The Kiwanis Club of La Jolla celebrated its centennial at a 1920s-inspired gala April 11 at the La Jolla Community Center. Guests were treated to casino games, cocktails, dancing and a display of Kiwanis memorabilia.
The club, chartered in 1925, has followed the early mission of Kiwanis International — whose motto is “We build” — by engaging in small community projects as well as large fundraisers, with proceeds distributed as grants.
Among the La Jolla club’s claims to fame are that its first president was Samuel Gillispie, who with his wife, Ada, went on to found La Jolla’s Gillispie School.
The club also helped in the formation of La Jolla Playhouse in the 1940s by beginning sponsorship of a group of Hollywood actors and actresses — among them Dorothy McGuire, Gregory Peck and Mel Ferrer — who wanted to establish a permanent theater in La Jolla.
The club’s signature events include the annual La Jolla Pancake Breakfast, La Jolla Half Marathon, La Jolla Junior Olympics, La Jolla Cove Swim and La Jolla Concerts by the Sea. ♦