Land O’Lakes Lions Club Roar

Are we rooted in service or aspiring to be?

This year, our International President Lion Mark Lyon's pin reads "Rooted in Service". And, as usual, our Lions Clubs worldwide will be looking at that pin and its message and asking the questions that immediately come to mind:

Are we in fact rooted in service?

Is our "We Serve" motto living up to its new depth as presented in our International President's pin?

How can our day-to-day activities further our roots in service?

Lions live a new experience every year with the change of the International President. Democracy rules the International spheres, as much as it rules the clubs. And in said democracy the clubs vote for the leaders 3 years in advance. President Mark was voted in 3 years ago as 3rd International Vice President. At that time the message from him favored growth in membership.

Does that mean the two messages are inherently different?

The answer is yes, and no.

Growth in membership is a sure way to growth in service. More Lions meeting, planning and acting leads, without doubt, to more service to the club and community. So, what is the difference?

In the previous message the focus was on bringing new members who will eventually follow the call of service. The current message emphasizes the presence of service within every Lion.

We are, as individual Lions, irrespective of how long we have been part of Lions Clubs, people who are dedicated to service. Every member of every club has an ingrained need to be of service to club and community. In fact, many of our clubs are filled with members who served communities and country before joining the Lions Clubs. Many, if not most, educate their own children to follow similar paths of service.

"Rooted in Service" is, in fact, more than a slogan, it is a reality of who we are as Individuals Lions. And that reality translates every time across the 48,000 clubs around 220 countries and geographic regions of the world. Our club, The Lions Club of Land O’ Lakes is one that has served the community since 1969 and continues to do so everyday.

Our current President, Lynn Lowe is the embodiment of Rooted in Service. From leading the club in innovative, meaningful projects, to driving cancer patients to appointments, helping at the Land O’ Lakes Foodbank, answering calls that aid visually impaired persons, responding to situations of heart-attacks, and many more beyond her Lions service. Lynn is also dedicated to seven other Lions Clubs geographically spreading between Sharbot Lake, Griffith and Napanee as their Zone Chair.

Lynn leads our club after Immediate Past President Sandra Carman, another Rooted in Service person who spends countless hours at the Foodbank and hundreds of hours in the service of the community and the club. At the end of her term as President, Sandra gave out chevrons of service, pins, awards to multiple of our club members. Each of those recipients is, as well, an embodiment of Rooted in Service.

I will not list the Lions of our club individually for the purpose of this column, even though each one of them could have a dedicated Roar just to list what they do. I will however extend a thanks to the members of The Lions Club of Land O’ Lakes saying: You are, each of you, Rooted in Service.

Till we meet again in a Roar, put down your phones, take strolls by the lakes, watch the hundreds of birds around us, and keep an eye on the roads for the upcoming Remembrance Day Memorial Banners that celebrate another genre of men and women deeply rooted in service