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The Kiwanis of Sayville spent Saturday morning gifting presents to 13 local families to help spread some holiday cheer.
“We want to make sure that we gave back to the community,” said Steven Blody, president of the group, which supports the Greater Sayville community. “We just want to see the community get better — we’re looking to make sure that everybody has something under the Christmas tree this year.”
Typically, Kiwanis of Sayville hosts a pancake breakfast fundraiser.
But this year the group wanted to go the extra mile and host a whole holiday breakfast and brunch Saturday at the West Sayville Fire Department. There, they had presents for each invited family under a tree, baked goods, treats and coffee, and a special visit from Santa himself.
Blody added that the presents came from the Kawanis Club of Sayville’s members and from sponsors that included Combined Insurance, Island Federal Credit Union, UltraFlex Power Technologies, Brinkmanns Hardware. GreaterSayville.com was a media sponsor.
The Kiwanis club members also each took the time out to go shopping for every family.
Jarrod Gordon, Lt. Governor of the New York District Kiwanis Suffolk East Division, was at the event and said that he joined the cause because “you never know who you’re going to help.”
“A child can turn into the next Einstein. They can turn into the next Martin Luther King, Jr. They can turn into the next DaVinci. They can be curing cancer – you have no idea,” he said. “And if you don’t help these children [when they’re young], you never know what they can be when they get older.”
Blody said that unlike other years where Kiwanis membership and volunteerism had been trending downward in years past, this year the group increased membership with a solid 30 new members.
That being said, they’re hoping to branch out to other areas next year to continue the gift of giving.
Kiwanis organizers fundraisers to support community members all year long. Here are just some other events the group runs:
- Comedy Clubs
- Pancake Breakfasts
- Holiday Breakfasts
- Paintball Fundraisers
- Golf Outings
- Super Bowl Boxes
- School Supplies Drives
The group also awards scholarships to two school district high school programs, as well as provide financial support to send four local children to Summer Camp Kiwanis for free.
They also work to support the Angels of Long Island, based in Patchogue, in their annual toy drive.
The Sayville Kiwanis’ next fundraising event will be at Governor’s Comedy Club in Bohemia. The proceeds will be going to help Leeway Schools. Follow the Sayville Kiwanis on Facebook to learn more, or contact the Kiwanis of Sayville to become a member.
Photos of Kiwanis members with Santa taken by Jason Benze.
