Members enjoyed a barbecue dinner followed by a synopsis of the club’s history by President Alan Winter.
Robert Easterly provided a wagon tour across the farm to view the quilt square recently added to the barn.
Kiwanians were pleased to see the wildlife including turkeys, deer, and ducks.
Easterly regaled the large group of Kiwanians with his stories about the early events in Kiwanis as well as his many memories of Cleveland and Bradley County.
Easterly is the longest serving member of the club with 60 years of service.
Former Lt. Gov. for District 3 Bob Segrest and his wife Barbara were in attendance. Dr. Ed Fickley, faculty sponsor for the Cleveland Middle School Builders Club, participated as well.
The Kiwanis Club of Cleveland has a long and meaningful history in our community.
The Kiwanis Club of Chattanooga gathered Cleveland members to start the Club in 1920, and the charter was issued on July 16th of that year.
The first president was Dr. C. T. Speck Sr. and the first secretary was J. N. Taylor. Early board members included S. N. Varnell, John L. Bivens, Hal B. Moore, Frank J. Harle, Walter E. Rodgers, J. W. Wiggins, George L. Hardwick Sr., and D. Sullins Stuart.
One of the first major projects the club promoted was the creation of Lee Highway in Bradley County. In 1926 the portion of the highway from Cleveland to the Hamilton County line was paved.
The following year, the road was paved from Cleveland to Charleston, successfully completing a project on which the club had been involved for nearly seven years.
The Kiwanis Club has a longstanding partnership with 4-H which began in the 1920s and continues today. The club supports the 4-H speech competition every year.
Other early projects include maintaining a bed at the local hospital for the use of children in need of surgery and raising money for the establishment of a high school band.
Current projects of the club include Service Leadership Programs: Walker Valley High School Key Club and Cleveland Middle School Builders Club, sponsorship of the 4-H speech competition, and Christmas shopping for Head Start children.
Kiwanis promotes the ideals of voluntary service as a means to improve lives and give something back to the community.
Since its founding in 1920, the Kiwanis Club of Cleveland has provided services to the community through a number of special programs and events.
For more information about the Kiwanis Club of Cleveland, visit www.kiwaniscleveland tn.org.
The Kiwanis motto is “Serving the Children of the World.” Kiwanis International includes 8,400 clubs with more than 270,000 members in 96 nations. Last year, Kiwanis clubs donated more than $100 million and almost 6 million volunteer hours for community service projects.
At the recent Kiwanis International Conference, Tea Leoni and Kiwanis International President Paul Palazzolo announced the new global campaign called the Eliminate Project.
This project will raise money and send volunteers to provide vaccinations that prevent maternal/neonatal tetanus.
