MOUNT VERNON – The Mount Vernon Lions Club has a long history in the community, it was founded in 1970. In its 52 years of existence, it has given back to the community using the motto “We serve” as its guide.
That motto is again encapsulated in the Lions Club’s latest project — donating clothes to Mount Vernon Elementary Schools.
It’s a story Lions Club Secretary Treasurer Joe Gutridge has heard too many times at his local church, he said.
“Children come to school and they may come with no socks on, no underwear, no shoes and no coats,” Gutridge said. “Kids walking in three feet of snow with no socks on or a coat. It’s sad.”
The club collected approximately $1,000 worth of donated clothes. One of the most profitable fundraising drives was the poinsettia flower sale.
The extra pairs of clothing, especially pants, are there in case there’s an accident like spilled milk, East Vine Secretary Ginny Shively said.
“This is the first time we’ve received something from the Lions Club,” Shively said. “Donations are important during the colder months.”
Dan Emmett Elementary School also received boots, coats, underwear and sweatpants,
Dan Emmett Elementary Principal Margy Arck said, “It’s great thing to have for Dan Emmett Elementary kids.”
Help from the Lions Club is consistent, Arck said, and the club reaches out and asks if anything is needed.
“It’s really nice they take care of us,” the Dan Emmett principal noted.
For future projects, Gutridge hopes to get a 5K race for pediatric cancer off the ground. But in order to do larger projects, the club needs more members, particularly the younger generation.
Currently, the club has 20 members. But nearly all of them are of the retirement age group. There is a dire need for younger people to become involved to carry on the mission of the Lions Club, Gutridge said.
