Kiwanis rebirth comes to fruition

The revitalization of the Seaford Kiwanis Club is complete. The charter and installation ceremony was held last Saturday night, officially reviving an organization that had been dormant for about five years.

“It’s very rewarding,” said Steven Katz, president of Seaford Kiwanis. “We hit the ground running. We have a lot of projects in the works.”

On a night filled with optimism, more than 50 people came out to H.R. Singleton’s in Bethpage including elected officials and members of surrounding Kiwanis clubs. The Seaford chapter was sponsored by Wantagh and Nassau University Medical Center Kiwanis.

Katz, who opened his financial services business, Edward Jones, in Seaford in 2012, immediately joined the Chamber of Commerce and Lions Club. ‘The one thing missing was Seaford Kiwanis,” he said.

He also joined the Wantagh Kiwanis Club, and after learning about the organization, decided it was time for Seaford to have its own chapter. Heidi Felix, president of Wantagh Kiwanis, wishes Katz and his fellow Seaford Kiwanians nothing but success.

“He made sure he had enough members to make it a very strong, solid club,” she said. “He went above and beyond.”

Felix said her advice to Katz was simple — “just be a leader, and lead by example.”

More than 20 people were inducted into the Seaford chapter on Sept. 13. Katz said the door is always open for new members.

Joseph Corace, a past district governor of Kiwanis, presented the club with its official charter. The organization also received a bell and a banner, and all members were given pins and certificates.

Corace said that all it takes is three to five projects a year for a Kiwanis chapter to make a difference in its community. With the leadership Seaford has in place, he expects that to be an easily attainable goal. “I see them very excited,” he said, “with a willingness to lead and strong commitment. I see big things in the future for this club.”

County Legislator Rose Walker, whose district includes part of Seaford, recalled the birth of the Bethpage Kiwanis Club two years ago, and said that chapter has since grown strong. She wished the same success in Seaford. “I just know this club is going to do wonderful things,” she said.

The specific mission of the Kiwanis Club, which turns 100 next year at the national level, is to serve children. One of the revived chapter’s first projects was a school supplies drive this past summer.

Felix said Katz’s interest in getting the Seaford Kiwanis up and running is sincere. “A lot of people do it for the PR,” she said. “He does it genuinely for the children.”

Katz said that children are the world’s most precious asset, and the goal of Kiwanis is to change the world one child at a time.

“I pledge to be the kind of president that the Seaford club deserves,” he said. “Failure is not, and never will be an option.”