Benoni Lake Lions induct new president
It was an emotional evening for the Lions as they inducted Kirsten Bayley and Tania Marneweck and bid farewell to outgoing president Beaulieu Marè who was at the helm for the past two years.
Dressed to the nines, the Benoni Lakes Lions Club members roared with excitement as they welcomed new president Diane Townsend on July 9 at Elàte Eatery in Rynfield.
It was an emotional evening for the Lions as they inducted Kirsten Bayley and Tania Marneweck and bid farewell to outgoing president Beaulieu Marè who was at the helm for the past two years.
The event also included an awards ceremony for members who went beyond the call of duty in the past year.
In her speech, Townsend said she was humbled the Lions’ support and expressed excitement at being given an opportunity to lead the club.
“I’m really excited by the prospect of the upcoming year of service. I hope to lead the club forward with enthusiasm and the spirit of fun that has become a key feature of the Benoni Lakes Lions Club.
“This club has always shown an energy and team spirit that is contagious and I would like to foster that among our members. I believe the spirit of Lionism is believing in something bigger than ourselves.
“We believe that there’s something better, greater and more inspiring that we can aspire to. Each of us is unique and have something valuable to offer one another,” she said.
Townsend stated that she will focus on strengthening the club from within.
“By strengthening from within, we will receive acknowledgement as a club that respects not only its members but has a heart for the community.
“As they say charity begins at home, let’s start by inspiring, motivating and reaching out to each other, taking an interest in our fellow club members and participating in activities where we can develop each other’s strengths and help overcome our weaknesses.
She thanked the outgoing Marè for her commitment and enthusiasm.
“I would like to thank our past president for her encouragement and support. For her inspired over the past two years, which was over a particularly difficult period as we fought through the pandemic and lockdowns which presented extraordinary challenges to us as a club and in our individual capacities.
“As president Beaulieu has always demonstrated her passion for Lions and service and has truly been a guiding light to us all through her motto of ‘lead by example’.
“I would like to thank her for all her hard work and dedication and know that I can rely on her for continued support and service to this club. I look forward to working with her in future.”
Townsend said her motto for her tenure is ‘one spirit, one team, one dream.
In a moving address, an emotional Marè recounted some of the club’s successes under her leadership.
“We welcomed 14 new quality members. Each member – both old and new – is important as each one bring their own unique strengths to the club and assists us to better serve our community.
“Fundraising was always going to be a challenge especially in light of the economic situation that our country is going through at the moment, however I think we did amazingly well.
“We held book sales, sold Christmas cakes hosted an evening at the Barnyard and had a top notch Golf Day. I am happy to say that we retained our title for the highest cake sales throughout our District. We also had a R100 to 1 million Challenge amongst our members which was a lot of fun and encouraged new creative ideas for fundraising.
“Thank you to all the Lions who participated. The R100 to 1 Million Challenge was won by Lion Cynthia Glazer for her “Soulful Soup Mondays” project,” she said.
Marìè added that they participated in all the five Lions International pillars of service, being Vision, Childhood Cancer, Diabetes, Hunger, and Environment.
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Some of Marè’s highlights during her reign are:
•Vision – doubled the number of people provided with spectacles through Lions’ Brightsight project. We also held vision screenings and established good contacts for further screenings during the year ahead.
•Childhood Cancer – The club participated in CHOC’s Flip Flop day and all members wore shorts and flip flops to their monthly meeting. We then challenged other clubs in our District to do the same and I am happy that the challenge was accepted and a substantial amount was donated to CHOC by Lions Clubs.
•The plight of a 9 year old girl, Mbali, was brought to our attention. She suffers with a facial tumour and we wanted to put together a care parcel in preparation for her planned surgery. We heard that her biggest wish was for a “Real Barbie” and so this was included in the parcel together with Barbie clothes, and everything she would need for her stay in hospital as well as the recovery period. We also assisted her family with a food parcel to help them over this difficult period.
•Diabetes – We held our 2nd ever Diabetes Awareness Day at Elate Eatery where we were able to do free sugar level testing.
Marè stated that they didn’t limit their service to the community to the Lions International pillars.
“One of the bigger projects during the year was the completed renovation of a bathroom at Robmen House. A new toilet, bath and shower was installed. Each resident also received a ‘pamper’ hamper as well as a personalised monogram bath towel so that they could enjoy the new bathroom to the fullest.
“We purchased a special needs wheelchair and through our relationships with Lodge Atholl and Desco Electronic Recyclers we were able to give out another 5 wheelchairs to needy members of the community.
“We made a donation to our Lions Clubs International Foundation to be used for disaster relief.”
She wished Townsend well as she begins her presidency.
At the event, members of the board were recognised for their time, effort and service and those who championed the five pillars of service were awarded.
Members of the board:
•1st vice President and Secretary – Diane Townsend
•2nd vice President and Safety Officer – Darren de Gouveia
•Treasurer and LCIF Co-ordinator – Lauryn Talbot
•Project Director – Michelle’t Hart
•Membership Director and Tail-twister – Nick Maré
Recognition for Champions of the 5 Pillars of Service:
•Childhood Cancer – Nicole Hendry
•Vision – Lauryn Talbot and Nick Maré
•Hunger – Michelle’t Hart and David Irving
•Diabetes – Diane Townsend
•Environment – Cynthia Glazer and Pierre Marneweck
As a gift to the club a new floating trophy was donated for the project of the year. The recipient was Pierre Marneweck for the Environmental Expo.
The Lion of the Year award was presented to Nick Maré.
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