Dr. Dean Kyle named a Kiwanis Hixson Fellow

Alex Paul

A week after being named a Hixson Fellow by Kiwanis International, Sweet Home’s Dr. Dean Kyle is still smiling.

“I am seldom at a loss for words, but I was speechless when they made the presentation,” Dr. Kyle said. “It’s very a very special honor.”

A Wisconsin native, Dr. Kyle has been a Sweet Home transplant since 1975, after having moved to Cottage Grove for five years.

A Lions Club member for many years, Dr. Kyle joined Kiwanis in 1975 and remains committed to the international organization’s main theme “Children, Priority One.”

Dr. Kyle’s introduction to the club came quickly after his induction.

“We took on a project to build playground equipment at Liberty School and I was put in charge of it,” Dr. Kyle said. “It was a lot of fun but also challenging because it featured several play things in one unit. There were lots of angles to work out.”

Although he supposedly retired from more than a half century as an optometrist in Sweet Home and Brownsville in 1994 and 1999 respectively, Dr. Kyle keeps busy with his Kiwanis projects and driving the local Dial-A-Bus.

“I like working on Kiwanis project for two reasons, they are good for the community and the camaraderie of the folks working together,” Dr. Kyle said. “For example, I like the food booth that we take to the Jamboree and the Mud Flats.”

The award was presented during the combined annual meeting of the Sweet Home and Lebanon Kiwanis clubs. Making it extra special was that Dr. Kyle’s family including his wife of 49 years, Mary Ann, and their three daughters, knew about the presentation and kept it a secret. The Kyle daughters are Kimberly Messick of Klamath Falls, Kirsten Offutt of Sweet Home and Deanna Emmert of Corvallis.

“The girls kept a secret so well that I never figured it out,” Dr. Kyle said.

In addition to his Kiwanis duties (including serving on the board of directors for many years and being president) Dr. Kyle has been active in the Chamber of Commerce (including past president), Masons and spent 17 years on the Evangelical Church board as first vice president.

He also enjoys hunting, fishing and traveling in the family’s Air Stream trailer.

“Air Streams are such a unique trailer and there is a camaraderie that develops among those who own them,” Dr. Kyle said. He’s been the local Air Stream club’s unit president twice.

Dr. Kyle said he chokes up a little when he thinks about the other Hixson award recipients over the years and what they’ve done for Sweet Home and other communities across the country.

About the Hixson Fellowship: The George F. Hixson Fellowship was created by the Kiwanis International Foundation in 1983. The purpose of this Fellowship was to honor the first president of Kiwanis International, George S. Hixson and to establish an endowment fund.

The award is one of the Kiwanis International Foundation’s highest honors and is granted to individuals who have made a contribution of $1,000 or more or by a club, individual or organization to honor a deserving individual.

Contributions are placed in the Kiwanis International Foundation’s endowment fund where earnings are used to provide grants in support of Kiwanis sponsored youth, disaster relief and the needs of children around the world. Funds may also be designated to support the Kiwanis International Worldwide Service Project, Iodine Deficiency Disorders.

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