The Lions Club
The Lions Club
Serving the local community; new members welcome!
The Lions Club … we all “know” about them, but would you be able to explain to a friend what they actually do? In most cases, the answer is probably no. You may grasp for, “oh, the people who collect glasses …” or “I have seen the bubble gum machines.”
Seeing that there was a lack of visibility on this great organization, Bob Illig and I put our heads together for this piece.
Sitting in our favorite place to chat and enjoy lattes, Katy’s Cafe, Bob filled me in on the Lions Club and all they stand for. There is a slogan for the club: “Liberty, Intelligence, Our Nations' Safety.” Let’s take it back …
The founding father, Melvin Jones, saw the social problems brought on by World War I and rapid industrialization. In response to his observations in 1917, he called for business club leaders from all over the country to form the Lions Club. It was decided the focus would be to move past the issues of business and address the betterment of their communities and the world. “The Ellicottville chapter is a fun loving group of like-minded individuals,” Illig told me.
The chapter here has seen its fair share of struggles over the past years. (We do not need to dig into the why … I can only type about the “new normal” for so long.) The Lions Club is about being a part of something outside yourself. “Helping out feels good and we need more involvement from the next generation,” said Illig, and this is something I would echo to myself. In my own experience, working with various charitable organizations, writing for the paper, coaching, etc. allows me to be around people from different generations and it pushes my own “millennial thinking”.
In the local community at Christmas time, the Lions Club creates food and toiletry bundles for the schools to give to families in need. “The schools do a great job of communicating to us how many families to purchase for,” explained Illig. “We send packages to Ellicottville, Franklinville and West Valley.”
Local Lions Club programs include sight conservation, hearing and speech conservation, diabetes awareness, youth outreach, international relations, environmental issues, and many other programs.
Another curious thing to me while hunting around on the internet for this article is that the Lions Club forbids discussion of partisan politics and sectarian religion. As someone who is very politically minded, it is important to remember when it comes to betterment of society these two things can slow progress. It is always best to focus on your immediate community and how you can support yourselves and then others.
The Lions' motto is "We Serve”, which is akin to the ethos of Ellicottville. We aim to serve our locals and visitors with the highest and best service, and these characteristics have earned this area award after award for not just a few years, but generations. To me, that is a testament to the hardworking people in and around Ellicottville and sometimes they need support. It is good to know that the Lions Club and programs similar in nature exist in an area commonly overlooked when it comes to public funding.
In what was supposed to be a full interview with pre-planned questions, our conversation turned into a brainstorming session for the future. I am excited to see where the Lions Club in Ellicottville goes, and if you are looking to get involved without a major time commitment, I highly recommend the Lions Club. They have grown into a worldwide organization helping those in need.
Bob left me with this: “It is important in a community to belong to something. You need to be a representative that cares about belonging to something outside yourself, and what better than an established organization such as the Lions Club.”
The Ellicottville chapter meets approx. 7 to 8 times per year at Dina’s Restaurant with the next meeting scheduled for February 1st at 6:00pm. Show up and see what they are all about … I promise you won’t regret it!