Jim Donahue Shares Theme For New Kiwanis Year

At his installation as club president for the 2022-23 Kiwanis year on Monday, Sept. 26, Jim Donahue laid out his vision for his administration, reprinted with edits here:

2022-23 Kiwanis Club of Richmond President Jim Donahue is installed by Capital District Lt. Gov. Alisa Dick Sept. 26, 2022.

Welcome to the new 2022-2023 Kiwanis year! I thank all of you for giving me the honor of being the Club’s 104th president.

When I joined in 2005, I was motivated by luncheon fellowship, meeting people and becoming involved in community activities. I had been away from Richmond for 27 years and wanted to reconnect. At the time. I didn’t fully appreciate Kiwanis speak, but I would over time.

Tony Smith who invited me to lunch that day in 2005 let me know that I had only one answer when asked to join the Club.

Many years later, Barbara Dickinson wanted to know if I was interested in leadership. I said I didn’t know. She said, OK, you’ll be a director.

In March 2020, with Covid having us all locked-down, John McGinty called to see if I would be a candidate for Vice President. I said I would think about it. He said, “Thank you for saying yes.”

And the entire year Harry Harris was president he kept telling me, “It’s all coming your way, Jim.” Well Harry, I guess “it” has now arrived!

I have greatly enjoyed working with fellow Kiwanians and especially in these last three years with Presidents Barbara, Harry, and Bruce. I thank each of them for their outstanding leadership of our Club. And what a dynamic Club we are, impacting the lives of so many children in so many ways. We’re among the largest Kiwanis clubs in the country. We manage our projects, activities and administration in a smooth and efficient way, one president to the next, one Board to the next.

For that, I want to give a special shout-out to our Executive Director Christy Jenkins. She makes sure we stay on course year after year. I also want to especially thank my wife, Genie. She didn’t know that hearing all about Kiwanis all of the time was part of our wedding vows!

Looking ahead, I have a theme for my year:

Be Proactive … Be Creative … Be Strategic.

I feel that captures what we do and have done throughout our history.

We are proactive. At our partner school John B. Cary, Principal Michael Powell wanted an outdoor learning space for his students. He turned to us and Debbie Powers went to work. The result: a 15,000 sq. ft. “Eco-Campus” and Cary being named a Green Ribbon School by the U.S. Dept. of Education.

We are creative. Our Children’s Hospital at VCU partner came to us with a naming rights offer and a strategy for funding it. “The Kiwanis Club of Richmond Playroom” will be a very visible and active area in the new Wonder Tower when it opens next spring.

We are strategic. An array of non-profit partners receive Foundation grants each year to fund projects that directly benefit children in many ways. Examples were cited by Bruce when he reviewed the $65,000 awarded this past year.

I ask that we actively pursue this theme through my five goals:

Grow Membership: Add two new members each month by attracting guests with great luncheon speakers, pursuing the “2 for 2” recruitment plan and seeking corporate and organizational memberships.

Create Awareness and Visibility: Promote our Club across all media with a consistent message that publicizes our brand and its value to children.

Broaden and Expand Support at All Schools: Increase our interactions and involvement with our partner elementary schools, our high school Key Clubs and our Circle K VCU Club.

Build Partner Relations: Create a higher public profile with our non-profit partners to showcase the support that we provide.

And…Have Fun!

Capital District Division 11 Lt. Governor Alisa Dick presents Jim Donahue with his presidential gavel at the Kiwanis Club of Richmond’s officer installation meeting Monday, September 26, 2022.

I also think it is important that we take advantage of the many resources of Kiwanis International and be active supporters of our Kiwanis Capital District. At the Baltimore convention last month, new District Governor Jen Wolff presented her goals for the year. These are:

• Improve the Member experience.

• Grow Kiwanis Youth Programs.

• Expand Knowledge of the Kiwanis Brand.

• Add at least Seven New Clubs.

We will be hearing more about her plans in the coming weeks and I’ve asked Jen to join us as a speaker in 2023. Speaking of 2023, Richmond will host the annual Capital District Convention next August at the Marriott Hotel downtown. Plans are already underway. It’s going to be …. FUN!