This article is from page 33 of the 2007-07-31 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 33 JPG
THE recently elected president of Shannon and District Lions Club has said he would like to see more peo- ple join the organisation stating that the work the club does is as vital as ever to local communities.
Councillor Gerry Flynn’s transi- tion to the position of president has not been an easy one following a re- cent family tragedy which forced the cancellation of his formal appoint- ment on President’s Night as a mark of respect. Gerry’s work as president and the work of the club have how- ever continued.
‘There is a popular misconception that Lions Clubs are elitist and some sort of boys clubs. This is a long way from the truth. We have people from various walks of life in the club and I would love to see many more. There are about 12 of us but I would prefer to see 30. The work is very reward- ing and there is also the social side to the club,” Gerry Flynn said.
‘We have a busy calendar of events already planned for the coming year starting with a golf classic in Octo- ber. We will have our annual Christ- mas food appeal and many other events during the year. The food ap- peal is certainly one of our biggest
and most important events especially at Christmas time,’ he added.
“One thing people may not be aware of is that every single penny collected goes to charity. Not a pen- ny is spent on club administration, that is all paid for by the members. Everything we collect goes to the respective charities and we are very proud of that.”
“It has to be said that there are a lot more areas of society not just the poor who are struggling. We do our best for everyone we can but for dif- ferent reasons, and people might not realise this, even middle-class people are struggling in a way. An obvious
example would be a person requir- ing a wheelchair and because of all the bureaucracy in the HSE, they are waiting for months and months. In the Lions Club, we have purchased and provided wheelchairs for people who need them,” he explained.
“There is a huge deficit in this area. It is a strange thing but poorer people appear to be better catered for than some others. What we try to do is pick up the slack where we can,” he added.
Gerry Flynn has asked anyone in- terested in joining the Shannon and District Lions Club to contact him on 087 2188654.