Manitou Springs High School’s Key Club is a student-led organization, advised by Mike Talbott, that teaches students how to give back to the community and work as a team to achieve goals.

The club works to find student leaders and focuses on planning events that help the students and community.  “Key Club is a place for students to help children nationally and locally,” Talbott said. “Manitou Springs High School is interested in helping other people.”

This year, the club also has a solid executive board according to Talbott. “There’s never been a better crew than what’s currently running the club,” Talbott said. 

Key Club has more people joining this year to help the community than last year. “We’ve already had our first meeting and have probably doubled our numbers from what we started with last year,” Talbott said. 

According to Payten Smith (12), the Key Club president, the club’s community is a welcoming place for all students. “Key club is a place where all students are welcome to join without stipulations,” Smith said.  

There are also no academic barriers, so any student can join to help the community. “The nice thing about Key Club is that you don’t have to interview for it like you do for Student Council, and you don’t have to have a certain GPA like with National Honor Society,” Smith said. “You are just welcome as you are, and it’s super cool in that way.” 

Smith also enjoys the ability to meet new people through the club. “I just would tell anyone who isn’t sure about joining Key Club that it is such a great community, and I’ve made some of my best friends through Key Club,” Smith said. 

Key Club member, Landon Foster (10), agrees that the club has a good community. “I like that I get the opportunity to meet new people that I probably wouldn’t have met before, and I can help people,” Foster said.

Talbott elaborated on some of MSHS Key Club key fundraisers and events. “We went to the Coffin Races in Manitou Springs to generate more money for the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund,” Talbott said. 

This year the club is more focused on the Manitou Springs’ community. “I think last year, we were more focused on things outside of the Manitou community,” Foster said. 

Key Club is focusing on more student body involvement this year.  “We’re going to be doing these surveys, which we’ll be sending out in October, that are going to ask the student body what they want to see change in their school or what service projects would they like to be a part of,” Smith said. “We’ll just make that year round.”

Last year, the club put on a haunted house to raise money and plans to do it again this October. “We’re doing the haunted house in October and we’ve already started brainstorming ideas; so, people should definitely be looking out for information,” Smith said.