Serving The Children of the World

Club History  

KIDS NEED KIWANIS

 

The Kiwanis Club of Moorabbin was chartered on July 20th 1970. Since that time members have provided voluntary service to the communities of Moorabbin and surrounding suburbs.(Now covered by the councils of Kingston, Glen Eira and Bayside)

Whilst the service projects conducted by members are dictated by the needs of the communities there has always been a bias toward projects that benefit children.

As an example the collection of discarded, but still valuable, children's shoes for redistribution to needy families, the purchase and fitting of long shafted coloured plastic flags to the rear axle of children's push bikes to ensure they are seen when on the footpath or road and the provision of many hundreds of calico dolls to local hospitals. The dolls being used by medical staff to help children understand a medical procedure they may require and to overcome children's fear of the process.

The Club was very actively involved in fundraising for the Moorabbin Hospital, later to become Monash Medical Centre Moorabbin, and successfully ran a major carnival on the current site for several years after it's opening in 1975.

The design and construction of a walk through bird aviary at a home for the blind, provision of much needed hospital equipment and outings for the aged and infirm are examples of projects conducted for adults. These are just some of the voluntary community service projects conducted over many years.

Members freely admit that it is the personal reward they get from participating which is often the real reason they have maintained their involvement. Knowing that you are making a difference, the sense of satisfaction for no monetary reward, fellowship and friendships that would never have occurred if they were not a Kiwanian are the reasons for becoming and continuing to be active members. On 20th July 2020,the planned celebratory 50th Birthday dinner could not be held due to Level 3 COVID-19 restrictions being in place, hence a Zoom Meeting was held instead. see here. Zoom Meeting
Working bee constructing an aviary at Elanora Home for the Blind in 1985.