Kiwanis clubs unite to form GLAD Group

ALBANY — The four Kiwanis clubs in the Albany area have formed a collaborative effort to increase participation and awareness of Kiwanis’s efforts on behalf of children in the Dougherty/Lee county communities.

The GLAD — Golden K, Lee, Albany, and Dougherty – Group has been meeting for the last few months to organize and establish priorities. One of the first things on the agenda is conducting a survey of community and business leaders to discover areas where Kiwanis clubs can individually or jointly have a positive impact. This is expected to take place in the near future.

The Kiwanis clubs have already partnered with two restaurant chains’ local outlets.

On Tuesday, representatives of the various Kiwanis clubs were present at the Albany IHOP to help raise funds for the Children’s Miracle Network, of which Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital is a member. Kiwanians spoke with restaurant customers to impart knowledge about CMN and what it does for pediatric care at Phoebe.

According to Phoebe CMN and Event Coordinator Rebecca Miller, “We are so thankful for the local support and donations for Children’s Miracle Network because it allows us to fund specialized equipment, programs and education that significantly enhance the medical treatment provided for our infants and children. Something as small as donating a few dollars for a stack of pancakes has a huge impact on our community – every dollar counts.”

“All of the money donated on National Pancake Day stays in this community,” Mary Lou Nowell of the Albany Kiwanis Club, coordinator for the clubs’ CMN/IHOP event, added. “The Children’s Miracle Network funds many things, especially for the NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) at Phoebe, such as a twin transporter, which costs over $175,000. It is designed to carry twins who need critical care to much-needed hospitalization.”

The next event planned by the GLAD Group will be a Chick-Fil-A Spirit Night, from 4-8 p.m. Saturday. Chick-Fil-A locations in Albany and Lee County – with the current exception of the Chick-Fil-A drive-thru on Dawson Road – will participate in a benefit for the local Kiwanis clubs. Customers at the restaurants who tell their order-taker “I’m here for Spirit Night” will have 10 percent of their purchase donated to the fundraising effort.

While forming a collaborative effort, each club will continue to undertake its own individual projects.

Although chaired by Frances Greene, the GLAD Group was initiated through the efforts of Katrina Baranko, an Albany Kiwanis Club member and area Kiwanis coordinator who is a candidate for international Kiwanis trustee. Her name will be on the ballot for election at Kiwanis International’s convention in Las Vegas, Nev., in June. Baranko owns and operates the Merle Norman Cosmetics Studio on Ledo Road.