Kiwanis Club crumbles in Grand Falls-Windsor, but the music festival lives on
Club folds due to decline in membership
They've done raffles for charities, sponsored cadet programs, helped with breakfast initiatives at schools and supported underprivileged kids with financial help
The Kiwanis Club of Grand Falls-Windsor has given a lot to the community over the past 58 years. But its volunteer base has dwindled, and now the club is no more.
"A lack of people, not lack of concern, not lack of interest, but just no time, and a little bit threadbare, if you will, as a result of scheduling and of aging as well," Dave Anthony, outgoing club president, told CBC News.
While the club work has ceased operation, its marquee event, the annual music festival, will live on.
"It's just so good to realize that this will continue and that it might be the end of one aspect, but not the full era," Anthony said. "It's continued in another form and plans have already started and are underway for what will gear up to be, I'm sure, a very successful run again this year."
Kiwanis clubs are located in 80 countries but each individual club is different. The thread that ties them together is the focus on helping children. According to the service organization, "When you give a child the chance to learn, experience, dream, grow, succeed and thrive, great things happen."
And great things have been happening with Kiwanis in Grand Falls-Windsor.
Anthony said he used to help the club with initiatives in the early 1980s, but never became a full member until about 15 years ago. Since then, he's seen many of the core members move on.
While it's difficult to let go, Anthony said, many of the Kiwanis members plan to stay involved in the music festival.
"It's a standard part of life in this community, you know, and not only Grand Falls-Windsor, but certainly the extended area," he said. "It's attracted hundreds and hundreds of kids over the years."
If all goes to plan, the Central Newfoundland Music Festival — the new non-profit set up to the run future concerts — will continue to welcome students of music from throughout the region.
David Oxford, who has been volunteering with Kiwanis music festivals for years, it the volunteer group's secretary. He says the format of the new festival will be very similar to the previous ones and having Kiwanis members pass along their knowledge and expertise was a great help to the new non-profit.
The group spent the summer working on forming the new entity, and has already started planning for the next festival, which will take place in March 2025.
"It's still the same people organizing. It is still going to be as successful as it was because we were very fortunate to be able to have some wonderful people that gave us the information to continue to make it as successful," he said.
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