Roaring success: Claremorris Lions are supporting their own
Students of Mount St Michael School at the Lions annual tree planting with members of Claremorris and District Lions Club. Pictures: John Corless
Claremorris and District Lions Club raises funds for other front-line charities in their area, and on this Saturday, September 23, are teaming up with Daisy Lodge in Cong, to raise much-needed funds for childhood cancer.
“We’re delighted to present the comedy play, , by Harvest Moon Theatre Group in Claremorris Town Hall Theatre,” Andy Bibby, the president of club told the .
“We raise money for different charities,” Andy said. “We give them the money and we monitor how it is spent. Different groups approach us and we distribute our funds at our monthly meetings. One hundred percent of what we raise is handed over,” he said. “This is a very worthwhile cause, and we ask people to please come out and support it.” Andy joined the Lions 2015.
“We’d just moved to Ireland,” he explained, “and we were anxious to get to know people. Having just retired, I was looking for some way of giving something back to society. I was invited to join the Lions and I have found it very engaging and worthwhile. I found the projects interesting. There are benefits for the individual members and the community.”
Another activity, , takes place at McMahon Park, on the edge of Claremorris and is well supported.
“Supervalu in Claremorris sponsor the event,” Andy says. “They supplied refreshments as well as providing music.” Damien Hall, the manager of Supervalu in town, said the staff used the event as a team-building exercise.
“It’s something different that we can all get behind,” Damien said.
Lions are ordinary people from all walks of life who give their time freely to serve their community and beyond, through support and aid. There are 2,000 members of Lions Clubs on the island of Ireland and 1.45 million worldwide. Claremorris and District Lions Club was founded in 1983 but fell away after a number of years. It was re-established in 2005. The club is one of 48,000 Lions clubs, spread across the globe.
Michael Clarke joined Claremorris and District Lions Club in 2004.
“I was invited to join and I’m glad I did,” Michael told the .
“I like the idea that the Lions offers a variety of projects. I’m very involved in the project. This is based on a very simple idea, that is almost self-explanatory. Everyone can visualise the image of a bottle floating ashore on the tide, with the message inside, from someone stranded on an island, or in some form of distress. This image has been depicted in films and in simple cartoons in newspapers. Our is, in some ways, a very similar idea. With ours, people store their basic personal and medical details in a common place, where they can be found quickly in case of emergency, using a recognised standard method. Emergency services arriving at a house where the system is in place, will see a sticker on the front or back door indicating that key information is readily available, and can access this information in seconds.”
People who join the service are given a plastic container complete with a personal information leaflet and three self-adhesive, green-cross labels. The personal information leaflet must be filled-out and placed back inside the bottle. The information includes their name, address and Eircode; their PPS number, and details of any medication they are on. Their next-of-kin is also recorded, as well as details of any allergies they may have. All this information is sealed in the small plastic container and stored in the fridge, in their home. A green-cross sticker is stuck on the fridge door, and two others are attached to the inside of both their front and back doors. When the first responders arrive, they can check the bottle and be made aware of patient’s medication and details. The programme was launched in 2012 and Michael encouraged anyone with a bottle, to check the information and up-date it, as necessary.
“Access to this information so quickly, can, and has, saved lives,” Michael explains. “It is important that the information is up to date. The bottles are distributed through Community/Public Health Nurses, Pharmacies and Active Retirement groups. Anyone wishing to join the programme, can get a bottle from any member of Claremorris and District Lions Club.”
The Dance Memory Club, which is now part of Western Alzheimer’s, is another organisation supported by Claremorris and District Lions Club. It was set up by Frances Maloney, initially as the Campaign Against Dementia in Mayo (CADIM). She found research that showed that singing and dancing disappear from the brain in Alzheimer’s sufferers, later than speech. CADIM received funding from the HSE for a couple of years, but when the funding was cut, the Lions were able to offer financial support to sustain the activity.
Angela Corley is one of the newest members of Claremorris and District Lions.
“I joined earlier this year,” Angela said. “Since last year I have been attending the Dance Memory Club with Mam. One week Andy (Bibby – the club President,) was there to introduce the Lions as sponsors. I never really knew what Lions Club did until I chatted with him. So I joined at the next meeting.”
Angela said she did a lot of voluntary work in her twenties but had lapsed. “This seemed like a good opportunity to get involved,” she said. “It was something in the community again. And the time commitment isn't as huge as other voluntary groups might need, so with young children, it suited me, in that way.” James Preston joined Claremorris and District Lions Club, sixteen years ago.
“I was asked a few times to join before I eventually attended my first meeting,” he explained.
“The thing that attracted me most about the organisation was its informality and whilst we elect officers to run the club, activities are very much down to the members themselves, and each person can invest as little or a much time in any of the projects. The choice is yours entirely, and you can lead or be involved, however time permits.”
James says that although the local club is part of District 133 (Lions Ireland) and Lions International, the local organisation does things independently and differently.
“The district and international groups are there to help and support us, and are never a hindrance. And I am pleased that Claremorris and District Lions Club is able to financially support other local charities who are better trained to assess individuals’ requests and needs on the ground.” James says that the club is extremely lucky to have a great mix of people which leads to great banter and fun. This also applies, he says, when members meet people from other Lions Clubs, locally or overseas.
“The Claremorris and District Lions Club have held their Annual Tree Appeal every March, since the inauguration of the Club,” James said. “Silver Birch trees, donated by Lions Club member Seán Heneghan of Heneghan Forestry, were sold outside supermarkets in Claremorris, with proceeds going to local charities. Unfortunately, this came to stop due to the Covid shutdown but fortunately this setback created a much better opportunity.
“Because of the Covid restrictions, we couldn’t sell the trees in the normal way, so we offered them online and people responded magnificently,” James said. “We asked the two secondary schools in the town to get involved in the planting of the trees, and their very positive response was immediate. The trees that were sold online were planted by the TY Students of St Colman’s College and Mount St Michael Secondary School, in public spaces in the town. The students were terrific and were a credit to their schools, to their families and to themselves.”
Sean Heneghan, who donated the trees, said: “We were delighted to donate the silver birch trees. They are a native species to Ireland and grow very easily in Irish soil and in the Irish climate. Silver Birch is an excellent species for the environment. It can sustain over 100 types of insects and birds. It is self-propagating – when you plant Silver Birch many others will grow up around them, over time.”
Melissa Walsh joined the Lions Club a few years ago. Melissa told the that she is grateful for what she described as “the incredible opportunity to help others” in her local community.
“Lions club members change lives every day, all around the world,” Melissa said. “I have been involved in many projects through the Claremorris and District Lions Club, including our annual Christmas Food Appeal, fundraising for and many more. However, the activities that has brought me the greatest sense of satisfaction is growing awareness of our club amongst the younger generation of our community. We mainly do this through an annual poster competition in local primary schools, themed “A Good Deed”. Another project I am excited about, is the collection of old spectacles glasses in our community, which we ship to the third-world countries, to give the gift of sight.
“Through the Lions Club, I have the opportunity to make a difference in the Claremorris area and throughout the world, while surrounding myself with like-minded individuals and having fun.”
Tickets for Saturday night’s comedy play, , can be purchased form Lions club members, or directly from Claremorris Town Hall Theatre by ringing the box office on 094-93-10999 or online at www.townhall.ie Doors open at 7pm and the play commences at 8pm.
