In 1917 Melvin Jones founded Lions Clubs International. Mr. Jones personal perception was "You can't get very far until you start doing something for somebody else." The Lions are the world's largest and most active service club organization in the world with 1.3 million members in over 202 countries.
The motto of the Lions Club is "We Serve" and to the individual member it is not only a motto, but a definition and philosophy.
International Headquarters is located in Oak Brook, Illinois. The association is governed by an International Board of Directors who are elected by Lions worldwide at their annual convention.
The Lions emblem is purple and gold with two Lions, one facing inward to the present and one facing outward to the future. The purple represents loyalty and integrity; the gold stands for sincerity, liberality, purity, and generosity.
For more than 85 years the Lions have been recognized throughout the world for their service to the blind and visually impaired. Back in 1925, when Helen Keller challenged the Lions to become "Knights of the Blind against darkness," she could not have possibly imagined the impact of Lions commitment to blindness prevention. Lions have established the majority of eye banks worldwide, funded ground-breaking research on leading causes of blindness, organized eyeglass recycling efforts and helped hundreds of thousands of visually impaired people develop the skills to live productive lives.
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"I am only one, I cannot do
everything. But I will not refuse to
do the something that I can do."
...Helen Keller
*Lions Club International
