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Lions Clubs International is the world's largest Service Club organization with 45,000 clubs and nearly 1.35 million members in 200 countries around the world. Its motto is "''We Serve''". The international headquarters is situated in Oak Brook, Illinois , United States . Lions Clubs International was founded in the United States in 1917 by Melvin Jones.1 A former Freemason ,2 Jones once said "''You can't get very far until you start doing something for somebody else''." Membership is by invitation and attendance at meetings is expected on a monthly or fortnightly basis. Lions are a community-based organization with a hierarchy that can take a member from a club to office at zone, district, national (also known as multiple district) and international levels. All funds raised by Lions Clubs from the general public are used for charitable purposes, with administration costs kept strictly separate and paid for by members. Lions Clubs International originally consisted of all-male membership. Over recent years many clubs have admitted women, but some all-male clubs still exist. In 2003 half of the male members at the Lions Club in Worcester , England resigned when a woman joined the club.3 CHARITABLE WORK Much of the focus of Lions Clubs International work as a service club organization is to raise money for good causes. Some of this money is used to benefit the local community of an individual club. Examples include donations to local Hospices ,4 or community campaigns such a ''Message in a bottle'', a United Kingdom initiative which places a plastic bottle with critical medical information inside the refrigerators of vulnerable people.5 Money is also raised for international purposes. Some of this is donated in reaction to events such as the 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake . Other money is used to support international campaigns, coordinated by the Lions Clubs International Foundation (LCIF), such as Sight First and Lions World Sight Day, which was launched in 1998 and draws world media attention to the plight of sight loss in the third world.6 Lions work for the blind and visually impared began when Helen Keller addressed the International Convention at Cedar Point , Ohio on 30 June 1925 and charged Lions to be ''Knights to the Blind''. Lions also have a strong commitment to community hearing- and cancer-screening projects. In Perth , Western Australia , they have conducted hearing screening for over 30 years, and provided seed funding for the Lions Ear And Hearing Institute instituted September 9 2001 , a center of excellence in the diagnosis, management and research of ear and hearing disorders.7 In Perth, the Lions have also been instrumental in the institute of the Lions Eye Institute . In Brisbane , Queensland the Lions Medical Research Foundation provides seed funding to a number of researchers. Prof. Ian Frazer's initial work, leading to the development of a HPV Vaccine for Cervical Cancer , was funded by the Lions Medical Research Foundation. Lions Clubs International has had a history of support for the work of the United Nations since that organization's inception in 1945, when it was one of the non-governmental organizations invited to assist in the drafting of the United Nations Charter in San Francisco, California . SPREAD OF LIONISM ''For a list of Lions Club branches see '' The organization became truly international on 12 March 1920 , when the first club in Canada was established in Windsor, Ontario . Since then Lions Clubs have spread across the globe. Listed below are some of the key dates:
INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION The Lions hold an annual international convention in cities across the globe to meet other Lions, elect the coming year's officers, and partake in the many activities planned. At the convention, Lions can participate in elections and parades, display and discuss fundraisers and service projects, and trade pins and other souvenirs. The first convention was held in 1917 in Dallas, Texas , the first year of the club's existence. The 2006 convention was due to be held in New Orleans , but damage sustained during Hurricane Katrina meant that the convention had to be relocated to Boston .8 Some past convention locations include:
Lions Band Many clubs sponsor a Lions Band to participate and compete in the International Lions Parade at the International Convention. The parade champions for 25 years between 1951 and 2007 were the Lions Band from Mississippi , USA . Mississippi Lion's All State Band has won the last 5 championships in a row. REFERENCES EXTERNAL LINKS
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