The Pompey Lions Club is a member of an International organization called Lions Club International.  Lions International was founded in 1917 and is well known today for their work toward an end to preventable blindness.

The International Association of Lions Clubs began as the dream of Chicago businessman Melvin Jones. He believed that local business clubs should expand their horizons from purely professional concerns to the betterment of their communities and the world at large.

Jones' own group, the Business Circle of Chicago, agreed. After contacting similar groups around the country, an organizational meeting was held on June 7, 1917, at the LaSalle Hotel in Chicago. The new group took the name of one of the groups invited, the "Association of Lions Clubs," and a national convention was held in Dallas in October of that year. A constitution, by-laws, objects and code of ethics were approved.

Why Lions are "Knights of the Blind"? - Perhaps the single event having the greatest impact on the association's service commitment occurred in 1925 when Helen Keller addressed the Lions at their international convention in Cedar Point, Ohio. It was there that she challenged Lions to become "knights of the blind in the crusade against darkness."

The Pompey Lions Club was formed in 1965 and at the present time consists of approximately 35 members.  We are a service organization dedicated to addressing the needs of our community and our extended communities.  We embrace the motto of Lions Club International as our own: "WE SERVE!"