Kiwanis edifies
Young ‘Key Clubbers’ were educated on Tuesday about their future prospects and other important issues affecting them, as the Kiwanis Clubs of New Kingston, Kingston, Downtown Kingston, North St Andrew, Eastern St Andrew, and Constant Spring held a Youth Symposium at Merl Grove High School in St Andrew.
The symposium was geared toward high schoolers involved in Key Club, as well as tertiary students who are a part of Circle K programme groups; both of which are under the Kiwanis International group.
Held as part of celebrations for the club’s 100th anniversary, the event saw various interactive and informative booths where they got a wide range of information that will certainly prove beneficial to them in their stage of life. There were booths from several agencies, including; the Child Development Agency and Office of the Children’s Registry, both agencies under the Ministry of Youth and Culture to help with the care and protection of children; University College of the Caribbean, Students’ Loan Bureau, National Task Force and the Kiwanis Eliminate project, which is a joint effort between Kiwanis International and UNICEF to eliminate the deadly tetanus disease.
Guest speakers at the event were president of Kiwanis International Dr John Button, and Serge Viau, Governor of Eastern Canada and Caribbean District of Kiwanis International. Other presentations covered a plethora of topics such as human trafficking, child abuse, career choices as well as scholarship opportunities.
“The Kiwanis’ motto is “Serving the Children of the World” and so the majority of projects are focused on empowering children through developmental programmes, skills training and providing general care and support as required. This youth symposium was directly aligned to these objectives, with the participants receiving pertinent information through presentations and booth displays,” the clubs said in a release.
The event was sponsored by the NCB Foundation, Respect Jamaica and Wisynco.