Redditch Lions Club

Redditch Lions Club have had to reluctantly make the decision to cancel this year’s annual Family Fun Day that was to be held at the Stitch Meadows, Arrow Valley Park on 20th. June.

It has been difficult to encourage sponsorship from the commercial world and interest from major entertainers, to ensure some degree of success for this year’s event. The event, having run for the past 5 to 6 years, was becoming a major part of the annual events in the Town and building each year to bigger and better things. It is expected to return once people and enterprises become more confident in their futures.

Redditch Lions Club’s efforts to raise funds for their nominated local charities and Club Welfare Projects was deemed a success. Members of the Club, their partners and friends were out collecting at the three major supermarkets in the Town during the three weeks leading up to Christmas. The difficult financial times that are being experienced by everyone did not deter the good townsfolk of Redditch from donating, with many stating their sorrow at not being able to give more.

The supermarkets concerned - Sainsburys, Tesco and Morrisons - were themselves generous in allowing the Club to collect at their respective premises, and supporting it’s efforts to raise funds. These collections are a major source of income for the Club’s Welfare Projects that are carried out over the course of a year. Each Supermarket has been personally thanked for their support in allowing members to hold a collection and informed of the total amount collected in their store.

At the last Club meeting, a major donation was agreed for each of the nominated charities, the Acorns Children’s and Primrose Hospices. Hopefully the amounts donated will go towards reducing the shortfall that each of the hospices are experiencing this year and bolster their appeals that have been published on the local news and in the local press recently.

Christmas is getting closer and the excitement of the festive season is beginning to grow. It is also a time when minds turn to those who, for some reason or the other, cannot have or participate in what the majority of us know as a ‘Happy Christmas’.

It is one of the reasons why the Redditch Lions Club, and indeed all Lions Clubs throughout the World, were formed; that is to be able to help alleviate the difficulties and hardships of these people.

Redditch Lions will be out, with Santa at times, collecting at the following Redditch supermarkets:-

• Sainsbury’s - Saturday, December 6^th

• Tesco - Saturdays, 13^th and 20^th December

• Morrisons - Friday 19^th, Saturday 20^th, Sunday 21^st and Monday 22^nd December

Santa’s sleigh may be seen parked up at some of the stores, whilst he is collecting his letters and presents before delivering them to the right people at the right house on Christmas Day. Who knows, you may be lucky enough to see him and if you say ‘hello’, he’ll be sure to reply with a cheery greeting and a wave and, perhaps, for the little ones, a sweet or two.

All monies, no matter how large or small, will go towards the Club’s Welfare Projects fund. This is the fund that helps us to help those in need within our local community. We all know that this year in particular, there will be a heavier drain on our purses than normal, but no matter how small your donation to us, you will know for sure that it will go towards helping someone in the area, maybe some one you know.

Thank you all in advance for your help and have a lovely and Happy Christmas and New Year.

The first ever Children in Need appeal took place in 1927 when a radio appeal was made on Christmas Day. It was only in November 1980, when the first ‘Telethon’ with Terry Wogan took place, did Redditch Lions get involved with raising funds for Children in Need.

The Club collected in the town centre, ‘The Kingfisher’ was yet to be completed, and the donations were put towards the BBC’s aim of raising £1 million. Several Club members in typical Lions style, rushed off afterwards to Pebble Mills Studios with a massive cardboard cheque hoping to get on ‘the telly’.
Since that first collection, the Club have collected donations every year in the Kingfisher Centre and passed the donations onto the BBC’s appeal. To date, the total collections from the people of Redditch have well exceeded, £40,000.

This year, 2008, Redditch Lions are again out with their buckets collecting in the Worcester Square area of the Kingfisher Centre. Members always find it very heart warming to see each year, the number of regular people who come to us in the Kingfisher Centre with their own collections. Many of these collections have been saved up over the previous twelve months to donate towards the appeal.
It is also a good chance for members of the public to meet the Redditch Lions. Over the course of the day from 8.30am. onwards, every Lion available in the Club will be present together with their partners and friends. If you need to find out more about us, come and talk to us at any reasonable time.

Or you can use our contact form on out website here or just leave us a comment on the website.

Redditch Lions and friends met in the car park of the Three Horseshoes pub in Wixford for a  morning walk to Alcester and back, led by Lion Rod. On their return, they sat down to enjoy a hearty Sunday lunch at the pub.

Redditch Lions Club is part of a world wide crusade - the Lions Internations Sight First programme - to conquer blindness and are pleased to be part of the global Lions crusade to eliminate preventable blindness such as River Blindness and Cataracts.

“The World Health Orqanisation estimate that 40 million people around the world are blind”, said Jill Stray President of Redditch Lions Club. “The Redditch Lions Club are working together with Lions Clubs around the world to educate millions of people on the importance of proper eye health care and to provide treatment for them.”

Redditch Lions are proud to have contributed over the years from local fund raising efforts, towards UK Lions sponsored Eye hospitals, the latest being in Ghana

The Ghanaian hospital will not only treat patients locally, but train doctors from all over Central Africa, enabling some 100,000 more patients to be treated in the next five years.

If you are interested in finding out more about Lions Club International and in particular, your local Redditch Club, please contact, our Club Secretary on 0845 833 5914 or visit www.redditchlions.org.uk

Redditch Lions Club is one of 940 clubs in the British Isles and Ireland serving those who need help both here locally and around the world. World wide there are over 1.3 million Lions operating in 202 countries.

Redditch Lions will be out once again in the Kingfisher Centre this November, collecting for Children in Need on Friday 14th November

President Jill Stray presenting the cheque

Mother’s Voice, a group of young mothers who have gone through the trauma of post-natal depression, birth trauma and antenatal depression, have banded together to help new mothers overcome this problem which blights 1 in 5 women after giving birth.  Some, who suffer so badly, kill themselves.  Based in Inkberrow, Mother’s Voice, founded in November 2007, are aiming to gain charity status and to offer a service of advice, consultation and practical help when called upon.  They also hope to raise the profile of postnatal depression and the stigma associated with such an illness.
To help them to gain charity status and to show their capabilities of being able to raise funds, Redditch Lions recently made a donation of £100 and assisted them with their Fun Day fund raising event by attending with three stalls.  Hand painted gift ware, hand made greetings cards and a lucky dip for specially made stuffed Lions.  The day proved to be very successful with many young mothers, fathers and children enjoying the refreshments, stalls and outside activities including a bouncy castle, pony rides, childrens races and pampering sessions
The attached photo shows Lions President Jill Stray handing the cheque for £100 to Lisa Tanner , co-founder of Mother’s Voice, and Penny Wright, organiser of the Family Fun Day. Also on the extreme left is Sally Barnett, advisor and web-site manager.

Our monthly business meeting took place at the Campanile Hotel, Redditch  on 10th September 2008.

We welcomed two of our fellow Lions from Bromsgrove Lions Club to our meeting. Bromsgrove Lions are hosting the Lions District 105M Convention on 30th March - 1st April 2009, and we will be assisting them with this major task. The convention draws Lions from all over the Midlands District for two days of networking, entertainment and good fun; the theme for this convention will be local Worcestershire - Cider, Bangers & Mash!

We have received thanks for our donation from the ‘Mothers Voice‘ charity.

Social events proposed include our Autumn Walk, which would be in the vicinity of Earlswood Lakes. (Subsequent to the meeting this has now moved to Wixford in Warwickshire!) Next year our Charter Event (the Club’s Birthday) is likely to be a formal event in May 2009.

Upcoming fundraising activities discussed include a Casino Night on 15th November, and the possibility of a Duck Race.  The Club was also considering organising a Youth Golf Competition.

Our monthly business meeting took place at the Campanile Hotel, Redditch  on 13th August 2008.

Our final profit from the Funday was just over £1800, all of which will be used to support local charities and other needy causes. A donation of £100 was made to the Edwards Trust . Several other welfare requests from local people are being considered by the Welfare Committee.

We have collected some surplus dental surgery equipment donated by a dentist in Studley and will deliver this to Dent-Aid where it will be refurbished for use in developing countries.

Lion Charles reported on helping meeting and transporting 36 young people who arrived at Birmingham Airport on 17th July from all over the World on the Lions Youth Exchange Programme

President Jill Stray commenting on her plans for her forthcoming year in office, said she wanted to build on the success of the annual Fun Day, learn from the feed back from this years event and to make it something that the whole Town looks forward to.

The Club has already fixed the date of next years event, Saturday June 20th. 2009.

She also wants to build on the links with the local community and those that support the Club in its endeavour to raise funds.

President Jill in her first official engagement is seen here presenting a certificate of appreciation to Tom Wilson, of Wilson’s Fairs who had supported the Lions Fun Day.

Tom Wilsons family, have been associated with the Redditch community for some seven generations, and was only too pleased to support the Club, with the Fair rides, a generous donation for the Club’s Welfare Projects and help with the organisation that goes with setting up such an event.