As the month draws to a close, Lions Clubs International will finish their centennial celebration with an international convention in Chicago, the birthplace of Lionism.
The Santa Monica Lions are also finishing a busy year and will be taking the month of July off, with no meetings scheduled. Our last program of the year was a presentation by Team Rubicon, the only disaster response organization the repurposes the unparalleled skills and experiences of military veterans to immediately deploy emergency response teams following local and global disasters. This organization started in 2010 with emergency services provided after the Haiti disaster, now has more than 36,000 volunteers and has responded to more than 130 disasters.
One of our proudest accomplishments this past year has been the ability to financially support local nonprofit organizations. In addition to two scholarships to Santa Monica High, and two to Santa Monica College through the Dot Gelvin Memorial Scholarship Fund, here is a list of those organizations we were able to help this year, organized alphabetically –
- A Window Between Worlds
- McKinley Elementary School PTA
- Meals on Wheels West
- No Limits for Deaf Children
- Santa Monica Breakfast Club
- Santa Monica History Museum
- Santa Monica YMCA
- Step Up On Second
- Westside Coalition
- Westside Family Health Center
In addition to the local charities we also supported three of the many Lions Club supported efforts, the LCI Foundation, Lions Student Speaker Foundation and Camp Teresita Pines.
When the new year starts on August 3rd we will be inducting of four new members and the installing of our new officers at our new meeting location, El Cholo on Wilshire and 10th Street. We will also be busy at work, planning our 64th Annual Pancake Breakfast that will Saturday, September 16th, at the SM Boys & Girls Club.
If you are interested in learning more about becoming a Lion or becoming a sponsor for the Pancake Breakfast, please contact Susan at sldcalion@gmail.com or 310-442-9513.
