Author: Nancy La, 2023-24 Administrative Vice-President

On Feb 26th, I hosted a CLEW on making my Kimichi fried rice! We took the first hour of the CLEW having an interactive cooking class where people took turns prepping the materials and cooking the dish. As we did so, I gave people additional information and instructions on the process of making Kimichi fried rice. Afterwards we spent time talking and eating the dish we just made. Everyone had a great time and was a really good opportunity to increase everyone cooking repository.​

What was your favorite part of the event?
My favorite part was eating the creation we had just made together. It was really nice to talk to people while eating something we all contribute to making.

Author: Jeanmin Yuki Duong , 2023-24 Large-Scale Service Chair

On February 25th, we volunteered at Stray Cat Alliance to help take care of their cats. Part of our volunteering was to socialize the cats. There are a lot of cats at Stray Cat Alliance, so the staff don't always have time to play with the cats after feeding all of them and checking on them to make sure they're healthy. So, we pet the cats and played with them with cat toys so they'd feel less lonely. Another part of our volunteering was cleaning up the kennels, which included fluffing up their linens, changing dirty cat beds, and sweeping up the floors. If the kennels were neat and tidy, people who visited during adoption events might be more inclined to adopt a cat. The staff at Stray Cat Alliance were also very sweet and accommodating, and they were truly passionate about caring for their cats. In the end, we helped the cats at Stray Cat Alliance by socializing them and helping them get adopted and find loving homes.

I really enjoyed playing with the cats! There was a calico cat named Yuki, but it ran away from me (they were a little shy). My favorite cat was Tristan because he really enjoyed playing with one of the ribbon toys, but he also shredded my glove in the process. I was also happy that the event went smoothly and everyone had fun vibing with the cats! I also really enjoyed learning the cats' names! There was a cat named Jack Daniels, and he seemed a bit grumpy. There were also black and white cats named Blackjack and Poker, and a gray cat named Casino. Also, Crystal had a lot of fun playing with James, a cute gray kitten. Lastly, Ayaan spent a lot of time with Rosalia, an calico kitten, and we tried really hard to convince him to adopt Rosalia.

Author: Clarissa Villarosa, 2023-24 Marketing Chair

We went around campus and picked up as much trash as we could! This was a fam event so it was nice seeing people from all the fams there! (Shoutout to my fellow Mean Muggers Abhay and Brian! The unintentional matching with the tree was too slay.) Although campus was relatively clean, we had some interesting finds (coca cola boxers in a tree?!) Overall it was a fun event with great people, great weather, and the chance to make our campus cleaner! ​

What was your favorite part of the event, and why?
Seeing my fam members there!

Author: Sabira Mohammed, 2023-24 Service Vice-President

From January 27-29th, we held a series of events to cook dinner for residents of Alexandria House, including a grocery run, ingredient prep, and cook day. Alexandria House aims to provide a living space for women and children transitioning between emergency shelter and permanent housing. For the dinner this time, we made chicken and mushroom fajitas, with sides of salad and refried beans with chips, and chocolate chip cookies for dessert.

What was your favorite part of the event, and why?
​My favorite part of the event was hanging out with other members at my apartment during the prep and cook days. It was fun learning how to cook a new recipe together and also roasting or hyping up each others' chef abilities.

Author: Sabira Mohammed, 2023-24 Service Vice-President

From January 26-28th, we had a series of events to make care packages for Alexandria House as part of the winter Service Marathon. Alexandria House aims to provide housing for women and children who are transitioning from emergency shelter to economic stability and permanent housing. The three events consisted of card-making, decorating the paper bags, and assembling the care packages. The completed care packages ultimately contained a card, grooming kit, snacks, feminine products, hand sanitizer, and warm socks.

​My favorite part of the event was assembling the care packages -- it was very satisfying to watch all the different parts come together. While I didn't attend the card making, we had a lot of attendance for that event and from what I understand it was quite fun.

Author: Jamie Weisel, 2023-2024 Kiwanis Family Networking Chair

On November 14th, we invited Rowland Elementary KKids and Rascal Reps students to come to UCLA's campus. Our CKI members led them in a campus tour, followed by lunch on the lawn in front of Kerckhoff. The kids were very excited to explore campus and asked very insightful questions (considering their very young age). We were able to take them inside a library or two as well as some academic buildings so they could see what active college students were up to.

What was your favorite part of the event?
The event was meaningful because campus tours and exposure to college are what encourage young students to pursue higher education. Hopefully, the students were motivated to study hard so they can attend a respected university in the future.