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The Peoria Jaycees celebrates its 75th anniversary this year.

“Service to humanity is the best work of life.” This ideal may sound a little old-fashioned in today’s modern world, where we are so busy living our lives that we often don’t think we have enough time in the day to help others. So often, volunteering is touted as a selfless act that helps others—but it can be good for you, too!

Volunteering is as much about helping the community as it is about helping you grow as a well-rounded human being. You can learn leadership skills, develop new talents, feel appreciated and most importantly, have fun! It is not a crime to have fun while volunteering, and one of the best ways to ensure fun is to find a great group of folks to do it with.

“Service to humanity is the best work of life” is a line in the Jaycees Creed, and it’s an ideal the Peoria Jaycees have strived to achieve over its 75-year history. Seventy-five years of volunteering… and making Peoria a better place to live.

Did you know the Peoria Jaycees started the Home Show? What about the Fourth of July fireworks on the Riverfront? The group was even instrumental in establishing Peoria’s council-manager form of government. And don’t forget about current projects like the International Beer Festival—the oldest international beer festival in the country—with over 300 different beers from around the world available to taste. These events could not have taken place without the volunteers who took a little time out of their lives to give back to their community and have some fun in the process.

The Peoria Jaycees are still very active in the community and have many different volunteer activities for people with different tastes. Do you like kids? Maybe check out Peoria’s largest free Easter Egg Hunt, done every year. What about running or beer tasting? The Firecracker 5000 5K, Das Bier Run 5K and the International Beer Fest are some of the Peoria area’s most popular events. If you don’t see an existing event that excites you, then create one of your own! The Jaycees welcome new and innovative ideas as a way to raise money for your favorite charities. We will help you every step of the way.

The Peoria Jaycees is a young person’s leadership organization with members ages 21 to 40, one of hundreds of local chapters around the country and throughout the world. Monthly membership meetings are held on the second floor of the AMVETS building, 237 NE Monroe Street in downtown Peoria, at 7pm on the third Friday of each month. Membership meetings are open to the public, so anyone interested in learning more about the Peoria Jaycees is welcome.

We are always looking for new people to join our organization. If you are a past Jaycees member and would like more information about our 75th annual Celebration Weekend in August, visit us online at peoriajaycees.org. We would love to hear from you! iBi

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