The Alexander City Outlook

Club donates $11,500 to schools

Four years ago the Kiwanis club of Alexander City pledged $50,000 to the education foundation of the city’s schools over a five year period.

A recent donation presented at a system-wide convocation of Alexander City’s school teachers put the civic organization within $5,000 of its goal.

“The teachers have their meeting at the beginning of every (school) year. We gave it there,” said current Kiwanis board member Randy Dawkins, who was president of the organization when it first made the pledge. “We presented $1,500 to the special education program and then we gave $10,000 to the Alexander City Schools Education Foundation.

“We have given them $45,000 so far,” Dawkins said. “We thought that would help them with the kids. The money we raise does stay local – 100 percent of it. We give about half our proceeds to schools, (though).”

The current president of the Kiwanis club, Tommy Lee, presented the first check meant for the special education program, while Dawkins presented the other check to the ACSEF.

The money pledged and donated by Kiwanis comes from the group’s fundraisers throughout the year. The civic organization’s main sources of raising funds are its pancake breakfast, a steak dinner and auction event and the Kiwanis fair. They also have the Kiwanis Star Weekend, which involves a skeet shoot in the morning with an evening barbeque, at the Five Star Plantation.

Other local causes that Kiwanis supports are the Boys & Girls Club, Children’s Harbor, the Girls’ Ranch and Alabama’s Special Camp for Children and Adults.

A lighthearted moment during the convocation happened when second-grader Evan Booth wowed the crowd with an encore performance of a talent show skit. The young man danced the part of Michael Jackson from the “Thriller” video while some teachers dressed and danced the part of the zombies. Booth then gave a spot-on rendition of Jackson’s hit song “Beat It. “