Westlake Kiwanis supports Westlake High School's Team Hope
Kaovya Vel receives a $1,000 check from Westlake Kiwanis President Nan Baker with Kiwanis members looking on.
The Westlake Kiwanis has joined in to support the Westlake High School Team Hope in their quest to become Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Student Visionaries of the Year while raising funds to fight childhood blood cancers.
Westlake is competing against other Cleveland-area schools to win this prestigious award while helping defeat cancer. Westlake High School junior Kaovya Vel became dedicated to this campaign while shadowing Dr. Zahler, a Pediatric Hematology doctor at the Cleveland Clinc, and observing a 1-year-old child being treated for a tumor. She said what we are doing could make a difference for this child and his family. She returned to Westlake and formed Team Hope and has thus far raised $20,000.
After speaking to the Westlake Kiwanis about childhood cancers and all the things Team Hope did to raise funds, the Westlake Kiwanis presented Ms. Vel with a $1,000 check for her campaign. Follow Team Hope on Instagram @westlaketeamhope. Please visit Ms. Vel's donation page at events.lls.org/noh/svoynoh24/kaovyavel.
Victor Rutkoski
I am a member of the Westlake Kiwanis and and advisor for the Westlake Kiwanis Aktion Club. The Aktion Club is sponsored by the Kiwanis the same as a Key, Builders and Circle K Clubs. Aktion Club is for adults with disabilities 18 years of age and up. The new President of the Westlake Kiwanis asked me handle publicity for the Kiwanis and Aktion Clubs.I am a retired Manager of Expenditures for the CSX Corp. I moved to Cleveland's exteme Westside 10 years ago from Freeport, PA a town about 30 miles northeast east of Pittsburgh where I had lived all my life. Work related issues brought my family to Cleveland.