We now meet in the new Village Green Community Center, and it’s inspiring to meet in such a beautiful space.

The new slate of officers have been voted on and sworn in. They are: Rob Shoaf, president; Glen Malin, president-elect; Margaret Lemay, secretary; Dahlia Malin, treasurer; Nancy Garing, immediate past-president.

One of the most important duties of the club is to select our “Kiwanian of the Year,” which denotes a member who goes way above what is expected in support of our club and community.

The following was written by Past President Pat Bennett-Forman and I have permission to plagiarize it.

Lemay receives Kiwanis honors: Margaret Lemay has been awarded 2016 Kiwanian of the Year honors by the Greater Kingston Kiwanis Club.

The award was announced at the May 26 Kiwanis meeting by President Rob Shoaf who stated, in giving the award, that Lemay’s long service record to the club and the community make her an obvious choice.

The Kiwanian of the Year award is given each year to a member who exemplifies the Kiwanis commitment to service and who has made significant contributions to the club.  During her 11 years with Greater Kingston Kiwanis, Lemay has been involved in many Kiwanis service projects, but her standout has been the nine years she served as adviser to the Kingston High School Key Club.

Lemay has met with the student organization throughout the school year since Kingston High School opened in 2007. She is present at Key Club meetings, at after-school activities and weekend service projects; she has attended state and regional conferences with them and supported their many fund-raising efforts.

Lori Camp, Kingston High School Key Club staff adviser, said of Lemay, “[She] has been critical to the initiation, growth and success of the Kingston High School Key Club. Her constant participation and unfailing support has helped the Key Club thrive.”

Kiwanis scholarship recipients Martha Rabura and Libby Roundy are Key Club officers whom Lemay has mentored.

Lemay has also been active in support of the annual Boys and Girls Club Gala for the past seven years. She has served on the planning committee and has been lead accountant, and has coordinated Key Club volunteers at the event.

North Kitsap Boys and Girls Club director Karen Jones said Lemay is always positive and willing to jump in wherever there is a need.

“Her dependability and even-keeled nature make her the backbone of the committee,” Jones said as she noted Lemay’s great relationship with Key Club volunteers.

Lemay has been the vice president and commercial loan officer for Columbia Bank in Kingston for more than 30 years. She has served on the Kingston Chamber of Commerce board since 2015 and is board treasurer.

Fellow chamber board member Linda Fyfe said, “[She] is willing to make new things happen. Her answer is always YES, or she will find someone else who can do it.”

Lemay and her husband, Ron, raised their family in Kingston. She has two grown children, David and Jennie.

The fun part for Margaret, in addition to this honor, is she will ride in a fancy convertible in the Fourth of July Parade and throw candy to all the kids she has worked with.

Congratulations, Margaret … you deserve it.

Kiwanis scholarships: Every year, Kingston Kiwanis awards scholarships to graduating high school seniors who have demonstrated a commitment to community service.

This year’s recipients: Martha Rabura and Elizabeth “Libby” Roundy.

Martha, a member of the National Honor Society, Key Club and ASB, is familiar to Kingston residents for her column in the Kingston Community News.

As part of her Girl Scout activities, she planned and led a project to establish a library at the Children of the Nations’ Mallory Jansen School in Sierra Leone. She collected nearly 3,500 items and more than $3,178 for the library, and volunteered more than 313 hours to the effort.

Martha has participated in local food drives, assisted homeless people, and performed mission work in Mexico.

She has a solid record of service to children, having volunteered at Gordon Elementary, the Kiwanis Halloween Carnival and Santa’s Workshop, the Boys and Girls Club Gala, and in a variety of campus and community clean-ups.

Libby is the youth representative on the Kingston Citizens Advisory Council. A member of Key Club since her sophomore year, she has participated in food drives, fund-raising for UNICEF’s Project Eliminate (maternal and neonatal tetanus), community clean-ups and the Kiwanis Halloween Carnival, Santa Workshop and the Boys and Girls Club Gala.

Libby is active in her church. She makes meals and blankets for displaced women and children, and holiday baskets for older residents. She participates in community clean-ups.

She also helped operate a summer girls’ camp through the Bainbridge Kids Discovery Museum.

Congratulations to both of these young women. Kingston Kiwanis is proud of their achievements and grateful for the service they have given the community. Best wishes for continued success in the next stage of their lives as they attend college.

Brews and berries: We had a very successful Brew Fest at Mike Wallace Park June 11. The event will help fund our scholarships and other “Children Priority One” projects supported by our club. The next day, we distributed strawberry orders at the Columbia Bank parking lot. Free strawberry shortcake was the hit of the day. On July 10, we’ll distribute raspberries; on July 24, blueberries. Yum, yum. Download a berry order form at greaterking stonkiwanis.weebly.com. You won’t be disappointed.

We do great things at Kiwanis. Join us.

— Contact Bob Lee at GLENCARIN@aol.com.