVERY YEAR, THE FIRST week of November is Key Club Week. This year, Key Club Week takes place November 7-11. Each day during Key Club week is a day dedicated to show-ing what Key Club is all about, service! Through service, we can all promote Key Club to our homes, schools, and communi-ties. Monday, November 7

Show your K in every

way You’re a Key Clubber and you

should be proud to show it! Tell people what Key Club is all about by publicizing through flyers, announcements, ads in newspapers, or even wearing Key Club gear.

Tuesday, November 8

Kudos to the Key players Remember that Key Club would not be possible without the sup-port of others; such as your teachers, advisors, and more. Today, thank your supporters for all they have done for you.

Hold an appreciation breakfast, write thank you notes, and more.

Wednesday, November 9

Connect the K’s With over 260,000 members, Key Club International is the largest student-led service organi-zation in the world and is one of the few members of the Kiwanis family. Take this day to cele-brate the entire K-Family by uniting with your local Kiwanis, Circle K, Key Club, Builders Club, K-Kids, and Aktion Club. Get the whole K-Family in-

volved, whether it be for a service project or a divisional picnic. Thursday, November

10

Bring a friend to

Key Club The more the merrier. The more Key Club members there are the better. More members means more service, which means Key Club will increase its impact

it has on the world. Don’t be afraid to bring one or two friends, or even more, to your next meeting. Friday, November 11

Your way Today is the day for you to do your own thing. This is your chance to get the word out about Key Club in any way you want. Whether it be volunteer-ing, having a meeting, or host-ing a Key Club party, let this be the day that you celebrate every-thing Key Club is about.

What are you doing

for Key Club Week?

SHOW YOUR K Encourage your members to wear their club t-shirts. Consider making

shirts to wear at events and service pro-jects. It’s easy publicity!

BY CELINA BAQUIRAN, LT. GOV. DIV. 14

AS THE DEATH TOLL NEARED

300 from the record-breaking number of tornados and storms tearing through the South this past April, thousands were left homeless. Through the months of April and May, Wall High School Key Clubbers organized a school-wide

clothing drive for the homeless in the South with a focus on Ala-bama. The club collected anything from socks and shoes to jackets and pants. The bags of clothing soon piled up, and the club was glad to be able to help the home-less in Alabama.

MARY FINNEGAN DREAMED UP the Washington Community Garden in the middle of 2009. It was to be a garden in which indi-viduals and businesses and or-ganizations could sponsor a plot to grow whatever they wanted. She filled out the paperwork and sent it to Kiwanis. Within a matter of months, the Warren Hills Regional High School had

$1,969 to build the garden. It began with 72 plots and has expanded to 92 plots as of this year. Thanks to an active Key Club, it has gained 501(c)(3) non-profit status as well as support from parents, community mem-bers and local politicians. “It’s an amazing thing that hap-pened,” Warren Hills Key Club President Iris Lam says. “It brings a great sense of community.” Key Club owns two of the plots in the garden. Throughout the year, members plant and main-tain their plots and donate the food grown to their local food banks. So far, the garden has grown and donated over 1,000 pounds of food.

In 2009, Warren Hills won close to $2,000 from the YOF grant to create the Washington Community Garden.

The YOF grant application deadline is October 15. You can

find the application at keyclub.org.

Key Clubs apply each year for the YOF grant

to fund larger projects. In 2009, Warren Hills Regional High School Key Club won the YOF grant.

Wall High School collects clothes for

tornado victims in the South BY AMY LUTICK, WALL HIGH SCHOOL MEMBER

BY ZACHARIAH DEGIULIO, LT. GOV. DIV. 12

How Warren Hills has used the

Youth Opportunities Fund

DISTRICT


leadership

Strong communication, keeping

organized If your club is this large, you have to keep accurate records of members’ hours/points. Sign-in sheets are strongly recommended for every event, since it is very easy to forget about a member being there if 100 people came. At the end of the year, if there is a dispute, you want to have documentation to confirm your count of their hours. Also, use social networking sites, newsletters, emails, and a club website to spread information easily.

Public speaking Project your voice. Your audience could be made up of hundreds of members, and those in the very back need to hear you. Don’t scream, but keep your head up, make eye contact with the entire crowd, and speak loudly. If you get nervous, remember that they are not judging your speaking abilities. They just want to hear what you have to say.

No nonsense meetings Don’t waste your members’ time. There are too many people for icebreakers or around

the room intro-ductions, so just start the meeting with information they absolutely need to know. Talk about your upcoming events and stress their importance and announce

the date of your next meeting only. If they get rowdy, simply say “Please, if you want to leave earlier, stop chatting.”

Having extra officers It is extremely difficult, if not impossible for five or six officers to run a key club with hun-dreds of members. Montville Club President Rachel Sholder says, “It is a lot easier to man-age a huge club when you have numerous officer positions instead of just having Presi-dent, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, and Editor.”

Knowing your K-Family

For a club this size, it is important to turn to the K family for support. Promote Key Club at the middle school level and through Build-ers Club to maintain your club’s size, and for large events Kiwanis can help you out a lot. Rachel says, “If you stay very organized and have good relations with the other officers, the advisor, the Kiwanis liaison, and the lieu-tenant governor, it is much easier to success-fully maintain a club.”

TESTS—NOBODY LIKES THEM, BUT THEY’RE

part of school and a part of life. Here are some simple test-taking tips:

Read all directions first. Some tasks may be easier or harder than others or more suited towards your skills. Do the easiest section first.

Manage your time wisely. You only have so much time. Plan how much time you can spend on each question before you start each section.

Skip questions. If you don’t know the answer to a question, circle it, skip it. Perhaps another question will remind you of the answer.

Narrow down answers. If you can eliminate certain choices, then

your chances of guessing the right answer are increased.

Draw tables or pictures. Often illustrating a problem will make re-membering key facts easier and will organize your thoughts.

Read all answers before answer-

ing. Just because one answer sounds right, it does not mean that there is not a better one listed below.

Always prepare ahead. There is no substitute for studying and learning the material. Be sure to be well rested and have different songs, acronyms, stories, or any other study strategy skill memorized in preparation for you test.

Test-taking tips BY JOSEPH TOUMANIOS, LT. GOV. DIV. 18

Finding the right balance between school and Key Club is important, especially at the beginning of the school year. Make to-do lists and plan what you want to accomplish each month.

How to

maintain a

huge club Tips from Montville Town-

ship High School Key Club,

the district’s largest club BY JERRY ZHANG, LT. GOV. DIV. 19

LARGEST SCHOOLS IN THE DISTRICT

top five

262

248

242

227

224

Montville

Union

Roxbury

Bridgewater-Raritan

Hackettstown

DISTRICT


leadership

OFFICERS, HERE ARE SOME SUG-

gestions for how you can be as cooperative as possible with your faculty and Kiwanis advisors.

Don’t bother them during

class! When you have to talk to your advisor, stop by his or her class-room before first period or after school. This way you don’t bother them during class.

They may know more than

you.

Advisors are full of information about all aspects of Key Club, especially if they have been there for your club for years. Ask them for advice and examples of plans from previous service years.

Email!

“Cc:” your advisor in your impor-tant Key Club emails. It keeps everyone on the same page.

You’re not the only one

who’s busy.

Have a little extra time on your hands? Switch things up and help your advisor! Your advisors are busy people. They are usually teachers with families and lives of their own.

Care about your work.

Show a genuine interest in the work you do. Your advisor will take notice. Make your service more about the people you help and less about your hours count. ”There are many people within our community who need to know that there are people who care,” Cumberland Regional High

School faculty advisor Mrs. Van-Meter says. “One person at a time can make a difference in the lives of others.”

Your Kiwanis advisor

Keep in touch with your Kiwanis

advisor. Invite each other to your events. Building this relationship will make it much easier to ask for help later on!

MR. COOL Eastern High School Key Club advisor Mr. Trinkner poses for a goofy picture with the club at last April’s District Convention. This service

year is his third year as advisor.

Advice for working with your advisors BY PAIGE CRESCI, LT. GOV. DIV. 2

THE START OF THE SCHOOL YEAR IS PRIME TIME

to attract more members to your club. Here are a few tips to help you take advantage of it:

Advertise To guarantee an increase in membership, make a Facebook group that has meeting and event reminders. Use the daily news at school. Post flyers and make a bulletin board. Even try to get some spotlight at PTA meetings.

Offer incentives You could bring food or beverages to your meet-ings to attract new members. Try a pizza party or an ice-cream social. Also, try thinking of a reward for members who invite their friends to meetings.

Stay in touch Get member’s contact information by creating a registration form. Ask if they can receive text messages so that you can send them event and meeting remind-ers!

How to attract

more members BY KATIE BRYDEN, LT. GOV. DIV. 11

KEY LEADER IS A WEEKEND

that will carry with you for the rest of your life. Not only will you walk away ac-quiring traits such as leader-ship, personal growth, integ-rity, respect, and personal excellence, but you will make friends for a lifetime. This year, Key Leader takes place December 9-11 at Camp Lebanon in Lebanon, New Jersey. It is open to all high school students, even non-Key Clubbers, and gives them the opportunity to learn about service leader-ship. Small groups, large groups, discussions, and activities will help enrich attendees’ leadership so that they can

return to their communities more empowered to serve.

Register for Key Leader This December, improve your leadership, meet other

Key Clubbers, and learn more about yourself BY JENN BRAUN, LT. GOV. DIV. 17

One of the main parts of Key Leader is sharing ideas and thoughts about leadership in groups and with partners.

Jenn is a co-chair of the ICON/Key Leader Subcommittee of the district’s International Programs Committee. Email her at [email protected].

Register for Key Leader at key-leader.org.

9/11/01 The New Jersey District will never forget.

dcon 2012 moves, new district project info - the jersey key - sept 2011

Documents

district board

new district project

jersey key volume

events district convention

nj district officers

district project outcome

district bulletin editor

key club week