Kiwanis member Paul Philipps, Kiwanis President Carol Tiesi and Kiwanian of the Year, Davey Willans. Photo by Frank Cahill
At the annual Kiwanis Holiday Dinner, Paul Philipps presented The Kiwanian of the Year award for 2013 to Davey Willans. As Philipps stated “the Kiwanis Club of Greater Parsippany presents this award to a member of the club that has distinguished themselves by demonstrating exceptional leadership and participation in the club activities. While every member of the Club plays a vital role, some members stand above the crowd as a result of their exceptional contributions to our club, in 2013 that person was Davey Willlans. It is with extreme pride and gratitude that we present Davey with the Kiwanian of the Year award, and thank him for all he does for us and for our community.
Davey was elected to be Club President for the 2012-2013 term. As President, he re-energized the club by introducing a number of new initiatives, while still giving his total support to all of the other ongoing Club functions.
The Mission of the Kiwanis Club is “to change the world, one community and one child at a time” To fulfill this mission Kiwanis sponsors Key Clubs in both high schools, Builders Clubs in the middle schools, and K-Kids Clubs in elementary schools, with over 500 student members. In addition they support the Parsippany Day Care Center; Parsippany Library; and numerous other 501(c) 3 organizations that serve children and families. While the Club runs some effective fund raisers, the past few years the community needs for financial support have significantly increased. To help address these growing needs, Davey introduced the Mission Partnership Program, which offers a mutually beneficial partnership opportunity for local business. The concept is that in return for their financial support, the Kiwanis Club will help publicize their “partners” business. As Willans explained, the benefit of the Mission Partner Program for local business is that it offers more than just a tax deduction. It may provide a fantastic ROI on their promotional dollars, and is a good way to promote their business while helping the children of our community. The Club also conducted the first Kiwanis Day in Parsippany, where club members completed a number of “spring clean up” projects.
“Davey is indeed the Outstanding Kiwanian of 2013”, Philipps concluded.