Last week, I talked about the Northern Macomb Regional Chamber of Commerce's 50th Anniversary, but did you know that another organization in Romeo is celebrating that milestone as well? This year also marks the 50th Anniversary of the Romeo Area Kiwanis Club!
For those who don't know, it's a service club that pledges to raise funds and support charity programs in the Romeo and Washington area.
The Romeo Area Kiwanis Club received its charter in a charter-installation night on Saturday, January 18, 1975. I know that we're a little late to the game talking about this, but hey, it's still 2025, so better late than never.
Luckily, The Romeo Observer covered the momentous occasion much sooner on the front page on its January 23, 1975 edition. Members of the newly formed Romeo Area Kiwanis Club, wives, and guests gathered at Orchard Place on 31 Mile Road east of Van Dyke to partake in the event. According to William Hershisher, who was the Kiwanis Division 3 Lieutenant Governor and served as the Master of Ceremonies, the club was formed after "a number of Romeo-Washington businessmen indicated the need for a service club which met at noon."
For context, other service clubs in town - Romeo Rotary and Lions Clubs - gathered in the evening. The Romeo Area Kiwanis Club formed in fall of 1974 and planned to meet Wednesday afternoons at the Ponderosa Bar on Van Dyke at 29 Mile Road. This is where Georgio's Apple Orchard Inn Restaurant currently stands.
Not only did the club officially charter that Saturday night in January 1975, but they also installed their officers. The officers are seen in the photo above standing next to the banner presented to the club. They include Dr. Ray McKinley, a dentist in Washington Township, as President-elect (he was in last week's photo about "The Peach Parade" game); Don Schmidt, a Ray Township planning commission chairman and Washington Township businessman, as Charter president; Keith Foucher of Washington Township's Hampton House as Vice President; and Robert G. Reid, Superintendent of the Romeo Community Schools, as Secretary. Mike Mattis, branch manager of the National Bank of Rochester's Romeo office, was installed as Treasurer, but he's absent from the picture.
Back in 2018, members of the Romeo Area Kiwanis Club donated various items to the Romeo Community Archives. These materials document the organization's history, events, and accomplishments, and they include scrapbooks, photographs, correspondence, clippings, awards, sponsorships, and fundraiser documents. The scrapbooks make up the bulk of the collection and range from 1974 to 2000.
One of those scrapbooks contains photographs, including the one seen here, and the actual program from the ceremony. The program reveals the names of the club's directors and charter members and that the Romeo Area Kiwanis Club was sponsored by Kiwanis Club of Utica. It also lists the specifics of the program, including the installation ceremony, along with dinner.
It must have been an exciting evening with the Romeo Area Kiwanis Club becoming official through that event. Since then, the club has contributed to various charity projects like delivering backpacks and winter gear to Head Start students and supporting literacy in the community.
Happy 50th Anniversary, Romeo Area Kiwanis Club! Here's to another 50 years. Also, buy their gourmet nuts when you can!
To learn more about the Romeo Area Kiwanis Club, you can contact the Romeo Community Archives at rca@romemodistrictlibrary.org or call (586) 690-4890 to check out their collection. If you want to search for articles on that topic, you can find the Romeo newspapers like The Romeo Observer on the Suburban Library Cooperative's Local History Digital Collection website.
Images and sources courtesy of the Romeo Community Archives; Melvin E. and Joan D. Bleich Collection, The Romeo Observer, January 23, 1975, p.1-A; Romeo Kiwanis Club Collection; 1975-76 Romeo Telephone Directory; and Romeo Area Kiwanis Facebook page