By Peter Drysdale
July seemed like a month when not much happened (except dreadful weather) but Caterham, Oxted and Godstone Lions weren’t idle, and spent time planning future activities.
Members were thrilled to be invited to visit the wonderful new premises under construction for St Catherine’s Hospice in Crawley. The club has been a regular supporter and the new building will provide 24 beds for inpatients and better facilities for day patients. State of the art and eco-friendly, it has a wonderful garden and will continue the valuable work of the hospice, helping patients and their families through end-of-life care.
A new and innovative feature – the only part actually completed at the present time – is the coffee shop & community hub. It is open to the public, visitors and patients, and the idea is to try to remove the fear and trepidation some people feel at the mention of the word ‘hospice’. All profits will go to the hospice, which should be up and running by Christmas.
In October, COG Lions will celebrate its 45th birthday. This is known as the Charter Anniversary: the anniversary of being chartered by Lions Clubs International. We will be holding a lunch, with an opportunity to put on glad rags, invite friends along, join in the celebration and hear what’s been done during the year.
On 18 November we’ll be holding another charity fundraising dinner: a three-course Italian-themed evening at White Hart Barn in Godstone, with a licensed bar and cabaret provided by Nat Rhodes. Tickets are £15. Contact Tony (01883 335945) or John (01883 742680) for more details and tickets.
Our Lion Secretary reminds us it’s never too early to think about our door-to-door Father Christmas collection around the villages in December. We have a band of ‘friends of Lions’ who help out but would welcome a few more to spread the load of this major and much-enjoyed fundraising effort. The children adore coming out to speak to Santa on his sleigh. For more information, phone Lion Secretary John on 01883 742680.
The end of September sees our second fundraising Trivia Quiz of the year. All tickets sold out a month in advance, so we must be doing something right. People like to support good causes and have fun while doing it…that really sums up Lionism in a nutshell!
To find out more about your local Lions club, visit our website or call Lion Tony on 01883 741809. We also have a minibus available for hire – contact Lion David on 01342 893353.
