By Don Wimpelberg, Editor

On April 12, 2006, the Kiwanis Club of Tecumseh enjoyed a great evening celebrating their 45th Anniversary.  The club was chartered on April 12, 1961.  Diana Halstead, this year's President stated that when the club was chartered her father was the President.  A great legacy has been passed on to Diana.  The speaker for the evening was Kansas Kiwanis Governor John Fajen.  He was accompanied by his wife Pam, our District YCPO Chair.  Also in attendance were District Secretary Dot Leakey and her husband Don, Division 11 Lt. Governor Pat Wichman and her husband and Division 11 Lt. Governor Elect Steve.

There were also six interclubs from Division 11 present including Berryton, Meriden, North Topeka, Topeka Downtown, Topeka Southwest and Topeka West Ridge.  The Tecumseh club was honored to have five of its six charter members present.  They were Dewey Mohler, Mert Wilch, Jack Crispin, Bob Pollom, and Her Whitlow.  Dick Parrett was not able to attend.  Governor John shared some of the history of Kiwanis and what was happening when Tecumseh was chartered.

"In the 60s the great society came along and the government expanded like crazy; there were head start programs, welfare programs, and all kinds of support programs and everyone was just supposed to pay their dollar and the government would create a program that would take care of all the children, put a chicken in every pot.

'More and more we got involved in our air conditioned homes, we never sat out on the porch any more, we stopped going to church and we stopped getting together, and we stopped paying attention to the children.  People were saying 'I have paid my taxes; let someone else take care of the problem.'

'It is hard to find people that have come through the 60s and 70s who have had that ideal of helping people and feeling like they are their brother's keeper.  But things are turning around.  That generation is aging, myself included.  We are trying to recruit people who were born after that and I have seen a huge turnaround in our culture and part of it is simply a matter of time and people asking 'What can I give back to my community?'

'It is coincidental that we have had so many storms and tragedies and they have really brought out a giving and serving and caring people that really needed to be shaken and awakened.

'There are lots of people out there who are ready to give and ready to work.  CONGRATULATIONS to Tecumseh and best wishes for the next 45 years. " (Comments by John Fajen, District Governor)