District Convention

109th District Convention was held August 7-9, 2026 in West Fargo, ND

Click here to download the Convention Program

We came together to celebrate Kiwanis in the Minnesota-Dakotas District. We ate, drank, laughed, cried, made some memories, did some business and learned how to make our clubs stronger and more effective in our communities. If you haven’t attended a convention for a while, or never, you are missing out!

• Here are some statistics:
  • 40 out of our 98 clubs were represented
  • 14 members of the Key Club Board were there and very visible during the convention.
  • The current CKI Governor was there and also very visible
  • 94 Kiwanis members registered for convention which is lower than previous years
  • 20 clubs presented their signature projects at the Kiwanis Showcase which was very successful and will be a feature at the 2027 District Convention.
• We celebrated the Fargo club and their 2nd place win in the Kiwanis International Signature Project Contest with their Pancake Karnival submission.
• Past Governor Carol Nitschke handed out 26 Distinguished Club awards at the Luncheon on Saturday.
• We celebrated 7 Division Star Award winners nominated by their peers.
• We heard an inspiring message from Roseline and Shawn Groven, winners of the Past District Officers Association Citizenship Award.
• On Sunday, we celebrated the memory and lives of Kiwanians we have lost over the last year.

2026 Awards Luncheon – Click the image below to see the entire program which includes the Star Award stories, criteria for Distinguished Club and the listing of all 26 clubs.

Service of Remembrance: To live in the hearts we leave behind, is not to die. Thomas Campbell Click the image below for images and stories.

The 108th District Convention is a Wrap! See highlights below.

Our 108th Annual Convention was held in Willmar, MN from August 8th to the 10th. We had 130 members, guests, Key Club members and Circle K members gather to conduct business, catch up with old friends, make new friends and have some fun.

The convention opened on Friday afternoon with a welcome to the city of Willmar and our keynote speakers for the convention, the Neon Unicorns. Their energetic and humorous presentation had a message, find what makes you happy and what is your “Why.” According to all reports, they were a hit!

FRIDAY NIGHT FELLOWSHIP EVENT

Several of us gathered with friends and Kiwanians from around the District Friday night at an EXCLUSIVE event at the Willmar Barn Theatre. There were heavy hors d’oeuvres (that were delicious, by the way) and fellowship galore. About 50 people took advantage of the theater production that added humor and laughter to the evening.

We were joined this year by our Kiwanis International Board Counselor Dawn Puderbaugh Hodges of Greenwood, South Carolina, U.S. She was elected to a three-year term as a trustee of Kiwanis International during the 2024 Kiwanis International Convention in Denver, Colorado, U.S. She serves as a trustee for the United States and Pacific Canada regions of Kiwanis. She gave several well received forums that were both informative and fun. She interacted with and counseled our board and executive leaders to plan for next year. We look forward to working with Dawn during the 2025-26 Kiwanis year.

We were also fortunate to have Brad Boyd, Kiwanis International Area Director on hand to share his wisdom with our board and with the members attending the convention. His knowledge on how to recruit and retain members to your club is invaluable and many walked away with new ideas to share when they got home.

AWARDS

The Awards Luncheon is always a highlight of our District Convention. The program below lists all of the Division Star Award Winners for this year. Download it Here

Distinguished Club Awards for 2023-2024

Immediate Past Governor Bradley Knudson awarded the 2023-2024 Distinguished Club Awards based on the following criteria:

• Completed 10 or more monthly reports
• Increased membership by 2 or more members
• Used Awards and Rewards to improve membership retention
• Supported existing or built new Service Leadership Programs
• Improved recognition of Kiwanis in their community

The clubs in no particular order are:

• Kiwanis Club of Jamestown ND
• Kiwanis Club of Mandan ND
• Kiwanis Club of Valley City ND
• Kiwanis Club of Chisholm MN
• Kiwanis Club of Lead SD
• Kiwanis Club of Huron SD
• Kiwanis Club of Madison SD
• Kiwanis Club of Mitchell SD
• Kiwanis Club of Pierre-Fort Pierre
• Kiwanis Club of Albert Lea Golden K MN
• Kiwanis Club of Mankato MN
• Kiwanis Club of Columbia Heights Fridley MN
• Kiwanis Club of Minot Golden K ND
• Kiwanis Club of Watertown SD
• Kiwanis Club of Aberdeen SD

And finally, on Sunday morning we honored all of the dedicated Kiwanians who passed away this past year since last convention. We owe appreciation and gratitude to Dave and Paulette Odette for all of their work to put this booklet and the Service together each year.

Download a copy of the booklet

2024 DCON Memories

Below are some pictures of the FUN and business proceedings. Enjoy! NOTE: If you have some pictures you want to share, email them to [email protected] we’d love to see them.