Jan. 2, 2007 - Here we go! The start of a New Year, eyes bleary from bowl TV, and our first meeting for the calendar year. We meet as usual at the good ‘ol Edgewater, and our speaker will be Officer Mary Anne Thurber, Crime Prevention Officer of the Madison Police Dept., who will be talking about Identity Theft, and how to prevent it, and what to do if it happens. Not a fun subject, particularly, but in this day and age it is something we all should know about. JODI BURMESTER is the Program Host.

TaleTwister's Jackpot
$904

Our last meeting began with the usual TailTwister raffle drawing. CRAIG BUTLER had the lucky ticket, but not the hot hand, because he drew the club seven, and you don’t win much with that card. The TT’s pot is now up to $904, so someone’s going to win serious money one of these days. IF there really is a joker in the deck and not just one holding it. JIM KEMMETER still doesn’t have proof one way or the other. LINDA BERGREN led the song, and, showing his serious side, ROSS ROYSTER gave the invocation.

Several guests were introduced: Jason Marty of Insurance and Investment Professionals, Steve Spielbauer of Rapid Refill Ink, and Sandy Sobek Leslie of the Wisconsin Lions Eye Bank, all by JODI BURMESTER; and Karen Al-Ashkar, Director of Student Services for the UW College of Engineering, by husband/Club Pres. SAL.

Pres. SAL announced that there would be no Board of Directors meeting in December. Next one will be Jan. 16, 2007. At the last one, the Board approved a new Investment Policy for Club funds, the text of which will be published on our website, and approved donations to the District Hearing project, District Diabetes project, and the McFarland Choir. The choir donation was at the direction of the McFarland Brass Quintet who played for us a couple weeks ago and redirected their donation to the Choir.

Cottage Grove Lions have a fundraising breakfast scheduled for Jan. 27, 7 to 11 AM, at Flynn Hall, 115 Reynolds St. Ham, sausage, biscuits & gravy, toast, scrambled eggs, orange juice, milk and coffee. $5 per person. Give your cook a day off, and go visit another Club’s fundraiser. Take your appetite along.

LINDA BERGREN still has some items left from the Holiday Snack Sale. Fruit cake, in particular. One of the world’s finest - give as gifts, sell to friends, eat for lunch. Too good to be a doorstop. Also some nuts left, and maybe even some malted milk balls. See or call LINDA.

STEVE BRIGGS, Community Service chairman, says we have an opportunity to serve. During the day on Wed. Jan. 10, Oakwood Village West needs help taking down and storing the Christmas decorations from several of their buildings. Call STEVE to volunteer.

Pres. SAL began a presentation of the “Lion of the Week” award, and as he went along your editor finally figured out that he was the Lion SAL was describing. The award is much appreciated, particularly since in 47 years of membership, I’d never received it before. Thanks, SAL.

Two new volunteers came to relieve us at the kettle - Chloe and Alec Schutz ably filled in for dad JIM and SAL, who were overcommitted. Chloe was highly qualified - she’s a percussion major at Case Western, and Alec is a junior at West High. Great to have that kind of help!!

District Governor ROB SHERMAN was introduced by Region Chairperson JODI. As noted, your editor has heard over 40 of these District Governor programs, and this was one of the very best. If you listened at all, you had to be proud of the Lion service that he described. His slogan “If You Build It, They Will Come,“ referred to our Lions Club and the whole organization. The International President’s theme this year is simply our motto “We Serve” and he mentioned some of the things Lions have done — aid in Indonesia after the tsunami, aid to the Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina, and $16,000 in grants from LCIF to the Stoughton area after the tornado. From halfway ‘round the world to our own back yard, we Lions reach out to help those who need it. As he said, “Lions is YOU!” He reminded us why we are Lions, noting the Lions Pride campaign to insure the future operation of Lions Camp, which currently costs $670 per camper week. And he challenged us to recharge our passion for service by bringing in new members for our Club to continue that service. He gave some examples from his own service — the thought as he was carrying donated tissue for the eye bank that “because of what I do tonight, somebody will see tomorrow” and the story of a neighbor’s child, whose previously undetected vision problems were caught in a Lion screening, and who is receiving the needed treatment as a result.