From the Lions Den August, 2018
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Great news on the international scene! The Lions have elected their first female president. Gudrun Yngvadottir, from Gardabaer, Iceland, was elected to serve as International President of Lions Clubs International at the association’s 101st International Convention, held in Las Vegas, at the beginning of July. President Gudrun is a biomedical scientist and has worked in research, education and management. Since 1990 she has worked at the University of Iceland as Vice Director at the Institute of Continuing Education. We are pleased to have been part of the Canada Day Celebrations by co-hosting the Dog show. It was deemed a great success and notes were taken on how to continue on with a few improvements. We especially appreciated the donations for the auction. Thank you to all those who contributed! For some pictures CLICK HERE. The Lions have donated funding to cover signage for the MIPATA (Mayne Island Pathways and Trails Association) and several members contributed a lot of hard work to remove brush and roots, lay coarse gravel and finally lay a finished later of fine gravel on the Norwegian Wood (off Maple Drive) portion of the trail. The “Kiln Project” plaques are now mounted at the Adachi Pavilion at the kitchen end of the building. Be alert to online postings about the unveiling date. We are presently contacting dignitaries and others associated with this Gulf Islands project to choose a suitable date. In the meantime, take some time to view the pictures and information. Once again the Lions enjoyed a breakfast at the Church before setting up the tents, tables and chairs for the Church Fair on July 21st. With lots of help and a good camaraderie, the work seemed to progress at a very good clip. Congratulations go to Ben Korinth who was the receiver of this year’s Lions scholarship. In honour of Fred Greenslade, the first president of the Mayne Island Lions Club, the Mayne Island Lions Club offers a post-secondary scholarship to Mayne Island students graduating from secondary school. The scholarship amount is determined by the fund raising efforts in a particular year and the distribution of funds to other worthy projects. Soon you will see the banners for the Mayne Island Lions Salmon/Chicken BBQ on the Labour Day weekend. You can look forward to a fine meal, music, bingo, beer tent and volunteer table displays this year. Our plan is to run just until 4 pm. If you haven’t already purchased your ticket(s) for the 222 draw offering an opportunity to win valuable prizes, contact any Lions member. All tickets are pre-sold so none will be available at the BBQ. David Chase; http://www.mayneislandlions.org Added July Information: Submitted by Alan Guy, Past District Governor. What happens in Vegas doesn’t always stay in Vegas. The Lions International Convention, with over 20,000 delegates from around the world including some from the two newest countries, Afghanistan and Myanmar, was held in “Sin City” from June 29 to July 3. Janet and I were privileged to be there. It was hot; day-time highs between 39 and 42 degrees Celsius. There was an international parade, short and early on the Saturday. Our Multiple District did not take part in that. Given the number of cases of heat exhaustion that we heard about, and there were certainly many , we made the right decision. Instead, starting at 5.00 pm, MD 19, that’s us, held an indoor parade, in our uniforms, complete with the white Stetsons, right through the ground floor of the MGM Grand Hotel which was Headquarters for the convention. It made an impact and nobody got sick. The general sessions were well-run, with George W. Bush as one of the guest speakers, there was a vast array of instructional panels and seminars to choose from, lots of music, and the shuttle bus system worked so much better than the disaster in Chicago the year before. Our delegation, about 100 strong stayed at the Luxor hotel, complete with pyramids, sphinxes, and carved hieroglyphics everywhere. Very comfortable, but why no fridge or coffee maker in the room? - the 3 Starbucks in the Luxor had the monopoly at $5.75 U.S. a cup, + tax! One of the most important things which did not stay in Vegas was a long-overdue first for Lions Clubs International. This was the installation of the International President, the highest office in Lions worldwide, and this time, finally, that person is a woman, Gudrun Yngvadottr, an amazing lady from Iceland. So she has a double first: the first from her country to hold that office and the first ever female. The other “non stay in Vegas” was the installation of our MD 19 District Governor Lion Mike Dukes, along with 740 of his fellow governors. Vegas almost got this ceremony right; much better done than in Chicago last year. Mike is from Clallum Bay – Seiku Lions Club in N.W. Washington. He will be coming to Mayne Island Lions on February 6th, 2019. We look forward to his visit. |
