The final organizational meeting for the local Kiwanis Club was held on this day in 1919. Officers and directors were elected.
Kiwanis was the second civic luncheon club in Winston-Salem. It was the 188th Kiwanis Club formed, with 50 charter members, as a service organization offering business and professional men an opportunity for fellowship, charitable giving and service activities in the community. The Kiwanis Club organization was formed in 1915.
A resolution was passed concerning the bringing of one of the Baptist Hospitals to Winston-Salem, and this would be accomplished in conjunction with the Rotary Club.
The first president of the club was B. F. Huntley. One of the first projects of the club was to provide the city with a first-rate hotel. Huntley was the chairman of the movement, and the Robert E. Lee Hotel was the result of the movement.
Kiwanis Club has been involved in numerous civic projects, many of them involving children and young people.
Kiwanis means “we build,” and the goal of the group is to build better communities.
