HISTORY OF JR. CIVITAN INTERNATIONAL

Junior Civitan International still holds the title as Civitan’s longest standing program. As stated in our creed, Junior Civitan strives to be progressive in a world of change with compassion and understanding for the values and traditions of the past.

Civitan International was founded in Birmingham, Alabama by a group of businessmen who had a desire to make a difference in their community.

First Junior Civitan club was formed at South Portland High School in Portland, Maine (1927).

Junior Civitan became an official program of Civitan International (1939).

Junior Civitan went international with the first club outside the United States formed in Toronto, Ontario, Canada (1957).

First ever International Awards were presented. The 1960s also gave birth to the Miss Junior Civitan International pageant.

First Junior Civitan International President, Elliot Bossom, was elected (1973). In the same decade, two International fundraisers were established, Sno-Do (1976) and Dance-a-thon (1978).

The first ever Junior Civitan International Convention was held at the University of Montevallo. Susan Kirtland (Germantown, Tennessee) was elected the first ever female Junior Civitan International President. In 1988, the current Junior Civitan Creed was written by the board and voted into effect by the delegation at the 1988 International Convention.

Junior Civitan International Board voted to adopt the newly established Civitan International Research Center as their flagship project, with the Civitan International following suit the next month.

Junior Civitan International Board voted to adopt the newly established Civitan International Research Center as their flagship project, with the Civitan International following suit the next month.

In the 2000s, Junior Civitan established four signature campaigns to promote various categories of service across our membership: Environmental Awareness Campaign, Social Causes Awareness Campaign, Membership Recruitment Campaign, and Collection Selection.

The Countdown Magazine, official publication of Junior Civitan, changed its name to The Insider and went digital in 2012.

Famous former Junior Civitans include: Cindy Harrell (model), Bobby Eakes (actress), Frank “The Big Hurt” Thomas (professional baseball player), and many more who went undocumented.