Lions and Lioness Club representatives Joanne Bray (left) and Linda Schaffrick are planning to organize a barbecue for fruit pickers this summer in Lion’s Park.
If it wasn’t for a world-changing question in 1917, the Oliver Lions Club may never have existed.
Ninety-eight years ago Chicago business leader Melvin Jones asked what if people put their talents to work improving their communities?
Today, Lions Clubs International is the world’s largest service club organization, with more than 1.3 million members in more than 46,000 clubs in over 200 countries.
These facts were recently presented to Oliver Town council by Joanne Bray, president of the local club.
She pointed out that the Lions donated 6,785 volunteer hours in the community from 2009-2014. This amounted to more than $43,686 to the community.
The Lionesses donated 7,328 hours for a total of $28,840.
Bray said the Oliver Lioness Club started as a Lady Lions Club in January 1980 and chartered as Lioness in July 1991.
This past summer the Lions celebrated its 35th anniversary.
In 1925 Helen Keller addressed the Lions Clubs International convention in Cedar Point, OH and challenged Lions to become “knights of the blind in the crusade against darkness.”
“Since then, we have worked tirelessly to aid the blind and visually impaired,” Bray said.
She noted that the club has an enduring relationship with the United Nations.
“We were one of the first non-governmental organizations invited to assist in the drafting of the United Nations Charter and have supported the work of the UN ever since.”
Bray said the Lions Foundation of Canada Dog Guides relies on donations from individuals, service clubs, and corporations and does not receive any government funding.
This year will be the 8th year that the Lions/Lioness will host a Walk for Dog Guides in Oliver. This year’s event will be held on May 31 in Lions Park at 12:15 p.m.
Going back through the archives, members noticed that this April will be the 30th year since the Lions started the Lions Park project.
Bray said the club will be planning something for the anniversary after the Walk for Dog Guides event.
The president said their mission statement is “to empower volunteers to serve their communities, meet humanitarian needs, encourage peace and promote international understanding through Lions clubs.”
Bray said Lions and Lioness members represent a charitable organization promoting and supporting community needs through volunteer efforts.
For example, the Lions and Lioness donated to cancer, Cops for Kids Christmas Hampers, expenses for sick children and their families, Timmy’s Telethon, public skating, the cancer car project, the food bank and the pediatric ward at Penticton Regional Hospital.
The following are other programs that benefited from the Lions/Lionesses: the Okanagan Gleaners, the school muffin program, eye glass collection, hearing aids for children, Camp Winfield clean-up, drug awareness book sponsor, and fundraisers at Buy-Low Foods and Canadian Tire.
All of this has been accomplished without a home for Lions/Lioness. But this has now been remedied with a new location – the Lions Den at Oliver Lutheran Centre, a place to work out of and have fundraisers.
The club hosted an open house on February 17 with coffee, tea and snacks.
Bray gave special thanks to Canadian Tire and TRU Building Centre for the supplies to fix up the den.
The club is currently in need of some folding chairs to accommodate additional guests. Call Bray at 250-498-3433 if you can help.
Mayor Ron Hovanes said he was impressed with the Lions/Lioness contributing more than $72,000 to the community since 2009.
“Service clubs like yours really make the community special. We depend on organizations like yours to take care of the community.”
Lyonel Doherty
Oliver Chronicle
