The Vancouver Templeton New Century Lions Club is currently enjoying its third year of service, fun, and fellowship.  Chartered in December 2003, the majority of our members are graduates of Templeton Secondary School and former members of the Vancouver Templeton Leo Club.  No longer high school students, we took the initiative of forming our very own New Century Club, acting as a bridge between Leos and Lions!  With the help of our Guiding Lion Glenn Cho and under the leadership of our Charter President Laura Huang, we established ourselves as an energetic and spirited group of young people always ready to lend a helping hand.  Some of our major fundraising events included Valentine’s Day rose sales in Downtown Vancouver, chocolate sales, and a play-off and season hockey pool.  Our members also participated in the First Annual Burnaby Edmonds Santa Clause Parade where our Tailtwister Becky Chen dressed up as a Christmas present, the Walk with the Dragon 2004, and Rick Hansen Wheels in Motion 2004.  We also volunteered our services to the annual Canadian Cancer Society Telethon and Chinese New Year Charity Toy Sale, as well as the Vancouver Chinatown Lions Charity Golf Tournament and various Chinese festivals.  The funds we raised were donated to organizations and projects as varied as the Easter Seals Orca Project, Templeton Secondary School’s Culinary Arts Centre, the Sunnyhill Children’s Health Centre, World Vision, and Tsunami Relief.

Today, our club continues to focus on supporting local organization such as the Downtown Eastside Women’s Centre and the Sunnyhill Children’s Health Centre.  For example, on Halloween Day our members dressed up in costumes and went trick-or-canning, collecting over 300 canned foods and non-perishable food items to donate to the Downtown Eastside Women’s Centre.  We are also establishing our own major fundraising events.  For the first time this year, our club will be organizing the Lions Journey for Sight Walkathon to fundraise for three major programs set up by the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB).

In addition to serving our community, we also foster a sense of fun and friendship within the club through our monthly meetings, social gatherings, potlucks and events like an afternoon of bowling at Revs.  We are also active within the Lions community, attending the various functions organized by other clubs, participating in Karaoke contests and curling events, all the while having an absolute BLAST!!

Our club currently has 26 members and we’re always on the lookout for more equally enthusiastic and dedicated people to join us.