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90 years of service

Ninety years of service to the community was celebrated by the Clintonville Lions Club on Saturday, Oct. 11.

Joining the club members for the celebration at Masons Ridge were neighboring Lions club members, Lions District Governor Fred Sanderson, Zone Chair Annette Ziebell, Clintonville Mayor Judy Magee and other dignitaries.

Lions founder Melvin Jones, who attended the club’s 10th anniversary in 1934, was the guest speaker.

Ken Hammontree, of Living History Productions in Ohio, brought Melvin Jones to life. The historian incorporated portions of the legend’s famous 1950s speeches into his presentation.

Some of the quotes included:

“We are Lions not for ourselves; we are Lions for those who are not.”

“What you do for yourself dies with you; what you do for others lives and becomes immortal.”

“The greatest thing in life is happiness and that can only be accomplished by serving others.”

Through his Melvin Jones impersonation, Hammontree encouraged the Lions members to continue their tradition of maintaining good morals and helping others.

We serve

When he spoke at the banquet, Sanderson said that the goal is 100 million acts of kindness by Lions International’s centennial celebration in 2017.

“This club is going a long ways towards meeting that goal,” he said.

“We are a small club, but we do a lot for the community,” said Cinthy Helms, club president.

Allen Mattson was looking to help the community, so he joined the Clintonville Lions Club in 1972.

“I tend to be a person who does things for other people, so joining the Lions seemed to be a good fit,” he said. “It is a nice group of people.”

“Being a Lion gives me an opportunity to give to others,” Mattson said. “It seems the people who are the happiest are those who give of themselves in service to others.”

Past recipients of the club’s Melvin Jones Award are Bob Didier, Lloyd Eggleston, Tony Ellis, Emory Knitt, Allen Mattson and George Troup.

The Clintonville Lions Club was chartered by Lions Clubs International on Nov. 24, 1924.

The club’s current community service projects include construction of handicap ramps, vision screening of area children, Adopt-a-Highway clean-up, student scholarships, and partnering with the Clintonville Park & Recreation Department to develop a Gordy Noren Memorial Skate Park.

The Lions’ motto is “We serve,” Ziebell reminded the group gathered for the 90th anniversary celebration.

“This club is still thriving – what an accomplishment,” she said.

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