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What Kiwanis Means to Me: Members Speak
Compiled by John Allen
John Champaigne
Charter Member, First President
"A fellow worker at Kimberly-Clark, Jack Bletzinger, convinced me to join this new
Kiwanis Club. I, who had never been to a Kiwanis meeting and knew little about the Kiwanis
organization, was elected the first president. Because of organization problems, the term
lasted eighteen months. The secretary was not too dedicated, so I ended up writing the
minutes and Barbara prepared the news letter.
"The club started with twenty members, six of us whom worked at KC. It grew fast and
in two years we had thirty-one members. The first fundraiser we were involved in was
joining the Noon Club in the Pancake Day. One of the continuing problems was the turnover
in membership and finding replacements."
John has gained fame in the Club for his sale of tickets for the Pancake Day and handling
the tickets at the door. At the fundraisers he can be recognized wearing the Kiwanis cap.
Kiwanis ranks with golf and gardening in his special interests.
Bill Herziger
Charter Member, 1974
The Menasha Kiwanis evening club, of which I was a member, became defunct and Jack
Bletzinger rounded up some former members and friends and formed a Breakfast Kiwanis Club.
The first meetings were at the Roundtable Restaurant located in the now destroyed Menasha
Armory. It used round tables as the idea for its name, and we carried on by naming our
Kiwanis Club "The Roundtable."
The restaurant closed and we moved to Neenah's Valley Inn. They had troubles which
affected our relationship and we moved back to Menasha and the Menasha Hotel. We received
royal treatment, but then they changed management and without any notice, closed.
We went back to Neenah and the Old Post Office Restaurant in the former post office. It
was going well and we were happy there until they closed. Then we returned to the Valley
Inn, which had changed ownership and management. We may growl sometimes, but we are still
there.
Maybe our name, Roundtable, means more than the round tables where we sat in our first
meetings; it may be the story of our going "round and round" in the locations
where we had our breakfasts and meetings.
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This page was last updated on 03/13/00