April 2012 Newsletter Issue 1

Our officers and general members went to workshops that taught them how to be good leaders. These workshops really inspired some of us to try something new. After the workshops, we watched Helen He and Chaerin Ahn participate in the annual DCON talent show. Then we all got dressed up and went to a dance. At the end of the weekend, we all participated in the Eliminate walk, raising more money for the Eliminate project to eradicate maternal and neonatal tetanus. As the convention came to an end, we all said heartfelt goodbyes to our new friends and came back to Millburn excited for the new service year.

Volume 3 Issue1

April 2012

Official Newsletter of Millburn High School Key Club/ NJ Division 14

DCON Recap BY MEDHA TANDON

On March 30th, at 2 p.m., a big yellow bus drove into Millburn High School’s circular drive and took members of our Key Club, as well as one other school’s club, to Key Club International’s New Jersey District Convention 2012 in Long Branch. At District Convention, one service year comes to an end as another begins. We celebrated our service year with seminars, inspirational speeches, elections of the new board, several contests, a talent show, and dances. Spending an entire weekend away from home gave all of us time to really understand Key Club International. Having attended District Convention for the past three years, I still believe that this event teaches us something new every year. This year, I learned that everyone can make a difference if they realize their own potential. Because of all the money New Jersey Key Clubs raised, approximately 54,000 lives were saved.

In this issue:

DCON Recap.......... 1

DCON Photos.......... 2

Smile Train Recap .. 3

New Officers ........ 4/5

The K Column ......... 6

Upcoming Events ... 6

The Millburn Key

K E Y C L U B

3636 WOODVIEW TRACE INDIANAPOLIS, IN 46268 USA 1-800-KIWANIS FAX 1-317-879-0204

Millburn High School Key Club

The First Ever

“K Column” BY KAREN FICH

2 Millburn High School Key Club

DCON at the Jersey Shore

DCON wasn’t all work and no play. Here Sonisha Sanju and Medha Tandon enjoy the chance to dance at DCON.

At this year’s DCON, Key Clubbers could experience the Jersey Shore firsthand in the company of fellow devoted high-schoolers.

After winning first prize at NJ’s Project Showcase talent show at our high school, John Franek showed his incredible piano skills at DCON.

Pictured here is our New Jersey District Board. The students on this committee – including our one and only Jiayun Fang (District Secretary) – are extremely dedicated and worked so hard to make our service year as productive as it could be.

Our New NJ Board

District Governor Nicole Ventrone

District Secretary Celina Baquiran

District Treasurer Joseph Toumanios

District Editor Zak DeGiulio

District Webmaster Lucas Dos Santos

Division 14 LTG Bria Metivier

released, offering six large chocolate chip cookies for just $3! In a three- week period, Key Club members collected money and orders from their friends, families, and neighbors, bringing in over 130 orders. More members contributed by donating much-needed ingredients such as flour, butter, sugar, and, of course, lots of chocolate chips!

Baking day was April 14th at Sona Roy’s house (I still can’t thank her enough!). While I was looking towards some possible hiccups, everything went smoothly and everyone had a lot of fun. The weather was gorgeous and we were able to incorporate working outdoors and baking indoors. Beyond that, the event was unifying. While baking, Key Clubbers were able to share their joys, laughs and stories with each other. By the end of the day, the sun had set, everyone was exhausted, but our accomplishment was beyond satisfying. We baked about 900 cookies!

I sincerely thank everyone who gathered orders, donated ingredients, and gave their time to help bake! Without dedicated members, this event would have collapsed and not have been as successful as it was.

We raised well beyond our goal of $250 and not far off from $500! Think about it, guys! While we may never see the child who receives the surgery we funded, it’s heartwarming to know that we truly made someone smile.

Millburn High School Key Club 3

900 Cookies

Almost $500

~2 surgeries

1 KeyClub

Here, Key Clubbers wrap cookies in order to raise money for Smile Train.

www.smiletrain.org

Cookies and Smiles

BY ASHLEY WU (Committee Head)

The room hummed with the rhythmic churn of mixers, the clatter of silver spoons, and the occasional loud outburst of a flour-dusted baker. Random visitors might take a step back as they clue in on the batter-spattered counters and the overflowing piles of chocolate chip cookies. They may wonder, “Just what in the world is going on?” “We’re baking cookies!” someone would respond, only to instill further curiosity from the onlooker. “Cookies? All of these?” the visitors would reply, staring at the mountain-high stacks on every available counter area. The response would get would be simple: “They’re cookies that will bring a person a smile!”

The answer is no joke, as funds raised for the cookies go to giving a child a new life and a new smile. Smile Train is a fundraiser to cure cleft lips. Clefts are a serious problem in many developing countries. Children who suffer from this facial deformity have problems eating, speaking, attending school, and finding jobs. Many are discriminated against and isolated. While more than 165,000 children are born with clefts every year, most cannot afford surgery. Smile Train is offering a solution! Local doctors are being given free surgical education and training. In addition, a donation of only $250 can give a child a second chance in life with surgery.

This year, the project was highly successful. Starting in May, order forms were

4 Millburn High School Key Club

Your New Officers For the 2012 - 2013 Service Year

Hi everyone, I'm Marlee Birnberg and I'm so excited to be serving as your president for the 2012-2013 service year. I look forward to working with each of you to meet the goals of this year. My experiences as a general member, committee head, and Editor give me the necessary confidence to lead an outstanding group of students on a mission. I hope to personalize everyone's Key Club year and get everyone involved. We will be doing a lot of fundraising for the Eliminate Project, a truly remarkable organization. The officers are eager to introduce new, creative fundraising ideas in an effort to spark as much interest as possible from the most vital part of the club: the general members. If you have any questions, or just want to talk, feel free to contact me at any time! A fun fact about me is that if you bring me any type of gluten free food, I will literally want to be your best friend forever! And if not, you can still get on my good side by participating as an active Key Club member. Let's work together to make Key Club both fulfilling and fun for all.

Hi everyone, my name is Chaerin Ahn and I am your vice president for the 2012-13 service year. I would like to thank you for allowing me to hold this meaningful position even though I am far from perfect. I am a pretty clumsy person, as many of you have already watched me stumble over a word, as well as a rock, seat, my own foot, and other random things. Nevertheless, I asked you to trust my passion and responsibility, which you did. Now I will ask you to enjoy your Key Club experiences as fully as possible, not only for the people you will help or achievements you will have, but also for yourself. Then we will be making a truly amazing service year!

Hello everyone, I’m Ashley Wu, this service year’s recording secretary. I will be a senior next year, and with many challenging courses and college applications, it will be a hectic but fun year! Even so, I look forward to new Key Club events and hope to get to know all of our members! Aside from Key Club, other clubs, and school, I like to cook, draw, and write fanfiction. I’m addicted to K-pop, and love chocolate. I look forward to making Key Club more fun and successful. With many new goals, and plans for this service year, I know this year will be amazing and exciting!

PRESIDENT Marlee Birnberg

RECORDING SECRETARY Ashley Wu

VICE PRESIDENT Chaerin Ahn

Your New Officers

Continued

Millburn High School Key Club 5

Hey everyone! I'm Harsimran Minhas, your treasurer! I was treasurer last year, too, and I really enjoyed doing my job. I am looking forward to another great year! This year I hope to avoid all the mistakes I made last year, and with your help we will have an absolutely fantastic service year!

Hey Key Clubbers! I’m Sylvia, your new Editor, and I am so excited about the upcoming service year! In this position, I hope to create an informative and fun newsletter that reflects our club’s incredible qualities. I have been a member of the MHS Key Club since my freshman year and I have really enjoyed it. I also participate in our school’s Jazz Band, Concert Band and Chorus. This coming year, I will be the Communicating Secretary of the Far East Asian Club – yes, I know, I’m not Asian, but I love Asian culture because I lived in Singapore. If you would like to write an article for upcoming issues of this newsletter, please contact me, because that would be awesome!

Hi! My name is Lindsey Jones, and I'm the webmaster for the 2012-2013 service year. This is my third year in Key Club, and I believe it will be the best year yet! Last year I was the assistant webmaster, and this year I'm really looking forward to taking a greater leadership role as the webmaster. I also do volleyball, swimming, and several other clubs, but Key Club is definitely one of my favorites. With all of us working together, I think we're really going to have another awesome year!

Hello Millburn! My name is Bria Metivier and I'll be serving as your lieutenant governor for the 2012-2013 service year. For those of you that don't know what a lieutenant governor does, I make sure everyone in our division, which is 14, is doing their job. I am currently a junior at Union High School. I'm involved in my school's marching band, honor society, and French honor society. Yes, I know I do a lot of nerdy things. I'm really excited to be your LTG for this service year. If you ever have any ideas or concerns, please feel free to contact me!

DIVISION 14 LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR Bria Metivier

EDITOR Sylvia Levy

WEBMASTER Lindsey Jones

Corresponding SECRETARY Lyndsay Wittenberg

TREASURER Harsimran Minhas

Hi everyone! I am Lyndsay Wittenberg and I am currently serving as your Corresponding Secretary. My goal for this year is to improve the communication amongst the officers, committee heads and general members. In addition to Key Club, I am an officer in Red Cross Club and Italian Club, I tutor kids and volunteer at St. Barnabas. I also love art and spending time with my friends and family. I am confident that our club will have an extremely successful service year.

2012-2013 Board:

President

Marlee Birnberg

Vice President

Chaerin Ahn

Recording Secretary

Ashley Wu

Corresponding Secretary

Lyndsay Wittenberg

Treasurer

Harsimran Minhas

Editor

Sylvia Levy

Webmaster

Lindsey Jones

Advisor

Neil Cooperman

http://millburnkeyclub.webs.com/

www.keyclub.org

3636 WOODVIEW TRACE INDIANAPOLIS, IN 46268 USA 1-800-KIWANIS FAX 1-317-879-0204

Upcoming Events

*Candy Sales

*Cookie Dough Sales

*Car Wash – May 19

*North RTC’s – May 19 at Montville

High School

*ICON – July 1-8 in Orlando, FL

You may be wondering what the Eliminate Project is. I mean, you have been hearing so much about it, but you are scared to ask what it is because you might look silly. Have no fear, the K Column is here! Each month, this column will notify the club about what is new in the Key Club world. And what is Eliminate is what is new. The Eliminate Project (officially our district project) has joined forces with UNICEF and Kiwanis International to help eliminate maternal and neonatal tetanus (MNT). This disease has egregious effects on many families. It takes the lives of over 60,000 innocent babies and the lives of many mothers every year. The newborn babies who suffer from this disease have painful convulsions and sensitivity to light and touch.

The goal of the Eliminate Project is to make MNT obsolete by 2015. To succeed in doing so, 129 million mothers must be immunized. After a woman is vaccinated against MNT, all of her future children are protected from the disease. In order to achieve this, syringes, safe storage, vaccines, transportation and thousands of skilled staff are necessary. Each vaccine costs 60¢, and each mother needs three vaccines; that is $1.80 to save a baby’s life. The eradication of this disease brings the beginning of better health for many families.

You are probably thinking, “This disease is horrible, and I want to help. It’s only $1.80 to save a life. That is ridiculous.” Well, I have some good news for you: If you want to save a life, please contact me (at [email protected]) to buy an Eliminate bracelet. All proceeds go to the Eliminate Project! Not only do you save a life, but you look fashionable in the process! I look forward to hearing from you soon.

The K Column is a periodic piece written by Karen

Fich highlighting important information about our

club, Kiwanis and the projects that we work on. Karen

is soon to be a Junior and is a highly dedicated

member of our club.

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