Governor’s Newsletter District A-12 District Governor Len Day
My A-12 Lions Family Dear Lions Family I hope you had a great holiday season and the New Year is going well for you and your families. I hope you got some well deserved rest and relaxation. Happy 2017 and what a year it is going to be for the Lions. Let us celebrate 100 years of Lions and promote the work that we do. It is time that we share all the good things the Lions do. As we work to serve 200 Million People around the world with our work Engaging our Youth, Sharing the Vision, Relieving the Hunger and Protecting our Environment. As of today we have helped 132,949,993 people. That is incredible and our International Leadership is confident that we will reach our new goal. Please continue to report your service activities for the rest of the year. To help and provide more service there is only one way to do this and that is by strengthening our clubs. We must continue to Lead thought Service, Connect with our Communities and Invite for Impact. We must take advantage of the opportunities that are given us with the 100 years of service promotions. These are the New Mountains we must climb to move us into the next 100 years of service. Recently I had the opportunity to meet with Immediate Past International President Dr. Jitsuhiro Yamada in Oakville while he was visiting the Toronto Area as the chairman of Lions Club International Foundation as he was visiting the new Children’s Cancer Center at Sick Kids Hospital that was funded by the Lions of Ontario with a grant from LCIF. IPIP Yamada is very impressed with the work of the Lions of Canada. He stated that the Lions Foundation of Canada is one of the best dog Guide programs anywhere in the world and was happy that we have Diabetic Alert Dog Guides. Dr. Yamada talked about how diabetes is going to be one of our five focused initiatives for the next five years along with sight, cancer, the environment and hunger. Listening to our International Leaders is very motivational to me because they focus on all the good that we as Lions do and they are truly thankful for the service that 1.4 million members provide around the world. The elections process has changed this year and we now have formed committees to look after Nominations, Credentials and the Election itself. The Nominating Committee is comprised of Lions Jim Hilt from Region 21, Lion Sandra Rawn from Region 36 and Lion George Bik from Region 8. The A12 District Election will be held at the A12 Convention in Barrie at the Holiday Inn and Convention Centre on April 9, 2017. Nominations are now open and will close on March 9, 2017. The Nomination form is located on the A12 Website in Resources in Downloads or at this Link http://www.a12lions.org/wpcontent/uploads/2015/05/Cadidate-NominationForm-Rev-2015.pdf (a copy can be found in this Newsletter) If you would like to run for a district office please download a nomination form and have it filled out and returned to one of the nominating committee by March 9, 2017. Lions District A12 has great Lions and great leaders I hope that we can continue to elect our officers and fill every position. Lions always do the right things. Let’s continue to grow and lead through the services we provide. I believe that we will continue to give people a hand up with everything we do. I look forward to seeing many of you at the next cabinet meeting on February 5 in Tiny Township. Thank you for helping us Climb the New Mountains
District Governor Lion Len
Issue No.7 January 2017
A-12 Workshops Ÿ Recruitment Ÿ Organizing New Clubs 25 Lions from A-12 braved the snows of winter and and settled in at Elmvale Lions Club Den for about a 5 hour session Sunday, January 29th on Recruiting New Members and Organizing New Clubs. Each session ran about 2 Hours and was presented on behalf of LCI by PDG Paul Baker, PDG Paul Baker who now calls Newcastle, ON his home base. Paul, a seasoned lecturer, has a very smooth delivery and his manner prompted much audience participation. Although the event was widely promoted it is unfortunate that more A-12 members were not there to hear Paul’s many words of wisdom. Food and Refreshment were served between sessions. The day ended with a relatively new LCI Video “New Mountains to Climb” which can be seen on YouTube. www.youtube.com/watch?v=VyJ5xIr1uV8&t=152s
Sitting down for a well earned “food” break are: L to R: 1st V.G. Randy Hargrave, Session Lecturer PDG Paul Baker, DG Len Day, PDG Chris Lewis and Elmvale Lions President Gerald Rebidoux
Those attending the sessions were there to learn but there was also a tremendous amount of participation from everyone, who were eager to “Share Your Knowledge.”
Diabetes Awareness
When International President Sten Akestam wanted to help raise awareness about diabetes, he turned to one of the most influential women in the world for help: Eppie Lederer, better known as advice columnist Ann Landers. For decades, her syndicated column, “Ask Ann Landers,” helped readers tackle every human problem imaginable. Millions flipped through their newspapers each morning to read Landers’ thoughts on parent-child relationships, disputes with neighbors, moral quandaries, health problems and the feelings of the lovelorn. If Lions could get a letter about diabetes printed in Landers’ column, they could quickly reach a wide audience with important information. Akestam, who served as international president from 1986 to 1987, wrote to Landers, explaining the risk factors, warning signs and consequences of diabetes—one of the leading causes of vision loss in adults in industrialized counties. “Please print this letter,” he wrote. “Millions of people need to see it, and if it runs in your column, they will.” Akestam explained that Lions worldwide were involved with diabetes screening. Readers who wanted additional information about the disease or screenings could call their local Lions club or Lions Clubs International headquarters. In January 1987, Akestam’s wish was granted. His letter and Landers’ response appeared in the more than 1,100 newspapers carrying her column. “I’m delighted to print it,” Landers wrote. “It will save lives. I hope you have a good number of trunks on that phone and many volunteers who are willing to answer it.” Her advice to Akestam was spot-on. Lions headquarters received more than 1,000 phone calls asking for more information. Public interest was so high that headquarters printed thousands of brochures on diabetes and made them available to clubs. Lions’ efforts to help control and treat diabetes and related complications, such as sight loss, have never ceased. Clubs host diabetes screenings in their communities, participate in annual events for diabetes awareness and raise funds for research and treatment. And with the number of people living with the disease estimated to grow to 592 million by 2035, the work of Lions will continue to be a vital part of preventing and treating diabetes. See more at: http://lionsclubs.org/blog/2017/01/13/touchstonestory-diabetesawareness/#sthash.NQjdG71z.dpuf
Where’s the news from all the A-12 Clubs? We want to spread your news and photos to all Lions in A-12 and beyond. Send Stories and Hi-Res Photos to: newsletter@a12lions.org by the 15th of the month.