Kiwanis honors Pillsbury
John Pillsbury is honored for 25 years of service with the club.
He receives the Legion of Honor award for 25 years of service with the club.
Community leader John Pillsbury received the Kiwanis Legion of Honor award Tuesday for 25 years of service to the local Kiwanis club and greater Rome community.
Pillsbury, retired from Georgia Power, came to Rome 49 years ago and joined the local Kiwanis Club in April of 1992. “I’m surprised it’s just 25 years,” said Tim Hensley, Floyd County Schools assistant to the superintendent.
Hensley said Pillsbury has been an integral part of the success of Alana Ellenburg’s High School 101 program at Pepperell High School for the last decade. Kiwanis, largely through Pillsbury’s efforts, has played a critical role in the section of the program that brings community business leaders to the school for mock interviews with ninth-graders at PHS.
Kiwanis Club President
Keith Mickler said the first person he thinks of when it comes to Kiwanis is Pillsbury.
“He has always continued to push for membership and growth,” Mickler said. “It’s so very important to him that Kiwanis survives,” said Debra Thwaites. “He is committed to rebuilding it to what it was when he joined.” She said that 25 years ago, Kiwanis had close to 100 members in Rome, about twice as many as are in the service club today.
“There is no telling how many children you have had an impact on,” said Ennis Denham, District 11 lieutenant governor for the Kiwanis organization.
The motto for Kiwanis is “Serving the Children of the World.”
Rome Floyd Chamber President Al Hodge called Pillsbury “a visionary” and someone who was “very passionate about not just Kiwanis, but the whole community.”
Club member Keith Dunn said Pillsbury had been a mentor to him since Dunn joined the club several years ago. “He helped me plant the roots I needed to become a good father and coach,” Dunn said. “He was a godsend.”