For more than a century, Lions Clubs International – a volunteer network of more than 1.4 million members – has been changing the world through countless acts of kindness. To be a Lion is to serve communities in need, both locally and globally.
Since 1958, members of the MD19 (Multiple District 19) Lions in the Pacific Northwest have exemplified the power of collective kindness through their strong partnership with CARE. Over the years, the 400 clubs within the MD19 Lions have donated over $1 million to CARE, supporting projects in education, healthcare, and food and water systems, with a special focus on countries in Latin America and the Caribbean.
In 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic wreaked havoc on global food security, MD19 Lions rallied to raise funds for people in Haiti, where a compounding crisis of violence, unrest, COVID-19 and natural disasters had left half the population without sufficient food. Bob Yeoman, who is from the Spokane Lions Club and represents the CARE-MD19 partnership, recalls, “We felt the impact of the pandemic locally, and at the same time, we realized it couldn’t compare with what people in places like Haiti were facing.”