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Photograph courtesy of Lynette West
Child Advocate: Campbell resident Marilyn West is the second president of the Campbell Kiwanis Club, which began in 1926.
Public Citizen
Kiwanis president devoted to kids
By Moryt Milo
Campbell Kiwanis Club President Marilyn West has devoted her life to helping children. After spending 20 years as a school nurse working with special education children in the Santa Clara Offices of Education, it was only natural for West to become part of an organization that focused on youth.
West said a friend got her involved with the Kiwanis Club, and openly admits she never knew what a Kiwanian was until joining the organization.
But once she learned the club's focus was community service, she began volunteering for many of the club's projects and activities.
The 70-year-old woman joined the club in 1996 after retiring from the county. A nurse practitioner for 45 years, she became the club's secretary for three years before becoming the club's president in October 2001.
West said the Campbell chapter is one of 16 clubs in the area. It has 34 members and is 75 years old, only 12 years younger than the national organization that was founded in 1915.
All the chapter's fundraisers, projects and activities benefit the Campbell community, with all the profits going toward neighborhood programs.
The club's work varies in scope, from child immunization and car seat safety programs, to high school scholarships and reading to young children.
The club also adopted a stretch of Highway 85 and put up a "Welcome to Campbell" sign on San Tomas Expressway just off Highway 17.
"It took us five years to get the sign approved through the city," West said. "When it finally happened we all celebrated."
The club has also expanded its activities to include international projects. For the past five years the club worked with UNICEF to help wipe out Iodine Deficiency Disorder--a mineral deficiency that causes various mental and physical disabilities.
By putting iodine into the salt used in Third World countries the club helped in the elimination of the disorder, West said.
The club, whose name comes from a Native American word meaning "we get together," adopted as its national motto the phrase "we build."
For West, the motto fits perfectly with the club's purpose and her own goals.
Recently the club became involved with the Turnaround program, which rewards high school students who significantly improve their grades. The students often have low self-esteem.
"Suddenly the child hits some sort of wall and starts to turn his or her life around," West says.
The club recognizes and encourages these students by awarding them scholarships to continue their education at a college.
Last year, five Campbell students received $1,000 each from the Kiwanis Club.
The response was fantastic, West said. The club received thank you letters from parents and students who wrote and said the organization was one of the few groups that stuck by them.
West said her activities in the club are a continuation of her life's work.
"I see it as an opportunity to give back to the community, which is what it's all about," she said.
Know someone who deserves to be in the paper? Nominate a Public Citizen! Send the name of a noteworthy neighbor to: Editor, The Campbell Reporter, 1095 The Alameda, San Jose, CA 95126; fax 408.200.1013; or email ssanchez@svcn.com.
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Campbell, California
