History of Roanoke Valley Breakfast Lions Club
Founded in 1977 by lifelong friends and community leaders Lions Bill Craft and Lewis Perry, the Roanoke Valley Breakfast Lions Club (RVBLC) has been a driving force in transforming the Roanoke Valley through its unwavering dedication to service. Inspired by their shared experiences in the Boy Scouts, they realized that their similarities were far more potent than their visible differences.
Over the years, RVBLC's members have tirelessly undertaken diverse community projects that have left a lasting impact on the lives of countless individuals in our beloved Valley. We take immense pride in being the first club in the Roanoke Valley to embrace inclusivity and invite women as members in 1987, setting an example for other organizations to follow.
As we look to the future, the RVBLC remains committed to its core values of service, diversity, and unity. Our members, both past, and present, continue to serve as beacons of hope, striving to make the Roanoke Valley a better place for all. Together, we believe in creating a community where compassion and generosity know no bounds.
History of The Lions Club International
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In 1917, Melvin Jones, a 38 year Old Chicago business leader asked a very simple world changing question: What if people put their talents to work, improving their communities?
Almost 100 years later, Lions Club International is the world's largest service club organization with 1.35 million members and more than 46,000 clubs and countless stories of lions acting on the sample simple.
In 1925, Helen Keller addressed the lions club International convention in Cedar Point Ohio USA and challenge lions to become the" knights of the blind in the crusade against darkness." Since then, we have worked tirelessly to aid the blind and visually impaired.
In the late 1950s, we created the Leo program to provide the youth of the world with an opportunity for personal development through volunteering. There are approximately 144,000 Leos and 5,700 Leo clubs in more than 140 Countries worldwide.
Through Sight First, Lions are restoring sight and preventing blindness on a global scale. Launched in 1990, Lions have raised more than $346 million for this initiative. Sight First targets the major causes of blindness: cataract, trachoma, river blindness, childhood blindness, diabetic retinopathy and glaucoma
