From left, Emily Sharp of SSU Project Bear; Makayla Aiken, president of SSU Circle K; Angie Duduit, Kiwanis Service Leadership chair and SSU Circle K advisor; Sarah Short, ServeOhio Volunteer Engagement Program Officer and Katie Williams, Kiwanis member and Marketing manager of the Scioto County Public Library.
Submitted photo
PORTSMOUTH- The Kiwanis Club of Portsmouth recently received an award from ServeOhio through the Ohio Commission on Service and Volunteerism for its Cool Kids Read program. The club was awarded a $1,000 grant to support the continuation of the program.
The ServeOhio Awards, made possible through support from the American Electric Power Foundation, recognize outstanding people, groups, and initiatives in each region of Ohio who make great contributions to their communities through service and volunteerism.
“We consistently look for opportunities to support our local youth,” said Kiwanis Club of Portsmouth President, Misty Simco. “To obtain the acknowledgment of the state of Ohio for our efforts is beyond words.”
Kiwanis organizes the annual Cool Kids Read program in partnership with Shawnee State University’s (SSU) Project Bear program and the Scioto County Public Library to promote literacy to second graders in seven different school districts in Scioto County. Kiwanis Key Club members at Clay, Portsmouth, East, Wheelersburg, West, Notre Dame and Green High Schools, as well as the members of the Circle K Club at SSU, distribute free books and encourage students to read in fun and engaging ways.
For more information about the Kiwanis Club of Portsmouth, please visit www.kiwanisofportsmouth.org.
