The parking lot, usually reserved for band practice, was now covered in ice chests, recycling bins and trash cans, all filled with over a thousand colorful water balloons. Five-dollar gift cards paid the admission price for this impending battle and would be sent to the victims of West, Texas, where a fertilizer plant exploded not long before, killing many, injuring more and devastating much of the town.

This annual water balloon fight represents Key Club’s purpose: helping out the community while having fun at the same time.

“I joined because I have friends in there and it sounded interesting,” sophomore Lynsey Williams said. “I get to help out the community a lot more [and] be more invested.”

Formed in 1925 at a high school in Sacramento, California and sponsored by Kiwanis International, Key Club originally started with 11 members, made of the “key” boys in the school. These boys were willing and able to serve the school, personifying the giving and helpful spirit of Key Club. According to keyclub.org, the organization now has more than 250,000 members in 5,000 clubs in 30 countries with clubs at one in every four high schools in the world. Working with a variety of other organizations, such as UNICEF, March of Dimes and Children’s Miracle Network, Key Club aims to improve the lives of children and instill in its members core values of leadership, caring, inclusiveness and character building.

“Key Club lets you do more things outside of what you do in school, more extracurricular things, and help your community,” sophomore Nathalie Gaona said.

Legacy’s Key Club upholds the values of the organization, every year holding different events to help out the community. Posters hanging on the walls during late fall advertise a canned food drive hosted in collaboration with National Honor Society. The Adopt-A-Child event that provides underprivileged children with Christmas presents every winter is held through fourth-block classes and organized by Key Club. In the spring, members place donation boxes in classrooms to support “Feed the Kids for Summer.” At the end of each school year, they hold a water balloon fight to raise money for a cause decided on by Key Club officers.

“We do something different each year,” Vice President Haley Hines said.

One of the most anticipated events of the year is the district convention (DCON). Clubs in the Texas-Oklahoma district meet for a few days in the spring to receive training, elect officers and participate in entertaining functions like the convention’s talent show. This year’s DCON is April 24-27 in Dallas. Other events include the Fall Rally, which kicks off the year and is held at Six Flags Over Texas.

“We really get to hang out with a lot of cool, new people and do community service with them,” Gaona said.

Shelly Burkett sponsors Legacy’s local Key Club chapter and holds meetings every Tuesday after school at 3 p.m. and Wednesday morning at 7 a.m in Room AY317, where upcoming events and service opportunities are discussed. An application, obtained from Ms. Burkett, and $19 in dues are all that’s needed to officially become a member of Key Club. The service requirement is 25 hours per semester. For more information, go to the Texas-Oklahoma district website and the Key Club International website.

“Mostly I like just hanging out with the people in the club,” Gaona said. “We really grow close to each other.”