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COG Lions
Since the Club was formed in 1978 it
has focussed its efforts on raising funds by holding events such as musical evenings, running refreshment tents at local fetes
and collections at Christmas time.
From the outset the Club agreed that it must spend the majority of its funds on local projects
and with this in mind, COGs helped launch and initially funded the Tandridge Lions Talking Newspaper in October 1981.
The newspaper, which is now autonomous, is recorded on to memory sticks weekly and provided free
of charge to visually impaired readers and has been a great success in keeping listeners up to date with local news. This project was followed by the launch of
the COGs Minibus a few years later. The original minibus has now been replaced with a newer model, but
the minibus is regularly used by a wide variety of people and organisations in the local area. In September 2008 COGs launched an annual
maths bursary in memory of one its members, Arthur Sambles, with the second recipient receiving her award in September
2009. As well as all this COGs
have made donations to a myriad of beneficiaries in the area and every year since its launch, the Lions
have also delivered Christmas parcels to those in need in the area.
Lions at the Godstone Fete
There is a social side to Lions too!
Throughout the year COG Lions have an active social element incuded in Club activities. If you're
not having fun being a Lion then don't do it is the motto. Each month we try and have an activity that brings Lions and
their partners together in an informa setting. Sometimes this is a theatre trip, visit to a place of interest or a dinner
with a speaker. Our most recent evening was a trip to see how the micro brewery in Westerham goes about brewing ale. All those
who attended enjoyed a splendid evening and as you can see a good time was had by at least one member!
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| Lion Iain Pavely enjoys a sample........ or two! |
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| Laura Snowden, Lion President John Quincey with fellow supporters Bologna November 2010 |
Lions Clubs International
Caterham Oxted and Godstone Lions Club are part of an organisation called Lions Clubs International, which
is the largest volunteer organisation in the world. The organisation was formed 92 years ago in 1917 as
the dream of Chicago businessman Melvin Jones. He believed that local business clubs should expand their horizons from purely
professional concerns to the betterment of their communities and the world at large. That dream expanded to encompass anyone
who is over the age of 18, whether they work or not. Lions International crossed the Atlantic to the UK 55 years ago, and its first Patron was Her
Majesty, Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, and recently the Countess of Wessex took over the role. Among the objects adopted in the early years was one that read, "No club shall
hold out the financial betterment of its members as its object." This called for unselfish service to others and today
this remains one of the association's main aims. In 1925,
Helen Keller addressed the Lions international convention. She challenged Lions to become "knights of the blind in the
crusade against darkness." From this time, Lions clubs have been actively involved in service to the blind and visually
impaired.
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