An Oak Harbor resident recently celebrated his 50th year of helping his community.

David Cohick has been a member of Kiwanis for 50 years, and doesn’t plan to quit anytime soon.

“I don’t know when to quit,” he said. “When I can’t physically, I stop.”

Kiwanis is a service club that has been in Oak Harbor since the mid-1960s, and its goal is to improve the lives of children in the community.

Some of these efforts include the Santa Orange Project, where club members bring Santa Claus to preschool and kindergarten classes and distribute oranges from the North Pole, and the Dictionary Project, where third graders are given a dictionary.

After over a decade in the Navy, Cohick joined the Navy Reserves, flying on P-3 planes and working as a real estate realtor. The Pennsylvania native found himself wanting to support and connect with his newfound community members, and that opportunity came in the spring of 1974, when he joined Kiwanis.

Since then, he has served in every office at the club and on the board of directors for many years, he said.

Cohick said he enjoys helping others as seeing the smiles on children gives him a sense of joy and fulfillment. Furthermore, he said, it’s an opportunity to set a positive example for the community.

According to Club President Maria McGee, who has known Cohick for five years, he has been a member of the club for the longest time. While some members have been involved for over 20 and 30 years, the majority have joined Kiwanis less than 13 years ago.

“David is always the person you can count on when he is given that responsibility,” she said. “He will make sure the job gets done.”