Westport Lions Roar
By Bob Reddick
Vivian Walsh of Inverary won the January 1st $1000 calendar prize. The winning calendar number was sold by Lion Marty Hawkins
Our first general meeting of 2018 started off by reading the many thank you cards and notes from people and organizations that we donated money to in the fall funding period. The Lions motto is “We Serve” and it is always satisfying to hear that people appreciate our efforts.
Lion Jim Scala, our treasurer, presented a financial summary for 2017. The Mobility Van account has a positive balance even as operational costs have risen due to increased ridership. We are lucky that we live in such a supportive community that keeps this valuable service viable.
The Property Account has a slight net income for 2017. This is mainly due to increased revenue from clubhouse rentals and money saved from club members taking on the tasks that we used to contract out, like snowploughing, cleaning the hall, and property maintenance. Property chairperson, Lion Don Baker was congratulated on his hard work in increasing clubhouse rentals. The tremendous support we receive for such events as the fish fry, roast beef dinners and the beach volleyball tournament also add significantly to this account. It should be pointed out that several community members, like Charlie Norwood, have provided their services to the club free of charge. The Club always appreciates non-members helping us out.
Our net profit from our $10,000 cash calendars should be $6,000. Lion Jim McGlade and his crew sold 386 calendars of which Paul Henderson from Delta sold 186. This is another example of a non-member making an outstanding contribution to the success of our club. All 1,000 calendars were sold early this year, resulting in many people who bought calendars in the past were unable to purchase them this year. Due to the increased demand for calendars, chairperson Jim Scala has looked into ways to expand the program and after the calendar committee meets, he will present their ideas to the membership.
There are a couple of printing errors in this year’s calendar. The August 11th and September 22nd draw should read $40. The December 29th draw should be $100. Joy’s Dog Grooming ad should read Certified Dog Groomer. We apologize to Joy MacComish for this error.
The coordinator for the mobility program, Lion Michael Harris, reported things are running smoothly. He thanked Lions Jim Scala, Dave Blair and Mike Robinson for looking after the maintenance of the vans. For 2017, we serviced 276 requests, with over 1,000 hours of volunteer time, covering over 24,000 kilometers.
On January 24th, our club will travel to Seeley’s Bay to attend a combined meeting with Gananoque and Elgin Lion clubs. This should be a very enjoyable evening, and it is always beneficial to learn what other clubs are doing.
Westport Lions Club 