By CJ Foxx
GRAVETTE -- On June 30, The Gravette Lions Club will celebrate the first anniversary of its charter with Lions International.
Founded in 1917 by Chicago businessman Melvin Jones, Lions are best known for fighting blindness -- it's part of our history as well as our work today.
Lions also perform volunteer work for many different kinds of community projects -- including caring for the environment, feeding the hungry and aiding seniors and the disabled.
For the Gravette Lions, it has definitely been a year of growing and learning or, in our case, shrinking and learning. We started the club last year with 20 members which is the number of members required by Lions International to start a new club. Sadly, we're down to about 10 members who attend the bi-monthly meetings and participate in trying to help our community. Our biggest challenge this year has been trying to get people enthused about joining the Lions. We need individuals who not only want to join the club, but who are willing to actively participate in trying to assist those in need. You don't need a tornado to find people who need assistance.
Even though our membership is small and funds have been limited, our club has tried to make a positive impact on Gravette this past year. Some of our projects included:
• Instituting the Lions Eyeglass Program. Over 100 eyeglasses were collected, sorted and cleaned for distribution outside the United States. (It is against the law to reuse glasses in the U.S.)
• Collecting food for the Harvest Baptist Food Pantry.
• The Gravette "Heroes Wall" mural is underway thanks to the assistance of Gravette High School art and history students and their teachers.
• Providing free eye screening to approximately 25 children who attended the Imagine Before and After Center in Gravette.
• Collecting money and making donations to the Lions Measles Initiative.
• Through the Lions Sight Referral Program, eye examinations and glasses were provided to three individuals in the community with the assistance of Boozman-Hof.
• Club members participated in the cleanup of Gravette parks.
Our goal is to make an even greater impact next year. We don't want to be a club that meets twice a month to socialize, but never does anything to help the community.
If you're interested in becoming a Lion or just want more information, the club meets on the first and third Tuesday of each month at 1 p.m. at the Billy V. Hall Wellness Center in Gravette.
Veterans are eligible to receive a special rate for annual dues. Please join us and help make Gravette an even better community.
General News on 06/04/2014