Large Turnout Helps Richmond Lions Celebrate 60th Anniversary
There were multiple generations on hand at the Richmond Agricultural Society dining hall at the fairgrounds Sat., June 8 as the Richmond Lions Club celebrated its 60th anniversary.
The club was formed in 1964 to serve Richmond and the surrounding area.
“I did a little homework,” said District A-4 Governor Elect Roxanne Backes. “In 1964, Lester B. Pearson was the Prime Minister. The average Canadian income was $1,672. The average cost of a new home was just over $15,000. Going to the movies cost $1.25. The Beatles came to Toronto. The Toronto Maple Leafs actually won the Stanley Cup. Canada got a new flag, and Richmond got a Lions Club.
“Sixty years have passed, and things have changed. Prices have changed, and who’s winning the Stanley Cup has changed too.
“However, what hasn’t changed is the dedication of the members of this community who call themselves Lions. They spend countless hours helping citizens and making this community one where everyone wants to live, learn and play.”
Bruce Martin of the Richmond Lions gave a history of the club, from its roots as a new club sponsored by the West Ottawa Lions Club.
Dr. Ken Hartin, a Richmond area native and respected veterinarian, became the charter president.
“Dr. Hartin proved to be a good choice as the Club’s charter president, not only because he epitomized the Lions philosophy of caring and sharing in the community, but also because he had earlier in his life experienced the work of Lionism and, in fact, owed his career as a veterinarian to the support and help of Lions,” said Martin.
Following the Second World War, Dr. Hartin wanted to go to veterinary college in Guelph but he had been turned down. It was through the efforts of Lions Club members from Ottawa that he was later admitted to the program. Lions involvement in his veterinarian education also took the form of a scholarship, assistance that Dr. Hartin readily admits was key in his being able to attend veterinary college.
The 37 charter members of the Richmond & District Lions Club were Bob Adams, Jack Chanonhouse, Joe Dallaire, Justin Dervin, Jack Duffy, George Eadie, Bill Evans, Rev. T. Farrell, Edgar Gamgle, Ken Hartin, Wally Johnston, Arnold Kittle, Tony Koritsaris, Maurice Lavoie, Rev. W. H. LeGrow, Archie MacDougall, Lorne McClintock, Vince McDonald, Ken Marshall, R.H. Moore, Ken Moore, Rev. A. J. Poole, Walter Reid, Everett Rea, Bill Salter, Norm Seabrooke, Bill Smith, Bert Spratt, Aubrey Taylor, Ben Zegger, Al Dawson, Mancel Daly, Emmerson Hodgins, Jerry Hughes, Ernie Saumur, Duncan St. John and Harold Whaley.
The Richmond & District Lions Club became involved with the annual Lions Christmas Cheer Broadcast on radio station CFRA right from the start, as it was a project of the Club’s sponsoring club, the West Ottawa Lions Club. This dedication to helping the less fortunate at Christmas time continues today, not through the broadcast which has been discontinued but through a community-based initiative in which the Lions canvass business and residents for donations by letter, as well as doing its own fundraising with such initiatives as “Care For A Cause”, in which the club collects beer empties in conjunction with the LCBO in Richmond, with the proceeds going to cover mailing and printing costs related to this fundraising initiative. For the last 15 years, the funds raised go to the Richmond Food Bank for its work in helping the less fortunate in the Richmond and area community.
Rideau-Jock Councillor David Brown praised the club for its dedication to the community through the generations.
“The Lions Club over the last 60 years has been an unbroken chain of volunteers who want better for their community,” Brown said.
The Councillor commented that he had known many of the people in the room since he was a kid growing up in Richmond.
Brown said that one of the biggest contributions the club has made was the building of the Richmond Lions Club Park recreation complex. Brown said thousands of children have used that park over the past 40 years. He has been pushing for signage at the park to recognize the club and said that sometime during the summer or early fall he is planning on having a plaque installed at the park to commemorate the Lions Club.
Dale Green of the Richmond Lions Club spoke about the growth of the club.
“The club has slowly been adding new members over the past few years,” Green said. “One of the reasons we have had success is that we have encouraged women and family members to join. We now have 15 female members. These members have brought new ideas and provided us with many more volunteers.”
Carleton Progressive Conservative MPP Goldie Ghamari congratulated the club on behalf of the Ontario Government.
In April, Ghamari delivered a Member’s Statement in the Ontario Legislature and stood up to speak about the Richmond Lions Club’s 60th anniversary.
“Anyone who watched or has seen the video clip of the Member’s Statement knew that when I spoke about the Richmond Lions Club, I spoke from the heart,” Ghamari said.
“In some communities, service clubs are fading away. People have other priorities than giving back to their community. But the Richmond Lions Club is a strong and growing community organization. The importance of giving back to the community is what drives you – the members. Love of your community and giving back is what draws special people to the Richmond Lions Club.”
For more information on the club or if you are interested in joining, visit richmondlions.ca.
