BOWLING GREEN — It’s been a a year of pancakes, sausage, and strawberry shortcake for Jason Miller.
As Ohio Kiwanis district governor for the last year, with his term expiring Oct. 1, Mr. Miller has made 90 official visits to clubs around the state. Kiwanis are member-driven, community-focused service clubs.
“I’ve put over 18,000 miles on the car since Oct. 1, which is certainly a lot more than the average governor does, but it was important to me to get out and meet as many people as a I could,” said Mr. Miller, who is 45. “I’ve attended anything you can imagine, from bike rodeos, to strawberry socials, to pancake days, to cake walks.”
His most memorable trip was two hours south, where he was asked to throw out the first pitch for a Dayton Dragons game. He ended up passing the opportunity to a local child, Logan.
“One thing that his dad told me, right before we went out, is ‘I want to thank you for this opportunity,’” Mr. Miller said, adding that he tried to wave the praise off. The father, however, pressed on, saying he had spent almost every night over the last few weeks with his son, practicing for the pitch.
“It’s that sort of ripple effect that community service groups have that you just don’t think about it,” Mr. Miller said. “Honestly, that was my most favorite moment from this last year.”
‘Having his dad say that to me — that is so worth all of the sleepless nights, to know an unintended consequence like that, came out of that,” he said.
One of Mr. Miller’s governor goals was to increase membership.
“Community service groups as a whole — Rotary, Lions, Exchange Club — membership is declining rapidly as people find different uses for their time,” Mr. Miller said. “Maybe 10 years ago, Kiwanis in Ohio was 10,000 members, and now we’re down to 6,000.”
He’s made progress in turning that around; there’s been a net gain of 282 Kiwanis members since October, 2023.
Mr. Miller is past president of the 104-year-old Bowling Green Kiwanis, which is the second largest club in the state, with 124 members, behind Wooster.
“The biggest thing is our pancake day. We do that twice a year. That’s our biggest fund-raiser that allows us to take money and put that back into the community,” he said, adding they bring in more than $15,000 to fund programs and community grants.
Anyone is welcome to join.
“Basically, the biggest thing is you want to help make a difference for kids, that’s what our main focus is. Our mission is changing the world one child and one community at a time,” he said.
The Bowling Green club meets every Thursday at 11:30 a.m. at the ice arena on the Bowling Green State University campus. There’s lunch and a speaker, and a chance to share “happy/sad” bucks.
“A sergeant at arms will walk around with a basket and you can put in a dollar for any happy news that you want to share,” Mr. Miller said, such as a birth or community event. “And sometimes it might be a sad dollar because someone passed or you didn’t get that promotion.”
His leadership journey started in high school in Mansfield when he joined Key Club, a junior version of Kiwanis, and became president.
While a Bowling Green State University student, he served with Circle K International, which is the collegiate branch. He was district governor and an international trustee.
After graduation, he became a Bowling Green Kiwanis Club member and started advising CKI, which he still does.
“I always joke that it’s the circle of life. I was in this group and now am an adviser to this group. I get to see the student leaders emerge and become great things,” Mr. Miller said.
Cindy Hofner will be the next president of Bowling Green Kiwanis Club, starting Oct. 1. She said she relies on Mr. Miller for guidance and advice.
“He’s very positive, always jovial and ready to step in any role that we ask him to,” Mrs. Hofner said. “He’s just a great guy, a great leader in Kiwanis. He definitely has impacted the growth of our club.”
Mr. Miller is the human resources manager of the Wood County Committee on Aging, hiring and training staff.
Kiwanis and the committee on aging are partnering for the second annual cornhole tournament fundraiser Sept. 15 at Wooster Green. The proceeds will be put toward the Grandparents Raising Grandkids program.
Mr. Miller is also on the boards for the Bowling Green Community Foundation and Wood County District Public Library Foundation. In 2023, he was the 14th recipient of the Bowling Green Chamber of Commerce Zeus Award, which honors a male individual who supports a culture that encourages women to achieve their full leadership potential.
His next Kiwanis challenge is to help develop a Sylvania chapter.
“We’re trying to revive that effort because it’s a growing community,” Mr. Miller said.
Anyone interested in helping with the Sylvania effort or joining the Bowling Green club may contact him at jmiller@ohiokiwanis.org .
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