In 2024, the U.S. Census found that 11.5% of Americans fell below the poverty line. This number is almost doubled in Memphis, TN, reaching 22.5%. As many of these citizens are unable to purchase necessities for themselves, some look to organizations and other groups that provide these necessities for free. Kiwanis is a global organization that dedicates itself and its members to assisting children and communities through volunteering. It has multiple branches for different age groups and education levels, like Circle K, Key Club, Aktion Club, Builders Club and K-Kids. White Station High School (WSHS) hosts the high school branch: Key Club, an international, student-led organization for high schoolers that encourages its members to volunteer and serve their community. It currently has thousands of distinct clubs, spanning over 45 countries.
“[Key Club] is basically an … organization that likes to help the people that are [in need], whether they be on the streets or in retirement homes, or it could be students in our own school,” Melany Mauricio (10) said.
Elizabeth Kirby, an Algebra II teacher and lifelong volunteer, taught at WSHS for 13 years before becoming the Key Club advisor five years ago. At the start of the club, there were only about 30 members, totaling 100 volunteer hours within the year. Now, the club hosts over 300 members and achieved over 6,000 hours in just the first semester — a WSHS record.
“[WSHS alumnus] Anahis Luna came to me right before COVID broke out … and asked me if I was interested in [advising Key Club],” Kirby said. “She presented me with just a binder of information that I honestly haven’t looked through. I figured volunteering is volunteering, and I do a lot of that in my own life anyway. I kind of had some ideas where we could go with that, and then, of course, COVID broke out.”
Key Club offers a large variety of events for which members can volunteer. Students can volunteer for food drives, clothing drives, festivals, school plays, concession stands, card making, marathons and similar races, other WSHS club events, zoo events and many more.
“I really like Zoo Boo,” Anandi Durgam (12) said. “I like tactile events — things that I can touch — and also being able to talk to people. So seeing all the kids and being able to talk to them, and the act of handing out the candy, I really enjoy that … Plus, I do it with my best friend Amy, so that’s another added bonus — I get to be with my friends for a few hours doing service.”
Key Club not only provides volunteering opportunities but also provides leadership opportunities. The club has multiple student leadership positions, like the president, vice president, secretary, treasurer, social media manager and freshmen officers. The WSHS Key Club also has its own position — which was created due to the increasing size of the club — called “outreach officers,” who help find events and create PowerPoints.
“As the upperclassman vice president, I have to work closely with our president,” Durgam said. “Whenever she needs a task, I’m just there to do it. Also, I was helping register our members this year [on] the official Key Club website … I help keep track of the roster of the students and I’m one of the speakers for whenever we present our bi-weekly powerpoints. Also, I help update [the volunteer hours list] sometimes.”
Students who are especially dedicated to their volunteer work have a chance to receive awards and scholarships. One award is the President’s Volunteer Service Award, which is achieved by gaining a certain number of volunteer hours in a 12-month span. The awards are separated by bronze, silver and gold as well as age group. Students can also receive scholarships like the LaMissTenn Key Club Scholarships, which are the Sharon & Charlie Ford Scholarship for $3,500, the Jerry Hafter Memorial Scholarship, the Jean Benoit Scholarship and the Anthony Simmons Scholarship, each for $2,000, and the Key Club Leadership Scholarship for $1,000.
“I got the bronze award,” Durgam said. “If you just speak with [Kirby], you prove to her … that you have over 100 hours over some 12-month period, she’ll order it for you … You just need to have those hours to show.”
Volunteering can greatly benefit communities, but it also establishes new bonds between people or even develops pre-existing ones. Many students choose to volunteer with friends and family members, as it allows them to do good in their community while spending time together. Taking just a few hours to volunteer can make massive waves in communities.
“[My brother and I] are always together in our volunteering,” Mauricio said. “We are definitely a lot closer because of Key Club in general — not just volunteering. Seeing the environment that my brother is in while in Key Club, whether that be volunteering or in the meetings, is a very big difference … [from] being at home.”
Since many students opt to volunteer with their friends, they often have memorable experiences volunteering. Some dress up for Zoo Boo and make posters for marathon cheer stations, while others might travel to new parts of the city and determine which wiener dog was the fastest in a race. Students are able to interact with the people they are volunteering for and with those that they already know.
“One time I did Room in the Inn — and that was last year,” Durgam said. “We were cooking food, and we made gingerbread houses with the people there. That was very fun, and I talked to a lot of my friends at this event.”
Key Club allows volunteers to connect with the community, build relationships and develop their skills. Volunteering can demonstrate skills that many employers look for, like hard work and organizational skills. Some students have secured jobs and internships from meeting organizers and fellow volunteers.
“[Key Club] means opportunity,” Mauricio said. “It means an opportunity to help people out. It means an opportunity to help people become aware. An opportunity to get to know new people; an opportunity to build deeper relationships; an opportunity to learn new things, such as how to cook or how to walk [across] an entire zoo over 10 times in one night.”
Like most other organizations, Key Club comes at a cost; students must pay a $20 fee to join the club. This money goes towards international dues, district fees and some stays with the club to help pay for events. Key Club relies mostly on donations and the fraction they receive from joining fees to stay afloat.
“Funding is definitely an issue,” Kirby said. “We’re gonna have to start doing some kind of fundraising to upkeep our events. We’ve worked off dues and we’ve worked off … Iron Man donations and we have worked off the ACT.com donations … [which] are not returning to Memphis this year … so we lost our big funding … that we’ve gotten in the past, so this is the first year we’re gonna have to fundraise.”
Over the five years Key Club has existed at WSHS, hundreds of high schoolers have earned thousands of volunteer hours. Some students are even inspired to return after they’ve graduated or volunteer with the Circle-K club: Kiwanis’ college branch. Volunteering opportunities are always available to people of all backgrounds, ages, genders, religions, ethnicities or any other affiliations.
“The legacy [I want to leave behind] would be that students continue [volunteering] for the rest of their lives,” Kirby said. “This is a life skill, not just a high school skill, not just a high school club. I’d like them to go out beyond and just continue to give back to the community and find their passion and apply it to people who need it — or animals or organizations and such.”
