NORTHFIELD — As one of its final acts of charity as it disbands, the Northfield Kiwanis Club awarded $500 scholarships to four Pioneer Valley Regional School graduates and $4,500 to the Northfield Fire Department’s Junior Firefighters program in July.
The Northfield Kiwanis Club has granted money to students pursuing higher education since the club was founded in the 1950s. Students are eligible to apply even if they are not taking a four-year college or university path, and can apply if they are heading to a trade school or another post-secondary training program.
Northfield Kiwanis Club Treasurer Steve Stoia credits past club member Charles “Chuck” Handren, as well as his successor, David Yucavitch, with establishing the strong roots that have allowed the educational awards program to persist through the years.
“Chuck insisted that, at the start of every fiscal year, that we set aside enough money to cover the scholarships,” Stoia said in a statement. “Chuck was adamant that if we did anything as a club, we needed to invest in the future of the town’s youth.”
Additionally, the Kiwanis Club awarded the $4,500 to help support the Junior Firefighters program, which is the largest donation the program has received. The gift was in honor of the late David Quinn Jr., former assistant chief of the Northfield Fire Department.
“This is going to ensure that the program will continue for years to come,” Northfield Fire Chief Floyd “Skip” Dunnell III said of the gift. The money will support the program’s six participants by taking care of any expenses for uniforms and trips to other fire stations.
“They left a good impression with the Kiwanis Club and how they help give back in the community,” Dunnell said of the Junior Firefighters.
Dunnell’s daughter, Amanda Herrmann, is a graduate of the Northfield Junior Firefighters program and has served as a member of the all-volunteer department since graduating in 2003. She is now an advisor to the program. To her, this donation and the other donations from the Northfield Kiwanis Club are impactful to small-town organizations and events that can continue to serve others, matching the club’s mission.
Although the Kiwanis Club is in the process of disbanding amid dwindling membership, the tradition of scholarship donations was able to continue this year.
“That was one of the last programs of the year that we normally do in the spring,” Stoia said in an interview. He noted that, per the club’s nonprofit status, it must distribute its funds when disbanding.
These most recent contributions add to the list of the Kiwanis Club’s large donations this year. One donation of $15,500 went to the Northfield Elementary School Parent-Teacher Organization for a new pavilion that will serve as an outdoor classroom for students and a community space for locals. Another $8,000 went to Dickinson Memorial Library for new furniture in the Children’s Room. Additionally, the club helped fund the Northfield Recreation Commission’s five-day-a-week summer program with $8,000 donated this year.
On top of these financial contributions, the Kiwanis Club has contributed to local causes, including the Northfield Regional Food Pantry and the Northfield Clothing Closet. The group has hosted an annual Easter egg hunt with help from the Northfield Police Department and Northfield EMS, who will be taking over organizing the event. The Kiwanis Club also holds an annual craft and gift fair each December, the proceeds of which go to feeding low-income families.
Stoia said in disbanding the Kiwanis Club, the main focus has been on how to help keep the programs that the club once supported going. The Easter egg hunt now has Northfield’s first responders taking over, while the Great River Challenge, an off-road triathlon consisting of paddling, running and biking, has been taken over by the Northfield Recreation Commission. However, the educational scholarship fund is still in limbo.
“That particular one is a mystery, or problematic for us,” Stoia said in an interview, noting that the Kiwanis Club has not found an opportunity for a local organization or business to offer these grants to students. “We’re looking for a partnership between maybe a business and a private organization to pick that up for annual gifts to graduating seniors.”
In addition to finding someone to carry on the scholarship fund, Stoia is looking to preserve the Kiwanis Club’s history by asking people to share their club memorabilia with him, whether that comes in the form of photos, newspaper clippings or other items.
“To give away thousands [of dollars] to each individual organization, like we’re doing, is really unheard of,” he said in an interview, “but what we’re trying to do is also make people realize what a nonprofit organization that gets no money for salaries, or anything, does for the community, and that’s important.”
Stoia asks that people who have photos, clippings or other memorabilia contact him at 94 Main St. in Northfield or 413-498-5921.