Fort Collins Lions Club

Volume 3, Issue 1                 January, 2012

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE             Ted Blevins

As you know, Lion Dick Corl, editor of the Lions Tales is planning to feature bios and highlights of each active club president in this year’s newsletters. He is starting with the 1963 president, Lee Anderson. I have done a little research, and found some interesting history of our now 92 year old club.

Did you know?

In the 1920s, the Fort Collins Lions Club entertained the honorable Franklin and Mrs. Eleanor Roosevelt at a lunch in the Northern Hotel. Mr. Roosevelt spoke on the topic “Greater Efficiency in Government Affairs.”

In 1921, Colorado Governor Oliver Shoup threw out the first ball in a baseball game between the Lions and Rotarians held in May. Coach Harry Hughes pitched for the Rotarians, who won 31-15.

The 1937 funds were allotted between the blind – $25 and the Iron Lung Fund – $200. The Lions led the drive to buy the Iron Lung and an infant respirator, raising a total of $3000.

In 1941, Lions Art March and Bob Bales won the wild cow milking contest at the College Days Rodeo.

In the late 1940s, one program featured Bill Carlisle, a reformed bad man who had served 20 years in prison. He told how he staged a hold-up on the Union Pacific train near Cheyenne, and took over $500 from the passengers.

Lion Ben Delatour donated several hundred acres of land near Red Feather Lakes, which became the Boy Scout Camp, in 1959. The club later financed the planting of 4000 Douglas Firs by the Scouts in the camp areas.

Lions Clubs in 1966 had committees for: agriculture, youth, citizenship and patriotism, civic improvement, education, health and welfare, safety, United Nations and youth exchange.

In 1977, the Thanksgiving meeting featured the raffle of a live turkey. When Floyd Headlee won the raffle, the 28 pound turkey was released from the next room. Lion Floyd immediately donated the bird to the Salvation Army. There is no record of the bird’s capture.

We have a proud and fun history, and to carry it forward, we need new members. All you have to do is ask — a neighbor, a church member, anyone who you think would enjoy serving this community as a Lion.

A BIG WELCOME to our newest member – Dr. Marcelo Saldivia!

                            Ted

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THE A,B,C’S

Accept differences, Be kind, Count your blessings, Dream, Express thanks, Forgive, Give freely, Harm no one, Imagine more, Jettison anger, Keep confidences, Love truly, Master something, Nurture hope, Open your mind, Pack lightly, Quell rumors, Reciprocate, Seek wisdom, Touch hearts, Understand, Value truth, Win graciously, Xeriscape, Yearn for peace, Zealously support a worthy cause.

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LeMoyne W. Anderson

President of Fort Collins Lions Club

1963 – 1964

Fifty-five years a Lion!

I started life as a child before serving as a teen-age infantry soldier in WWII.  I married my college sweetheart after we graduated from Minnesota.  We lived in Chicago for 6 years after completing a Ph.D. from Illinois.  Served as a CSU administrator for 30 years, retiring as Dean and professor emeritus. We traveled the world extensively while residing in Fort Collins for past 54 years and are “enjoying” 61 years of marriage.  Have 2 daughters, 5 grandkids, & 4 great grandsons.

As President of the Fort Collins Lions Club I received a phone call late one Tuesday night in October, 1963, informing me that the kitchen at Ace Gillette’s restaurant had been closed by order of the State Board of Health…thus, no place for our Lions to meet on Thursday noon for our regularly scheduled luncheon in the GilBan Room of the Northern Hotel.  So, what to do!

Well, my wife, Hollis, and I got on the telephones trying to locate an alternate venue.  After several hectic hours, we finally found a meeting site:  Ladd’s Covered Wagon on HWY 287 north of the “Y” (since burned to the ground).  Following this episode, we proceeded to inform the Lions.  It took a while inasmuch as back then we had 125 members to call. 

We continued meeting at Ladd’s for several months pending the re-opening of Gillette’s food services in the Northern Hotel, which eventually met the health standards of Colorado.

The experience was unprecedented and certainly not in the job description of a Lions Club President!

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The Best INSULTS of ALL TIMES

• “He has no enemies but is intensely disliked by his friends.” Oscar Wilde, Irish dramatist
  
• “He is not only dull himself; he is the cause of dullness in others.” Samuel Johnson, British writer
  
• “He loves nature in spite of what it did to him.” Forrest
  Tucker, American actor
  
• “He has Van Gogh’s ear for music.” Billy Wilder,
  American film director
  
• “He is a self-made man and worships his creator.” – John Bright, British politician
  
• “He had delusions of adequacy.” Walter Kerr, American critic and writer
  
• “He has all of the virtues I dislike and none of the vices I admire.” Winston Churchill, British prime minister
  
• “He has never been known to use a word that might send a reader to the dictionary.” William Faulkner, American writer
  
• “He is simply a shiver looking for a spine to run up.” Paul Keating, Australian prime minister
  

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Remember to Sign Up for

Our Valentine’s Party

Noon,Thursday,February 9th,2012

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE             Ted Blevins

‘Tis the Season and here’s the reason for the season –

CHRISTMAS LOVE

This December, I vowed to make Christmas a calm and peaceful experience. I cut back on nonessential obligations, card writing, decorating, and even overspending. I did not want to find myself exhausted, unable to appreciate the precious family moments.

My grandson, Ben, is in kindergarten this year. It is an exciting season for a six year old. For weeks, he has been memorizing songs for his school’s “winter program.” I didn’t have the heart to tell him I’d be working the night of his show. I spoke with his teacher. She told me there’d be a dress rehearsal the morning of the presentation, and any parents unable to attend that evening were welcome to come then. Fortunately, Ben was ok with this.

So, the morning of the dress rehearsal, I found a spot in the cafeteria and sat down. Around the room, I saw several other parents quietly taking their seats. The students were led into the room, and sat cross-legged on the floor. Then, each class, one by one rose to perform their song.

Because the public school system had long-stopped referring to the holiday as “Christmas”, I didn’t expect anything other than fun songs of reindeer, Santa Claus, snowflakes and good cheer. So, when Ben’s class rose to sing, “Christmas Love”, I was slightly surprised by its bold title. Ben and his classmates were adorned in fuzzy mittens, red sweaters, and bright snow caps. Those in the front row held up large letters, one by one, to spell out the title of the song. As the class would sing “C is for Christmas”, a child would hold up the letter C. Then “H is for happy”, and on and on, until each child holding up his portion had presented the complete message, “Christmas Love.”

The performance was going smoothly, until suddenly we noticed her — a small quiet girl in the front row — holding the letter “M” upside down, totally unaware her letter “M” appeared as a “W”. The audience of 1^st through 6^th graders snickered at this little one’s mistake. But she stood tall, proudly holding her “W”. Although many teachers tried to shush the children, the laughter continued until the last letter was raised, and we all saw it together.

In that instant, we understood the reason we were there, why we celebrated the holiday in the first place, why there was a purpose for our festivities. For when the last letter was held high, the message read loud and clear: “Christ was love.”

And, I believe he still is …and I hope you do too!

Merry Christmas to everyone!

Ted

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More Help Wanted

Vice President(s)
If the president is unable to perform the duties of his/her office for any reason, the vice president next in rank shall occupy his/her position and perform his/her duties with the same authority as the president. Each vice president shall, under the direction of the president, oversee the functioning of such committees of the club as the president designates.

President
He/she is the chief executive officer of the club who presides at all meetings of the board of directors and the club. The president issues the call for regular meetings and special meetings of the board of directors and the club, and appoints the standing and special committees of the club while cooperating with chairpersons to ensure regular functioning and reporting of such committees. He/she sees that officers are elected as provided for by the constitution and by-laws, and cooperates as an active member of the district governor’s advisory committee of the zone in which this club is located.

Immediate Past President
He/she and the other past presidents officially greet members and their guests at club meetings and represent the club in welcoming all new service-minded people in the community served by the club.

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Lions Tales 2012
Our newsletter for next year will honor past presidents of the Fort Collins Lions Club. (Note those four words. We do happen to meet during the noon hour, but “noon” is not included in our name!)

We’ll be starting with Past President Lee Anderson and work our way through Ted Blevens and David Lambertson. We’ll be asking the Past Presidents for a digital photo and personal biography as well as some of the memories they have of “their year” such as fund raising, number of members in the Club, district conventions, notable Club visitors, Tail Twister’s antics, where the Club met, etc.

Hopefully we’ll get a few laughs at the differences between “now” and “then”!

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Merry

Christmas

& Happy

New Year!

Volume 2, Issue 11                 November, 2011

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE             Ted Blevins

Who would’ve thought we would have so much fun in Stoneham??? We did! Those of us who met the members from Sterling Lions Club in Stoneham, to celebrate their winning the “trophy” for getting the most new Lions last year, are all glad we went.

The Sterling club is fun, gracious, motivated and planning to go for the win again. Some tips we heard from their club that we may want to consider are:

• Guests eat free. Hosts are not charged.
  
• Members are rewarded monetarily for bringing the most guests (we don’t), and for getting the most new members (we do).
  
• Their meetings are just 1 hour, plus or minus, INCLUDING EATING.
  
• Ask, ask, and ask again.
  

As I may have mentioned before, our club’s membership status is my main focus this year. We had 73 members as of October 1^st, but could drop below 70 with the move of the Hollingsworth’s and potential transfers. As recently as the year 2000, this club had 116 members. My goal for the year was to reach 100 members by June, 2012. Maybe that was naive on my part, but we now have another challenge from the Sterling Lions Club for a membership contest ending in June 2012. They had 79 members on Oct. 1. If both clubs added 10 new members, Fort Collins would win on the basis of percentage gained. Are you up to it? Ask, ask, and ask again! I keep reading in the Coloradoan about the young business people in this community who want to volunteer. Do we have any contacts with them? If you don’t ask, they won’t even have a chance to answer.

A big welcome to our newest members: Mark Scott and Luke Burhenn. BRING YOUR FRIENDS…

I’ll be listening… Ted

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MY TRAVELS

I have been in a lot of places, but I’ve never been in Cahoots. Apparently you can’t go there alone…you have to be in Cahoots with someone.

I’ve also have never been in Cognito, either. I understand that no one recognizes you there.

I have, however, been in Sane. They don’t have an airport…you have to be driven there. I have made several trips there, thanks to my family and friends.

I would like to go to Conclusions sometime, but you have to jump there! At my age I am doing good just to walk!

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Looking for work?

Each spring our Club follows established procedures to elect officers for the ensuing year. Following is Lions Clubs International’s Job Descriptions for several of our officers.

Wanted – Lion Tamer

The Lion tamer is responsible for the property and paraphernalia of the club, including flags, banners, gong, gavel, song books, etc. He/she puts each item in its proper place before every meeting and returns the items to the proper storage area after each meeting. He/she acts as sergeant-at-arms at meetings, seeing that those present are properly seated, and distributes bulletins, favors and literature as required at club and board meetings. He/she ensures that new members are welcomed to the club and sit with a different group at each meeting so that the new members become better acquainted.

Wanted – Tail Twister

The Tail Twister promotes harmony, good fellowship, and enthusiasm in the meetings through appropriate stunts, games and the judicious imposition of fines on club members. There shall be no appeal of his/her decision in imposing a fine, provided, however, that no fine shall exceed an amount fixed by the board of directors of the club, and no member shall be fined more than twice at any one meeting. The tail twister may not be fined except by the unanimous vote of all members present. All monies collected by the tail twister shall be immediately turned over to the treasurer and a receipt shall be given.

Wanted – Treasurer

The Treasurer shall:

• Receive all monies from the secretary and deposit the currency in a bank or banks recommended by the finance committee and approved by the board of directors
  
• Pay the club’s obligations authorized by the board of directors. All checks and vouchers shall be signed by the treasurer and countersigned by one other officer, determined by the board of directors
  
• Have custody of and maintain general records of club receipts and disbursements.
  
• Prepare and submit monthly and semi-annual financial reports to the international office of the association and the board of directors of this club
  
• Give bond for the faithful discharge of his/her office in the sum and with surety as determined by the board of directors.
  

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FORT COLLINS LIONS CLUB CHRISTMAS PARTY

MONDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2011

FORT COLLINS COUNTRY CLUB

5:30 – 6:30 P.M. HOSPITALITY

6:30 P.M. DINNER

RSVP To Vic Meline by November 29, 2011

IF YOU MAKE RESERVATIONS AND DO NOT ATTEND, YOU WILL BE BILLED.

ACTIVE MEMBERS & THEIR ALLOTTED ONE GUEST WILL BE CHARGED $15.00 EACH

M. A. L.S, AFFILIATE MEMBERS AND MEMBERS WHO ARE HONORARY SPOUSES WILL BE CHARGED $35.OO.

REMEMBER: BRING AN UNWRAPPED GIFT FOR EITHER A BOY OR A GIRL AND MARK THE GIFT ACCORDINGLY FOR THE SALVATION ARMY AND BRING A GIFT OF CANNED FOOD.

Volume 2, Issue 10                 October, 2011

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE             Ted Blevins

Back by popular demand (?) – Another dog story —

A man is driving near Virginia Dale when he sees a sign saying “Talking dog for sale — Cheap”. He stops and the owner tells him the dog is in back. He sees a nice Lab retriever there and asks, “Do you talk?”

“Oh, yes” the lab says. “When I discovered I could talk, I was able to join the CIA, and I became very valuable in listening in at private meetings. I became one of their most valuable spies, and have been awarded many medals, all in secret, of course.”

The man is amazed, and goes back to the owner to ask him what he wants for the dog. “Ten dollars.” “Why so cheap”, the man asks.

“Because the dog is a liar — he never did any of that.”

YOU don’t have to lie when you are telling prospective members what your Lion’s Club does in this community — as Knights of the Blind, we interview and purchase up to 30 pairs of glasses each month for Northern Colorado’s needy folks. We collect and send several thousand pairs of glasses to third world countries each year. Each year we take pictures of up to 1000 children’s eyes in preschools and elementary schools for detection of correctable eye disease. Our club founded the Ensight Skills Center in Fort Collins for low vision clients (usually adults) to enhance their quality of life, and supports it with over $1,000 per month. Our club sponsors and coordinates the 9Health Fair every year, which helps around 2,500 people. We provide funds for several corneal transplants through the Lion Eye Bank, hearing tests and hearing aids, diabetes awareness and needs, and leader dogs.

Yes, we are a service organization and we do serve. Believe it!

When are you going to bring a new member?

I’ll be listening….. Ted

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FOUNDATION NEWS

The Foundation Trustees have selected an audit committee for the current fiscal year. Robin Mitchell and David Lambertson were selected from the membership at large and Jim Trupp was selected to represent the Foundation. Robin Mitchell will chair the committee.

The committee audits Foundation finances which include charitable income and disbursements, pass through accounts, permanent endowment funds and investment policies. An operational audit is also a large part of the procedure to determine whether approved policies are being followed. All members of the committee have experience in the bingo program.

Lee Brown, Chairman

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Bingo!!! Income for September…..$11,833.60!
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Correct Your Lions Club Directory

Or

Miss the Christmas Party!

The Christmas Party is MONDAY, DECEMBER 5,2011. See you there!

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MEET OUR NEWEST LION…Luke Burhenn

First, I would like to say how grateful and excited I am to have this opportunity to join and serve with you all. I was born and raised in Denver, Colorado and moved to Fort Collins to attend CSU in 1998 and have called it home ever since. Pursuing my interests in the arts, humanities, and social studies, I received a degree in Liberal Arts with a minor in Sociology in 2002. Presently, I have pursued a career path in business management and became a Team Leader at Whole Foods Market.

This past June I got married to my soul mate, Katrina, and we are thrilled to begin our new lives together as a family. My personal interests include enjoying music, golfing, running, and spending quality time with Katrina and our Miniature Schnauzer, Francis Bacon.

I feel blessed to have been introduced to the Fort Collins Lions Club as a way to serve the local community that I love, and to learn how Lions are involved in service as an international organization as well.

I look forward to befriending all the members, and to participate in the many programs you currently provide. Special thanks to Bill Brenner for being so welcoming and helpful.

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Rappin’ For Lions by Dan Fahrlander

Let Me Tell Ya Bout the Lions Club
We don’t Waste Time in the Local Pub
Serving People is What We Do
Give us a Call ‘N We’ll Help You

CHORUS
We’re The Lions Club YEAH,YEAH,YEAH
The Lions Club    YEAH, YEAH,YEAH
If you wanna have some fun ‘N Put your blues on the run
Join the Lions Club

Helen Keller said “Please be Kind”
“You Should Be Knights Of The Blind”
“There So Many Folks That Just Can’t See
Serving them is Where You ought to Be”

CHORUS

A Pancake Breakfast is What We Do
Coffee, Juice and Sausages Too
The Funds We Raise, We Give to the Poor
When the Money is Gone, We’ll Cook Some More

CHORUS

Do You Need Glasses To See Your Way?
Or an Eye Exam, and You Can’t Pay?
Here’s the Thing That You Should Do
Call 377 2282

CHORUS

Lions and non-Lions everywhere are talking about the newly-debuted Lions rap video “Rockin’ the Vest.” In the video, real Lions members dance and sing along with an original rap song while they perform community service.

Our hope is to make this rap video go viral, to expose as many people as we can to the great work that we do and excite them about serving their communities. Partnered with four new and fun public service announcements, this rap video is designed to have potential members view us in a new way.

Do you rock the vest? Watch the Lions “Rockin’ the Vest” rap video and help us spread the word by sharing this video with your club members, friends, family and neighbors.

Thank you for helping our Lions rap go viral.

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE             Ted Blevins

As I write this during an August warm spell (O.K. — HOT), I am reminded how blessed we are to live in Fort Collins and to be a part of the greatest service club in town. Other parts of the country are going through their real “dog” days of summer.

Speaking of dogs, here is a story….

A man had a talking dog that wanted to join the circus. So, he took the dog for an interview. In the manager’s office, he asked the dog what is on the top of a house. The dog barked “roof”, “roof”. The manager said, “Any dog can do that, what else does the dog say?” The owner asked the dog who he thought was the greatest baseball player to ever play. The dog barked “Ruth”, “Ruth”. The manager threw them both out of his office.

On the way home, the dejected dog looked at his owner and said, “Do you think I should have said DiMaggio?”

Well, doggone it, go out now and talk up our club and bring in some new members!

I’ll be listening!                            Ted

Like I was saying…New members — we need them. But – How do we keep all the ones we have?

Membership retention, I believe, involves three things: A sense of belonging, involvement in the Lions’ programs / committees, and good weekly programs.

What is a sense of belonging? Is it sitting at the same table every week? Is it being greeted by another member when you walk in the door? Is it the fellowship from working Bingo with the same people? Is it missing being at a meeting when you do miss a meeting?

It is all of these and we all need to feel wanted.

What is involvement in the program/committees? Just look in your directory to find out all the committees going on in this club. You had a chance to sign up a couple of times in May when the directory was being prepared, but you can volunteer anytime for any of the committees. There is a lot more to our club than just coming to the lunches and enjoying the programs.

And, we usually do have good programs, thanks to each of you who are responsible for your assigned dates. But it does take planning on your part, well ahead of your “week”. So, please help our Vice-President David by looking at page 3 in the directory for your name and your responsible date.

Sense of belonging, involvement in the activities, good programs. These are all keys to keeping our members and creating interest for new members.

I’ll be listening.

Remember, volunteers are not paid – not because we are worthless, but because we are priceless.

Ted

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE             Ted Blevins

Like I was saying……New members, one by one. How do we Lions make a difference? One by One.

Ask the recipient of a corneal transplant who can now see again.

Ask the child who sees leaves on trees for the first time with his glasses because of a referral from the Kidsight committee’s efforts.

Ask the mother out of work for 6 months, who could not afford glasses, who successfully went thru the sight program screening…

Ask the man who discovered he had prostate cancer as a result of his blood work at the 2011 Health Fair. One by one.

Ask the person with macular degeneration who just discovered what the Ensight Skills Center could do for her…

Ask the cancer survivor, who just finished walking all night in the Relay for Life, where his breakfast pancakes came from… One by one. Lions do this – one by one.

Ask the newly disabled senior citizen who built the ramp up his stairs for him……One by one.

That’s also how we build our membership. One by one. When was the last time YOU brought a guest to Lions?

I’ll be listening!             Lion Ted

Ensight is happy to be celebrating 10 years! We would like to invite you to join in our celebration with a Sunday afternoon BBQ. We will be offering food and beverage at no cost to you. It is our way of saying THANK YOU for all of the support you give us. If you plan on attending please RSVP: 970-407-9999. We hope to see many of you there! The celebration will be at the Fort Collins Ensight office located at 3307 S. College Ave. #108. This is between the Red Lobster and Young’s Café.

A 2010 study by the World Health Organization shows that blindness has been reduced globally by nine percent, or 26 million people, since 2004. Through SightFirst, Lions have had a significant role in this achievement. Read news release.