SAN PEDRO LIONS CLUB -- 82 YEARS OF COMMITMENT <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> March 10, 2005 Calendar March 10th - 7:00 pm - Board meeting. Wayne Bettis's Office, State Farm Insurance, 350 West 5th St., Suite 205, San Pedro, CA 90731. March 17th - 12:10 pm - Regular meeting. Ante's Restaurant, 729 South Palos Verdes St., San Pedro, CA 90731. March 24th - 6:30 pm - Tri Club meeting with the Harbor City/Lomita and Wilmington Lions Clubs. 6:30 pm Social. 7:00 pm dinner. Ante's Restaurant, 729 South Palos Verdes St., San Pedro, CA 90731. April 7th - 12:10 pm - Regular meeting. Ante's Restaurant, 729 South Palos Verdes St., San Pedro, CA 90731 Student Speaker Contest Deborah Ruiz will be representing the San Pedro Lions Club at the Southern Region Zone A Student Speaker Competition at Torrance High School. The event will be held on Thursday Evening, March 10th. March Board Meeting The March San Pedro Lions Club Board meeting will be held this Thursday, March 10th at 7:00 pm. The location is Lion Wayne Bettis's Office, State Farm Insurance, 350 West 5th St., Suite 205, San Pedro, CA 90731. Any member of the San Pedro Lions Club is welcome to attend. We will be discussing some basic issues to plan for the future of the San Pedro Lions Club. We will be addressing the meeting schedule, (including number of meetings per month, time and place), suggestions for programs, club activities, fund raising and finances, membership development, and any other aspects that members wish to discuss. Please plan to attend and give your input. All club members are encouraged to attend! Questionnaire and Survey A short questionnaire and survey for San Pedro Lions Club Members is in development and will be mailed to the members in the next few weeks. Lion George Keens has provided an excellent framework with questions for the survey. Input from the upcoming March 10th Board Meeting will be used to help refine and finalize the questionnaire. A Message from the LCIF Chair By now you are all too familiar with the devastation and suffering caused by the tsunami. But I want to make sure another image comes to mind as well when thinking of the disaster. This is an image of a Lion writing a check to LCIF. Never have Lions responded so generously, so quickly, so selflessly to a global disaster. We at LCIF and LCI have been humbled by the massive outpouring of support. To date, Lions have donated more than US$2.2 million to LCIF for tsunami relief. More than $1.5 million has been pledged by Lions' districts. LCIF will easily make its initial commitment of US$5 million for tsunami relief (half to come from LCIF reserves and the other half from donations). Lions in the United States have contributed more than US$1.5 million to our tsunami fund. English Lions donated US$225,000. Korean Lions US$200,000, Irish Lions US$136,000 and Swedish Lions US$120,000. More donations will come in from these Lions. The Irish Lions, for example, expect to contribute as much as US$410,000. Other Lions have pledged generous sums as well. The Australian Lions pledged $1 million in Australian dollars (about US$775,000) and the Belgian Lions pledged US$325,000. The Japanese Lions will make a major donation. The Lions of France plan to donate at least US$150,000. Lions from around the world have made personal sacrifices to make these donations. I want to extend my heartfelt appreciation, gratitude and admiration to all Lions who have contributed. Together, Lions are reaching out to those most in need in South Asia. Moved by the immense suffering, Lions are doing all they can to help people and communities get back on their feet. Even as Lions in South Asia continue to work long hours providing relief camps with vital supplies, LCIF is energetically working with South Asian Lions on long-term recovery plans. We are making plans with committees of leading Lions to rebuild homes, schools and orphanages. Long after the TV news crews have left, long after the attention of the world is elsewhere, LCIF and Lions will be on the ground in South Asia making sure communities are rebuilt. Final plans have not been approved yet, but I can tell you that Lions in Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Thailand and India propose to construct inexpensive but sturdy and comfortable homes as well as primary schools and high schools, health clinics, hospitals, water wells and child welfare centers. Lions also will provide psychological treatment and physical rehabilitation both for children and adults. In many instances Lions in South Asia will aid tsunami victims in remote or underserved regions that other aid organizations will bypass. Lions will make sure that our assistance primarily goes to people who otherwise would have to fend for themselves. LCIF's recovery efforts will be efficient, effective and expeditious. I can say this with confidence because of LCIF's strong record of rebuilding after disasters (such as after an earthquake in 2001 in Gujarat, India) and because it partners with Lions on the ground, who know their communities and how to get things done. The generosity and know-how of Lions, combined with the financial support and organizational skills of LCIF, will help untold numbers of people put their lives back together. An LCIF-funded eyeglass mission to South Asia has shown the kind of results we can quickly achieve. Many South Asians lost their eyeglasses when the tsunami destroyed their homes, and few can afford a new pair. Past International Director Bill Iannaccone is currently in Sri Lanka leading a 12-member eyeglass team. They plan to distribute 25,000 pairs of glasses and teach the Sri Lankan Lions how to use two donated lensometers and run an eyeglass recycling operation. The new skill will allow the Sri Lankan Lions to fit another 50,000 pair of recycled eyeglasses already sent there. Donations to LCIF are a highly efficient and effective way to help people impacted by the tsunamis. Every donated dollar goes directly to relief efforts; LCIF's administrative costs are paid for by interest on investments. We are at a unique chapter in Lions' history. Our commitment to service has never been demonstrated so convincingly. Lions worldwide have given LCIF and Lions in South Asia the support they need to rebuild shattered communities. Day after day, we will continue to help the people of South Asia recover from their devastating tragedy. Sincerely, Dr. Tae-Sup Lee, LCIF Chairperson