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Greece Ridge Lions Club

By LuAnn NgoPublished 6 years ago 4 min read
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Have you ever wanted to help your community, but didn't know how? Join your local Lions Club. The Greece Ridge Lions Club is where I go to help my community. It's fun and it's for all ages, young or old. I truly wish that was how I was introduced to Lions Club. I mean, that's a pretty catchy way to get people's attention, and I just came up with it about an hour or so ago. I joined Lions club as an official member when I turned 18, I had already been volunteering my time when I was in middle school. I have yet to figure out how I joined though. I'm pretty sure my parents were involved somehow.

I don't regret it though. I absolutely love being a Lion member. I get to help my community in small but significant ways. I collect eye glasses from my local EyeMart and I help with activities like snow golf. I realize that snow and golf are an odd mix, but it's a lot of fun, especially if there was a heavy snowfall the night before.

I know that a lot of people assume that this particular club is only for "old" people, but it is most definitely not like that, especially now. And the best part of this group is that each year there is a convention. There's generally a state convention; for example, this year it is Rochester NY Lions Club convention. This means every club that exists in New York State, and this does include New York City, go to Rochester to meet and greet each other.

For a lot of the new members, it's a great way to find out what other clubs are up to, the different ways that they work, what they do for fundraising, and all of the goodies that they get from going room to room. There are a lot of seminars but they're not boring. They talk about how Lions Club was founded, why it still runs, and how it helps people.

Then you get the International Lions Convention, which this year is in Las Vegas, Nevada. That's when Lions members get to meet other Lions members from all over the world. I went to one in Michigan one year. I met people from Japan, South Korea, and Jamaica just to name a few. It was an amazing experience and I would definitely try to attend another one.

I'm very excited for the Euchre tournament that is coming up, hosted by the Greece Ridge Lions Club. I have no idea how to play, but maybe I'll get to learn. We're hosting it at a senior home and we always get a great turnout.

The amount of friends that I have gained by joining Lions Club is wonderful. I have friends now who live all over the place. There are a few thousands of people that I can reconnect with at all these conventions that are hosted by the different states and, in some cases, countries. Now just in the Rochester area, I know most of the members if not by their name, then at least by their face.

The friendships that can grow from just meeting one person is astounding. Even before I became a full-fledged member, I was in a Leo's club that had most of my friends from middle school, who transitioned to an actual Lions Club. We still connect via Facebook and on occasion will call each other if we haven't seen one another in a while just to update on what our club is up to.

There are also a lot of connections. Since we volunteer our time, a lot of our members may work in a hospital or an environment where they get to interact with a lot of folks. So just striking up a conversation with people is an awesome way to not only gain members, but to also gain a new friend.

Quite a few Lions members will get their spouse to join as well, which is fantastic because then both are able to contribute to the community. There is also a band that gets together. Kids are able to play a variety of music for the conventions. A lot of kids gain new friendships by interacting with other kids as well as doing fun things together such as going to the movies or playing in a playground depending on the weather.

There are quite a few Lion members, myself included, who have gained new friendships just by going to a person and saying hi. I'm part of Lions Club. People generally think it's just for older people but it's really not. Why not do good in your area and create new and lasting friendships while having a lot of fun?

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About the Creator

LuAnn Ngo

I'm an avid reader, I love to volunteer at my local Lions Club, would love to travel, I have to very friendly cats. I'm happily married and always interested in learning new things. I work at a craft store part-time.

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