Century Strong
Fishers Century Club Exemplifies the Power of Numbers
Writer / Ryan Kennedy
Photography Provided
Adam Kallick believes in the power of numbers. Thats why he founded Fishers Century Club.
Kallicks inspiration to start Fishers Century Club came from Zionsville Century Club, a charitable organization founded by Kallicks friend and longtime Indianapolis Colts offensive lineman, Ryan Diem. Kallick says hed been following the organization for some time, and after speaking with Diem, decided to start a similar organization in Fishers.
The concept is simple. A group of men get together four times per year to donate $100 each to a charity they choose. Fishers Century Club gets its name from the organizations goal of having 100 or more men donating $100 each at every meeting.
Its basically using the power of numbers to make an impact, Kallick says. As I always say, small commitment, big impact. If I gave a charity $100, they would appreciate it but it would not be that impactful to their bottom line. If we can ultimately build this up to 100 guys giving $100 every quarter, then thats $10,000 a quarter that were giving to a worthy organization.
Fishers Century Club is not a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, and its leaders do not have a bank account or touch any of the money raised. Kallick says its just an organized group of guys who get together, pitch charities and donate money.
Kallick says he started reaching out to people about starting Fishers Century Club in 2019. He wanted to spread the word about the group and hoped to launch in 2020. When COVID-19 hit and meetings of all kinds went virtual, Kallick decided to delay the launch until 2021. Fishers Century Club held its first meeting in June. In the process of reaching out to people, Kallick says Launch Fishers Founder John Wechsler heard about the group and was so impressed that he offered to host Fishers Century Club meetings in the Launch Fishers auditorium free of charge.
For nearly a decade at Launch Fishers we have invested in community-based initiatives that make Fishers stronger, Wechsler says. We are happy to support Fishers Century Club in their charitable pursuits.
The meetings themselves last between an hour and an hour and a half at most. Theres time for networking and socializing. Wine and Spirits Wholesalers of Indiana sponsors the event. Fishers Century Club members can drop the name of a charity of their choice into a hat. Three charities are chosen at random from the hat. The members who submitted those charities are given five minutes to pitch reasons why the charity deserves the groups donation. DJ Sound Solution provides assistance for the clubs audio and video needs. When the pitches are over, the club takes a vote, and the members each donate $100 to the winner. Kallick says members bring $100 checks and write in the name of the winning charity after the vote. However, if a member cant attend, he can still donate online through Fishers Century Clubs website.
Kallick says 20 men attended the first meeting of Fishers Century Club in June. The club voted to make a donation to the Central Indiana Area Youth for Christ Juvenile Justice Ministry. At the second meeting in September, attendance rose to about 25 men. This time the club voted for Helping Challenged Children, a charity that provides financial assistance in securing medical equipment for physically and mentally challenged children in Indiana.
When I learned that the Fishers Century Club had chosen Helping Challenged Children, as their recipient I was really caught off guard, says Helping Challenged Children President Layth Hussain. We are a small charity, so a gift like this really makes a difference in our ability to help children of Indiana with their durable medical needs. Its as if we had a full fundraiser, but without the event.
Even charities that dont win the vote still benefit from Fishers Century Club.
Weve had some guys say, Wow, Ive never heard of that charity. I want to look into that one more. I would be interested in giving to something like that on my own, separate from this, and Im glad I heard about that charity, Kallick says. Its exposing our area and regional charities to people that may never have heard of them before or know what they do.
Fishers Century Club members will hold their next meeting on December 21, 2021, at Launch Fishers. To learn more about Fishers Century Club, visit fisherscenturyclub.com and sign up for the mailing list to stay up to date with club news.
