At Circle K International’s Convention (called CKIx), West Chester University’s Circle K club was awarded the 1st Place Single Service Award in the Silver Division for its annual charity volleyball tournament.
Each spring, WCU Circle K hosts a charity volleyball tournament in Hollinger Field House. This award honored that effort. Roughly 25 teams compete in the tournament each year. There are refreshments, service projects, and a DJ. The volleyball tournament typically raises between $500 and $1000 for The Eliminate Project.
The Eliminate Project was an international effort on the behalf of Kiwanis (the adult version of Circle K) and UNICEF. The Eliminate Project strives to eliminate maternal and neonatal tetanus (MNT) from the face of the planet.
MNT kills a baby roughly every nine minutes. (This number used to be every six minutes before the project hits its stride!) Babies contract MNT during unhygienic birthing conditions, due to spores in the soil. The disease causes babies to have seizures, light sensitivity, and touch sensitivity.
This essentially means that the babies suffering from MNT are put into a dark room (in order to avoid hurting them because of their light sensitivity). When they suffer from seizures and their mothers attempt to comfort them, their mother’s touch actually further harms them, due to their touch sensitivity.
The vaccinations for MNT are three rounds of shots for $0.60 each. This means for $1.80, a mother and all of her future babies can be spared from this illness. By the end of 2015, the Eliminate Project is striving to raise $110 million to completely eliminate MNT. Now, they are at roughly $76 million.
The Circle K volleyball tournament has raised over $2000 for The Eliminate Project in the last three years, saving over 1000 lives.
[pullquote align=”left”]The Circle K volleyball tournament has raised over $2000 for The Eliminate Project in the last three years, saving over 1000 lives.[/pullquote]This is the tournament’s second year being recognized at CKIx. Last year, the tournament won the 2nd Place Single Service Award in the Silver Division.
This year, CKIx took place in Indianapolis from June 24 to June 27. It was a combination of a Large Scale Service Project and an International Convention, featuring service projects, award ceremonies, workshops, and more. Though no members from WCU Circle K attended, the Pennsylvania District of Circle K was well represented.
Theresa Kelly is a fourth-year student majoring in English literature secondary education. She can be reached at TK780615@wcupa.edu.