1st Annual Pancake Breakfast benefiting Berkeley Lake Elementary School PTA a success!

At the start of the school year the Duluth Kiwanis Club partnered with Berkley Lake Elementary School to start       a K-Kids Club. K-Kids helps children learn about leadership, as they plan and participate in community service projects. The club comprised of twenty-nine members, recently held it’s installation of officers officiated by Shea Stringer, Lt Governor for Kiwanis District 19. ‘Our relationship with the school has grown’, said Gil Guggenheimer, Club Sponsor. ‘We’ve begun to realize that there is so much more to be done at the school, that we’ve expanded our reach to their Half Hour Hero program and helping to stock the school’s food pantry.’

The Half Hour Hero program pairs volunteers with students to help them read. For a majority of the students, English is a second language; there are nineteen different languages spoken in the school. The food pantry was started by the school staff who realized that many of the students were from families who were in need. Over fifty-nine percent of the students participate in the reduced and free lunch program and for many; this is the main meal of the day. The food pantry stocks main meal canned goods which helps the children supplement what their families have available.