Random Acts of Kindness

“February Newsletter”

            Hi everyone. Back in November, I wrote about Projects Oregon and the $20,000 Public Relations Grant the Multiple District had been awarded from Lions Clubs International. Of course, there is always a little hitch in the process. Only $10,000 was received and we will not get the rest until we have spent the entire $20,000. So we are in the throes of working that out (does anyone want to loan the committee $10,000?). Hopefully, we can get the Council to approve a loan to the committee.

            In the same article, I wrote about Judith Grosenick and her idea of "Little Service Projects" that all Lions can do. Sometimes, a little service project is calling a friend to say hi or helping a neighbor rake their leaves. As it turns out, the committee has adopted that idea of service along with an event that happens each year. There is a group (www. randomactsofkindness.org) that sponsors an annual Kindness Week in February. The committee would like Lions of MD 36 to promote, recognize and celebrate the idea of Random Acts of Kindness (RAK).

            Many Lions around the state have discussed for years which is more important: membership or service. As everyone knows, they go hand in hand. I believe we need members to do service and we need the offer of service to bring in new Lion members. Random Acts of Kindness is trying to do both. We are not asking the people of Oregon to join Lions (at least not directly), but to celebrate with Lions the simple act of helping another person. Beyond the very basic idea that helping one another is good for Lions, all Oregonians  and the world, the project offers visibility to Lions and what we stand for - Service.

               You may be wondering what this thingy is in the corner. It is a QR code or Quick Response code that will be included on many of the materials that will be sent to the clubs to promote RAK. A code like this allows someone with a smart phone (I guess everyone else's phone is a dumb phone) to scan the code which will take them to a web page or Facebook page. PCC Dave Rich has developed a Facebook page that will support the idea of RAK by Lions and how everyone can help. The QR code is an up­ to-date shortcut for the computer-literate public to stay informed about the project. Additionally, it will list and explain the other Oregon Projects as they develop; making it an indirect promotion of the many things Lions are involved with. If someone does not know what Lions do, how can they decide if it is for them?

            In the coming weeks, your club will receive supporting materials that explain the opportunity for each club to join with other Lions throughout the Multiple District in celebrating Random Acts of Kindness.

            Okay, one more thing that I have on my mind. All of us talk about the great things that Lions do and how we all are involved with the community; and that is true. But, I do not think we talk enough about how great our club is and the many friendships that have developed because we are Lions. I have so many friends all over Oregon that it is almost unbelievable. Friends and friendships are important.  We need to tell potential members (which is everyone who is not a Lion) how belonging to a club creates new friends. At the same time, we need to make sure our clubs are a warm, friendly and supportive place that all can enjoy. Why would anyone join or belong to a club that did not make you smile?

            Go out and make a great day!

Information! And We Really Need It!

“January Newsletter”

            We are told that we are now in the Information Age. When I look for information, it seems that it is coming at me in the speed of light. To me, it seems like light speed is even faster than before (before I got to the age I am now). Didn't things seem slower years ago?

            Most days I  work at my computer, doing this and that and not thinking about the gigantic amount of information that is zipping by just beyond my screen on the World Wide Web or the Internet as it is now called. But, if  I start to  look  for  something about some subject, for instance Lions Clubs International, the world explodes and time flows by so quickly. Unfortunately, when I start to look for one thing on the internet, I end up finding something else that is more interesting and just has to be read.

             Just the other day, I was looking for information about the Lions International Peace Poster Contest on the LCI web-site. I found the rules quite quickly and some great examples of past Contests: As is usual when I get on the internet, I thought what would happen if I just typed in Lions Club in Google? Well you know the story, time flashed by, I looked at dozens of sites that relate to "Lions clubs" and the boss almost fired me for "wasting my time".

            But, I was not really wasting my time. I found a massive amount of information about Lions that can be useful to Lions.

            Did you know that YouTube has hundreds of videos about Lions and Lions projects? Type in youtube.com, then search for Lions Clubs and see what happens. International has done a number of videos that are very professional, but I also found some that are done by clubs or individuals. See a video about joining The Dalles Oregon Lions and meet the Westmont, IL. Lions at the fair. If your club meets at a place that has a wifi connection, you could use a laptop and a projector to show an interesting video instead of having a live speaker.

            You can look at clubs near and far. You will find the Anchoeage Lions and what they are doing. I also found a website for the Newtown ions Club and the Foundation they started to help the families of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.

            Did you know that a lot of Multiple Districts in the Mid-West sponsor youth bands? I had no idea that this was happening. What a wonderful outreach to schoolage youth and an introduction to Lions. Interesting ideas for projects and fundraisers abound on the internet.

            How about finding Melvin Jones’ biography or all about women in Lions on Wikipedia? Type in Wikipedia/widi/lions-club_international and see what pops up.

            Or how about joining Linked-in? This is more of a professional site, but Lions are here too. This is an opportunity to connect with one-on-one Lions across the world.

            Anything you or your club wants to do is available in some form on the internet. But watch out, you are going to be inundated with information and you will be lost and out of time.

            Go out and make a great day!

CEP

“December Newsletter”

Does anyone know what CEP stands for? It could be Certified Energy Producer. Nope. It could be California Elliptical Products. Nope. It really stands for Club Excellent  Process (CEP). This is a Lions Clubs International program (really a process) that was introduced about 3 years ago, that helps clubs become more successful.

Quoting from the CEP Coordinator's Guide: The Club Excellence Process is a workshop program dedicated to enhancing member experience and better serving the community. A CEP Workshop can be conducted in one of two formats: CEP Lite or CEP Pro. CEP Pro is a facilitator-guided workshop and CEP Lite is a self-guided workshop in which a club member acts as the coordinator. In either format, a participating club will examine its community's needs, analyze its membership experience, identify club and LCI resources and develop action plans for moving forward.

            The Club Excellence Process is a four-step process that can be delivered in one to four sessions. While I think it is best to have a facilitator as part of the process, if for no other reason than they bring an outsider's view to your club and can offer their experience, the CEP Lite version is available and accommodates the do-it-yourself club. Each club needs to approach the program using the process that they believe to be best for them.

If your club is wondering how to better serve its community and take a fresh look at what they have been doing, CEP is a good place to start. This process is both inward-looking at the club and how it is functioning and outward-looking at the community and its needs. As Phil Jackson (long time Bulls & Laker coach) might have said, "To be successful you need to be in touch with your inner strengths." To be successful, every club needs to find what interests its members (the club's inner strength). To find out, you need to ask them; that is one of ideas behind CEP. Ask the club; ask the community; then make a plan to satisfy both of them.

            The place to start CEP is with your District Governor and the LCI website. You will find information about the process at http://www. lionsc/ubs.org/EN/member-centerlmembership-and­ new-clubs/strengthen-membership/club-excellence­ process/c/ub-request.php.

You will find the materials and the Pro Guides at http://www.lionsclubs.org/EN/commonlpdfs/CEP-pro­ guide.pdf and http://www.lionsclubs.org/EN/common/ pdfs/CEP-pro-workbook.pdf

You will find the materials and the Lite Guides at http://www.lionsclubs.org/EN/commonlpdfs/CEP-Iite­ guide.pdf and http:llwww.lionsclubs.org/EN/common/ pdfs/CEP-Iite-workbook.pdf.

Lions Clubs International will provide a banner patch to each club that successfully completes one of the CEP programs.

            It is great to be a Lion!

November is Turkey Month

“November News Article”

          Ah! November, the month of turkey dinners and beautiful autumn leaves. The fall is a wonderful time of year. Some may think it is the end of summer, but I think others (especially Lions), see it as the year starting again with its annual cycle of ending and beginning anew.
          I have mentioned before that Multiple District 36 received a $20,000 public relations grant from Lions Clubs International (and hats off to all those involved). I attended a planning meeting for “Projects Oregon” (the name of the grant) in Salem in October. As discussed at that meeting, the grant may be used to develop various projects, but one of the central purposes is to create projects that Lions can share with their community. It is a way of providing opportunities for anyone to do service and to get to know Lions and about Lions in a friendly, helpi-your-community kind of way. I think the idea has great potential, because it seems as if everyone (Lions included) wants to help their community, but they do not necessarily want to attend meetings to do the planning. The idea of gathering together to help others is what Lions have done for years and the grant planning committee is simply extending that opportunity to the public at large. Great idea!
          So I was a little surprised when Judith Grosenick (she reminds me of someone I knew or maybe should have known in high school) came up to me after the meeting and mentioned that you do not have to do service with a group for it to be service. This was an “ah-ha” moment for me (and the point of this article)! I think we tend to see ourselves as only doing service when we have our Yellow Lions Vest on.
Just to make sure I understood what she was saying, Judith e-mailed me the next day with the following Helen Keller quote: “I am only one but I am still one, I can’t do everything, but I can do something; and because I cannot do everything I will not refuse to do something that I can do.”
          There are a million “little” service projects out there that only take one Lion to do, sometimes it’s just calling a friend to say hi or helping a neighbor rake their leaves. We can make a difference every day without doing a club service project. All those good things we do for others throughout the day can be little Lions Service Projects even though we do not have on our Yellow Lions Vest.
Make a great day!