Lions Clubs International, a service membership organization of 1,368,683 members world-wide, was founded in the United States on June 7, 1917, by Melvin Jones,[2] a Chicago businessman. Jones asked, with regard to his colleagues, "What if these men who are successful because of their drive, intelligence and ambition, were to put their talents to work improving their communities?" Jones' personal
code, "You can't get very far until you start doing something for somebody else," reminds many Lions of the importance of community service.[3]
The Lions motto is “We Serve.” Local Lions Club programs include sight conservation, hearing and speech conservation, diabetes awareness, youth outreach, international relations, environmental issues, and other programs.[4]
Purpose[edit]
The stated purposes of Lions Clubs International are:
To Organize, charter and supervise service clubs to be known as Lions clubs. To Coordinate the activities and standardize the administration of Lions clubs. To Create and foster a spirit of understanding among the peoples of the world. To Promote the principles of good government and good citizenship. To Take an active interest in the civic, cultural, social and moral welfare of the community. To Unite the clubs in the bonds of friendship, good fellowship and mutual understanding. To Provide a forum for the open discussion of all matters of public interest; provided, however, that partisan politics and sectarian religion shall not be debated by club members. To Encourage service-minded people to serve their community without personal financial reward, and to encourage efficiency and promote high ethical standards in commerce, industry, professions, public works and private endeavors.[4]
Charitable work[edit]
Much of the focus of Lions Clubs International work as a service club organization is to raise money for worthy causes. All funds raised by Lions Clubs from the general public are used for charitable purposes, and administrative costs are kept strictly separate and paid for by members. Some of the money raised for a club’s charity account goes toward projects that benefit the local community of an individual club. Service projects[edit]
Lions Clubs plan and participate in a wide variety of service projects that meet the international goals of Lions Clubs International as well as the needs of their local communities. Examples include donations to hospices,[5] or community campaigns such as Message in a bottle, a United Kingdom initiative which places a plastic bottle with critical medical information inside the refrigerators of vulnerable people.[6] Money is also raised for international purposes. Some of this is donated in reaction to events such as the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake. Other money is used to support international campaigns, coordinated by the Lions Clubs International Foundation (LCIF), such as Sight First and Lions World Sight Day, which was launched in 1998 to draw world media attention to the plight of sight loss in the third world.[7] Lions take on all sorts of various fundraisers to fund these projects. For example, the Dublin, Virginia Lions Club host two flea markets a year, and sell their famous Lion Dog, a fresh prepared variation of a corn dog.[8]
Lions focus on work for the blind and visually impaired began when Helen Keller addressed the international convention at Cedar Point, Ohio, on 30 June 1925 and charged Lions to be Knights of the Blind. Lions also have a strong commitment to community hearing- and cancer-screening projects. In Perth, Western Australia, they have conducted hearing screening for over 30 years and provided seed funding for the Lions Ear and Hearing Institute established September 9, 2001, a center of excellence in the diagnosis, management, and research of ear and hearing disorders.[9] In Perth, Lions have also been instrumental in the establishment of the Lions Eye Institute. In Brisbane, Queensland, the Lions Medical Research Foundation provides funding to a number of researchers. Ian Frazer's initial work, leading to the development of a HPV vaccine for the human papillomavirus which could lead to cervical cancer, was funded by the Lions Medical Research Foundation. Lions Clubs International has supported the work of the United Nations since that organization's inception in 1945, when it was one of the non-governmental organizations invited to assist in the drafting of the United Nations Charter in San Francisco, California. Lions Club Bridge, a symbol for International Friendship and Cooperation (location: Aachen-Lichtenbusch, German-Belgian Border checkpoint)
Lions Clubs International Foundation[edit]
Lions Clubs International Foundation is “Lions helping Lions serve the world”.[10] Donations provide funding in the form of grants to financially assist Lions districts with large-scale humanitarian projects that are too expansive and costly for Lions to finance on their own.[11] The Foundation aids Lions in making a greater impact in their local communities, as well as around the world. Through LCIF, Lions ease pain and suffering and bring healing and hope to people worldwide. Major initiatives of the foundation include the following:
SightFirst programs
Childhood Blindness Project
Lions Eye Health Program (LEHP, pronounced "leap")
River Blindness/Trachoma
SightFirst China Action
Sight for Kids
Other sight programs
Core 4 Preschool
Vision Screening
Disability programs
Lions World Services for the Blind [1]
Diabetes Prevention/Treatment
Habitat for Humanity Partnership
Lions Affordable Hearing Aid Project
Low Vision
Special Olympics Opening Eyes
Youth Programs
LEO Clubs
Lions Quest [12]
Lion Cubs [13]
SightFirst[edit]
Upon endorsing the biggest ever collaborative disease eradication programme called the London Declaration on Neglected Tropical Diseases launched on 30 January 2012 in London, the organization has implemented SightFirst program by which it aims to eradicate blindness due to trachoma, one of the Neglected Tropical Diseases. It has allocated over US$11 million in 10 countries for eye surgeries, medical training, distribution of Zithromax and tetracycline, and sanitary services. It has also announced US$6.9 million funding to support the Government of China for the same cause.[14][15]
Membership[edit]
Membership is by "invitation only" as mandated by its constitution and by-laws. All member applicants need a sponsor who is an active member and of good standing in the club they intend to join. Membership applications, moreover, are subject to the approval of the Club's Board of Directors. Attendance at meetings is encouraged on a monthly or fortnightly basis. Due to the hierarchical nature of Lions Clubs International, members have the opportunity to advance from a local club to an office at the zone, multiple district, and international levels. In 1986 the constitution of Lions Clubs International was amended to allow for women to become members.[16] Since then many clubs have admitted women, but some all-male clubs still exist. In 2003, 8 out of 17 members at the Lions Club in Worcester, England, resigned when a woman joined the club.[17] Despite this setback the club is now flourishing with 19 members, 7 of whom are women. Women's membership numbers continue to grow throughout the association. Spread of Lionism[edit]
International Lions Club Hong Kong
Lions Clubs around the world[edit]
Map showing Lions Clubs involvement around the globe. The organization became international on 12 March 1920, when the first club in Canada was established in Windsor, Ontario. Lions Clubs have since spread across the globe and have a current membership roster of 1,368,683 members worldwide.[citation needed] Listed below are the dates of entry for some countries and regions.
1917 United States of America
1920 Canada
1926-1949 China (under the then ROC government) Later re-established in Taiwan 1958 when the ROC government moved to Taiwan.
1926 China (Tianjin)
1927 Mexico (Nuevo Laredo)
1927 Cuba (Havana)
1935 Panama (Colón)
1947 Australia[18]
1948 France
1948 Pakistan
1948 Sweden
1949 Norway
1949 Philippines
1950 United Kingdom and Ireland
1950 Finland and Denmark
1951 Germany
1951 Iceland
1951 Italy
1952 Brazil and Lebanon
1954 Argentina[19]
1955 Hong Kong and Macau
1955 New Zealand[20]
1956 India
1957 South Africa[21]
1958 Singapore
1958 Taiwan ROC
1959 Malaysia
1960 Israel
1960 Peru
1962 Lebanon District 351 [22]
1963 Turkey on 4 January with Law 3512 signed by President Cemal Gürsel
1964 Ecuador
1969 Indonesia
1972 BangladeshDistrict 315 Bangladesh, Founder:Late Ln M.R Siddiqi.
1989 Poland
1990 Romania
1992 Bulgaria
2002 People's Republic of China (Guangdong and Shenzhen, chartered on May 14, are the first international service clubs to be granted permission by the government of the PRC to operate in mainland China)
2007 Iraq
Extensions of the Lions family[edit]
In addition to adult Lions Clubs, the Lions family includes Lioness Clubs, Leo Clubs, and Campus Lions Clubs and Lion Cubs. These divisions are important parts of Lions Clubs International. They allow service-minded individuals the opportunity to build better communities at the high school and college or university level. Lioness Clubs[edit]
Lioness Club Membership is generally for service-minded women, with exceptions of men also becoming Lioness members nowadays. The Lions Club thus becomes the Parent Club for the Lioness Club. Naming of the Club is also like that of the Lions Club—e.g., Lions Club of Vadodara (Race Course Circle) Dist 323F-1 forming and sponsoring a Lioness Club of Vadodara (Race Course Circle) Dist 323F-1. In many areas, particularly the United States, Lioness clubs have disbanded and merged into their parent clubs to make a more effective club as a whole. Leo Clubs[edit]
Main article: Leo clubs
Leo Clubs are an extension of the Lions service organization which aims to encourage community service and involvement from a young age. Leo Clubs much like Lioness Clubs are sponsored by a parent Lions Club. Leo Clubs are a common school-based organization with members between the ages of 12 and 18 from the same school, these are commonly referred to as Alpha Leo Clubs. Community based clubs also exist, these generally cater for 18- to 30-year-olds and are referred to as Omega Leo Clubs. Leo Clubs are required to have a Leo Club Advisor, a member of the sponsoring Lions Club who attends meetings and provides general advice to the club. Lions International includes more than 144,000 Leo club members in 139 countries.[23]
Campus Lions Clubs[edit]
Many Leos join a Campus Lions Club if they attend a university or college after high school graduation. There are more than 125 Campus Lions clubs in the world including nearly 2,500 members on college and university campuses in Australia, Brazil, China, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, England, Ethiopia, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Mongolia, Nepal, Nigeria, Norway, Pakistan, Panama, Peru, Philippines, Russia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Uganda, United States, Venezuela, Kenya, Zimbabwe, and Ghana-Lions KNUST. Campus Lions Clubs empower their members to create meaningful change in their communities while developing leadership and professional skills.[24]
Lion Cubs[edit]
Lion Cubs is a youth service organization for the elementary aged students. The first club was chartered in the Owen J. Roberts School District in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, United States. It was developed for students in 4th through 6th grade, and therefore too young to be a Leo Club member. The clubs (one club in each of five elementary schools) started their meetings and activities in September 2008 and were officially chartered March 24, 2009. The club is sponsored by the Coventry Lions Club of District 14P. The Lion Cubs first year had 179 charter members. International convention[edit]
An international convention is held annually in cities across the globe for members to meet other Lions, elect the coming year's officers, and partake in the many activities planned. At the convention, Lions can participate in elections and parades, display and discuss fundraisers and service projects, and trade pins and other souvenirs. The first convention was held in 1917, the first year of the club’s existence, in Dallas, Texas. The 2006 convention was due to be held in New Orleans, but damage sustained during Hurricane Katrina meant that the convention had to be relocated to Boston.[25]
