Pictured above, Hokes Bluff Anchor Club member Quincy Reaves holds the proclamation with Gadsden Pilot Sherre McGinnis at the Gadsden City Council meeting on October 20, 2020.
The Gadsden City Council and Mayor Sherman Guyton recognized the Gadsden Pilot Club for its achievements and contributions to the community on Tuesday with a proclamation that deemed October 20, 2020 as Pilot Club of Gadsden and Pilot International Founders’ Day.
“There’s so many good things that y’all do that nobody ever knows what happens,” said Guyton. “Thank you for what you do. Hopefully word will get around [so people will know].”
In 1921, a group of civic-minded business leaders established an international service organization in Macon, Georgia. The founding members combined their diverse talents in “friendship and service” to improve the quality of life in communities throughout the world. Pilot International is comprised of almost 400 clubs and over 8,000 members worldwide. Pilot International is committed to service in areas of Youth Development and Leadership, Brain Safety and Fitness and Caring for Families in Times of Need. Members of Pilot International strive to further the organization’s humanitarian efforts through scholarships and grants to support research, education and community-care giving programs.
Pilot International partners with Safe Kids Worldwide, CARE International, Project Lifesaver and other respected service organizations to promote awareness for injury prevention and care for those in need.
The Pilot Club of Gadsden partners with the Etowah County Sheriff’s Department on Project Lifesaver, serving twenty-four families with tracking devices in case of emergency. The Pilot Club of Gadsden serves citizens at the Snellgrove Center (day school for developmentally disabled adults), residents of five group homes around Etowah County at Circle of Friends and residents at Coosa Valley Nursing Home.
Pilot International fosters volunteerism in more than 8,000 young people worldwide through its sponsorship of Anchor Clubs. The Hokes Bluff High School Anchor Club sponsored by the Pilot Club of Gadsden has received awards for its accomplishments for the Alabama District and for Pilot International. Members of the Pilot Club of Gadsden and the Hokes Bluff Anchor Club have been involved with the camp (sponsoring campers and working with campers) for survivors of Traumatic Brain Injury at Camp ASCCA in Jackson’s Gap each year since its beginning.
Pilot Clubs throughout the world are dedicated to meeting the needs of their communities through volunteerism. The Pilot Club of Gadsden received its Charter from Pilot International in October of 1936, making this year 84 years of continuous community service in Etowah County.
“It is an honor for the city to know what we do and to recognize us,” said Pilot Sherre McGinnis. “As the mayor said, there are a lot of people that don’t know what pilots and anchors do. It’s important that the pilots teach our young people leadership and to give back. I think for me, the giving back and showing that we care is just a blessing.”