It’s not often that you hear of a parent following in their child’s footsteps but that’s exactly what Fort Frances Kiwanis president Dana-Lynn Begin has done.
It was Begin’s daughter McKenna who was president before taking on a new role with Kiwanis on a bigger scale as Governor for the Western Canada District.
Dana-Lynn’s history with volunteering goes back to childhood when her father was a Kiwanian.
“My dad was a member of Kiwanis and my uncle as well,” she said. “So it was just something I grew up with being involved with the Kiwanis Club and helping out over the years.”
When her daughter returned to Fort Frances on a full-time basis after university Dana-Lynn says it wasn’t a shock that she wanted to be involved.
“I’ve been with Kiwanis probably over 14 years. So both my children, Matthew and McKenna would come out to different events that Kiwanis was hosting, like garbage cleanup or different activities. So it’s just kind of been built into their world as they’ve grown up helping and volunteering in the community,” she said. “It didn’t surprise me when McKenna wanted to come out, so it was pretty rewarding to have her come and join us, and then for her to take on the president role at such a young age, it’s usually the parent pushing their children to excel and move forward, it’s kind of been a reversed role.”
Dana-Lynn says she has been encouraged with her daughter as the leader of the club.
“McKenna’s definitely been a leader for me and getting me more involved with the club and taking on leadership roles,” she said. “So, it’s just really neat to kind of follow in her footsteps, you know, as opposed to the child following in the parents’ footsteps. I just think it’s so rewarding to partner up with my daughter and work towards such a great cause, and try to just provide service in the community. With Kiwanis, their focus is all about children, so it’s just been a wonderful platform.”
After her daughter joined and brought some of her friends along, Dana-Lynn says that the local Kiwanis club has had a breath of fresh air and new ideas.
It’s brought some new zest of life and energy to our club,” She said. “I feel we’re very diverse now, with our age demographics. So it’s been very rewarding. Just to see and have new ideas coming through. Our new members initiated the music bingo, which has been a huge success. So it’s definitely a fundraiser we’ll continue for years to come.”
Dana-Lynn also says that the younger members have been open to learning from the older ones and vice versa.
“It’s just been really energizing to see everybody come together and share their ideas,” she said. “You know, we’re learning from seasoned members that have been with the club for years, but they’re open to new ideas, and then the younger generation being comfortable and confident in sharing some new initiatives and working together. So there’s really a nice overlap throughout the club, and there’s cohesiveness. Everyone just works well together.”
Dana-Lynn says they have seen some great initiatives from the younger members in addition to the music bingo. The group is working on getting local access to the Dolly Parton Imaginaiton Library which is a program that mails free, high-quality books to children from birth to age five.
They have also started working on birthday boxes which will allow parents who can’t necessarily afford to throw their kids a birthday party to do so by providing them with a cake pan, cake mix and some decorations to be able to throw a small party and make their kids feel special on their birthdays.
Dana-Lynn has also taken on the role of Lieutenant-Governor for the Western District which means she sits on the Western District Board and has the opportunity to interact with different clubs from the region. One of the other clubs, upon hearing about the birthday box initiative, was hoping to start it in their area as well.
Dana-Lynn says that she hopes by getting new blood in the club will keep it running for another 100 years.
“You need that diversity just with the ages, to be stronger and create a sustainable club. Because if you don’t start to grow and bring in new members, your club isn’t going to be sustainable,” she said. “I’ve noticed that across our western district, clubs haven’t grown their membership or worked hard to bring in newer, younger members that can continue the legacy of Kiwanis. Their clubs have folded. So you do have to keep the wheel moving forward if you want to be here for another 100 years.”
