TWIN CITY KIWANIS CLUB MARKS 70 YEARS WITH SPECIAL GRANTS TO LOCAL NON-PROFITS
More Than $1.2 Million Donated Since Club’s Founding
The Twin City Kiwanis Club will mark its 70th anniversary by making special, one-time $1,000 Platinum Award grants to seven of its longest-standing partners that serve youth in the community. The grants will be awarded at an anniversary dinner to be held September 30at the Forsyth Country Club.
The seven nonprofits are A Bed and a Book, Children of Vietnam, Crosby Scholars, Forsyth Education Warehouse, Salvation Army, Scouting America, and Smart Start of Forsyth County.
Also at the dinner, Mayor Allen Joines will present a proclamation honoring the club’s 70 years of outstanding and dedicated service to the community. Eight members who have 50 or more years of membership, including the last surviving charter member, Woody Clinard, will receive special recognition.
The Twin City Kiwanis Club started in 1956 as a “plant” by the Winston-Salem Kiwanis Club. As do all Kiwanis clubs, the Twin City Kiwanis Club focuses on identifying children’s needs in the community and conducting service projects that respond to those needs. The club is best known for its pancake jamboree fund-raiser at the Benton Convention Center each year, which nets annually $40,000 or more that it distributes to non-profits that serve local youth.
This year, the Twin City Kiwanis Club is providing a total of $71,000 in grants to more than 22 local organizations, including A Bed and a Book, Crosby Scholars, Crossnore Community, Salvation Army Red Shield Club, Scouting America, and Smart Start of Forsyth County. Since 2006, the Twin City Kiwanis Club has distributed almost $725,000 in grants. The total amount distributed since the first pancake jamboree in 1958 easily exceeds $1.2 million, although an exact figure is not available.
In partnership with the Winston-Salem Foundation, Twin City Kiwanis has established the Harold Southern/Twin City Kiwanis Endowment to fund child-directed projects in perpetuity. Most recently, the endowment funded a three-year, $25,000 literacy/mentorship program in partnership with the Salvation Army Red Shield Club to provide summer jobs for teen mentors to help younger children with literacy.
In addition to the annual pancake jamboree, other annual club activities include participating in the Salvation Army’s Red Kettle Project and Kiwanis-sponsored programs such as high school key clubs; the Kiwanis Builders Club for youth 12-14; and the Surry County Aktion Club, which is a service club for young adults with disabilities.
David Gilbert, the club president, said that anyone interested in joining Kiwanis is welcome to attend a meeting to learn more. “Twin City Kiwanis provides members with a meaningful way to positively impact our community,” he said. “But we also offer members the opportunity for building lifelong friendships and networking with business and community leaders.
“For young professionals with busy schedules, we have a group that meets monthly, but we also have a traditional group that meets over lunch weekly to hear from guest speakers,” Gilbert said. The traditional club meets Wednesdays at 11:45 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Centenary United Methodist Church, 646 W. Fifth St., Winston-Salem. The monthly meetings of the Twin City Kiwanis Next Gen Satellite Club vary. For more information visit TwinCityKiwanisClub.org.
Press Release: September 24, 2026
TWIN CITY KIWANIS CLUB MARKS 70 YEARS WITH SPECIAL GRANTS TO LOCAL NON-PROFITS
More Than $1.2 Million Donated Since Club’s Founding
The Twin City Kiwanis Club will mark its 70th anniversary by making special, one-time $1,000 Platinum Award grants to seven of its longest-standing partners that serve youth in the community. The grants will be awarded at an anniversary dinner to be held September 30at the Forsyth Country Club.
The seven nonprofits are A Bed and a Book, Children of Vietnam, Crosby Scholars, Forsyth Education Warehouse, Salvation Army, Scouting America, and Smart Start of Forsyth County.
Also at the dinner, Mayor Allen Joines will present a proclamation honoring the club’s 70 years of outstanding and dedicated service to the community. Eight members who have 50 or more years of membership, including the last surviving charter member, Woody Clinard, will receive special recognition.
The Twin City Kiwanis Club started in 1956 as a “plant” by the Winston-Salem Kiwanis Club. As do all Kiwanis clubs, the Twin City Kiwanis Club focuses on identifying children’s needs in the community and conducting service projects that respond to those needs. The club is best known for its pancake jamboree fund-raiser at the Benton Convention Center each year, which nets annually $40,000 or more that it distributes to non-profits that serve local youth.
This year, the Twin City Kiwanis Club is providing a total of $71,000 in grants to more than 22 local organizations, including A Bed and a Book, Crosby Scholars, Crossnore Community, Salvation Army Red Shield Club, Scouting America, and Smart Start of Forsyth County. Since 2006, the Twin City Kiwanis Club has distributed almost $725,000 in grants. The total amount distributed since the first pancake jamboree in 1958 easily exceeds $1.2 million, although an exact figure is not available.
In partnership with the Winston-Salem Foundation, Twin City Kiwanis has established the Harold Southern/Twin City Kiwanis Endowment to fund child-directed projects in perpetuity. Most recently, the endowment funded a three-year, $25,000 literacy/mentorship program in partnership with the Salvation Army Red Shield Club to provide summer jobs for teen mentors to help younger children with literacy.
In addition to the annual pancake jamboree, other annual club activities include participating in the Salvation Army’s Red Kettle Project and Kiwanis-sponsored programs such as high school key clubs; the Kiwanis Builders Club for youth 12-14; and the Surry County Aktion Club, which is a service club for young adults with disabilities.
David Gilbert, the club president, said that anyone interested in joining Kiwanis is welcome to attend a meeting to learn more. “Twin City Kiwanis provides members with a meaningful way to positively impact our community,” he said. “But we also offer members the opportunity for building lifelong friendships and networking with business and community leaders.
“For young professionals with busy schedules, we have a group that meets monthly, but we also have a traditional group that meets over lunch weekly to hear from guest speakers,” Gilbert said. The traditional club meets Wednesdays at 11:45 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Centenary United Methodist Church, 646 W. Fifth St., Winston-Salem. The monthly meetings of the Twin City Kiwanis Next Gen Satellite Club vary. For more information visit TwinCityKiwanisClub.org.
September 24, 2026