In 2021, Pilot International, parent organization of Great Bend Pilot Club, is reaching the milestone of 100 years as an international service organization. Pilot International’s mission is to influence positive change in communities throughout the world. To do this, the local clubs of Pilot International come together in friendship and service, focusing on encouraging brain safety and health and supporting those who care for others. Locally, Great Bend Pilot Club has made a difference for 33 years with our mission; to improve the quality of life in our community. The club has historically done this with their brain-related education and awareness outreach campaigns and local service projects.
If possible restrictions are lifted during this pandemic for members of the local Pilot club to attend, the grand scheduled celebration will take place at the Pilot International Annual Convention on July 7-10, in Atlanta, Ga. However, the Pilot Club of Great Bend recently celebrated this 100-year milestone on a local level by finding ways to “Touch 100 Plus Lives” in the local community with service projects and ways to recognize those who care for others.
For the local Pilot service year, 2020-2021 Pilot as a local non-profit organization has struggled meeting in person during this pandemic, but has found ways to come together (such as Zoom and email) to meet and carry out projects to recognize caregivers with what they call “PICK-ME UPS.” Because of the pandemic the club focused on health-care providers and caregivers like the The Center for Counseling and Consultation, Barton County Health Department and area hospitals. The club touched 100 lives plus, with their gifts of gratitude and recognition for the hardworking and dedicated caregivers in these organizations who work tirelessly for individuals and families in need in Barton County and all the areas they service. The club also came together to touch at least 100 youth/student lives with innovative and pandemic safe projects they call “Front Porch POP-UP Projects.”
The year began with a “POP UP Project” for school supplies for grade school aged children and they finish the year with a “POP UP project” where again over 23 Great Bend Pilot members collected, made or purchased over 200 hygiene items for the Great Bend High School Hygiene closet. The students in need of personal hygiene items can weekly or monthly get items from the GB High hygiene closet as needed. Items sometimes taken for granted, but because of the pandemic families have suffered economically and the kids have been affected with lack of basic needed hygiene products. The school will also now be able to provide a summer backpack to help the individual students when school is out so they need not go without over the summer.
These are just a few of the projects during this difficult time the Pilots, as a community-based service organization, have found for the club to contribute and reach out to touch hundreds of lives in the community.
For more information about the Pilot Club of Great Bend, visit www.greatbendpilotclub.com or check out their Facebook page; www.facebook.com/pilot.greatbend/.
The club is currently seeking new members who wish to join a great organization of friendship and service who make a difference in their local community.
