Club Projects

Several Conway Kiwanians, including Jack Bell and Bob Nabholz, were leaders in the establishment of the Conway Boys & Girls club in 1989-90, and our club is a regular contributor to the new organization.

Under the leadership of Gary Roberts, in 1993 our club co-sponsored with the Faulkner County Child Care Association a one-day workshop for child care workers. This well-received activity has become an annual event.

An outgrowth of our relationship with the Child Care Association was the annual "Shots for Tots" immunization program started in 1994 with the Faulkner County Health Department as co-sponsor. In July 1995 our club made a $1,000 contribution to the Kiwanis International Service Project, Iodine Deficiency Disorders (IDD), and designated 1960 club president Bob Nabholz as our first George Hixon recipient; since then the honorees for either a Hixon or a Tablet of Honor have been Conrad Carroll, Larry Pillow, Denver Prince, Gary Roberts, Gene Bartley, Bob Meriwether, Cliff Henry, Ferris Baker, Jim Beal and Steele Hays.

College Scholorships

At each Conway Kiwanis meeting, a barrel or jar is passed around for contributions to the club's scholarship fund. The money was originally used to finance the Christmas parties for Faulkner County children, but today the funds are used for the four $1000 college scholarships (three to seniors at Conway High School and one to a senior at St. Joseph High School) that are given by the club each year. For many years, George Joseph and then Ernest Halter had the responsibility for passing around the jar. In 1988 Albert Raymond, who had had the job for over a decade, passed it on to Ed Halter, who at the end of 1994 gave the barrel to Denver Prince.

As early as 1970, Kiwanians were assisting with the Special Olympics program for mentally retarded children, and since 1983 the club has assumed an annual responsibility in helping with the state Special Olympics held at Estes Field on the UCA campus.

For the past several years, Joel Hawkins has been our club's representative in the walkathon sponsored by the Conway Human Development Center's volunteer auxiliary. Chuck Seifert has since taken his place.

Since 2003, we have held an annual Christmas auction at our last regular meeting before Christmas. Members bring and donate items that are then bid on during our meeting. Philip Shell has been our auctioneer since the projects inception. We generally raise around $1,000 from this event, with the proceeds going to purchase Christmas baskets for area needy families. We usually service around 10 families each year.

In 1982 the Kiwanis Club was the first Conway civic club to volunteer assistance with the annual community-wide Toad Suck Daze festival held on a week in late April or early May.

Kiwanians were responsible for putting on the local talent shows at the first four Toad Suck Daze festivals, and in 1987 began the current co-sponsorship of the Toad Suck 10K and 5K Runs.

In 1998 the Toad Suck Runs were co-sponsored by First National Bank, Conway Regional Medical Center, and others. Net profits of over $13,000 were donated to HAVEN (Help for Abuse Victims in Emergency Need) and the Women's Shelter. Over the last few years, we have netted around $15,000 from this event. We have used half of the proceeds from the 2004 and 2005 runs to build the new KIWANIS Pavillion at Curtis Walker Park.

The major Kiwanis fund-raising activity has been the annual Pancake Day. For over 38 years every Kiwanian has been expected to sell tickets and to work in the setup, cooking, serving, or cleanup for the biggest single project the club undertakes. Held for many years at the American Legion Hut, Pancake Day has also been at the Bachelor Hotel, St. Joseph School Cafeteria, First United Methodist Church, and from 1992 to 2004 at Second Baptist Church. The 2005 Pancake breakfast is scheduled to be held October 28-29, at the Conway High School cafeteria. Beginning with the 1984 Pancake Day, the club has annually given the Joe B. McGee Award to the member who sold the most tickets. Winners have been Bob Fisher, Robert Balentine, and Larry Pillow (twelve times!). The club typically clears around $6,000 from Pancake Days and appropriates money to such organizations as the Conway Boys & Girls Club, the Salvation Army, Arkansas Boys & Girls State, Little League Baseball, Faulkner County Fair Junior Division, Shots for Tots," the Women's Shelter, and the local Christmas Baskets.