Kiwanis Club
The Kiwanis Club of Vienna was organized in 1952 and received its charter in December of that year. The club was sponsored by the Kiwanis Club of Girard. Twenty-five Vienna residents were charter members. Since then, club members have included Township trustees, school board members, local business owners, members of the clergy, professionals, housewives, union members, farmers, and students.
The first officers were Reverend William Woodall (President), Harold Viets (Vice President), Ralph Bolander (Secretary), and Thomas Craig (Treasurer). Meetings were held on Monday evenings at the Vienna Presbyterian Church. The first official meeting and charter party was held in February, 1953.
One of the earliest activities sponsored by the Club was the Pancake and Sausage Dinner. The Kiwanis was one of the first in the area to have this type of dinner. The 500 pounds of sausage cooked by the Club was made by hand at Paul Smith's grocery store. What was not cooked at the dinner was sold to residents. The Pancake and Sausage Dinners helped raise money to support community projects, such as sponsoring Mathews High School Band and athletic banquets, the Kiwanis Kapers (a showcase for local amateur talent), and a donkey basketball game in Memorial Auditorium on January 23, 1956. The members have also squared off against the Liberty Optimists and the Vienna Township Volunteer Fire Department in basketball games. The group also sponsored the first Vienna Little League baseball team in 1953.
The Kiwanis and the the Fire Department co-sponsored the Mills Brothers Circus on October 14, 1963. William Hagood, Howard Everett, Paul Kovacs, and Edward Angstadt were dressed as clowns and operated the concession stand.
The Kiwanis Antique Show started in 1966 when Paul Miller was president.
Left to right: unknown, Paul Miller, Bud Baer, Glen Burns
The Key Club was an organization sponsored by the Kiwanis at Mathews High School. Two students were elected to the highest office in the state. Jeff Johnson in 1964 and Jennifer DeFrance in 1997 were elected as Governor of Key Club of Ohio.
The Key Club at Mathews High School was an all boys organization until the1977-1978 school year when girls were permitted membership. [1]
The Key Club at Mathews High School dissolved after the 2011-2012 school year according to yearbook records.
Image Source: 1978 Memory
One of the mottoes of Kiwanis is "We Build" and the Kiwanis Club of Vienna has done just that. The Club constructed the dugouts and a storage shed at the Mathews High School baseball field and the scoreboard at the football field; the playground at Currie Elementary School in Fowler; goals for the soccer league; a garage at the New Life Maternity Center; the sign in front of Mathews High School; and the community sign at Vienna Center.
The Vienna Club of Kiwanis disbanded circa April 2010 due to lack of interest.
Updated 12/18/2021
[1] Source: 1978 Memory