Oxford's Margaret King Looks To Make A Difference As Mississippi Exchange's District President

After serving the Oxford Exchange Club in several capacities for the past 15 years, Margret King, lifelong Oxford resident and Ole Miss alum, has begun a new chapter as the district president of all Mississippi Exchange Clubs. The chance to lead is one that King has always wanted, she but was unsure it would ever come.
“It’s quite an honor. I would watch the district presidents before me and say, ‘I want to be just like them’ and I hoped that one day there would be that same belief in me,” King said. “I looked up to them, and they did such an exceptional job. I really aspired to be like them, but with over 600 members in the state, I never knew that I’d be able to achieve this.”
Local Exchange Clubs are part of a national organization that operates on multiple platforms to improve the lives of individuals in each community. To localize the organization’s national platform of the prevention of child abuse, the Exchange Club operates their Family Center, located just 15 minutes from the Square.  Through prevention, intervention, and educational services, the center aims to follow their mission which reads: “we work for the day child abuse no longer exists.”
The Oxford Exchange Club also works closely with the local Boys and Girls Club, donating materials for them to write holiday cards to veterans. During her term as district president, King hopes to expand the club’s involvement with children across the state.

“I would like to start Junior Exchange Clubs, called “Excel Clubs” at the Boys and Girls Clubs and let them experience what Exchange is all about,” King said. “I want to help them shadow professionals. If a child wants to be an engineer someday we’d like to give them a chance to see how they work, act, dress and more to give them the confidence they need.”
The Oxford Exchange Club extends their work with veterans by visiting the Oxford VA home multiple times a year and donating new blankets to each resident of the home every Christmas. The club also honors a “Police Officer of the Month”, and selects one officer as “Officer of the Year.” Everything the club does is in the interest of helping others, and King looks forward to welcoming new members and continuing to help those in need.  
“We only have 13 members in Oxford and we are always looking for more! We have so much fun while doing our best to help people in town and around the state,” King said. “If there are non-profits out there that want to come speak to us, all are welcome. We want to raise enough money to where we can give grant money out to some of the smaller non-profits around town.”
As District President, King hopes to increase the state membership from its current mark of 630 to over 700. The state of Mississippi has 31 clubs including four in high schools. King hopes to visit each club in an effort to get to know as many members as she can.
“I’ve visited 10 so far, and I hope to visit each one twice,” King said. “I really enjoy meeting people and getting to know them. I want to be real part of each club, I want them to know that they are a part of me and I want to be a part of them and what they represent.”
While King knows that she has a lot of work to do, she is looking forward to facing the challenge head on.
“I’ve got lofty goals and now it’s time to implement them.”

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Steven Gagliano is the managing editor of HottyToddy.com. He can be reached at steven.gagliano@hottytoddy.com.