Honoring Dr. Wil Blechman
By Jeanette Igoe
In 1990, Dr. Wil spoke about Young Children Priority One and Iodine Deficiency Disorder (IDD) at Marco Island KI Convention. His honest caring, devotion, and love of children overwhelmed me. His devotion to children was compelling.
I took 16 rolls of 32 color photos of every event at the convention and gave them to him without seeing one photo. Needleless to say, there were no CDs or flash drives back then. He said he had a book full of them and one day he would share them with me. For Kiwanians, we all have a Kiwanis Moment. A moment when you know that everything you do for Kiwanis was worth it. This is called a Kiwanis Moment. He was my “Ah Ha” Moment.
Every year, he encouraged me to serve within Kiwanis leadership. After many suggestions and nudges, I listened and honored his wishes. In 2017-2018, I served as President of Kiwanis Club of Northside Naples. After, in 2018-19, I had the honor to serve the District of Kiwanis Board as Communication Chair. In this 2020-2021 year, I had the privilege of serving as Lieutenant Governor for Florida District of Kiwanis 22 because of his faith and belief in me and love of Children. He always called me by my first name, always with a smile and it would make me so proud to know him.
He attended and spoke at two of my DCM’s this year and continued to wow me. We spoke several times about his current project “Baby Shower” (which he shared the entire program with me) and his unending devotion to Rachel and the Kiwanis Family. He was a gentleman and a scholar. I miss him very much. May he rest in peace. We will carry on to fulfill your Legacy “Young Children Priority One.”
Thanks for sharing such heartfelt sentiments. Dr. Wil inspired everyone who was fortunate to meet him and witness his passion for early childhood development and Kiwanis. He was genuine, generous and most compassionate…a true original who made each of us feel so special.
Young Chilren Priority One changed my life as a Kiwanis member. When I was Division 1 PA LTG be brought Dr. BLeckman to our area. He toured facilites that worked with kids, did informal meet and greets and presented workshops. Since he was going to be in Cleveland OH on business – just couple hours away – he absorbed the cost of the trip so he could spend a few days with us. Even though I’d been a Kiwanian for a few years meeting him made me realize what an honor it was to work on projects that were near and dear to the doctor’s heart. I remember hearing him speak at an international convention where told the assembly that if Kiwanis doesn’t change its mindset we will become a dinosour in the service world. I used those words often when I was district governor.