About Us
The Kiwanis Club of Tyler chartered on May 10, 1921 with 50 members as part of Kiwanis International to provide programs and projects that help the Tyler community stronger.
The Tyler-Rose City Kiwanis Club's main focus is an outpouring of love, support, and community for our children. We believe in building leadership in the youth of our community through sponsoring clubs at elementary (K-Kids), middle school (Builder's Club), high school (Key Club), and college (Circle K). These Student Leadership Programs (SLPs) give students an opportunity to learn leadership skills while planning and executing community service projects.
Our flagship projects include The Spirit of Christmas Food Drive, an annual Christmas party for children enrolled at Tyler Day Nursery, assembling and warehousing disaster relief backpacks, reading to elementary students throughout Tyler ISD, and providing monetary donations to other community service organizations to positively impact our local youth.
We also focus on promoting reading and the love of books with elementary-age children by installing Little Libraries in area neighborhoods. The Little Libraries provide free books to expand book access for everyone in the Rose City.
Tyler-Rose City Kiwanis History
1921 - Kiwanis Club of Tyler chartered.
1931 - The Club's efforts helped increase The Salvation Army Bell Ringing Kettle proceeds by almost 330% and was one of the club's earliest community activities.
1939 - The Club began sponsorship of Boy Scout Troop 339.
1947 - The Club began hosting it's major Annual Turkey Shoot Fundraiser. It has become an annual family event at Camp Tyler prior to the Thanksgiving Holiday. Kiwanians continue to work on projects at Camp Tyler and provide financial assistance to camper programs.
1949 - The Club began work on forming a year-round facility to be used as an outdoor camp for the children of Tyler and the surround community at the current Camp Tyler location.
1956 - Camp Tyler began housing campers for the first time with the opening of the Donaldson and Dudley Cabins.
1968 - The Spirit of Christmas Food Drive was started. A few years later, the Brookshire Grocery Company joined forces and we now package and deliver Christmas food boxes to almost 1,000 families in the Tyler community.
2001 - The Annual Eagle Scout College Scholarship was established to honor an Outstanding Eagle Scout.
Join us at our weekly meetings or fill out the Contact Us form for additional information.
2023 - 2024 Board Members
President: Samantha Bruce
President Elect: Rob Smith
Immediate Past President: Steve Callaway
Secretary: David Lockridge
Treasurer: Lindsey Smith
Board Members: Gene Bruce (2022-2024); D. L. Hanson (2022-2024); Darrie Taylor (2022 - 2024); Allison Aragon (2023 - 2025); Eddie Hanson (2023 - 2025)
Community Action
Rose City Children's Charities is a 501 (c)3 Foundation that distributes monies to programs for which the Tyler-Rose City Kiwanis Club raises funds.
Camp Tyler: Camp Tyler came about from an idea one of our Kiwanis members had in 1945. He envisioned a year-round facility to be used as an outdoor camp for the children of Tyler and the surrounding communities. With hard work and a lot of fundraising, Camp Tyler opened in 1956 with Donaldson and Dudley cabins housing campers for the first time. Camp Tyler is owned and operated by The Camp Tyler Foundation. The foundation contracts with Tyler ISD and other surrounding ISD's to provide the Camp Tyler Outdoor School Program to 5th graders each year.
The Character Network - Bully Prevention Program: A research-based proactive bully prevention program that is documented to work. Tyler ISD, other school districts across Texas, and other states are seeking organizations to sponsor this program in their schools. Our club sponsors the program at Cain Elementary School in Whitehouse and other schools as well.
John Bell Eagle Scout Scholarship: Sponsors college students up to $1,000 per year
Circle K International (CKI: College): CKI empowers college students through service to local and global communities. In CKI, you’ll work with other passionate students to develop leadership skills and make lifelong friendships – all in an inclusive and supportive environment. We sponsor a CKI Club at the University of Texas at Tyler.
Key Clubs (High School): Key Club is a Kiwanis Leadership Program for high school students that teaches leadership, ethics, integrity and responsibility. Each year a Sophomore of The Year Award is given as well as a scholarship. We sponsor a Key Club at Whitehouse and Tyler Legacy.
Builders' Clubs (Middle School): Builders' Club is a Kiwanis Leadership Program for middle school students that teaches community service and leadership skills. We've previously sponsored Builder's Clubs at Tyler Hubbard, Whitehouse Junior High, and Whitehouse Holloway.
K-Kids (Elementary): K-Kids is a Kiwanis Leadership Program for children aged 6-12 yrs. This program teaches leadership, organization and responsibility. Children elect officers and a Board of Directors. We've previously sponsored K-Kids Clubs at Whitehouse Cain and Whitehouse Brown.
Project Committees
Board of Directors: Meet 4th Wednesday of each month to discuss and direct the business of the club.
Bringing Up Grades (Bugs): Encourages elementary age students to raise their grades in at least one subject each report card. Students receive recognition certificates that they can take home and are included in a party at the end of each report card period.
Finance/Fundraising: Events to raise funds for our clubs service projects and programs Ensure a financial review by an independent party is conducted annually.
Flag Program: Fundraiser that places flags in the community 7 times a year: President's Day, Memorial Day, Flag Day, 4th of July, Labor Day, September 11th and Veteran's Day.
Gobble Wobble 5K Fun Run: A virtual race for fun and glory.
McAfee Reading Program: Each year our McAfee Reading Program brings a new book to each Kindergarten child enrolled in Tyler ISD. Club members read to Kindergarten classes and present each child with a book they can take home and keep for their own. We would love to expand our program to reach every child in Whitehouse and Chapel Hill. Perhaps you would enjoy helping with this program as we need more volunteers to read to these classes.
Membership Committee: Growing the club through new members and Retention of current members.
Program Committee: Obtain speakers for weekly meetings.
Service Committee: Community Services, Club Service Projects, Service Leadership Programs, Flag Program, and Reading Program.
Service Leadership Programs: Encourage students to develop leadership skills, build character, and perform community service projects through Aktion Club, Key Club, Builder's Club, K-Kids, and BUGS (Bringing Up Grades).
Spirit of Christmas Food Drive: Started in 1968, Coordinates the Spirit of Christmas Food Drive locally by working with Brookshire's Grocery Stores to ensure food is picked up from their locations and stored at the K-Barn; working with local schools to pick up food from their food drives and store it at the K-Barn. Also, coordinate local youth groups and others to help sort and box the food for distribution. Maintain and coordinate the distribution list with Meals on Wheels and other Smith County Agencies.
Tyler Day Nursery Santa Visit: Annually the club provides a visit from Santa Claus along with presents for each child enrolled at the Tyler Day Nursery.
V-Dac: Fundraiser in which members locate vehicles to be donated to the club. Click here for more information on vehicle donations to the Kiwanis Children's Fund.