In this season of celebration, the Camden Lions Club members would like to give a heartfelt “thank you” for the continued support from those users of the Mid-Coast Solid Waste transfer station who donate their returnable bottles and cans.  As a result of their generosity, the Lions have been able to continue to supplement various community efforts which seek to aid those in need.  

Rain or snow, hot or cold, crews of Camden Lions meet early in the morning twice a week, every week, to sort the donated returnables.  Containers filled with sorted returnables are loaded onto Lion’s truck beds and trailers and are taken to the Coastal Redemption Center, where they are further processed.  

Our Lions’ work is more visible to the community during holidays.  We install the American flags that line the downtown for patriotic holidays.  We plant and maintain the war memorial flower bed.  We provide funding for the holiday star on the Mt. Battie tower.  We donate and install the Christmas tree on the Village Green.  During the opening evening of Christmas By the Sea, we provide a table near the library that gives away cookies and warm drinks.  Less visible are the substantial Thanksgiving and Christmas food baskets we provide to local families. 

The Lions strive to foster our community children.  We sponsor the Midcoast Leos youth group, who, in turn, sponsor two African students, donate yearly school supplies to those who need them, plan and execute community work projects, and who also have an information table next to the Lions during the opening evening of Christmas By the Sea.  We gave support to the Camden Rockport Middle School students who traveled to Japan.  We awarded continuing education scholarships to eight local students.  We made donations to the Five Town Little League, to the Big Brother/Big Sisters program, to Camp Sunshine, and to the Pen Bay “Y” summer camp program.  We participate in the yearly Lions Club International Peace Poster contest and make awards to our local winning students to encourage both their vision and their art.  One local student’s poster is chosen to go on to the Maine state Lions organization competition.

We made donations to New Hope for Women, to the Knox Clinic, to Meals on Wheels, to the Chestnut Street Baptist Church’s Community Breakfast efforts, and to the Maine Lions Personal Energy Transportation cart project (for people who cannot use their legs).  

In 1925, Helen Keller challenged the Lions Club International to make a commitment to help those with vision problems.  That commitment is taken very seriously to this day.  We collect thousands of pairs of eyeglasses each year in our area and turn them over to the state Lions recycling center where they are sorted and distributed to those in need across the world.  

Lions do other quiet work in our community—work that does not necessarily involve money.  One motto we have is “Where there’s a NEED, there’s a LION.”  Another is “Not above you, not beneath you, but with you.” 

Again, we thank you for your donations.  We encourage you to “like” our our new Facebook page (Camden Maine Lions Club), our updated web site:http://www.camdenlionsclub.com, and to look for our meeting announcements in local media.  Call Bunnie Dunavent (975-5501) or Sharon Flanagan (236-6584) to attend a dinner meeting.  

Peter Martin is president of the Camden Lions Club