It’s safe to say that a majority of Westsiders have heard of Key Club, or at least its name. But when asked what Key Club is actually about and what it does, many respond by saying, “I dunno, something involving keys?” This constantly reoccurring response has led Key Club co-president and sophomore Amy Conaway to make it perfectly clear that Key Club is “not a club about keys.”

Key Club is a “spin-off,” as Key Club sponsor and guidance counselor Vicki Londer likes to put it, “of the adult Kiwanis” International organization.  Kiwanis is an international volunteer-led organization founded in 1915. The elementary school branch is called K-Kids.

Key Club’s modus operandi is to help out the community through service learning projects. Unlike similar Westside club Service Learning Club, which hopes to improve Omaha on a bigger scale, Key Club focuses more on District 66 and Westside community, and how to better improve District 66 and the people in it, specifically.

“Our goal is to improve the well-being of people directly in the Westside community,” Key Club co-president sophomore Melissa Loney said. “We did a food drive and all of the food went to the Westside Food Pantry. And [the gifts from] the Holiday Adoption program went to Westside families.”

Key Club looks to expand its publicity along with continuing its usual events throughout this school year.

“We’ve kind of been doing a lot of firsts this year,” Conaway said. “We made sure we had volunteers during the club fair day at the beginning of the year. We also were in the [homecoming] parade. And we had an event at the carnival before the Prep game this year too. We’re just trying to spread the word.”

Key Club’s annual events, like Holiday Adoption via homeroom, and even Shop for the Blind, are well known throughout the school, but this time around Conaway is making sure the Key Club name is getting attached to these events as well.

“We’re trying to get Key Club’s name in with these events that we’re known for so people know who’s doing it, that way they can be a part of it too,” Conaway said.

Regardless of how many students end up joining Key Club, Conaway, Loney and Londer will continue to participate and be involved with Key Club because of the life-enriching experiences it has brought to them.

“[Key Club] kind of its own community, and you get really involved and you realize that you really like making the community better,” Conaway said.