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Wayne Allen

Common Staff Writer

The Aktion Club of the Scioto County Board of Developmental Disabilities (Board of DD) received its charter from the Kiwanis Club of Portsmouth this week.

The goal of the Acktion Club is to perform community service projects.

According to ohioaktion.org, “Aktion Club is a community-service group for adult citizens who live with a disability. Aktion Clubs are chartered through the sponsorship of a local Kiwanis Club and community agency. Agency and Kiwanis advisors work together with club members to make the club a success.”

According to KC Chatfield advisor of the club, the group has been working on several projects throughout the community including helping out at the Salvation Army, in the city of Portsmouth, in the village of New Boston among other places.

“We got this project up and running in April. As of Friday (Aug. 24) we have completed 848.25 hours of community service,” Chatfield said.

Included in the celebration was in installation Aktion Club officers and members by Jenny Lavender, President of the Portsmouth Kiwanis Club.

“This is the very first Aktion Club that the Portsmouth club has done,” Lavender said. “In such a short amount of time you all (members of the Aktion Club) have warmed my heart. When I went to the Salvation Army where you guys are helping to serve food, you make me feel like I am the most important person in the world. I have never seen such a group of people such as yourself. You give so much of yourself and have already given so much to this community.”

The Aktion Club officers include, President Adrian Seymour, Vice President is Tony Mills, Secretary Brandi Pennington and Treasurer Jessica Riggs.

“We are looking to do things that will benefit the community. We are going to try to be out on the road four or five days a week doing Community Service,” Chatfield said.

Chatfield has integrated a music outreach into the clubs activities.

“Last year I had started going to area nursing homes on a monthly basis, playing music on a weekday afternoon for a couple of hours. After a while I could not go because my work schedule had changed. I was trying to figure it out where I could go on a Sunday afternoon every once in a while. Our director Kelly Hunter heard about it and told me we would create something where I would go not just to one nursing home but to all the nursing homes that will have me.” Chatfield said. “At first it was just me there playing music, now we’ve expanded it to include our consumers. We have a music room here and they (consumers) work on stuff for a talent show that’s held two or three times a year. I take them along and they perform their talents. Their talents range from singing along with the song, playing air guitar one girl plays guitar and sings. Some go just to hang out and enjoy the music with the residents of the nursing home. This is a win for our people and the people of the nursing homes.”

Chatfield said he and members of the Aktion Club are now traveling to 14 different places as apart of their music outreach.

He said there are a number of upcoming projects for the team.

“Our growth plans are big. Eventually we would like to have two different crews working at the same time. We are only able to do this with the support of the administration, the support of the community and the support of the Aktion club members and officers,” Chatfield said. “These guys (members of the Aktion club) have such big hearts and they just want a chance to show it.”

He said the goal of the Aktion Club for 2013 will be 2,000 hours of community service.

“We want to be a force for good in the community. We have people here who will do good in the community and we want to be a force for good,” Chatfield said.