Community Services

The Club's interests extend to other community organizations that make Cleveland a great place to live. Cleveland Kiwanis members can be seen at one of the Cleveland Golden Age Centers, or perhaps at the Cleveland Food Bank, or even supporting horseback riding therapy for Cleveland children.

The Community Services Committee also meets monthly to guide programs for the elderly, feeding the hungry, and providing special education opportunities. Their meets are usually at the Seamen's Services building in the Cleveland Port.  This building is used to provide services for international sailors visiting the Port of Cleveland. Kiwanis Members help staff the Center during the shipping season.

Each year, the Community Services Committee goes on a "field trip" visiting one of the Metro Parks which have long been supported by gifts from this committee. On July 27, members met the Brecksville Reservation.

Dr. Ron Fleming along with Ruth and Homer Cook consider some final requests for help over a picnic lunch. New member candidate Mike Biedenbach and Paul Alandt also joined the group.

Past gifts from the Club helped build this bird sanctuary which provides winter protection to some of the local birds who cannot afford to fly south.

The Club also provided funds to purchase the rustic rocking chairs that make the Brecksville Nature cabin such a comfortable place to learn about the park and its natural inhabitants.

International Relations, a part of the Community Services Committee, sponsors the Annual AFS, foreign students day in February.

Kiwanis has been an enthusiastic supporter of music at the Golden Age Centers, serving the elders of Cleveland. Performances of the Cleveland Opera on Tour and the Barbershop Quartet are recent fun events. Below, member Jay Rosenbaum brings the Hillcrest Band to the Lakeshore GAC for an annual visit.

Below are photos of Downtown Kiwanis Club contributions to the Cleveland Metroparks. The Club has made numerous improvements to all the parks from Rocky River to Mayfield Heights.

Below are projects completed at the North Chagrin Reservation in Mayfield Heights.

During the past year, the Club contributed funds to replace the fire screen in the Nature Center. The previous screen was free standing and a potential hazard for the numerous children who visit the center each year.

Not far from the Nature Center, the park features a large picnic shelter. The roof over the shelter was a favorite home for the thousands of bats who live in the area keeping the mosquitoes from consuming the human population in the area.

So the Club agreed to fund a "bat condo" which is now the summer home of thousands of small brown bats.

On  your next visit to one of our wonderful Emerald Necklace Parks, look for signs that your Kiwanis Club believes in enhancing outdoor experiences in our urban area.

The Kiwanis Club of Downtown Cleveland enjoys a long partnership with the Salvation Army. Club projects include support of local Corp charities, camperships, and after school programs. Left: Club members Ruth and Homer Cook along with Bob Goll ring the bell during the Holiday Season prior to a performance at Playhouse Square.