OK, the silver bells have rung, the carols have been sung, the candles have burned for eight days, the wassail bowl has been shared and the old guy with the beard, the robe and the hourglass (no, not your Editor) is packing up to leave. We are half way through our Lion year, and the new calendar year starts for us on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2009 with our regular meeting at the Edgewater. STEVE BRIGGS is the Program Host, and he will introduce speaker Stuart Levitan, who has been in local government, on the radio, and written a book about Madison in the 1920s. He’s going to tell us some of what’s in the book, and how it came to be in the book, and it’s bound to be interesting. We did have streetcars once already. And streets "paved" with wooden blocks. Copies of the book will be available for purchase if your interest is sufficiently piqued.

There’s still time to sign up for the District 27 Mid-Winter Conference. A one-day session in Stevens Point on Saturday, Jan. 24, 2009. $20 gets you in and includes lunch. Topics to be covered include Lion information, updates on discoveries and treatments for eye problems and diabetes, and information on how Lions can help with the societal plague of alcohol and drug abuse. Probably a motivational speaker in there, too. See Sec. JOHN or Pres. JODI if you don’t have a Registration Form. Other great opportunities for leadership training are coming up — the Leadership Seminar on Feb. 28 - Mar. 1; and Club Officer Training on April 27. You can learn a lot of very useful stuff at these sessions.

COMMITTEES MEET!! Tuesday, Jan. 6 is a busy day. Prior to our regular meeting, the Rose Day Committee, JERRY HODDINOTT and friends, will meet in the Edgewater Bar. Originally scheduled for 11:00 AM, the time might have slipped to 11:20 or so, but check with JERRY. Or just be early and relax and enjoy the view. The Community Service Committee, PID PHIL INGWELL, Chairman, will meet immediately following our regular meeting. Lions not signed up but willing to help out on either committee, or both, are not only welcome but encouraged to come.

Pres. JODI was in charge at our last business meeting, LINDA BERGREN lead the song, and SCOTT GROVER read the Christmas story according to Luke, mostly with King James verbiage, as the invocation. GWEN MUELLER came with DALE as our only guest. We covered a lot of Lion business, as follows:

BOB BOHN has some devoted invocators, but he’d like a few more Lions to share the experience. Call or talk to BOB to participate. It’s another chance to stand before a group and speak, and besides, like everyone else these days, your Club needs all the prayers it can get.

IT WORKED! We got over 250 pairs of glasses in our first-ever Sight Night collection. This is something we can build on, and make our community more aware of our presence. Collection boxes are available, if you know some place where there’s public traffic that you can put one. Just be sure that you keep going back to empty it. See JODI or Sec. JOHN to find out where to get a box.

SPORTS NUTS arise. The District Bowling Tournament (Jan. 24-25 in Beloit) and the District Curling Bonspiel (on Jan. 9- 11, sponsored by the Cottage Grove Lions and held at the Madison Curling Club which is located in McFarland — got that?) are coming up. See LINDA BERGREN to participate. Note — you don’t need to be an expert at either sport to participate and have some fun with a bunch of Lions.

OTHER NUTS are still available from our Holiday Treat Sale. LINDA BERGREN has them — help her out, and help raise some money for the Club, by taking some of the surplus off her hands.

The familiar tandem of DON NEVIASER and JERRY MILLER gave us the details on our new event — the Texas Hold 'Em Poker Tournament, which will be at J.T. Whitney’s on Feb. 22. It’s all ready to go, with J.T. Whitney’s providing the space and the equipment, and we are looking for sponsors, corporate or otherwise, to donate prizes. Dust off your rabbit’s foot.

JIM SCHUTZ said there was a children’s vision screening in process at the community center on Allied Drive. This is one Lion project that provides a direct benefit to those who participate, and it is a chance for each of us to do some first-person, hands-on service. We need more certified screeners (you have to be recertified every two years) and there is a training/certification session coming up in March. More on that one later, but see JIM to participate in this wonderful project.