When
a Scottsburg Middle School student was diagnosed with cancer, they
answered the call to raise money to help defray the costs as the family
traveled for frequent treatments. When the Salvation Army geared up for
another holiday season with its Red Kettle campaign, they were there,
standing in the frigid temperatures and ringing bells to raise money to
the Scott County Community Clearinghouse, which assists needy families
with food, clothing, housing and other necessities. And, when the Scott
County Humane Society needed donations for their Cat Adoption Center,
they were there too. They provided funds for the adoption center, so
homeless cats in the community could have a better chance in finding
forever homes.
“It’s amazing,” said Lisa Sutton, Scottsburg Middle
School teacher and faculty advisor for the SMS chapter of the Builders
Club. “People see them and ask, ‘Who are these kids?’”
These
community-minded students are the SMS chapter of the Builders Club, a
Kiwanis service club that is designed for middle and junior high school
students. The group of more than 45 students work together on projects
of their choosing and try to help make their community a better place.
In
the recent past, the students created Veterans Day cards for the men
and women who served in the military and are living in assisted and
long-term care facilities in the community, worked early in the morning
at the Kiwanis annual pancake breakfast to raise money for scholarships
for local high school students, sorted and organized clothes at the
CRADLE Pregnancy Resource Center, and created a first-place winning
float in the local Christmas parades. The group has also won the Mayor’s
Good Neighbor Award and the Scottsburg Kiwanis Club Wins Distinguished
Club Award.
“It’s a great honor to help people. It makes you feet
great, and it’s amazing,” said Chloe Helton, an eighth-grade student and
president of the Builders Club at SMS. “I feel like I’m making a
difference.”
Not only do the students work on a raising money or
helping with larger projects in the community, the students learn how to
become leaders and better citizens. They learn organizational,
planning, leadership, and communication skills. They even create a
legacy for future members.
“Abby Walsh was in [Key Club] the year
it was chartered [in 2010-2011],” said Al Riggle, Kiwanis advisor for
the SMS Builders Club and the Key Club at Scottsburg High School. “She
had to learn how to speak in front of people. She went to Key Leader
Camp and came back a different person.”
Walsh graduated from SHS in 2015, but her sister, Lily, who is in sixth-grade has joined the SMS Builders Club.
“She wants to follow in her sister’s footsteps,” Riggle said. “It’s exciting.”
For
Constance Giuliano, eighth-grade student and vice-president of the SMS
Builders Club, she wanted to be part of the organization because of the
legacy past members had developed for her class.
“I aspire to be like the eighth-graders last year,” Giuliano said. “It feels great to help people.”
In
addition to the positive work the SMS Builders Club has done for its
community, the club will also have a chance to mentor younger students
as the Scottsburg Kiwanis Club is starting a K-Kids club at
Vienna-Finley Elementary School. The K-Kids club is geared toward
fourth- and fifth-grade students.
“We are excited about our kids being mentors and teaming up with the elementary school,” Sutton said.
The
SMS Builders Club works to better their community and build a lasting
legacy. At Scott County School District 2, the SMS Builders Club’s story
is our story. Your story matters. You matter.