South West Post - October 2023

DG’s Message

Cabinet dates

Weymouth & Portland Lions

‘Sendinglovetoukraine’

Foreign Coins

Cheddar Vale Lions

Paignton Lions

Blackmore Vale Lions

Hearing Aid Batteries

Budleigh Salterton Lions

City of Wells Lions

Plymouth Lions

Truro Lions

Environmental Photo Competition

Special Photo Competition

105SW Environmental Project Competition

Service Reporting

Environmental Action

Message from the editor

District 105SW

OCTOBER 2023 NEWSLETTER

District Governor - Lion James Mathers

Once again it has been a busy month with club visits, attending charter dinners, Zoom meetings and acts of service with my home Club, St Austell.

September began with two evenings engaged as a marshal on behalf of St Austell Players, who were conducting a play about Charles Rashleigh the creator of Charlestown, a notable Cornish harbour settlement. This was followed by Sunday afternoon as a marshal on behalf of Little Harbour, Childrens Hospice South West, which was holding its first family day in three years because of Covid.

The following week was an opportunity to visit Axminster Lions, our smallest club in terms of membership. Whilst short in numbers, they are strong in determination to keep their

The International Association of Lions Clubs

Axminster Lions

Holsworthy Lions

club alive, and they are supported by PDG Jim P-H and his wife Rosemary. My visit also coincided with that of Zone Chair Richard Allen who is galvanising the clubs in Zone I to work together. Naturally, the Club is urgently seeking new members and the support it receives from local Lions clubs is very valuable. Next it was off to Holsworthy, a town, I am sad to say, I had only previously passed road signs for on many occasions when using the A30, but never venturing to explore. My mistake. I was delighted to meet the Lions of Holsworthy, who are held in high regard by their community for the work that they do. At the meeting they expressed great interest in entering “The Big Snail Race” organised by the Town Council, where the objective is to sell snails for as much as you can get, but at a minimum of £30 each. Apparently, it intended to hold 10 snail races. I initially thought it would be a long night, until I was told that they weren’t real snails.

I visited Blackmore Vale Lions the following Monday, where it was clear that they had a very busy weekend engaged in the Sturminster Newton Cheese Festival, a substantial local event where they act as marshals and station their gazebo. The Club supports the local community, having recently approved giving £800 to the local scout group towards an Iceland expedition and £1,500 to Stalbridge Primary School for the purchase of percussion instruments. In addition, they recently received a plaque and letter of commendation for their contributions to LCIF.

Our next stop was to visit Honiton Lions and, as you can see from the photograph, all their regalia is on display in their meeting room and is quite impressive. Although a small club in terms of membership, it nevertheless makes a sizeable impression on the local community and holds an annual classic car show, which provides much needed charitable funds and a Grand Charity Draw where the 2nd prize is a £75 voucher provided by a local funeral director!

Lion James Mathers

Blackmore Vale Lions Honiton Lions

Then it was on to visit Sidmouth Lions Club. Not having been there before, I was surprised just how busy it was and it is clearly a popular resort. It is a busy club, and one of their main fundraising events is the Duck Derby, where this year’s beneficiary was a guide dogs’ charity. They work closely with Sidmouth College and the local Scouts group.

It was a pleasure visiting all these clubs, which do tremendous work, and this is the most satisfying aspect of being District Governor. The week ended with my first Charter Dinner as DG held at Budleigh Salterton, where I was asked by their President, Richard Allen, to present two MJF awards: one to their surviving Charter member, Lion Peter Fletcher and the other to Lion Richard Tuckett. However, what Richard Allen did not know was that his club asked me to present him with an MJF award and it was obvious that it came as a complete surprise. I have to say that it was richly deserved for all the work he has done with that club.

The month isn’t over at the time of writing this piece. Lion Gail and I are helping at Newquay Towan Blystra Beer Festival on Friday 22nd, attending Tiverton Lions 50th Charter on Saturday 23rd and judging at Callington’s Fayre on Saturday 30th September. No one ever suggested that being DG was a relaxing occupation, but it is rewarding in terms of fellowship.

Lion James Mathers

Sidmouth Lions

Update on Mayors Charity collection at Weymouth Fireworks night

Over the years Weymouth & Portland Lions Club have managed the Christmas Charity Appeal account on behalf of the town Mayor. Each year the sitting Mayor makes an appeal in November and the funds are then distributed to local organisations and groups during December. This year Weymouth & Portland Lions decided to get a head start by organising two bucket collections at the very popular Monday Night Fireworks displays in August. The club decided to collect on the last two Monday night displays. The first collection raised £196.26 and the second raised £252.34 making £448.60 in total.

On Saturday (9th September) Lion President Ryan Hope and his family volunteered at the Weldmar Hospicecare summer fete on a very busy bottle tombola stall.

The fete was a great success, raising an awesome £22,000, with every penny going towards specialist end-of-life care for local adults with a life-limiting illness, and support for their loved ones.

Well done Weldmar Hospicecare Supporters and Fundraisers.

The next trip to Poland with aid for Ukraine will leave Cornwall on the 25th October 2023. To donate please follow the link to the sendinglovetoukraine website.

https://sendinglovetoukraine.org

Lion Kevin Brookes

Weymouth Town Mayor, Cllr Kate Wheller with Lewie Hope and Club President Ryan Hope

Club President Ryan Hope with his son Lewie

Lion Lesley Chudley

An awesome event in Cheddar Gorge on August Bank Holiday Monday

Cheddar Vale Lions Club held its annual Duck Races on August Bank Holiday Monday, 28th August 2023. After great care in planning how we sold the Duck Race tickets with an early selling point on our website, we had incredible support from our community and visitors. All our regular visitors and more came out for the spectacle, watching 1,000 ducks come down the river; the cheers were fantastic; the children loved it, as always.

As per previous years, a major part of the funds raised will be donated to Children’s Hospice SW and the remainder towards our work in the community. We have yet to tally up the money raised but, having sold out the first race (1,000 tickets) and then most of the second race, we know it will be a good amount.

Now all the old ducks have been retired, the ducks were in good condition for the races, thanks to Hanson’s helping us to purchase brand new ones last year!

The event is always popular, and the crowd joined in the fun. We thank everyone for the fantastic support over the years and helping us to keep the Children’s Hospice going with the amazing work they do.

Lion Sylvia Cook

Lion Martin Rogers

Paignton Lions Club has just donated £250 for JJ’s and Jamie’s mission to raise funds for Torbay Hospital Breast Care Unit.

Jamie (on left) has cycled from Land’s End to John O’Groats, and JJ (on the right) is static cycling for 1,000 miles.

They are both practice pharmacists at Compass House Medical Centres. We are pleased to support this fundraising appeal.

Also in the photo is Lion Martin Rogers of Paignton Lions Club.

Please find a presentation that we did for Pads and Paws Company, which sponsored our Fun Day Dog show on 20th August at Youngs Park Goodrington, Paignton.

Lion Alan Tozer seen presenting a Thank you Certificate to Steve Herbert from – Pads and Paws.

Paignton Lions Club presented a cheque for £1,000 to Nightstop, which is based in the YMCA in Paignton, tackling youth homelessness in Torbay. Pictured was Lion Martin Rogers (Paignton Lions Club), Roxie Ralph, Coordinator for Nightstop, and Dee Passenger who is the Nursery Manager at the YMCA.

Lions are frequently asked what we are raising money for. One of the key objectives of Lions Club International is Empowering the Next Generation: helping youngsters develop social, entrepreneurial and leadership skills as well as helping improve their health and welfare. This goes on day in, day out on a worldwide basis. The last few weeks have been a classic example of this for Blackmore Vale Lions Club (BVLC).

BVLC holds many fundraising events: the Blackmore Vale Half Marathon, Bingo, Raffle Easter Eggs, bucket collections at shops and venues, for example. We receive requests to support young people’s activities and, if the funds are available, make grants to youngsters in the Blackmore Vale, nationally and internationally. Just occasionally we are privileged to see the end results of these activities.

We were requested to support two Scouts, Caitlin Clark and Tristram Stobbs, from 2nd Templecombe Scout Group, to help finance gaining their Explorers’ Belt qualification by planning and partaking in an adventurous activities trip to Iceland to:

“Explore the Land of Fire and Ice”, including an area where tectonic plates are constantly grinding against each other, hence volcanoes, thermal springs geysers and earthquakes. This they undertook on 27 Jun for 10 days. On Tuesday 5th September some BVLC members went to hear a presentation from our two Scouts and other members of the expedition

Lion Tim Otter

Lions Peter Oswick & David Birt collecting the money outside Waitrose in Sherborne

Lions Bill Brown & Ian Simpson donating the money to Caitlin Clark & Tristram Stobbs

about their adventure.

What a time they had enjoyed. Met and hosted by hospitable and helpful fellow Scouts and Icelanders, they walked, camped and explored wild and different places, heard about elves’ playgrounds, which could not be disturbed so some buildings were not symmetrical, ate different foods (very different!), gained an understanding of Norsk and Icelandic folklore and discovered there were no maps in Iceland except a basic road map. There is only one road anyway, so rather than glancing at the map to know how much further you must walk, you have to grin and bear it, follow the signs and eventually arrive and count the blisters. School playgrounds and play areas are just piles of rocks, so children develop agility, confidence, and selfreliance: big discoveries and character developing all at the same time.

Perhaps the other big discoveries were cultural that paganism and Christianity have happily developed and coexist alongside each other, and technical that Icelandic vehicles were two extremes, electrical or huge 4x4 SUVs with enormous wheels. There is a real dearth of public transport and the distances between national parks and walking areas are so great that you depend on people giving you lifts or cadging a ride on tourist buses. That develops planning and entrepreneurial skills!

Giving a presentation at their age to a group of 30 or so friends, parents, colleagues, and

strangers is no easy task. The team did it in spades and, if you are looking for an interesting diversion from the usual in terms of talks, this would be an interesting alternative with a suitable contribution to future adventures.

Other things are happening too. By the time this goes to press, we will have made a major effort to support the Sturminster Newton Cheese Festival. Details will appear in the next edition.

Lion Tim Otter

Contact the Scouts through brian.gay@btinternet.com or by contacting

Presentation by Caitlin and Tristram, Ruby Clayton Webber and Cora Edwards as to how the money was spent

THERE’S SILVER IN THEM THEIR BATTERIES

Button batteries contain a small amount of silver.

A member of Southend Lions has the ability to extract this and dispose of the rest, environmentally safely.

One kilogram of batteries will yield £50 of silver at today’s prices. Please collect these from care homes, medical outlets, chemists, hearing aid providers or anywhere that will save them for you, and bring them to zone meetings, cabinet, or post them to Lesley Chudley.

All monies generated will go into the MD Vision Screening Programme.

SO we are helping the environment and vision in one go!

WIN! WIN!

£500 Donation to Budleigh Information Centre

Budleigh Salterton Lions Club presented a cheque for £500 to a group of representatives from the Budleigh Information Centre. The money had been raised at a Budleigh Lions Club monthly Bingo Evening in the Public Hall.

Gina Woodcraft, on behalf of the Budleigh Information Centre, said, "We are incredibly grateful to the Budleigh Lions for their generous financial donation to us. We would also like to thank them for all the work that they do for the town. They understand that as a guidance, support and facilitation centre for residents and visitors, we receive no funding for this service and therefore must generate funds each year to survive.

“Our footfall for this year is over 9,000 people. We rely on over 30 volunteers to advise on a wide range of issues such as walking on the South West Coast Path, where to stay, what to do, where to eat and shop, as well as the new intertidal restoration project (LORP) on the Otter estuary. People can buy maps, books and local memorabilia from us too.

“We also provide a calm and welcoming space to support residents and assist with a wide range of

requests including lost property, community transport, beach hut rental and all the local events and activities. Our much loved community calendar for 2024, full of essential information as well as lovely photos, is now available. All proceeds will support the centre."

Rafts line up for the 2023 Wells Moat Boat Race

City of Wells had a great Bank Holiday Monday as teams from various local groups joined us on the Bishop’s Palace Moat for the annual event. Even Bishop Michael was seen in one race!

This is a great event, but one that is challenging for such a small club as ours to put on, so we are very grateful for all the help we receive from other community groups.

We are now putting things in place for our Tree of Light at the Bishop’s Palace Gardens in December.

Lion Richard Allen

Lion Mary Ellis

Award to Lion Jill Owen, Our Past President

At the recent August Business Meeting of the Lions Club of Plymouth, the members were pleased to welcome the attendance of the Lions Clubs District 105 SW Governor Lion James Mathers and his wife, Lion Gail Mathers. During his visit, he presented our Immediate Past President, Lion Jill Owen with an award to commemorate her achievements over the past 12 months.

District Governor Lion James congratulated Jill on being the first ever lady to hold the post of President of the Lions Club of Plymouth during the 59th year of the club’s history. He continued to highlight some of the main areas which have benefited from Jill’s concerted efforts. During her tenure, the club has contributed more than £8,000.00 to mainly local charities and deserving causes throughout the community, but most importantly provided a service to the people of Plymouth, with an emphasis especially on the homeless, either living on the streets or in short-term hostel accommodation.

Devonport Park Fair Update

The Lions Club of Plymouth were at Devonport Park Fair on Sunday 11th Sept with a stall trying to raise funds for local community charities and deserving cases by selling ‘Soft Toys’ and encouraging people to enter, have a throw in ‘Tin-Can Alley’, plus some simple table top games such as opening an envelope from a selection with some containing £5.00 or £10.00. Despite the small number of attendees this year, the total monies raised amounted to £185.46.

Should you be interested in joining the Lions Club of Plymouth in raising funds for Local Community Charities or performing a service to help feed the homeless or generally assisting local people in need of your help, then please contact:-

Club Secretary Lion Ian Hill by email ianhill4@msm.com or Membership Secretary Lion Phil Barnicoat barnicoatjean@gmail.com

Lion Roy Russell

Immediate Past President Lion Jill Owen with District Governor Lion James Mathers

Truro Lions Crystal Golf Competition 2023

On Friday 8th September the Lions Club of Truro held its annual Crystal Golf Event at Truro Golf Club on what proved to be a very hot and humid day. Forty-nine teams entered the competition, a fantastic turnout given the continuing difficult conditions the country is experiencing at this time. A big thanks to them all for taking part. The Golf Club made sure the course was in excellent condition and our thanks to them for that - plus the excellent evening meal served to the competitors. We were delighted that Truro Golf Club Captain Peter Brooks invited us back for next year.

During the evening, an auction took place, followed by a raffle, both being extremely well supported and raising a significant amount of money for this year’s main cause - the Motor Neurone Disease Association (Cornwall Branch) and other local good causes including Penhaligon's Friends.

The event raised a fantastic amount. First indications show a figure close to £8,000. Huge thanks to all our competitors and to everyone who participated in the auction and the raffle!

Bob Mosley did a star job managing the auction. Thank you, Bob.

Many thanks to our main sponsor, James Miller & Associates, and to all our other sponsors who made valuable contributions to make the day a success, including the ongoing support from Paul Macintosh and new sponsors this yearSkinners/Goodh Brewery, Handelsbanken and Tregunna Funeral Directors.

Finally, a big thank you for all the hard work put in by the organising committee for planning the event, plus very significant help from fellow Lions and partners before, during and after the event, including those who cooked and served refreshments to the players halfway round the course.

At the end of the evening Lion President Richard Moore presented the prizes.

Lion Geoff Kaye

Prize table

Competition winners were as follows:

Nearest to the Pin (sponsored by BeGorgeous Hair): Richard Daniel

Ladies Longest Drive (sponsored by Cathedral Chiropractic): Liz Ashton

Men’s Longest Drive (sponsored by 3MS Maintenance): Jared Mortimore

Putting Competition (sponsored by Handelsbanken): John Elder

Ladies Crystal Winning Team (sponsored by MOR Interiors): CAW (Cornwall) Ltd. -89 points.

Winners of the Crystal Trophy - sponsored by James Miller and Associates were:

1st place: Dave Cilla and St A members - 93 pts

2nd place: Golf Fathers - 92 pts

3rd place: Motown Pirates -89 pts. (back nine 47)

4th place: Team Dave Thomas - 89 pts (back nine 46)

5th place: PMH Builders – 89 pts. (back nine 45)

Hole in One - sponsored by Handelsbanken: John Grant of the Cormac Finest Team (only the second hole in one in 32 years).

Lion Geoff Kaye

Annual Bank Holiday Fayre

The Budleigh Lions Club held its annual Bank Holiday Monday Fayre on Budleigh seafront on Monday 28th August. Fortunately the sun shone and there were lots of local residents and visitors out and about enjoying the beach.

Over 30 local charities and other organisations had stalls, including the RNLI, Seachange, Fairlynch Museum, Budleigh Literary Festival, Hospiscare, the Community Workshop, Team Rollocks with their Atlantic rowing boat and Budleigh in Bloom. The Lions had their own stall selling puzzles, raffle tickets and virtual balloon race hunt pins and were raising money to buy a mobile aed defibrillator for use at events in and around the town.

Lion Richard Allen

Richard together with Emma and Sam from “Seachange” RNLI

Budleigh Lions Information stand

friends and supporters, Budleigh Salterton Lion Club held their second 10K Trail Run on Woodbury Common.

The results were impressive. In the women's category, Alice Kelly secured the first-place spot with an impressive time of 46 minutes and 49 seconds. The men's category was equally thrilling, with Sam Kelly securing first place with an impressive time of 38

Budleigh Salterton Lions Club President, Richard Allen said "We are thrilled with the incredible turnout and support we have received for our second 10K trail run. It really is very much appreciated; - BS Lions we know we couldn't do what we do without the support of our local community."

Richard added " On behalf of all the Budleigh Salterton Lions I would like to thank everyone who participated, volunteered, sponsored, and supported this event. Your collective effort has made this trail run an unforgettable experience for the Lions and hopefully for everyone who

including Avocet Wealth Management, Ocean Physio Woodbury, Otterton Mill, Bradleys Budleigh Salterton, Bright Blue C and GD Construction.

A total of 22 volunteer marshals were stationed along the route, and a team of volunteers manned the check -in, first-aid stations, and refreshment points, ensuring the safety and comfort of our runners. Their hard work and commitment were instrumental in making this event a resounding success.

They’re Off! - The Race Starts

Richard Allen with The Budleigh Runners

Prize winners with sponsors Bradleys and Ocean Physio

Budleigh Lions Table

Lion Lesley Chudley

Lion Lesley Chudley

Lion Alan Sanderson SW105 Environmental Co-ordinator

One of the five global cause areas that unite our organisation is the environment. The work that is being done by Lions to preserve our planet in recognition that the health of local communities and environments affects us all is exemplary.

However, we are all beginning a journey that can be informed by new initiatives that further enable us to do all in our power, both individually and collectively, to protect our natural and built environment.

Thus, as the District’s Environmental Co-ordinator, I have sent a short questionnaire to all club presidents to establish their club’s current service activity and plans in relation to environmental issues. Replies will then be collated into a report to be presented at the November Cabinet Meeting. Subsequently, it is envisaged that the newly available information will result in clubs being offered new plans of action, which they may adopt to enhance their environmental interventions.

I would also like to draw your attention to Veronica Whittle’s Environmental Project –details were published in the September Edition of the South West Post – that offers clubs an opportunity to show what has already been achieved. Additionally, there is an Environmental Photo Competition that provides a fun way of showing what has been done.

I hope you will all become involved.

Lion Alan Sanderson

Lady Veteran gets her mobility back

Weymouth & Portland Lions Club was contacted recently by Andy Price from The Veteran’s Hub in Weymouth to request help. He knew of a lady veteran who had attended the Veterans Hub regularly but was having difficulty with her mobility following a serious accident. Could we help with a donation towards the cost of a mobility scooter for her? After a discussion at our June Business meeting the club agreed to part fund a mobility scooter for her. The rest of the funding was made up of a personal contribution and a contribution in kind from Active Mobility in Weymouth.

Weymouth & Portland Lions Club would like to thank Phill Bartlett from Active Mobility for being able to supply this scooter.

Lion Kevin Brookes

Lion Kevin Brookes

Lions Roger Sutherland, Dave Woolford and Trevor Stratton with Christine and her scooter at Active Mobility