If you attend an event in Plant City there’s a very good chance you will see volunteers from the Plant City High School Key Club. The group adopts between 50 and 66 service projects each year and in the past five years alone have contributed more than 16,000 volunteer hours.
Recently the group won the 2018 Olin Mott Golden Heart award from the Joshua House. The large
glass statue is meant to emulate Mott’s “heart of gold” attitude and selfless nature. The key club often volunteers for the Joshua House, a safe haven for abused, neglected and abandoned children in Tampa Bay.
The Joshua House is a program of the Children’s Home Society of Florida and more than 2,140 children have passed through its doors since it opened in 1992. The PCHS Key Club has worked with the group for years and at the award ceremony, representatives of the Joshua House said part of why they were chosen was because even after graduation many of the members remained community leaders, always attempting to make their world a better place.
“My kids have to do a minimum of 20 hours of service each semester, but many of them go above and beyond that,” Danielle Odden, advisor of the Key Club, said. “They do this to help their community and many of them give everything they have to the club.”
Since joining the group in 2001, Odden has seen more than a thousand students add their name to the club list. It’s not for everyone, she said, and each semester there are always a few that fail to meet their required hours. However, those that do remain dedicated often do more than 100 hours each semester.
The group works with a variety of projects across town like Relay for Life, Lots of Hugs, the Florida Opry, Stuff the Bus, Lights of Love, Pig Jam, Special Olympics and more. Though it takes hours of her time to coordinate, Odden said she has had a blessed life and feels it is her duty to give back to others.
“I tell my students, ‘To whom much is given, much is expected,’” Odden said. “I’m very blessed in my life and I have to give back. I have a lot of kids who don’t necessarily have a lot, but they have time so they give that.”
Many of the hundreds of students that have passed through the club were the first high school and college graduates in their family. Odden said her students are polite, mature, organized and kind. When she sends them to an event she always receives positive feedback about how well the students were.
Her high standards for her students sets a bar they consistently succeed in meeting and she said over the years she has watched the community come to trust not only her but her students as well.
Odden came to Plant City approximately 20 years ago and the love and support she received from the Kiwanis Club helped make her feel like she had found a forever home. The group’s dedication toward the Key Club has helped open doors in the community and the hospitality they offered her years ago she said they have willingly extended toward her kids.
While some join the club to get volunteer hours for college applications Odden said others join to get a sense of belonging. Some like Ashley Turcios, a new officer, said joining was a fun way to explore more of her city and meet new friends. Others, like Jacqueline Montoya, a junior and new officer of Key Club said they simply enjoyed giving back to the community that offers them so many great opportunities.
The group is always looking for new partnership within the community. If you would like to have Key Club members at your event email Odden at danielle.odden@sdhc.k12.fl.us at least three weeks in advance. Include how many students you would like to help with the event as well as if you plan on feeding them or if they should pack a lunch.
“It really touches my heart and makes me feel really good to know I can help other people and not just myself,” Makayla Johnson, editor of Key Club, said. “This is a great group and we do so much for Plant City. It’s great to be a part of it.”