Club News - July 2021

In Oklahoma, the city of Hugo honored Leo Caleb Joe, 17, with the Volunteer of the Year award. Caleb performed more than 50 hours of community service through the active Hugo Leos Club.

The Snellville Lions and Lions of Georgia led by Marcia Anderson-Esson, District 18I chairperson for hunger, partnered with the local food bank and others to distribute USDA Farm to Families boxes of produce, meat and dairy products. Between June 2020 and May 2021, 192,424 residents of Georgia were helped.

The Portage Lions Club in Michigan hosted their Inaugural Student Essay Contest to give third, fourth and fifth- grade students an opportunity to develop creative thinking, writing, self-expression, and public speaking skills.  They spoke about “What Memorial Day and Freedom Mean to Me.” The winner, Tatum Richardson, was presented with a US$50 prize and a patriotic wreath.

The Colts Neck Lions in New Jersey happily assisted the NJ Titans with their first Colts Neck Classic Beep Ball Tournament.

The London Ohio Lions Club held a dedication for “Noah’s Bridge,” a Centennial Project for the Lions who raised US$10,000 toward the bridge. Success is credited to the co-operation of a local club, two other nonprofit organizations, and multiple government agencies.

In Kansas, the Emporia Lions reminded travelers of Flag Day by setting up 30 American flags on loan from the American Legion's Patriot Guard to wave from the pedestrian bridge over the interstate.

The Avon Grove High School Leo Club in Pennsylvania collected more than 1,000 pounds of plastic bags as a community service recycling project during the school year. For their efforts, the Trex Corporation awarded a Trex park bench that the Leos donated for the residential gardens at Luther House, a home for seniors in West Grove, Pa.

In New York, the Orchard Park Lions were busy gearing up for their 26th Annual Car & Motorcycle Show & Cruise to benefit their Blind & Charity Fund.

The Austin-West Austin Lions Club in Texas helped get a mobile eye clinic for half Helen, a nonprofit to help children see the world clearly. With their support, comprehensive eye exams and prescription glasses will be made possible for underprivileged children across central Texas. Plans are to screen 18,000 kids, provide 3,100 eye exams, and dispense 2,500 pairs of prescription glasses this coming school year through their mobile eye clinic.

The New Philadelphia Lions Club in Ohio awarded US$300 to the Tuscarawas County Public Library for the purchase of large print books. Lions plans to continue aiding the library in serving the visually impaired.

In California, the Arnold Lions Club began participating in a community recycling challenge put on by Trex, and with local businesses collected plastic film in bins placed around town.

Members of the Winchester Host Lions Club in Virginia convened in Jim Barnett Park to spruce up the entrance to the group’s 74-year-old picnic shelter. They painted a pair of wooden lions that stand guard at the entrance and refreshed the sign in front of the pavilion.

Lions from the Springfield-Franconia Host Lions Club in Virginia honored their 100-year-old member PDG Robert Hemm. Over the years Hemm was active in clubs in Ohio, Germany, Utah, Maryland, Alabama, and England, before joining the Springfield-Franconia Lions in 1977. He credits his longevity to always striving to help others and an occasional glass, or two, of German wine.

The Brazoria Lions Club in Texas prepared to resume their annual Celebrate America event that was cancelled in 2020. The free evening celebration consists of inflatables for children, vendors, food booths, and the county’s largest fireworks show.

In Pennsylvania, Jennifer Scott, advisor to the Owen J. Roberts Middle School Leos, hosted an in-person meeting at the school for 21 students who completed the required commitment in the pandemic year for induction into the Leo club.

The Maple Grove, Minnesota, Lions Club learned about the NexTrex Challenge through District M-5M5 and collected 500 pounds of plastic film over six month to receive a park bench made of Trex material. Unlike hard plastic like beverage bottles and food containers, plastic film includes case wrappers from paper products and beverages, cereal bags, dry cleaner bags, newspaper sleeves, produce wrappers and bags, bubble wrap, plastic shipping envelopes, pallet wrap and more.

In Kentucky, the Mt. Washington Lions paid US$2,800 for a long-researched “In Memoriam” plaque unveiled Memorial Day on the front lawn of the Bullitt County Courthouse. The names of 132 Bullitt County individuals who died while in military service dating from the War of 1812 to Afghanistan and Iraq are listed on the plaque.