The Kiwanis Club of Los Altos

Kiwanis is a global organization of volunteers dedicated to changing the world, one child and one community at a time.

Our Club

Our club was chartered in 1947, about five years before the City of Los Altos was incorporated, making us the first service club in Los Altos.  We were founded primarily by Los Altos members of Mountain View Kiwanis after the first Kiwanis Pet Parade was held in Los Altos earlier that year.  We believe that we were also the first Kiwanis Club in Kiwanis International in 1987 to formally include women as members.

Our Members

We are a group of volunteers who live and/or work in Los Altos and our neighboring communities. Our club is a service organization, we volunteer our time.  Our desire to serve the community is the common interest that brings us together.  Membership is open to all adults interested in community service.   Kiwanis is not a mystical organization; no funny hats and no secret rites.   We are a very social group.  We are good friends and value the fun we have together.  We really are a "Kiwanis Family".

Board of Directors

 Each Kiwanis club is governed by a board of directors, consisting of  Officers and Directors who are elected by our members each year.  The board meets monthly to handle the business of our club as well as of our Foundation.  All members are welcome to attend board meetings.  Committees of our members direct each of our service projects and other activities.

Meetings

We normally meet for lunch and fun at noon on the first and third Tuesdays of each month at the historic Neutra House at 181 Hillview Avenue (adjacent to the new Community Center), Los Altos.  Each week we have a speaker or other program of interest to our members.  Lunch is provided to all guests, speakers, and members.  On the second Tuesday of each month, we have an evening Zoom board of directors meeting to which all members are welcome to attend, and on the fourth Tuesday of each month we have an evening social meeting from 6pm to 7:30pm at the Neutra House with snacks and refreshments. 

Visitors, Guests and Prospective Members are always welcome to join us!  Please e-mail info@losaltoskiwanis.org so that we can welcome you.

Community Service

The community we serve extends from the greater Los Altos area to international projects. We provide both volunteer and financial help. Our members contribute many hours of community service each year, including the Los Altos Kiwanis Pet Parade, the Kiwanis Special Games, Scholarships, Grants to community organizations, community service projects, and our fundraisers that support them, including the annual Kiwanis Christmas Tree Lot. 

Structure of Kiwanis

Each Kiwanis Club is a member of a group of neighboring clubs, which we call a Division.  Our Division 34 includes all of the Kiwanis Clubs from Sunnyvale to San Francisco.  Divisions are grouped into larger Districts.  Our Cal-Nev-Ha District includes, in its 45 Divisions, all of the Kiwanis Clubs in California, Nevada and Hawaii. Kiwanis International consists of 46 Districts covering all corners of the globe.