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Observer Volume 79 • No. 43
Friday, March 11, 2016
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Carlyle & District Lions Club fundraiser celebrates 25 years, over $500,000 raised Lynne Bell
Observer Staff
Staff photo by Lynne Bell
The Carlyle & District Lions Club held its 25th annual supper, raffle and auction Thursday, March 3 in the Carlyle Memorial Hall. This event has raised over $500,000 for local causes during the 25 years the Lions have hosted. Pictured is event chairperson and Lions member, Wayne Wilson, with a new addition to the event, a balloon auction. “We always try to keep it fresh and we’re always on the look-out for new members,” says Wilson. “We had a few new faces attending this year and we’re always willing to welcome more.”
The Carlyle & District Lions Club celebrated 25 years and over $500,000 in funds raised at their annual supper, auction and raffle, held Thursday, March 3 at the Carlyle Memorial Hall. Lions member and event chair, Wayne Wilson said this year’s event was a success before it started, due to the support of area communities. “It’s our 25th and the donations came in fabulous,” says Wilson. “We’ve got a full house with just a few shy of 200 tickets sold, and everybody is having a good time.” “All of the money we raise with this event goes to local community causes and over our 25year history, we’ve raised over $500,000 total from this event alone.” According to Wilson, the Carlyle Lions Club held the first fundraiser of this kind in 1992 in conjunction with the Estevan branch of the Saskatchewan Wildlife Federation. Four years later, the Lions became sole organizers of the event. The Lions have also made changes in an effort to distribute funds more effectively and efficiently. Currently, they ask those seeking funding from the Club to submit an application form that states the amount of money they are seeking. “Now, we ask organizations requesting funds to submit an application to the Lions,” says Wilson. “We ask them to tell us what they need and it’s a much better system, because they know what they need and how much it will cost, better than we do. That way, we’re not overfunding a worthy cause and underfunding another.” Lions member Myrla Holland says that the club has also contributed in non-monetary ways throughout its history. “I went through all of the old ledgers from our 50th anniversary a few years ago,” she says. “The Lions
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have also done things like deliver Meals on Wheels, hold birthdays at Moose Mountain Lodge, collected used eyeglasses, lots of things like that.” “Our motto is ‘We Serve’ and for 53 years, this club has done just that,” adds Holland. This year’s fundraiser kicked off with a social hour, which gave attendees the opportunity to peruse the hundreds of auction, silent auction, raffle and door prizes on display. After a turkey and pork supper catered by Linda Chapman and Eileen Corrigan, the evening’s auction was once again conducted by world champion auctioneer and hometown boy, Ward Cutler, who has donated his time and talent to the fundraiser for 21 years. “It’s always good to come home,” says Cutler. “Over the years, I’ve auctioned honey, gold and eggs here-just to name a few. And this year, I’m auctioning some balloons-so I’m ready to get started.” After the hundreds of live auction, silent auction, raffle prizes and door prizes were distributed, event organizer Wilson declared the evening a success. “Everyone really came through for us-with their donations, with their attendance, and in all the many, many ways they support us and their communities,” says Wilson. “And we saw some new faces here tonight, which is great. We couldn’t do any of it without their support and we’re very grateful to them all.” Simonne Therrien of Carlyle attended the fundraiser for the first time and said, “I would definitely go again. It was wonderful to see all of the people there to support our community-things like the pool and the rink-especially during these difficult economic times.” Dale Gudmundson, a veteran attendee, agrees, saying simply, “It was awesome.”