The Meadow Lake Lions Club was chartered in December of 1962 and since that time the members of the club have done everything from selling popcorn on the street corners to waiting tables at a Ladies night out, modeling your basic black dress and performing a kick line as a finale to the evening. Other activities over the years include the usual fundraising things like selling raffle tickets, hamburgers and pop, Easter Bunnies, Grey Cup pools and of course Bingo, the major source of funds for many years. Three days of chuckwagon racing now also is a great money raiser. A couple of unsuccessful events in were a fish derby and TV Bingo during a postal strike that both proved to be flops.
On the whole the Meadow Lake Lions have been very successful in raising money for projects in the community of Meadow Lake and around the world. $13,000.00 for Sight First II, tsunami relief for Japan and aid for victims of flooding in Pakistan. $3000.00 a year for the past 4 or 5 years to the Lions Foundation of Canada Guide Dog program and many donations to Lions Club International Foundation for aid to many around the world.
Collections of eye glasses ( approx 1200 pair) over the last 4 years have been sent to CLERC ( Canadian Lions Eyeglass Recycling Centre).
Locally annual donations of 60 to 80 thousand dollars have gone to provide Scooters and eyeglasses to those in need, student trips to Ottawa ( Encounters with Canada), student trips to Australia, Africa, Italy, France, England and others. The Meadow Lake Hospital has been the benefactor of at least $100,000 over the last few years, this providing much needed equipment for the local hospital. Large monetary donations over the years have been made to the Arena, Curling Rink, Swimming Pool and to schools to provide playground equipment. Each year an Easter Swim has been sponsored by Lions to provide free swimming over the Easter Break.
Each year a senior Christmas light tour and luncheon has provided an outing for seniors to view Christmas lights and have a social evening of song and conversation. Once a month the Lions hold Bingo at Pioneer Lodge which the residents thoroughly enjoy.
Just recently the Meadow Lake Lions donated $45,000.00 to the Saskatchewan Summer Games for facilities upgrades in the Meadow Lake Lions Park the project that has been ongoing since its inception coming from a motion made on a bus trip to Cold Lake ( the famous BLUE BELL motion). The park has been the pride of the Lions in Meadow Lake since its opening in 1983. Funds are continually provided toward capital projects in the park as needed. To this point in time approximately $400,000.00 has been devoted to this jewel of Meadow Lake and an integral part of the recent Sask. Summer Games.
Needless to say the Lions of Meadow Lake are important to Meadow Lake and Meadow Lake is important to the Lions. We have 33 very active members, 22 of whom are Melvin Jones Fellows (soon to be 23). We meet the 2nd and 4th Mondays of each month at the Lions Den at the museum (which was furnished by the Lions) and are always looking for new members. And we have fun working for OUR community.
