I’m writing to let you know that this will be my last year serving as District Chair for Young Children Priority One (prenatal through age 5) and Young Children (through age 8). This is a difficult decision, and I have given it much thought. It is my 13th year serving in this position, and I feel it is time for me to pursue other endeavors. 

It has been my pleasure and honor to focus on helping young children and their families. I appreciate all the projects clubs have completed to help children in our District. My hope is that you will continue to sponsor Reading Corners, Little Free Libraries, Early Childhood Injury Prevention Kits, Bike Rodeos, Bike Helmet distribution, Life Jacket Loaner Stations, importance of vaccinations for children, scholarships for swim lessons, duffel bags for foster children, Lego Replay recycling, food for local food pantries, diaper distribution, Outreach meal packing events, and all the wonderful project materials available through the Kiwanis Pediatric Trauma Institute (KPTI), made available from the Kiwanis Foundation of New England. 

My term will end September 30, 2024. I plan to attend DCON in Springfield this August and will have materials available in the Exhibit Hall. In the future if I can help you in any way to further the safety and literacy of young children, please contact me.

Again I thank you for your support over the years, and it has been a pleasure to serve the New England and Bermuda District of Kiwanis.

Ava Adams
Scarborough, Maine, Kiwanis Club
email: [email protected]

IMPORTANT INFORMATION CONCERNING END HUNGER GRANT REQUESTS AND THE COST OF THE MEAL PACKING!

In an email received from Matthew Martin:

Effective 6:01 pm on Feb 23rd or after, the new rate will be 37 cents/meal or $3700, to complete 10,000 meals.  If reservations/contracts have been made by this date, the $.35 per meal will be honored. 

Events also need to be held on May 1st or before to still be at the $.35 per meal cost. If you already had your contract in prior to February 23 you are at $.35 per meal. If you live near Pembroke  MA, you can book an event at the warehouse.

After May 1 the cost of a meal packing event will be $3700 to pack 10,000 meals. Clubs/Divisions will need to raise $1700 if applying for an End Hunger Grant request of $2000

The KFNE Board of Directors passed a motion which allows each Division to apply for an End Hunger Grant every six months instead of annually.

THE END HUNGER GRANT APPLICATION CAN BE FOUND AT KFNE.org on the homepage.

6 Steps Needed to Complete A Meal Packing Project:

1. Have $3700in funds(minimum) to pay for the meals($2000 may be provided through a KFNE grant). 
2. Identify a venue where you can have the meal packing
3. Identify 35-40 people to do the meal packing
4. Contact Matthew Martin to arrange a mutually convenient date
5. On the day of the meal packing help set up and have a fun time packing the meal
6. Distribute the cartons to your community

Below is specific information concerning food insecurity in New England and the meal packing project with  the Outreach Program with  contact information.

What happens when a child is hungry?

 Kids who don’t get enough to eat — especially during their first three years — begin life at a serious disadvantage. Hunger hinders brain development. The brain develops rapidly from conception to age 5. Without the right nutrients, the brain cannot develop properly, resulting in long term effects on learning abilities.When they are hungry, children are more likely to be hospitalized and they face higher risks of health conditions like anemia and asthma. And as they grow up, kids struggling to get enough to eat are more likely to have problems in school and other social situations.

Children facing hunger may struggle in school — and beyond. They are more likely to:

• Repeat a grade in elementary school
• Experience developmental impairments in areas like language and motor skills
• Have more social and behavioral problems.
• Hunger has been observed to cause depression, anxiety and withdrawal, all of which are obstructions to a child trying to focus on education.

(Feedingamerica.org)

I would like to share with you the most recent information on Food Insecurity the U.S. and New England.

FOOD INSECURITY

(the state of being without reliable access to a sufficient quantity of affordable, nutritious food every day)

Statistics:

1 out of 6 Americans are food insecure

1 out of 4 American children suffer from hunger and food insecurity

provided by feedingamerica.org

I hope you will consider doing more projects to help fight food inadequacies in your communities. Support your local food pantries, backpack food programs, organize a food collection, and most importantly, support programs which supply food to children during school vacations and during the summer when food pantries are at their lowest supplies. HUNGER NEVER TAKES A HOLIDAY!

Finally, have you considered holding a meal packing event? This is a great Division Project. Outreach, Inc, offers 10 different meals: tomato basil pasta, apple cinnamon oatmeal, minestrone soup, cheesy rice, Spanish rice, raisin cinnamon oatmeal, apple cinnamon rice, raisin cinnamon rice, Mac and cheese, and rice and beans.

Each serving contains a fortified protein supplement making it more nutritious than store bought packaged food.

Each serving costs $.37 or $2.22 for a packet feeding 6. Meals are assembled on a line with 10 people working on each line. 36 meal packets fill a carton which costs $79.92

Minimally $3700 must be ordered for the activity. Matthew Martin is the Regional Manager and New England Coordinator for the Outreach Program.

email: [email protected]

for more information: visit The New England Outreach Program at https://www.endhungerne.org

Many Divisions in New England have packaged meals over the last year.  Over 10,000 servings were packaged in about 2 hours with much laughter and enthusiasm. The cartons were delivered to local food pantries throughout New England. All participates left with a smile knowing that hungry families would be receiving nutritious food because of our efforts! I hope you will consider organizing a meal packing project!  

Have workers but don’t have a venue to hold the event? You can go to the Outreach warehouse in Pembroke, MA to pack the meals and then deliver the packed cartons to YOUR local food pantry.

If you have concerns or questions, please contact me. And if you do arrange a food assembly project, please invite me. I would love to participate!

Ava Adams, District Chair
Committee on Young Children
New England and Bermuda District
email: [email protected]

I am writing this article  with the hope  that Kiwanians will pass this information along to educate the public.

Educate the Community About Poisons

The same impulse that leads a child to swallow a toy may impel him to drink or eat a poisonous substance. Clubs can help parents through an awareness campaign that reminds them to keep paints, cleaning compounds, beauty aids and even house plants out of the reach of children. Educational pamphlets on poisons, designed for distribution in the community, are available from the National Safety Council at 800-621-7619. 

The Centers for Disease Control has published the following information (the contact information is, of course, directed to the United States): 

Keep Young Children Safe from Poisoning 

Be Prepared

• Put the poison help number, 1-800-222-1222, on or near every home telephone and save it on your cell phone. The line is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Be Smart about Storage

• Store all medicines and household products up and away and out of sight in a cabinet where a child cannot reach them.
• When you are taking or giving medicines or are using household products:
  • Do not put your next dose on the counter or table where children can reach them—it only takes seconds for a child to get them.
  • If you have to do something else while taking medicine, such as answer the phone, take any young children with you.
  • Secure the child safety cap completely every time you use a medicine.
  • After using them, do not leave medicines or household products out. As soon as you are done with them, put them away and out of sight in a cabinet where a child cannot reach them.
  • Be aware of any legal or illegal drugs that guests may bring into your home. Ask guests to store drugs where children cannot find them. Children can easily get into pillboxes, purses, backpacks, or coat pockets.

Proper Disposal

For more information on proper disposal, please see the FDA’s web site, Disposal of Unused Medicines: What You Should Know.

Other Tips

• Do not call medicine “candy.”
• Identify poisonous plants in your house and yard and place them out of reach of children or remove them.

What To Do If A Poisoning Occurs

• Remain calm.
• Call 911 if you have a poison emergency and the victim has collapsed or is not breathing. If the victim is awake and alert, dial 1-800-222-1222. Try to have this information ready:
  • the victim’s age and weight
  • the container or bottle of the poison if available
  • the time of the poison exposure the address where the poisoning occurred 
• Stay on the phone and follow the instructions from the emergency operator or poison control center.

Available from Kiwanis Pediatric Trauma Institute (KPTI) 250 copies per Club per year may be ordered online at www.kpti.org  under Community Services tab.

 First Aid/CPR Chart for Parents from the American Academy of Pediatrics: 

The First AID/CPR Chart from the American Academy of Pediatrics is a large 11″ x 17″ wall chart includes first aid guidance on one side – choking/CPR guidance on the other. Topics include burns, scalds, fractures, sprains, head injuries, poisons, skin wounds, stings and bites, and infants/child CPR. For Kiwanis clubs to be distributed to pediatrician’s offices, parenting groups and also can be handed out at club events for the public.

Ava Adams, District Chair 
Young Children  Committee 
Scarborough Maine Kiwanis Club
New England and Bermuda District of Kiwanis
email: [email protected]

December 2023 Young Children newsletter revised

Good morning fellow Kiwanians!

I am the New England District Chair for YOUNG CHILDREN. This program focuses on the needs of young children with an emphasis on infants and youngsters ages 0 to 8.

I have been your District Chair for 13 years, and I am passionate about educating new parents to promote optimal health and brain development in their babies along with preventing trauma in their lives.

This month I am focusing on materials available from:

KIWANIS PEDIATRIC TRAUMA INSTITUTE (KPTI) at Tufts Medical Center in Boston. You may have heard that Tufts Children’s Hospital has ended its trauma services. This is true BUT the Kiwanis Foundation of New England’s trauma prevention and community education programs continue this year. Tufts’ administrators indicated that the programs offered through KPTI are valuable and necessary so a contract has been signed to continue services through

KPTI   through September 30, 2024 and possibly longer. The Early Childhood Injury Prevention Kits, Bike Rodeo materials, Cubby Bears, Bike Helmet program, and other printed educational materials will be available to Kiwanis Clubs in our District.  Research will also continue at Tufts with grant money from KFNE.  Your Club may continue to order materials without interruption. And I encourage your Club to continue its Annual Gift (of $12 per member) to KFNE as well as purchasing Red Jackets  as these actions  pay  for KPTI’s programs. 

To learn more about KPTI and  order materials and Red Jackets go to kpti.com.

A valuable project available from Kiwanis Pediatric Trauma Institute (KPTI) in Boston is:

First Aid/ CPR Chart

This chart is provided by the American Association of Pediatric available  to  KPTI. One side provides Choking/CPR for INFANTS UNDER ONE YEAR and another section covers CPR/CHOKING for children ONE TO EIGHT YEARS. The First AID/CPR Chart is a large 11″ x 17″ wall chart includes first aid guidance on one side – choking/CPR guidance on the other. Topics include burns, scalds, fractures, sprains, head injuries, poisons, skin wounds, stings and bites, and infants/child CPR. For Kiwanis clubs to be distributed to pediatrician’s offices, parenting groups and also can be handed out at club events to  the public.

Another project available to all clubs;

EARLY CHILDHOOD INJURY PREVENTION KITS (available from Kiwanis Pediatric Trauma Institute, KPTI,)include Bath  Safety Duck to test water temperature, Car seat information sticker,  Car seat and seat belt information card, Shaken baby information card, “Keeping the Promise” window safety brochure, Burn prevention brochure, Home safety checklist booklet, Electric outlet covers(24 pk)

These materials are available to ALL Kiwanis Clubs and need to be put together in a plastic bag which is also included with the materials. Then the Kits need to be delivered. Possible distribution to: Day Care Centers, Day Care Homes, Mother’s Groups,  Hospitals with Birthing Centers, Health Clinics,  Pediatricians’ offices, Obstetricians’ offices or any facility that provides prenatal classes or care  for expectant mothers. This is a perfect project for ALL Clubs…large or small! I encourage your Club to complete this project which can save lives and prevent traumatic injuries to infants and toddlers.

EACH CLUB IS ALLOWED 200 KITS ANNUALLY FOR DISTRIBUTION.

For more information go to kpti.org and click on Community Programs tab (order form available)

Many more materials are available online at KPTI.org under Community Programs and an Order Form is also available on this website.

I am YOUR District Chair. Please feel free to contact me with questions. And please share with me any Young Children projects you are doing this year.

Finally, I hope to see you at Convention and other District happenings in the near future.

Ava Adams,  District Chair Young Children  Committee

Scarborough Maine Kiwanis Club New England and Bermuda District of Kiwanis

email: [email protected]