By Andrew Hackmack
Hayat is a graduate of Valley Stream North High School and attends Hofstra University where she is majoring in early childhood and special education. After she graduates, Hayat said he hopes to become a teacher in Nassau County.
The Kiwanis Club is devoted to helping children in the community, said President Robert Coppola. He said the group supports organizations such as the scouts and little league and gives out scholarships to graduating high school seniors. Kiwanis also raises money to provide pediatric trauma kits to local schools, and supports the pediatric trauma center at North Shore University Hospital.
"We're a small club but we try to do a lot," Coppola said.
Hayat said that she learned about Kiwanis through a former advisor at North High School. She sent the Valley Stream chapter her resumŽ and after an interview was accepted into Kiwanis. "I wanted to do something for the community and give back," she said.
She is no stranger to community service, especially work with children. In high school, she tutored an autistic child and volunteered at Camp ANCHOR, a six-week summer program for children with disabilities in Lido. She also ran a cooking club at her former elementary school -- Howell Road -- and volunteered in the radiology and physical therapy departments at Franklin Hospital in North Valley Stream.
As a member of the Kiwanis Club, Hayat will serve as liaison to the Key Club at South High School. There are also plans to start a Key Club chapter at Central High School, and Coppola said she would work with that group, too.
Key Club is a Kiwanis-affiliated student service organization with more than 5,000 chapters at high schools mostly in the United States and Canada. Hayat said she looks forward to working with the high school students and assisting them in their mission of serving the Valley Stream community.
Hayat is also looking forward to helping Kiwanis with its upcoming pancake breakfast. The annual event, held around Easter, raises money for charity every year.
She said the members of Kiwanis have been very welcoming and encouraging. "They're very open-minded with how I want to help out," she said, "and projects I want to bring to the club."
Hayat said she hopes to be with Kiwanis for a long time.
Coppola said the group is always looking for new members. He noted that Valley Stream had a Rotary Club which folded, and doesn't want the same thing to happen to Kiwanis. He believes that Hayat is the youngest member the Valley Stream chapter has ever had and hopes this starts a trend.
"She came to us and she wanted to get involved," Coppola said. "Young people getting involved in service organizations is needed."
