Lions van Rhyn celebrates 45 years
The club members’ commitment and hard work are solely responsible for the club’s continued success.
The Lions Club of Benoni van Rhyn recently celebrated 45 years of service to the community and they believe there is more to do.
According to Leslie Young, the current bearer of the chain of office, the club members’ commitment and hard work are solely responsible for the club’s continued success.
“Being a Lion is a call to service, a deep desire to want to lend a helping hand to the community,” she said.
“Although we often experience setbacks and challenges it is a fulfilling task that feeds your very being.”
In recent years, members have been actively part of numerous projects assisting schools, places of safety and community projects with invaluable skills training, feeding projects and supplying resources to assist its programmes.
“The needs of local charity organisations are great and the recent Covid-19 restrictions have severely hampered many of our fundraising initiatives and outreach projects,” she said.
“However as Lions, we continue with our work, as we do we realise that even if we assist only one person at a time, that is one person that had no one else to turn to.”
Lions Club International currently boasts 1.4 million members, of which 13 are currently of service at the van Rhyn branch.
One of the longest active members is Athol Selkirk, who has been a member of the branch for the past 30 years.
“For a very long time I had an unsettling feeling that I was not doing what I was intended to, I wanted to be part of the change in the world,” he said.
“I decided to join the Germiston Lions where I served for 16 years before ultimately moving to the van Rhyn family.
“A lot has changed during this time, our community’s needs have changed tremendously, however, no effort is ever wasted.”
One of the greatest challenges facing the club is membership.
“A Lion is someone who wants to serve the needs of their community all the while holding strong values dear,” said Leslie.
“We are looking for members who have clear ideas that would steer our projects within the guidelines of the organisation.”
The branch is continuously collecting bric-a-brac and linen.
For more information regarding the club call Leslie on 083 260 8282.
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