BATAVIA, Ohio — The Aktion Club of Clermont County, a Kiwanis-sponsored service club for adults with developmental disabilities, elected new officers for a one-year term at its Aug. 10 meeting, according to the Clermont County Board of Developmental Disabilities.
David Pursley was elected president, Deklan Nguyen was elected vice president, Whitney Boswell was elected secretary and Charlie Gardner was elected treasurer, Clermont DD said in a Facebook post. They succeed outgoing officers Scott Baker, Ellen Thompson, Abby Minardi and Maggie McManus, who led the club through the 2025-26 term.
The Aktion Club of Clermont County operates in partnership with Clermont DD and is sponsored by the Kiwanis Club of East Fork Region, a Batavia-based Kiwanis club chartered in 2019 that also backs youth service programs at West Clermont High School and Bethel-Tate Middle School. Aktion Club is a Kiwanis International program that gives adults with developmental or intellectual disabilities the opportunity to develop leadership skills, perform community service and represent themselves in decisions that affect their daily lives.
The program traces its roots to 1987, when Kiwanian George "Jake" Swartout formed the first Aktion Club in Putnam County, Florida. Kiwanis International adopted it as an official sponsored program in 2000, and it remains the only Kiwanis-affiliated service club open exclusively to adults with disabilities.
Clermont DD, headquartered in Batavia, provides services for county residents with developmental disabilities spanning early intervention, school-age programs, transition services and adult support.
The information contained in this story was obtained from the Clermont County Board of Developmental Disabilities.