Kiwanis Club

Kiwanis is a global organization of volunteers dedicated to changing the world one child and one community at a time.

Founded in 1915, Kiwanis International is a thriving organization of service- and community-minded individuals who support children and young adults around the world. More than 600,000 Kiwanis-family members in 96 countries make their mark by responding to the needs of their communities and pooling their resources to address worldwide issues. Through these efforts, Kiwanis International truly is "Serving the Children of the World."

The Stuart Chapter has been in existence since 1938 and has a deep rooted connection to not only the community but to maintaining a sense of purpose to the historical aspects of the community. Their fundraising initiatives have been diverse and plentiful. Prior to 1995 Kiwanis of Stuart would hold radio auctions as a means to fundraising. But in 1995, the organization was looking for a way to tie in the historical aspects of their community into some sort of collectible series that would also awaken and increase knowledge of the organization and its mission to the people in the area.

ChemArt was called upon to create a historical ornament for Martin County. The first was a replica of the Old Roosevelt Bridge. At the time, a new bridge was being built to replace the old one, which had gone into irrevocable disrepair. The members of Kiwanis thought this would be a perfect beginning to their historic series. People could purchase this commemorative as a constant reminder of this historic landmark, built in 1934. The bridge had always been a hub for social and economic activity, and therefore a great candidate for the minds and hearts of the citizens in Martin County.

The collectible was a great success. The project not only paid for itself, but managed to raise money for the nine children’s service clubs that Kiwanis of Stuart operate in the public schools of Martin County. Additionally, these funds support four scholarships to high school seniors and the maintenance of a large children’s park in downtown Stuart.

Virginia Hill, a volunteer at Kiwanis of Stuart, has been very pleased with the ornament program. “ChemArt has been great to work with. Their attention to consistency of quality, from the first ornament twelve years ago, to the ones today, is second to none. Their expertise makes our series not only beautiful but easy to sell.”

To date, Kiwanis of Stuart has maintained this collectible series for 12 years. The ornaments are sold by individual members and through retail outlets in the area. Moreover, the collectible facet has taken off. People in the community have taken a keen interest in acquiring the entire series. The exposure from the collection has also benefited Kiwanis by attracting more donors and more interest in their philanthropic efforts. In 2006, the organization was actually approached by several groups to be featured in upcoming ornaments in the series.

To learn more about the Kiwanis Club of Stuart, please visit their website at http://kiwanisclubofstuart.org/

 Download a PDF of the Kiwanis Club case study