9X9 September Newsletter

LION TALK

September, 2002

“BUILD A FUTURE--LEAVE A LEGACY”

DG GERALD “JERRY” INMAN

PO BOX 39, STANWOOD, IA 52337

PHONE 563-942-6603

E-MAIL: gcinman@netins.net

DISTRICT HOLDS CABINET

MEETING

The first 9X9 cabinet meeting for the 2002-2003 year was held on Aug. 4 at Mechanicsville, IA. The meeting was preceded by a round table training session for zone chairs and a noon luncheon. Roll call was answered by 28 of the 38 cabinet members with 13 guests in attendance.

The meeting was opened with the Pledge of Allegiance led by Lion Judy Terry and an invocation given by DG Jerry Inman. Minutes of the cabinet meeting held at the State Convention in Waterloo on June 1, 2002, were approved.

IPDG Rudy Arp introduced Lion Judy Terry from the Iowa City Host Club as a candidate for 9X9 Vice District Governor for the 2002-2003 year. This position had remained unfilled since the Spring Convention on March 9, 2002. Lion Terry gave a brief history of herself and her Lion activities. A motion to put Lion Terry’s name on the ballot to fill this position was made, and a vote by secret ballot endorsed her to serve as 9X9 Vice District Governor for 2002-2003.

Membership chair, PDG Dick Polansky gave a membership report. There is a discrepancy between the State and International reports. To assist in the reconciliation process, PDG Polansky asks that all clubs send him a club membership list as it appeared on June 30, 2002. The correct membership in 9X9 is about 1690 Lions.

ILF Trustee Jim Spears thanked all cabinet members for their efforts to get clubs involved in donating to the Iowa Lions Foundation last year. The 9X9 budget was $59,000 and $57,487 was received. Trustee Spears was commended for being instrumental in raising nearly $115,000 during the last two years.

Cab. Sec./Treas. PDG Loren Claussen gave a final budget report for 2001-2002. An ending balance of $7,551.68 was reported. An audit of the books found everything in order. PDG Claussen was thanked for doing a fine job.

DG Inman presented IPDG Arp with a PDG’s pin and a PDG Plaque which read, “Presented in recognition of outstanding leadership and devoted service from District 9X9, 2001-2002.” The cabinet thanked IPDG Arp for his year of great leadership.

There was a discussion of the use of multiple web sites by District 9X9. A motion was made and passed to pay the bill to date and disband the 9X9 web site. The state web site will be used in place of the 9X9 web site. The site can be found by logging on to www.iowalions.org.

Cab. Treas. PDG Claussen presented the proposed 9X9 budget for the 2002-2003 year. Income totaled $16,227.68 ($7,551.68 from carry over, $6,720 from dues and $1,956 from other sources). Expenses totaled $13,475 ($1,215 for general expenses, $5,760 for DG expenses, $1,800 for VDG expenses, $575 for secretary & treasurer expenses and $4,125 for other expenses). This leaves a proposed 2002-2003 unspent balance of $2,752.68.

A motion to purchase seven Club Toolboxes to be used by the zone chairs at zone meetings was made and passed. These toolboxes will be on display at zone meetings this fall.

RC Laverne Arp, RC Ken Thompson and PRC Gary Glockhoff reported on the successes of the Lions Baseball Nights. Lions Nights at the Ballparks will occur again next summer.

DG Inman adjourned the meeting with the singing of “Swimming to the Other Side”.

LIONS GOLF TOUR

This year, the requests for funding from the foundation totaled $430,705. The amount budgeted to cover these requests was $297,400. To meet this amount, the assumption is being made that all nine districts will make their goals. Last year, only one district made their goal. This also means that $133,305 of requests will be left unfunded. Obviously, the foundation needs another source of income.

The Iowa Lions Foundation is about to undertake a major project to increase the funds going to the foundation. This project is a Lions-sponsored golf tour consisting of 5 or more tournaments. Lou King & Associates has been contracted to assist in setting up the tour. King has an impressive resume which includes involvement with the PGA and the Amana VIP Tournament .

What is needed now is your service. The Lions of Iowa need to step forward to help with the tournaments. We need Lions to work on the steering committee for the tour. We will also need 15 or more volunteers for each tournament. Thus far, sites for the tour include Finkbine in Iowa City and Hunters Ridge in Cedar Rapids. I ask that you put on your golf hat and get involved by contacting me, your district governor, to volunteer or get additional information.

FALL RALLY

The 9x9 Fall Rally will be held on Sunday, Oct. 13, 2002, at the West Branch High School in West Branch, IA. The registration fee is $12.00 which includes coffee and rolls in the morning, a great noon meal and a full day of fun and fellowship. To register, send the completed registration form and a check for the registration fee made out to District 9X9 Fall Rally to Pres. Kent Kaufman, West Branch Lions Club, 536 290th Street, West Branch, IA 52358.

The guest speaker will be PDG Matteo A. Cardella, secretary-treasurer of the Lions Clubs of Iowa. Here is an opportunity for you to learn about the role of the State Office in Ames and the functioning of Multiple District 9. Besides being very knowledgeable about Lionism, PDG Cardella is a very entertaining and motivational speaker.

Other activities include presentations by Iowa Lions Foundation Trustee Jim Spears, Coming To Your Senses Coordinator Lori Short and a member from the 5-State Area Impact Team. The spouse’s program will be at the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library. There will be entertainment, cheerleaders, a PDG contest, a Parade of Checks and a door prize raffle.

Each club is asked to provide a $10 door prize for the raffle and to bring their club banner for display.

President, put the Fall Rally on the agenda for meetings in September and October. Encourage members from your club to attend. It is also an opportunity for your club to get recognition at the Parade of Checks for their donations to the Iowa Lions Foundation, Share and Care, LCIF, Leader Dogs for the Blind and Diabetes Research.

MEMBERSHIP IDEA

Recently I noticed an article in the Cedar Rapids Gazette, “Small Towns Make a Deal”. A partial list of the incentive package for new homeowners in Traer, IA, included property tax and electrical rebates, swimming pool passes and golf memberships, and a six-month membership to the Traer Lions Club. What can we learn from this article? As a gift to all new residents of your community, could your Lions Club afford to give them free trial membership to your club? What an exciting idea to promote membership in the greatest service organization in the world!

PEACE POSTER E-CARD

You can send a Peace Poster e-card using one of five poster designs and an electronic greeting. It’s simple, just log on to http://www.lionsclubs.org/Ecards/Step1.htm.

WHERE IS THE DISTRICT GOVERNOR?

Sept. 5--Ext. & Membership Team Meeting

at Stanwood

Sept. 7--Calamus Lions--Official Visit

Sept. 12--Cedar Rapids Noon Lions--

Official Visit

Sept. 14--Lost Nation Lions--Official Visit

Sept. 15-24--USA/Canada Leadership Forum

at Fort Worth, Texas

Oct. 1--Otter Creek Area Lions--Official Visit

Oct. 5 & 6--Council of Governors Meeting

at Ames

Oct. 10--Marion Noon Lions--Official Visit

Oct. 13--9X9 Fall Rally at West Branch

Oct. 15--Mechanicsville Lions--Official Visit

Oct. 16--Iowa City Evening Lions--Official Visit

Oct. 20--9X2 Fall Rally at Hampton

Oct. 26--9X6 Fall Rally at Villisca

Oct. 29--Region I, Zone I Meeting at Wilton

NEW LEADER DOG IN IOWA

Ms. Linda Lou Miracle from Vinton, IA, received her new leader dog as she completed her schooling at Rochester, MI, on July 25, 2002. Ms. Miracle, age 57, was blinded at the age of 23 due to retinal detachment. May Ms. Miracle have new-found mobility and independence with her new dog. Remember that the cost of a leader dog is approximately $25,000. Put a donation to Leader Dogs for the Blind in your club’s budget for 2002-2003.

LIONS WORLD SIGHT DAY

The focus of Lions World Sight Day on Oct. 10 will be diabetic retinopathy, a common complication of diabetes and a leading cause of vision loss in adults. During October, clubs are being encouraged to sponsor activities and programs to educate their communities about the need to conquer blindness and preserve sight. You can download the “Lions World Sight Day Activity Guide” from Lions International at lionsclubs.org/LCIPubLib/EN/PR804.pdf.

SECRETARIES

I would like to commend the 40 secretaries that had their membership reports to me on time. Where are the reports from the other 11 Clubs?

Secretaries, include an activity report, photographs of club activities and newspaper articles with the membership report. I will be using these for content on the Club Page in my newsletter and the 9X9 page in the Iowa Lion.

I also ask that you send copies of these reports to your zone chairs, region chairs and VDG Judy Terry.

DISTRICT DIRECTORY

Presidents and secretaries, are you looking for the District 9X9 Directory? Two directories for each club have been given to your zone chairs to get to you. Expect to get them at your first zone meeting or contact your zone chair if you need them sooner. I ask that you notify me about any mistakes in the directory so I can make the corrections.

EXTENSION AND MEMBERSHIP TEAM

The date for the organizational and training meeting for this team has been changed. It will be on Thursday, Sept. 5, 2003 at 6:30 PM. We will meet in the lunchroom at the North Cedar High School, 102 E. North Street, Stanwood, IA.

This is a new program to foster extension and membership in District 9X9. If you desire to serve on this team, please contact me by phone at 563-942-6603 or by e-mail at gcinman@netins.net. I also like surprises, so you can just show up at this meeting.

Watch for an article about this team on the 9X9 page in the September issue of the Iowa Lion.

OFFICIAL VISITS

Many clubs have not scheduled an official visit at this time. I ask each club to schedule this visit with me by Sept. 14. You can do this by completing the form included with this newsletter and sending it to me or sending the same information by e-mail at gcinman@netins.net. Please call me at 563-942-6603 if you want to discuss possible dates for the visit.

COMING TO YOUR SENSES

A recent report I received concerning Coming To Your Senses showed that there were only 13 screenings with 144 children screened in Iowa during the month of June. Four of these screening were in District 9X9. These are not statistics of which we can be proud.

I encourage all clubs to get involved with this project. Find the day cares in your community, talk to the day care administrators and set up screenings for the children in these day cares.

Kent Kaufman, 9X9 Coming To Your Senses Coordinator, can be contacted by e-mail at bkkaufman@juno.com or by phone at 319-643-5734. He is prepared to assist in setting up screenings, giving club programs, arranging training sessions and providing the photoscreener for your screenings.

OUR DECEASED LION

Our condolences go to the family of the deceased Lion. Having served so diligently here on earth, may her soul rest in peace.

Marjorie G. Jones of the Blue Grass Lions

OUR NEW LIONS

We welcome the following new Lions to our 9X9 family.

Gary L. Junge of the Otter Creek Area Lions