Getting Excited About This New Format
According to the news, the election is finally over and a COVID vaccine is on the way. Hip, hip, hooray! When available, although this may be several months yet, I encourage all Lions to get vaccinated to do their part in slowing the pandemic and protecting themselves. I do not expect that we will go back to the old normal – ever. But the new normal will allow for more personal interaction than we currently enjoy. Who knows, I may even be able to get out and start visiting clubs once winter starts to let up. By the way, even the forecast for winter is for more bad weather than usual. 2020 just keeps on giving, now doesn’t it?
Planning is well underway for a virtual District 36G Convention. It will be entirely online, including registration (including raffle tickets), the convention itself, voting, exhibits, and more. I am getting excited about this new format and I firmly believe we will present to you an interesting, engaging, and even fun convention. We have a first-rate roster of presenters and programs including International Director Larry Edwards, from Pennsylvania, and local and regional figures of interest. Some of the topics will include disaster relief and recovery, health issues like diabetes and Parkinson’s, grant writing and 501(c)(3) foundations, the OLSHF and much more.
For some Lions, an online convention may not be the best news, but consider this. You will not have to drive for miles and hours, get a hotel room and sleep in a strange bed, and eat expensive restaurant food. Instead for a mere $25.00 (including raffle tickets) you can enjoy interesting, engaging and even fun presentations from the comfort of your own home. Now is that not that worth giving online meetings a try? It is easy to do and you will not regret missing the convention. There will be more convention news in this January issue and in the February issue of the Oregon Lion.
For the convention we are working to build awareness of each club in the district. Each club president has been asked to personally or with a team from their club to develop a short 3-5 minute presentation about themselves, their club, what their club has accomplished this past year, and conclude with a pledge to the OLSHF in lieu of the traditional Parade of Checks. This must ultimately be a visual presentation, but it can be video, PowerPoint, a slideshow, or some other means, but does need to have sound such as someone explaining what is being shown on the screen and making the actual OLSHF pledge. Of course, the club should really follow up their pledge with a check to the Foundation! Doug Thompson will thank you for doing so. Doug Thompson and the Foundation are offering a presentation on how to do this. I’ll let you know when it is available to watch.
I hope that Lions everywhere enjoyed their Holidays and the people we serve. May all your wishes come true and the New Year bring you peace, health, and happiness to you and yours.