A Secret Was Kept …
ADP Julie Baglama
A year ago our Cabinet decided to ask all Lioness Clubs to nominate at least one of their Lioness for a district wide Knight of Sight Award. The nomination had to include an essay on why that Lioness was deserving of the honor. We decided it would be presented at our District Convention in March and if at all possible it would be kept a secret.

Eight of our clubs participated. The difficult task then of choosing the "finalist" was given to PDPs My Babcock and Carolyn Tiber and IPADP Tammy Rockenbach ( I was so glad I was not on this committee!).

So they pondered the entries and eventually chose Cuba City Lioness Mary Ellen Birkett. And she was registered for the convention so no need to tell her or anyone else who it was. The presentation was going to be immediately after our Opening Ceremony.

Early Saturday morning my committee came to me chagrined since Ellen was not in attendance yet. The Opening Ceremony started and I watched my committee's faces as they watched for her to come in the room (I still did not know who it was). But alas, she did not arrive in time and I had to announce to all that our award would have to wait for another time-and that our committee could be trusted with a secret!

The committee then had to contact her husband, Lion Paul, to let him in on the secret. He said a family dilemma had come up and being the typical giving person Mary Ellen is, she chose to not attend the convention but to care for a grandson. Upon hearing of the honor, he was able to arrange for her to come to our business meeting in the afternoon.

She then was presented with the Knight of Sight Award at our Lioness meeting with her family (including her grandson) watching. Congratulations Lioness Mary Ellen Birkett!

Sun Prairie native Don Dencker addressed the Sun Prairie Lions Club on November 12th. Don is a WWII Vet and served in the Army in the 382nd Infantry Regiment, 96th Infantry Division, Company L. Don addressed the club in remembrance of Veterans Day. Don joined the army in March of 1944 at the age of 18 and returned home in December of 1945. He saw active duty on Okinawa, Japan and also on Leyet, Philippines. He told of his exploits fighting the Japanese during the war and totally captivated the crowd on hand. Don has written a book titled Love Company which details his experiences. The title of the book refers to Company L. The book covers the war in the Pacific against Japan, specifically the part of the 96th Infantry Division during the time Dencker served. The book can be purchased from Don for $14 by calling Don direct at (608) 837-7479.
Lion Mike McCutcheon
Sun Prairie Lions

The Sun Prairie Lions held their April Raffle Calendar Drawing at Sentry Foods on Main Street in Sun Prairie on April 17th. 9 year old Ethan Churchill and his 7 year old sister Averie assisted Lion Mike McCutcheon by drawing 30 winners who were awarded a total of $550.00.
Lion Mike McCutcheon
Sun Prairie Lions

The Sun Prairie Lions held their February Raffle Calendar drawing at Sentry Foods on Main Street in Sun Prairie on February 20th. Eight year old Jessie Valdez assisted the Lions this month by drawing 28 winners who were awarded a total of $530.00.
Lion Mike McCutcheon
Sun Prairie Lions

The 2010 State Lions Curling Bonspiel was held in Medford over the weekend of January 8th. Although Sun Prairie didn't bring home any "Gold" this year a great time was had by all involved. Lion Terry Pederson did the best job for Sun Prairie by getting his team to the medal round and finishing tied for Third in the Second Event. Great effort! Next year in Galesville promises to be just as much fun and then back to McFarland for 2012 which is a very nice venue.
Lion Mike McCutcheon
Sun Prairie Lions

On Thursday, January 28th, Lion Frank Baldwin was recognized by the Sun Prairie Lions for being a 55 year member in the club. He was presented with a chevron indicating his years of service to the Sun Prairie Lions. Congratulations Lion Frank!
Lion Mike McCutcheon
Sun Prairie Lions

The Sun Prairie Lions were presented with a plaque and recognized by the District for their continued support to the Lions Race Program. Accepting the plaque were Lions Tim Mason and Lion Pierre McNichol.
Lion Mike McCutcheon
Sun Prairie Lions

The Sun Prairie Lions held their first Raffle Calendar drawing of 2010 on Saturday, January 16th, at Sentry Foods on Main Street in Sun Prairie. 10 year old Wyatt Moodie from Sun Prairie assisted the Lions this month by drawing 31 winners who were awarded a total of $960.00. The first chip drawn was good for $500.00 and was awarded to Riley Nelson out of Galesville, WI.
Lion Mike McCutcheon
Sun Prairie Lions

AVOCA-BLUE RIVER-MUSCODA LIONS CLUB CELEBRATES 44 YEARS OF COMMUNITY SERVICE
Riverdale Leo Club receives charter, members inducted
MUSCODA.....The Avoca-Blue River-Muscoda Lion Club celebrated charter night on April 12th as a crowd of 70 filled the Kratochwill Memorial Building for a delicious meal and eventful program. The club honored charter members Lee Baumann and Julie Ward for 44 years of continuous service to the Lions Club. A necrology service memorialized Lion Stan Patch who was a member of the local club for over 40 years and had achieved the highest honor that can be bestowed on a Lion, the Melvin Jones Award.

The evening was made even more special by the establishment of a new service organization at Riverdale High School, the Leo Club, an offshoot of the Lions. The Riverdale Leo Club received their charter and the inaugural members were inducted by District Governor Rick Daluge. Also in attendance was Neil Winchell, former Principal at Riverdale High School and a former President of the Lions Club who is now a Lions Vice District Governor for this area.

Lions President Mary Stanek thanked those in attendance for their service to the community and commended Lion Chris Simonson for serving as advisor to the new Leo Club. Stanek also recognized Lion Bucky Boland from Iowa Grant High School for his assistance in starting up the new Leo Club at Riverdale.

Stanek said, "I am very proud of our new Leo Club at Riverdale. This fine group of young people are ready, willing and able to assume the motto of Lions International, which is 'We Serve'. I look forward to seeing the projects you will work on and the differences you will make in our community. "

The local Lions Club supports a myriad of worthy causes include the following: purchase of eyeglasses and hearing aids for persons with financial needs; vision screenings for area schoolchildren; diabetes awareness programming; scholarships for Riverdale graduating seniors; the annual National Honor Society banquet; donations to the food pantry; distribution of Christmas food baskets; donations to fire and EMS departments, schools and parks, Wisconsin Lions Camp, Eyebank, Mission to Mexico, and the list goes on and on.

The Lions Club meets at 6:30 p.m. on the second Monday of each month. During the summer months, the meetings are held at Victora Riverside Park. For further information on the local Lions Club, contact Mary Stanek at 739-3365 or speak with any of the Lions Club members.

Pastor Dieter, pastor of the Lancaster Congregational Church, is also a chaplain in the Navy Reserves. He left Lancaster April 10 for training in Mississippi, prior to his deployment to Afghanistan. When asked by LCC member Carol Terwilliger what the community could do for him, Chaplain Dieter told of the necessity for phone cards for the service men and women he sees. With a $20 phone card, the soldiers are able to call home for 78 minutes. Buying the cards in bulk is less costly, with the charge for 25 cards being $375, plus $14.95 shipping and handling. Wanting to have as many cards as possible available for Chaplain Dieter prior to his deployment in June, Terwilliger has discussed the need for the phone cards with many people in the community. The Lancaster Lions Club has purchased 25 cards, as have both the Lancaster Chapter of PEO and the Lancaster Congregational Church. Terwilliger hopes to continue to raise additional funds to continue to purchase phone cards throughout Chaplain Dieter's deployment. If you have questions or would like to make a donation toward this very worthy cause, please contact Carol Terwilliger at (608) 723-7322 or (608) 778-7699.

Diabetes Awareness Day, March 23, 2010
In a joint effort the McFarland Lions and Lioness Clubs participated in Diabetes Awareness Day at two locations, McFarland State Bank and Walgreens. There were a number of participants from both clubs as information tables were set up at the two locations and staffed for 6 hours. They visited with many people, who were glad to receive the information about Diabetes. The Medicine Shop also had Diabetes information brochures which they distributed to their customers. Thank you to Lion Ed Proctor, Diabetes Chair and to all the Lions and Lioness who made this event a success.

The results are in for the Environmental Photo Contest and it was a clean swipe at both the district and the state contest for the Token Creek Lions Club. The contest winners in the five categories were:
* Animal Life - L. Dennis Sommer (deer)
* Landscape - L. Nellie Vallerta-Asst ( waterfall)
* Plant Life - L. Barb Hennings (water lily)
* Weather Phenomenon - L. Ben August (water fall)
* Lions Environment Miracle Workers - L. Nellie Vallerta-Asst (Salvation Army volunteer)

The district contest and the state contest were judged by different panels of Past District Governors. At the state contest, it was determined that L. Nellie's photograph of the water lily was the over-all winner. These photos were then forwarded to the Lions Clubs International contest where judging will be by the attendees at the International Convention in Sydney, Australia. Winners at the Convention will be published in the 2011 Environmental wall calendar. Copies of these photos were also on display at our District Convention in Dubuque.

Every Lion was eligible to submit a photograph of his or her immediate surroundings into a club-level Environmental Photo Contest. The purpose of the photo contest is to showcase the beauty of nature. In 1972, Lions Clubs International made a commitment to protect the environment and the photo contest is an outgrowth of this mission.

Monticello Lioness Nancy Elmer is giving a check to Jeff and Julie Nimtz for this son, Austin. Austin's eye socket was injured last year due to a golf club accident. He is now doing well and his eye sight has been restored. He is the grandson of Lion/Lioness Sam and Lion/Lioness Carol Powell.

Highland Lions Club Presidents Diamond Award for 2008-2009
The Highland Lions club is proud to announce that Past President Lion Cathy Simplot was the recipient of the Diamond Award for 2008-2009. This award is given for achieving positive net growth for the year ending June 30, 2009.

Lion Cathy is a very special person and indeed deserving of this award. She has served for the past two years and has been a valued member of our club. Not only does Lion Cathy volunteer with the Lions Club, she also gives of her time at the local food pantry, and any where else she is needed.

This award was presented to her at our recent Christmas Banquet. Well done Lion Cathy Simplot.

Highland Annual Fisheree is January 31, 2010. Our annual fisheree is coming up real soon. Get your poles, and tip-ups ready for a wonderful day on the ice. Fisheree starts at 5:00 a.m. Childrens' fisheree starts at 1:00 p.m.-3:00 p.m. and of course, the kids can bring their moms and dads out on the ice too. What a wonderful way to start a family tradition and of course, get to know your lion members. The shelter house will be full of food and drinks. We look forward to seeing you there.

Fennimore Names Fellow: At their annual ladies night Christmas party, the prestigious Melvin Jones Fellow was awarded to Lion Gary Chamberlain. Lion Gary has been a member for 37 years in which he has served as Secretary or Treasurer for 30 of those years. He now holds both offices. Chamberlain was honored to have his two children, five grandchildren, mother and sister attend the ceremony. He joins five other members of the club who have received the award: LaVern Croft, Dallas Croft, Max Rosemeyer, Joe Novinska and Marvin Staskal.