Susan Timm, during her high school career, was afforded many students’ dream trip — a paid trip to Columbia thanks to a Key Club scholarship.

In return, all Timm, assistant director of the Office of the University Resources for Latinos, had to do was give a slide show presentation on her experience for the Key Club members in her hometown of Altona, New York.

Timm was supposed to attend a Spanish class every day from 8 a.m. to noon, but frequently missed class.

“The instructor said,‘I should flunk you but I know you’re picking up Spanish since I’ve seen you in a different night club every night,’” she recalled.

While Timm’s is but one story, the hidden benefactor behind Key Club opportunities lies in the Kiwanis Club, an organization alive and well in DeKalb and the local charity scene.

There are two Kiwanis Club chapters in and around DeKalb.

DeKalb’s chapter meets on Tuesdays at 7:00 a.m. at Barb City Manor, 680 Haish Blvd. This is the group that sponsors the annual pancake breakfast.

The Kiwanis Club of DeKalb, which has more than 80 members, meets on Wednesdays at 11:45 a.m. at the River Heights Club House.

The latter is the chapter that runs the Castle Bank-sponsored Haunted House in the Hopkins Park Shelter House, as well as the NIU chapter of Circle K and the DeKalb High School Key Club, said DeKalb City Manager Jim Connors, a member of that club’s board.

Amy Polzin, the DeKalb chapter’s president, said a major goal of the national headquarters this year was to raise money for victims of Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

“We’re not neglecting anybody, though, we’re just trying to raise more money,” she said.

Barker added that Kiwanis isn’t just a check-writing organization, though, mentioning that club members provide labor for the Pathway Project.

“It’s our dream to get a lot of things connected and extend the bike path and make it accessible to as many people as possible,” said Polzin.

The club is seeking volunteers to help out with the “Clean the Bike Path” project on April 6. Would-be volunteers can sign up at www.kish-kiwanis.com.

“Over the course of a year a lot of strange debris builds up,” Polzin said. “We’ve found old bicycles, wading pools, and a toilet.” The toilet ended up in that year’s haunted house.

The club gets a lot of help from another service organization, 4H, on Biking with Beanzie, a recreational ride that funds pathway projects.

This year, bicyclists can choose between 23, 43 and 63-mile routes, all of which start at DeKalb High School, on July 16. The latter two routes wind through Lake Shabbona State Park.

Kiwanis outreach

Polzin said money is channeled to Kiwanis International through chapters of Kiwanis, Circle K and Key Clubs, but the Kiwanis International Foundation has its own fund-raising initiatives.

Polzin said that raising scholarship money and providing services for poor people are the focus areas for Kiwanis clubs.

Kiwanis International recently launched a program called Young Children: Priority One which addresses the health needs of children from the prenatal stage through age five. The Worldwide Service Project’s goal is to eliminate iodine deficiency disorders.

Club vice president Jim Barker, owner of DeKalb Video Productions, also was chairman of the haunted house committee, one of the most visible outreach efforts for the club, for two years and still is in charge of design and construction for the house.

Small estimated the club is able to raise between $6,000 and $8,000 for charity after expenses with the haunted house. The next biggest fund-raising event is at Cornfest.

“It enables us to give out literally thousands of dollars to charity and other non-profit organizations in the area such as 4Cs (County Coordinated Child Care),” said Small.

Barker and Polzin agreed that roughly 99 percent of the money raised by their chapter goes to local charities.