A New Voice for Story Time: Aktion Club Member Reads to Head Start Students

One of the most rewarding aspects of Kiwanis service is finding new ways to connect people, encourage growth, and build community. Recently, the Kiwanis Club of Coeur d’Alene had the opportunity to do exactly that through a special partnership involving our Club’s sponsored Kootenai County Aktion Club, Specialized Needs Recreation (SNR), and the North Idaho College Head Start program.

For the first time, a member of SNR and our Kiwanis Aktion Club visited a Head Start classroom as a guest reader. Ursula, an Aktion Club member, spent time reading to the children and interacting with the class during story time. While the experience was something of an experiment for everyone involved, it quickly became clear that it was a success. The children were engaged and enthusiastic, and Ursula did an outstanding job connecting with them throughout the visit.

Specialized Needs Recreation is a Coeur d’Alene nonprofit whose mission is to enrich the lives of individuals with disabilities through recreation, socialization, and opportunities for personal growth. Aktion Club, sponsored by Kiwanis International, is the only service club in the world specifically for adults with disabilities, helping members develop leadership skills while serving their communities. Through our local Kiwanis sponsorship, Aktion Club members are encouraged to participate in meaningful community activities that build confidence, independence, and relationships.

The reading visit also beautifully complemented the mission of the Head Start program, which provides early childhood education and school-readiness opportunities for young children and families in our area. For Ursula, the experience represented an important personal growth opportunity, and she has already expressed excitement about returning to read again next school year. Encouragingly, other SNR and Aktion Club members are now interested in participating as well. What began as a simple idea may very well become a meaningful ongoing partnership — one that benefits not only the children being read to, but also the readers themselves.

The Kiwanis Club of Coeur d’Alene is proud to support programs that create inclusion, leadership, and connection within our community. Sometimes the most meaningful service projects begin with a single small step — and this one was a wonderful start.