Page 10 - Wheel May 2019

THE HEART OF A LION: WAL LIONS CLUB

By Rashawnda Atkinson

Inova was pleased, and except for some bizarre reasons
for turning down donors—one day in England during the
Mad Cow epidemic, a tiny tattoo on a potential donor's
neck applied in November 2018—it was a…real suc-
cess.” Bob adds.

Clothing Drive
To help those in need, the WAL Lions Club partners with
local organizations to give clothing that will go to people
who cannot afford them. On April 13, the Lions Club col-
lected about 3,000 pounds of donated clothes from the
Watergate at Landmark community. These items went to
Lions Club members Luvan Tran Van Don and Tom Boyle are the Military Order of the Purple Heart, and the members
ready to help the Inova Bloodmobile as they collect much need- were extremely grateful for the community’s support.
ed blood from donors.
“On average we get about 75 large bags full per building.
Who are those people with the blue and yellow vests, It’s a big event every year,” Tom Boyle, a long-time
hats, and shirts on at nearly every major event at Wa- WAL resident and Lions Club member states.
tergate at Landmark?
If you missed this spring’s collection, don’t worry. There
They are the Watergate Lions Club, a local affiliate of the will be another one in the fall so stay tuned to the events
Lions Club International Foundation (LCIF). With over section of the Wheel and the Weekly Flyers for the next
1.4 million members worldwide, this service organiza- collection date!
tion’s members dedicate themselves to empowering the
communities they serve, help people in need, promote Fighting Blindness
international understanding and encourage peace per the This month, the WAL Lions Club has formed a team to
Lions Club International website. Here’s a bit of infor- participate in VisionWalk, a fundraising event hosted by
mation about the group and ways they’ve helped the com- the Foundation Fighting Blindness. It’s no surprise the
munity as well as opportunities to join them in the future. WAL Lions Club is active in this event, as it is a part of
the identity of what it means to be a Lions Club member.
Blood Drive The LCIF took this cause as a part of its purpose nearly a
Early this spring, the WAL Lions partnered with Inova century ago in 1925 at their annual Convention in Cedar
Health System to host its annual Blood Drive. This event Point, OH. Helen Keller delivered a compelling speech to
was well attended according to fellow Lions Club mem- the Lions Club Members of her day to support those with
ber and WAL Board of Directors member Bob Lee. visual impairments. The Lions Club here at Watergate
carry this commitment on to this day through participat-
“We had an overflow group, a lot of walk-ins… ing in VisionWalk, the Foundation for Blindness fund-
Compared to 31 last year, we had 37 success- raising event.
ful blood donations and probably over 50 people who
showed up,” he said. At the end of March, the WAL Lions Club hosted the
Community Happy Hour and raised $250 to donate for
People didn’t mind the delays for the most part, which is the event this month.
good because the drive ran over by about 45 minutes due
to the number of people willing to give blood. Two em- “We recruited a number of walkers for our team.,” Lee
ployees, Patrol Services Lieutenant Cheryl Creed and said.
Shop Manager Bryan Fingers, were among those who
braved the long lines to donate blood. And that is good news for those who have visual impair-
ments. Even if you’re not a member of the Lions Club
“As it was, the drive ran over by about 45 minutes. But here at WAL, you can still sign up for the 5K walk start-

Page 10 Wheel May 2019