A pre-Christmas party

Yesterday we held a pre-Christmas party for local pensioners at one of Brighton's sea-front hotels.  Our guests were collected by minibus and each received a present on leaving.  Entertainment was provided during the afternoon.

Did you know...

Lions Clubs International is the world’s largest service club organization with 1.35m members in 207 countries.

The organization was founded in 1917 and has been operating in the British Isles and Ireland since the 1950s.  Today 17,000 men and women are active Lions members belonging to 900 clubs across Great Britain and Ireland.

Over the past four decades, Lions Clubs International Foundation has awarded over £500 million to support humanitarian community projects around the world.

Lions Clubs undertake hundreds of fund-­raising activities in cities, towns and villages with 100% of monies raised going direct to good causes.  Not one penny is spent on administration costs, which are funded by Lions members.

Fireworks

We held our annual fireworks display last Monday, 5th November, at the Probiz county cricket ground.  The thousands of spectators enjoyed a magnificent display.

It's not all thousands

While we are delighted when we can make a significant donation like the one below to Herons Ghyll RDA, there is great satisfaction also in the smaller things.  Like when we were recently able to help two quite separate individuals.  The first was a gentleman who cares for a disabled wife and who now has limited mobility himself.  He has always kept his front garden neat and tidy with the hedge well trimmed but this year found himself unable to undertake the trimming.  We were approached (not by the gentleman himself but on his behalf) and were glad to be able to get the hedge cut for him.

The second gentleman is deaf and relied on a fax machine for communication instead of the telephone.  He is also in receipt of benefits but, due to a bureaucratic mix-up, he found himself without funds and with an empty ink cartridge in his fax.  We bought him a new one.

New web site design

Our web site (there's a link over there on the right) has been redesigned.  Although much of the content remains the same, the site has been given a fresher, more open look.  Do drop by and see what you think.  And if you have any suggestions for improvements, we will be pleased to hear them.

Herons Ghyll RDA

When the club learned that Herons Ghyll Riding for the Disabled needed a new carriage for the pony they had just acquired, there was no hesitation in offering to help by donating £5,000 to meet most of the cost.  We already knew something of this group which provided carriage driving for people with a variety of disabilities.  This week, several of our members were delighted to be able to visit Herons Ghyll RDA to see "our" carriage in operation with Charlie between the shafts.

Pavilion Gardens Fun Day

Not exactly June weather, but on a cold and blustery day last Saturday we held a fun day in the Royal Pavilion Gardens and raised nearly £850 for Leo House at Home.  Appearing to entertain were the Maestro Academy Players who proved a great hit with one regular visitor to the gardens - and one newcomer!