History of the Center Point Lions Club
The Center Point Lions Club was chartered by Lions Club International on May 2, 1949. There were 39 charter members. Sadly the last charter member, Mr. Eddie E. Taylor, Sr., passed away on October 25th, 2005. His wife, Sandy, is currently a member and has been since 1993, along with his step-daughter, Sue Wood, since 2006. Of our current members, Mrs. Sandy Taylor and Mrs. Betty Lackey have been members the longest, joining in 1993; Mrs. Nell Sevey in 1994; and Mr. Sandy Oliver has been a member since 2003.
The objectives of the Center Point Lions Club are to promote understanding among people; to promote good government and good citizenship; to take an active interest in the welfare of the community; to unite the club in the bond of friendship, fellowship, and mutual understanding; and, to provide a forum for the open discussion of matters of public interest.
The club has met in several places over the years. These include the homes of members, Coach Light Inn, Ace Ranch Restaurant, American Legion Hall, Center Point Baptist Church, Trinity Church and now in our present location at the Center Point ISD meeting room.
The Lions Club was the moving force behind establishing the Center Point Volunteer Fire Department. They held the first fundraiser shortly after they were chartered. The VFD was located in the garage behind the present day American Legion Hall. They even sounded a siren at noon every day.
Natural gas came to Center Point by way of the Lions Club. Lone Star Gas required 200 subscribers to enter a community and the Lions Club secured the subscribers.
The Lions Park on the Guadalupe River in Center Point was a project of the Lions Club. With the agreement of the then owner, Texas Power and Light, Lions cleaned the area and in 1971 built a slab, restrooms, barbeque pit, and concrete tables and benches. Lions maintained the park for several years until, unfortunately, all but the slab was washed away in the 1978 flood. In 1996 the Lions Club placed basketball goals at either end of the slab and was responsible for the erection of two lights for the area. Kerr County now owns the park.
By agreement with LCRA, the Lions Club obtained and maintained the fixtures that light the streets of the community. Kerr County assumed responsibility for a time but when they relinquished it, Lion Butch Lackey recognized the need, raised funds, and assumed that responsibility. The Center Point Alliance for Progress has the responsibility today.
The sidewalk from the school to San Antonio Street (FM 473) was built by the Lions Club as a safety measure for school children.
In 1960 the Lions Club charted the first Boy Scout Troop in Center Point.
The Center Point Livestock Association, Center Point Little League, and the North Pole project, among others are all regular recipients of donations from the Lions Club.
In the late 1980's the Lions Club donated six McGruff's elementary school puppet programs to Center Point Elementary. The program consisted of a crime and drug use prevention book, tapes to go along with the book, and a McGruff puppet. Each lesson had a brief introduction, a song about the lesson topic, and a conclusion. The lessons covered a variety of topics beneficial to teachers and children.
In 1992 the Lions Club began giving scholarships to two local students. Each scholarship is divided so that the recipient receives half for each of the first two semesters. The first scholarships were for $600 and $300; currently they are for $1,000 each student.
In 1994 the Lions Club requested from the highway department and received a blinking light at the intersection of Highway 27 and FM 480.
The Center Point Lions Club has long been active in vision care as well as support for children and adults in the community with vision problems. The club provides funding for those unable to pay for vision services which includes examinations and eye glasses. We also arrange for and provide transportation if needed. The State of Texas requires that schools and day care centers administer hearing and vision screening tests and over the years numerous members have been certified by the state to perform these tests. We are able to provide assistance to the school nurse with this testing and can go into day care centers to administer the tests ourselves. Lions have served not only in Center Point but as far away as Bandera and Fredericksburg. More recently, several members have been trained in the use of the PediaVision Spot VS100. This great little device allows screening for children as young as six months old and can spot problems that sometimes are not correctable by the age of 4 or 5 years.
An argument can be made that our greatest achievements are the bonds of friendship that are forged and the ever present willingness to serve our community.
