Serving with the Lions Club

By Morgan Robertson

Our in-class assignments often include researching a new topic, writing an essay, or possibly presenting our findings. However, on April 28^th we made an out-of-class presentation to the Huntsville Chapter of the Lions Club. Heather, Jessica, Saara, and I were excited to share information about the organization that we love.  

The Lions Club is an organization committed to the service of the community in which they reside. One of the service projects of the local chapter is the flag postings: for various days of remembrance or holidays, the Lions Club will line the streets with American and Texan flags, and this is something we have assisted with in the past.

Every Thursday at noon, the Lions meet at Grand Buffet for a hot meal, good company, and, of course, to take care of organizational business. We were able to enjoy nice conversations while we ate lunch with the Lions because of our past volunteerism and other connections. I learned more about the logistics behind the Flag project from Glen Schumacher. Glen has taken on the responsibility of driving the truck and trailer for those posting the flags.

After most of the Club had finished their meals and visited with fellow members, the meeting was called to order. We were introduced by Brian Blalock, who is a photographer for the university and who invited us to speak at this week’s meeting.

Because LEAP is an organization that reaches all different disciplines, we thought it best to walk the Lions through an actual week of a LEAP Ambassador.

This adventurous yet busy week began on Global Health Day, Thursday, April 7^th, with our attendance at the World Affairs Council event: Global Health with Dr. Deborah Birx. Of which I elaborated on what I learned during our presentation to the Lions.

The following day, on Friday, April 8, Jessica, Saara, and I along with a few other students got to test out our modeling skills with Brian who was shooting fundraising photos for university advancement. It was an interesting experience for us since we are typically the ones taking the pictures. We even shared how most of us walked away knowing that we would not be successful in a modeling career.

Perhaps my favorite day in our week, Saturday, April 9th, was when we volunteered at the Annual Wynne Home Easter Egg Hunt. For Saara, this was her first time celebrating the Easter Holiday and she shared her experience with the Lions Club. We of course could not wait to mention our professor’s tactics for winning the Sack Races (which he denied of course), one of the many recreational activities there was for the children.

Jessica’s favorite day of this busy week was Sunday, April 10th. As we told the Lions more about LEAP, we let our personalities show as well. After we all identified Jessica as our shyest member (pre-Elvis) she told us more about her first time experiencing an Elvis impersonator. Jessica claims and defends (post-Elvis) her famous picture was just a high-five, but we are all convinced it is a hand-hug. 

For Monday, April 11^th, we all shared a bit about our experiences with the citizenship course. We were intrigued to learn that some of the Lions Club members had firsthand experience with the naturalization exam or knew someone who took our course.

Nearing the end of our busy week, Heather told everyone about our biweekly LEAP meetings and the office hours we are responsible for. Much like professional organizations like the Lions Club, we practice Robert’s Rules of Order and learn more about professionalism.

On the last day of the preview of a typical week for a LEAP Ambassador, Wednesday, April 13th, Heather shared more about the 10^th Court of Appeals that heard three cases at the University. She even mentioned that we, SHSU, are one of only two colleges that the Court travels to and how the Court allows for student interaction.

We then took questions, as we approached the end of the meeting and were even able to give interviews for the Huntsville item!

On behalf of the LEAP Center, thank you to the Huntsville Lions Club for hosting our group. We hope that we can honor your Club motto, “We Serve” as your members do!