Saturday, April 2, 2016

19 Lions An Example Of A Service Club

By Janet Snyder


At its most basic, a service organization is defined as an organization that provides a service to users. It is most commonly a voluntary, charitable organization. In practice, a service club is defined first of all by its mission and secondly by its benefits to its members. These are often intangibles, like social interaction, business networking, and personal growth. Many service clubs have earned recognition by the United Nations. 19 Lions is an example of such a club, as are the Kiwanis, Soroptimists, and the Apex Clubs of Australia.

It was Melvin Jones who established Lions International in 1917. He strenuously believed that people could not get on in life without doing things for other people. The international headquarters of the Lions is in Oak Brook IL. There are a million and a half members in 46,000 local clubs in 200 different countries all over the world. Jones was also a member of the Freemasons, a similar organization.

The Lions' official colors are purple and gold. Membership is by invitation only, although if you are interested in joining, you need only contact the local branch to introduce yourself. Multiple District 19 represents North Idaho, members in Washington state, and British Columbia in western Canada.

One of the older fraternal organizations is Rotary International. This group got its start by four businessmen, organized by a lawyer named Paul Harris. These men set themselves the mission to raise standards in the conduct of professional business. They gave themselves the name Rotary because they rotated from one office to another. Eventually, the group got so big they had to take to arranging external venues for their meetings.

Rotarians apply what is called the 4-way test to determine whether a project is compatible with Rotary aims. It is a set of guidelines for helping faltering businesses get back on their feet. In order to qualify for support, it must be true, fair, foster friendship and goodwill, and it must be beneficial to everybody involved.

The Freemasons are one of the most ceremonial and traditional of the fraternal organizations. Their origin can be traced back to the stonemasons. They have extremely rigid membership criteria. For one, members must be free and they must have a sound character. They also expect their members to publicly affirm that they belief in a Supreme Being. Some go so far as to expect them to belong to a specific religious group.

George Washington was a Freemason and was the master of his lodge. There is even a portrait of him dressed in full ceremonial regalia. When he died, he was buried with full Masonic honors.

Another fraternal organization is the Elks. They were founded in 1868 in New York City. Similar to the Rotarians and the Lions, The Elks are headquartered in Chicago, Illinois.




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