Mansfield Lions Club is a core community element

By Adrienne Douke

Lions Club metformin side effects acne International Vision Statement: “To be the global leader in community and humanitarian service.”

Lions Club International Mission Statement: “To empower volunteers to serve their communities, meet humanitarian needs, encourage peace and promote international understanding through Lions Clubs.”

Mansfield Lions Club officers are: Norman Tupling, president; J.F. Lester, vice president; Brad Murison, treasurer; and Luann Fortner, secretary.

The Mansfield Lions Club held their annual community dinner from 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday at the Mansfield School, feeding everyone a delicious turkey dinner with all the trimmings. Donations for the dinner were accepted, but not required. The Lions Club has been providing community dinners for over 25 years, beginning in 1986, when diners were served at the Mansfield Senior Center. The community dinner became such a popular event that it outgrew that location and moved to the Mansfield School to accommodate the increased patronage. The dinners have been a way for the club to say ‘thank you’ to the Mansfield community for its continued support.

Preparation for the dinner started Friday evening with Lynn Wall creating such scrumptious desserts as cherry cheesecake, banana cream pie, cherry coconut pie, German chocolate cake, cupcakes and brownies. More cooking continued on Saturday when Patty Hansen and Lynn teamed up to prepare the stuffing, roast turkey and ham. Finally, early Sunday morning they put on the finishing touches and got ready for the many guests who would arrive later that day. These two ladies sure know their way around a kitchen! Members from the club who helped out included Brad Murison and other volunteers like Adam Foged, who helped serve. Altogether, the Lions Club served dinner to almost 150 people.

The Lions Club has a long and distinguished history of community service. Lions Club International got its start in 1917 when Melvin Jones, a Chicago business leader, asked this question: “What if people put their talents to work improving their communities?” Almost 100 years later, Lions Club International is the world’s largest service club organization, with 1.35 million members in more than 46,000 clubs and countless stories of Lions acting on that simple principle of improving communities.

In Mansfield, the Lions Club was formed in 1976 with Harry Beard and Mansfield Mayor Tom Snell among some of its charter members. Beard served as treasurer for the club for 30 years.

“I had a lot of fun, and I have many good memories of my time with the Lions,” Beard said. He still comes back to have dinner with his wife, Mae, and is remembered fondly as someone who cheerfully donated his time and energy to the club to foster community improvement.

The primary goal of Lions Clubs is to provide sight to those who need it. “Since 1925, Lions clubs have worked tirelessly to aid the blind and the visually impaired. It all started when Helen Keller addressed a Lions Club International Convention in Cedar Point, Ohio, and challenged the Lions to become, ‘knights of the blind in the crusade against darkness.’

To this end, anyone in the community who needs an eye exam or a pair of glasses can write a letter of request, and submit an application form, to the Mansfield Lion’s Club chairman and former president, Don Ericson, for the club’s review and vote. The Lions Club in Mansfield operates primarily for the benefit of the Mansfield community, however, they will take requests from other communities if a special need arises.

The Mansfield Lions Club has addressed many community needs over the years. For example, the Lions Club has donated money for school athletic needs such as uniforms for the basketball team and funds to build the school’s tennis court. They also helped to purchase a dress parade uniform for the deputy sheriff and helped build the rodeo arena. Community members donated the materials and Lions Club members provided the manpower to build the arena.

Another fun event that the Mansfield Lions Club sponsors is the tradition of asking the community to find the ‘Lost Mansfield Lion.’ The club asks the community to find their lion, who always goes missing around this time of year. Each week, on the bulletin board at the post office and at the Mansfield Mercantile, another clue is given to help find him. It usually takes about three or four weeks for the clues to add up, so that the lion can be found and returned to his club. The finder wins $100 and the event gives the town something to talk about — comparing ideas about the clues and busily searching for the lion — during the slow winter month of January.

The Lions also participate in a community litter pick-up and have helped fund two field trips for the school. One trip was to the Pumpkin Patch, where the kids picked out their own pumpkins for Halloween, and another was to Spokane in 2010 to see the musical “The Lion King” (no pun intended). They have helped with the Easter Egg Hunt and the Mansfield Play Days, in addition to helping to support state, national and global sight programs.

To help support community improvement, the Mansfield Lions Club raises the majority of its funding through its annual auction, which takes place at the beginning October, and its Christmas tree sales. Both of these activities have been very popular and successful. The items for the auction are generously donated by Mansfield residents. The auction is a big occasion for Mansfield, drawing a large number of local people as well as out-of-towners, to participate in the fundraiser. Along with the auction, many other local activities take place, such as yard sales, pie sales and a dance on the evening of the auction at the local Town Bar and Grill. The Lions Club is a certified nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization, which means that all donations received by the club are tax-deductible for the donor.

The Mansfield Lions Club is currently comprised of 25 members who meet the first and third Wednesdays of the month at the Pioneer Club on Main Street in Mansfield. The yearly dues for membership are $50. For more information, or to become a member, contact Betty Wilsey, Mansfield Lions Club, P.O. Box 171, Mansfield, Wash., 98830 or call (509) 449-2874.

For more information about the mission and history of Lions Clubs, visit the Lions Clubs International website at: lionsclubs.org/EN/about-lions/mission-and-history/index.php