Thursday, May 30, 2013

Incoming Officers

2012-2013 has been a good year.  The Club's officers worked hard and got projects done.  We made more in fundraising this year than any other year in history. But it's time for new officers to come on board and show us what they have to offer. 

Being an officer of the Club is a lot of work. There's no doubt about it. There's emails to respond to; members need to be kept informed of projects, activities, and club happenings; reports need to be created and submitted; information needs to be input; checks need to be written.  There's legal aspects that need to be kept up on; accountability to many.  And the list goes on. 

Thank you to all who take time out of their busy schedules to take on the task of being an officer in the Club.  And welcome, and thank you, to the incoming officers who have said "yes!" we will be an officer and give more of our time for the good of the Club! 

Officers for 2013-2014

President:  Lion Mike Allison
1st Vice President:  Lion Tommy Dawson
Secretary:  Lion Becky Allison
Treasurer:  Lion Joe Molburg
Tail Twister/Lion Tamer:  Lion Allen Butner
2 Year Director:  Lion Mike Norton
1 Year Director:  Lion Bob Hurley
Membership Director:  Lion Neil Atkinson
Immediate Past President:  Lion Joey Ausel

Woo hoo!  Thanks, again, incoming officers!  We look forward to your leadership, new ideas, and continued success!  Good luck, and keep up the good work in 2013-2014!

Monday, May 27, 2013

Going On-Line

Everything is changing... we use our cell phones to take pictures, calculate, set an alarm, and just about anything else we want to do....  We rely on our phone, our i-pad, and our computer to retrieve most any information we need to find.  We don't write letters anymore, we text or send emails.  We don't call our friends on the phone anymore, we text or send emails.  We don't need a pencil or an eraser or a dictionary. 

On-line is where the young and hip go to find information and stay in touch with family and friends.  And it's true, you CAN teach an old dog new tricks!  More and more the older generations are spending time on the internet, sending texts, and participating on Facebook.   

So it's no wonder that the Mendenhall Flying Lions is also going on-line.  It's our hope that more and more members will stop in and visit our Facebook page from time to time as well as read the articles that are posted on The Flying Lions Blog.  It's about keeping members in touch with each other, what they're doing, what's going on.  It's about sharing information that we've learned from meeting with senior members of Multiple District, training courses, and conventions.  It's about sharing.  It's about learning.  It's about getting to know other members. 

There might be some members who feel overwhelmed by all this information.  But on the other hand, if any of this information helps even one Lion, then it will be worth it. 

This writer is always looking for subjects to write about.  Any Lion member is welcome to submit an article and I'll post it for you.  The Flying Lion is more personal than other social media.  If you caught the biggest salmon ever, take a picture and send it in!  If you just got back from a trip and visited a Lions Club, tell us about it.  If you participated in an on-line training course, write up a recap and share it with the rest of us.

This Blog is not just about what I might know, learn, or hear.  I look forward to it becoming a Club Blog with everyone participating.  So, please, send me your ideas, thoughts, pictures, and articles! 

Nancy
A Soon To Be Lion

Saturday, May 25, 2013

Netcast: Inviting, Inducting, and Involving New Members

I attended a Netcast the other day.  Typically these on-line courses are really good.... worth my time.... but all I'm going to say is I hope there weren't any other Lions listening that day! 

District Governor Lisa Alexander from the U.S., was the Panelist but unfortunately she wasn't given an opportunity to speak much. 

Here's a brief recap of what I learned.

Introducing a new member:
  • Get new members involved right away. 
  • Introduce new members to other members.  Don't let them sit alone.
  • Get them on a committee asap.
Inducting and orientating a new member:
  • Show a video at the induction, showing club activities
  • Show the new member a list of all your club committees and ask them which ones they would like to serve on.
  • Blindfold the new member and sponsor and let them experience a few minutes of darkness together.
  • Include in your induction ceremony a little on LCI, a little on Multiple District, and a little on your club.
  • Some clubs have candles lit (the color of Lions organization) to make the induction more memorable. 
Involving new members:
  • Get them involved in activities as soon as possible.
We also learned how a Social Diversity Director in our club could identify needs in our community. 

Many participants shared the importance of taking new members to the meeting and approaching new members as they walk through the door (talk and share).

Brochures worth downloading from LCI:
  Just Ask Me Guide
  New Member Recruiting Guide

Lion Mike N.

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Boy Scout Troop 247 Gets National Recognition!

Troop 247 is in the News!  This is the May 2013 issue of Boys Life Magazine where Boy Scout Troop 247 got recognized for their robot.
 

How it all began:
Our team was made up of 5 boys from Boy Scout Troop 247. Our first goal in participating in the First Lego League (FLL) was to earn our Robotics merit badge.

 
The theme for FLL this year was Senior Solutions. The game board had different Lego themed scenarios that could help seniors stay active like gardening, bowling, sewing, woodworking. The team chose the missions they wanted to have their robot complete in 2 min 30 seconds. One was to move some Legos to complete a quilt, one was to retrieve a chair and repair it and return it under the table. At the end the robot had to drive up stairs and balance on the top of the bridge and then throw a ball at bowling pins.


 
The second portion of the competition involved a project where the team chose a problem that seniors are faced with and then developed an innovative solution to then present to the tournament judges. The team interviewed an older gentleman and narrowed down what problem they wanted to solve for their project. They came up with an innovative Senior Memorizer. This device was designed to help seniors remember things, help them plan their day, but also allowed them to be independent. The team put on a skit to demonstrate their idea.

 
During the last two weeks the team experienced issues with the robot completing missions as they had programmed it to do. Thankfully, they were able to solve the issues in time for the competition.


 
The team displayed great teamwork. Each scout came up with ideas that enhanced the robot, one scout thought tracks would be best for going up the stairs; one scout figured a way to push some of the stuff by running the robot backwards for half of the missions. One scout figured out a way to retrieve the chair and throw a ball with the same attachment.

Lion Allen Butner
Scout Leader

Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Get Ready for World Diabetes Day Webinar

Get Ready:  For World Diabetes Day
Set:  Mark your calendar for November 14
Go:  Participate!

Lions:  Are you aware that there's a World Diabetes Day?  Every year on November 14, the diabetes community around the world act together to provide diabetes awareness.  The slogan for 2013 is DIABETES: PROTECT OUR FUTURE. This campaign brings millions of people in over 160 countries together to raise awareness and advocate for improved diabetes care and prevention.

Why November 14?  This date was chosen because it marks the birthday of Frederick Banting, who along with Charles Best, is credited with the discovery of insulin in 1921. 

How Did It All Begin?  World Diabetes Day was introduced by the International Diabetes Foundation (IDF) and the World Health Organization (WHO) in 1991 in response to concern over the spread of diabetes around the world.

World Diabetes Day became an official United Nations World Health Day following passage of resolution 61/225 on December 20, 2006.  This landmark resolution recognized diabetes as "a chronic, debilitating and costly disease associated with major complications that pose severe risk for families, countries and the entire world."

Fact:  Diabetes is one of the major health challenges of the 21st century. 

Fact:  There are currently 371 million people living with diabetes.

Fact:  There are 4.8 million deaths a year. 

Fact:  Diabetes and its complications can be preventable.

Diabetes is a global epidemic, spiraling out of control.  One in every two people don't even know they have it.... Are you one of those at risk?

Let's be a part of this great campaign to help raise awareness and protect our future!  November is Diabetes Awareness Month.  November 14 is World Diabetes Day. 

*******************************************************
If anyone doubts the importance of attending Webinars and Netcasts offered by Lions Clubs International, this is a good example of what information they offer.  Lions--Get Ready for World Diabetes Day 2013 was today's Webinar.  More on the efforts and what we can do as individuals and as a group will be posted in the weeks and months to come. 

Lion Mike Norton 

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Oklahoma Needs Our Help

Hi, Lions. It's true that we all have our own lives, our own problems, our own challenges.  But right now, the people of Oklahoma need all the help they can get.  Yesterday's tornado devasted so many homes, so many lives. 

If you care to help, there's a lot of options:  The Red Cross can always use donations, but have you ever considered donating to Lions Clubs International? 

Lions Clubs International has a Disaster Relief Fund to help disasters such as this.  You can access the Donate Now link here?  http://lionsclubs.org/blog/2013/05/21/lci-and-lcif-respond-to-oklahoma-usa-disaster/  If you have any questions filling out the form, please contact your Club Secretary or myself.

I donated.  Will you?

Michael Norton
Zone 7 Chair
MD49A

Saturday, May 11, 2013

Postal Service Food Drive

It started out like this: A Post on Facebook
 
Southeast Alaska FoodBank
Just a reminder: the USPS's Stamp Out Hunger food drive is coming up on Saturday the 11th. We're going to need help transporting, sorting, and stocking these donations, so please let us know if you or your group would be interested in helping us that day. Thanks.
 
So we put out an email to the Club to see if anyone wanted to volunteer some time and help out. 

 
 
We heard from Lion Allen who thought this would be a great project for his Boy Scout Troop 247.  They would join Lion Mike N.
 
 And we agree.  Those boys rocked!
 
They worked for 2 hours today sorting through canned goods and other food items.
 
All in all, we sorted and handled 2,231 pounds of donated food that will help feed our community. But equally important, we had a great time and met some really nice people, Darren and Judy from SE Alaska Food Bank.  Who knows, maybe we've started a new partnership....

Thursday, May 2, 2013

4th Cabinet / MD 49 Convention in Fairbanks

I've been to several great Multiple District Conventions over the years, and this year's was no different. 

It didn't hurt that the Ice Breaker took place at the Antique Car Museum!  It was incredible to see all those period cars -- and all from Alaska! 


As in any cabinet meeting or convention, we had a lot of business to deal with.  The subject of redistricting was heavy on a lot of people's minds and I suspect all were relieved when the Delegates voted to not put it on the ballot. 

As posted a couple days ago, Southeast Alaska won many awards.  Lion Ted Burke, from the Juneau Club, won the highest honor and received the Presidential Medal from LCI.  A much deserved recognition for his involvement in Lions all these years. 

The best part of the trip was hanging out with Lions from my Zone.  Lions who I don't get to see often enough or outside of regular meetings.  We had Lions who attended for their first time.  I wonder if it made an impact on them....  I think they came away feeling rejuvenated and excited for this new phase in the Lion's organization.  One of leadership. 

Brief Convention Recap: 
  1. Nominations were held for Lewis Quinn (District Governor), Cindy Beardsley (1st Vice District Governor), Mike Brown (2nd Vice District Governor), and for Council Chairman Lou Jones.  All were elected to the respective positions.
  2. The Lion Necrology Service:  There were 19 Lions who were honored, two from Ketchikan--Lion John Chappele and Lion Don Haseltine.  These are Lions that passed away this last year.  
  3. 49A Awards: 
  • Membership Growth:  Mountain View Lions
  • President of the Year:  Sherie Viera (Palmer)
  • Club of the Year:  Copper River Basin Lions
  • Secretary of the Year:  Lion Becky Allison
  • Lion of the Year:  Lion Michael Norton
Plus many other awards.


There will be a full cabinet report coming shortly.

Yours in Lionism
Mike N.