The Azusa Canyon City Lions!

News on upcoming activities, service projects and meetings in the Azusa community and beyond. Come join us!

Update on Lion's Efforts In Japan

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The Lions Clubs International Foundation (LCIF) has received donations or commitments exceeding $6 million, including $3 million that the Lions of Japan are working to raise themselves during their own crisis.

With the expected death toll now exceeding 18,000 and rising, the devastation is clearly greater than anyone could have imagined. And more than 400,000 people are still in shelters, in the cold, often going without a hot meal for days on end.

While many of you have already generously donated, please encourage your friends to also donate by visiting www.lcif.org/donate. Please know that every donation will be put to careful use, and 100 percent will go to the cause.

 

 

Helping the People of Japan!

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Lions from around the world and alongside our clubs in Japan are responding to the devastating earthquake and tsunami with aid and assistance for the thousands of people in need.

Within hours of the disaster, Lions Clubs International Foundation committed over US$1.25 million, or 100 million Japanese Yen, for immediate relief for Japan. This includes a major catastrophe grant, six emergency grants and designated donations from Lions worldwide. Lions also established a designated fund for Lions to directly support this disaster.

To help the thousands, maybe millions, in need, we need your help. Read this appeal from Eberhard J. Wirfs, Chairperson, Lions Clubs International Foundation:

We need to do more. You know firsthand that in the case of disasters, Lions are committed for as long as it takes. Our simple motto "We Serve" does not stop at a community or country border but extends to every corner where there is need. Our hands are building bridges for a better tomorrow.

I ask for your help in making the hope for a brighter tomorrow for those who so urgently need from us. The most immediate way to give hope is through a designated donation to LCIF.

Your financial support of earthquake and tsunami relief is critical the meeting the immediate and long terms needs of the most vulnerable families. Please consider supporting LCIF for this initiative and being a part of building that bridge of hope for those who are suffering.

With cordial regards,

Eberhard J. Wirfs, Chairperson, Lions Clubs International Foundation 

Would you like to help? Visit www.lcif.org/donate to make your donation today.

 

Lions Responding to New Zealand Earthquake

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You have likely been following the news reports of the devastating earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand. Much of the city is without water and sewerage systems and aftershocks continue. Thousands have been left homeless as a result of the destruction.

Lions have been providing assistance since the devastating earthquake February 22, and LCIF is providing $110,000 to help Lions in providing relief to their communities. If you’d like to help make the hope for a brighter tomorrow a reality for the people of New Zealand, the most effective and immediate way to help is through a designated donation to LCIF for New Zealand relief.

Since the quake, here’s what the Lions have been up to:

  • Providing food, bedding and water
  • Delivering 500 portable toilets to medical oganizations and households
  • Going door to door in the suburbs with the Red Cross to find those who need assistance
  • Providing grocery and fuel vouchers to families in need
  • Volunteering at welfare centres in Christchurch and Timaru
  • Distributing meals through a food caravan in Christchurch
  • Assisting in door-to-door outreach, delivering food and helping with clean-up
  • Organizing dinners for displaced families and housing for people in need
  • Staffing two daily shifts at the Red Cross coordination office in Wellington
  • Delivering a 40,000 litre tanker of fresh water to the suburbs of Christchurch
  • Providing weekend breaks to families to escape from the city for two days

Lions in the area are committed to helping their neighbors, despite many being affected themselves. At an emergency meeting of the Earthquake Committee last night, there was one Lion who had damage to his house, his place of work was closed, he had no power, water or sewerage connections, yet was still attending a Lions meeting to see how he could assist the citizens of Christchurch. This exemplifies Lions' "We Serve" motto.

The Lions Club’s greatest asset is its volunteers- 1.35 million of them around the world. Wherever there is a need, there is a Lions club nearby, ready to respond with their hearts and hands. In the case of disasters, we are the first to offer help, and the last to leave. From New Zealand to Haiti to Pakistan, Lions are rebuilding homes and lives.

Donating Glasses

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Eyeware fashion seems to change faster than, well...the blink of an eye. Like other expired trends, old glasses languish in drawers or end up in landfills. Sixty-four percent of U.S. adults wear prescription eyeglasses, according to the Vision Council of America, yet less than one-tenth of 1 percent of glasses sold each year are donated and reused.

The Lions Club has a huge eyeglass recycling program, collecting more than 5 million pairs of eyeglasses annually and distributing them to more than 3 million people in developing nations.

Donating your old or unused glasses provides life-changing vision services for needy people all around the world. And it’s easy to do. There are three simple ways to donate glasses: [#1] Drop them off at a Wal-Mart Optical Center – LIONS have donation boxes at all Wal-Mart Optical Centers. If it’s convenient for you, you can drop the glasses there. [#2] Mail your useable-condition glasses to the Azusa Canyon City Lions Club, PO Box 82, Azusa, CA 91702. [#3] Email us at information@azusalions.org. We’ll be happy to collect the glasses from you or provide you with a variety of locations around Azusa to drop them. From there, our club will take care of delivering them to a local Lions recycling center.

You can make a difference in the life of a vision-impaired person. Donate your glasses today!

Our Work In Haiti Continues

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LIONS are committed to long-term relief. Our work in Haiti continues, with 600 families moving into new semi-permanent homes. The homes will be erected directly on a family's plot of land, thus avoiding the hardship of further displacement and any potential property disputes. The building of these homes is an important first step toward reestablishing normal life for families who lost their homes and so much more after the earthquake.

 

While Lions clubs are known for our focus on sight and hearing assistance, we also provide resources in other ways to improve our communities. We are the largest service club in the world with more than 46,000 clubs in 202 countries and nearly 1.4 million members.

 

Local service. Worldwide influence.

 

Lions Bring Aid to Desperate People In Pakistan

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Here is a moving video (6:00) showing LIONS in Pakistan responding to the devastating floods. The video shows the widespread ruin and effects of the disaster, which have left 20,000,000 people homeless. But it also shows hope - hope for brighter days ahead. This hope is because of Lions, putting aside their own needs to help their neighbors, providing needed relief supplies and shelter.

 Want to make a contribution to the flood relief efforts? Send a check in any amount to the "Azusa Canyon City Lions Club" - PO Box 82, Azusa, CA 91702, and designate it "Floods" in the memo. We'll direct all the funds to Lions International.'s flood relief effort.

Local service. Worldwide influence.