Special to The SUN
The Lions were formed in 1917 in Chicago by Melvin Jones. Ninety-eight years later, there are 1.4 million members worldwide, making it the largest service organization in the world.
In 1925, Helen Keller addressed the Lions convention and challenged Lions to be the “Knights of the Blind.” We have answered the call.
Internationally, the Lions have virtually eliminated river blindness, which attacks indigenous people who use untreated river water. By 2018, Lions will have vaccinated 1 million children in Africa against measles, which is now rampant there. They are on the scene with aid at natural disasters, such as the earthquake in Haiti, the tsunami in Japan, the typhoon in the Philippines and are present as we speak in Nepal. They were also here during the Missionary Ridge Fire in Durango and Bayfield.
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