An Ellsworth woman is taking her place on the international stage thanks to her years of dedication to the Kiwanis Club.

Long-time Ellsworth Kiwanis member Cynthia “Cindy” Bender was recently selected as chairperson of the District Secretaries Worldwide for International Kiwanis.

“Kiwanis International President Michael Maulhal called me up and asked me if I would like to chair his district secretary board — be the chairman of it,” Bender said. “And I said I would be more than happy to.”

Bender found out a few weeks before this year’s international convention.

“He called me a couple of days before I left for Pittsburgh, Pa.,” Bender said. “Michael had been our international trustee a couple of years ago in Kansas, and I had an opportunity to be around him. He attended our Kansas District Convention. I had a really great time with him and his wife.

“He told me when he called me that he had enjoyed our conversations, and he liked how I thought out of the box. He said that when he became international president, I would have a place on his team. It totally caught me off guard. It kind of just dumbfounded me. I said, ‘This is such an honor I would love to.’” There are 69 districts worldwide with 47 district secretaries. Some district secretaries are responsible for more than one district in other parts of the world. Although Bender’s appointment doesn’t officially start until Oct. 1, she is already organizing her team.

“There will be eight district secretaries, including me, on the board,” she said. “We’re probably going to meet the first Friday of the month at 7 a.m. Central Standard Time so that I can get the international secretaries from all across the globe at a decent hour. For some it might be 3 p.m. and for some it might be 11 p.m., but that’s the best way. And then once a quarter, Michael and I will have a meeting via Zoom and we’ll go over everything that I have learned and any concerns I thought there were in the districts from talking with the committee and if I do have concerns I’m supposed to try to come up with the solution ... and visit with him about it.”

Bender is stepping into the international position with years of experience.

“I have been a Kiwanis member for 25 years, and I love what I do. I’m starting my sixth year as district secretary for Kansas, and I’ve just gone all the way up the ladder,” she said.

But, Kansas Kiwanis members have been known for taking on big responsibilities.

“I’m going to brag about Kansas. Kansas is not a big district — we have approximately 1,400 members,” she said. “Currently, we have an international trustee, Jo Schwartz, from Abilene. Additionally, at the recent Key Club convention in Orlando, Nevaeh Moritz from Topeka was appointed as an International Trustee for Key Club. They travel all over the world for this opportunity. We’ve had a couple of past international trustees. We have several people at the district level who are recognized by Kiwanis International because, like Jo Schwartz, she has been to Africa to do club training. She went to Johannesburg four years ago, I think. They opened up Kiwanis Clubs over there, and she went over there for a week to train.

“Robert Maxwell from Topeka is also chairman of the Kiwanis International Children’s Fund right now. We have some members that were honored at this past international convention for donating $50,000 to the children’s fund.”

Bender could brag on the Ellsworth Kiwanis Club as well.

“Kiwanis is a global organization of volunteers dedicated to improving the world, one child and one community at a time,” she said. “Kiwanis of Ellsworth has been here for 53 or 54 years, I think. We still have one charter member who is still very active in the club. Even our older members all adapt to change.”

“That has been a very good thing that I have observed, because as I travel, members who don’t want to change or think outside of the box and welcome younger members with new ideas, their clubs don’t survive. And our club in Ellsworth, I’m very proud to say, welcomes new younger members who think outside of the box, and they give them the opportunity to step up and take on some leadership positions and get them involved, and I think our community is very lucky for that. The Ellsworth club has a lot of things to be proud of.”

Bender knows community service clubs can struggle but stressed their importance.

“I know all service organizations are having the problem of getting people to step up. To join clubs and be a part of that, but every community needs service and needs people to volunteer,” she said. “You need members to volunteer and funds need to be raised — so many needs that need to be met. We’re all busy, however, the best feeling I have is when I can bring something back to my community that will benefit our children. And it makes me feel warm inside to be able to do that.

“I love that feeling from what I can give. Over the years, things sometimes weren’t really easy for me, and I had a lot of people help me here and there along the way, and I always said if I had an opportunity to pay back, I was going to do it — to pay it forward.”

Her dedication to Kiwanis has been rewarding.

“I have met friends from all over the world and we’ve had people stay in our house, we’ve stayed in other people’s houses, it’s been a good thing,” she said. “It’s been good, it’s been fun. I’ve been to Vancouver, Toronto, Paris, New Orleans, Las Vegas, Minneapolis, Minn., and I travel to Indianapolis a couple of times a year for trainings and meetings. Next year, I will be going to the Philippines to the international convention as part of my responsibilities on this committee.”

It will be an exciting year as she assembles her team.

“It’s kind of scary. I’m answering to the international president. I’m very humbled to have this opportunity. Michael is a downto- earth, wonderful person. He and his wife are very kind, loving people,” she said.

For more information on the Ellsworth Kiwanis Club, visit www.ellsworthkiwanis. org.

“I love that feeling from what I can give. Over the years, things sometimes weren’t really easy for me, and I had a lot of people help me here and there along the way, and I always said if I had an opportunity to pay back, I was going to do it — to pay it forward.”

Cynthia Bender Kiwanis Member