Club’s annual Christmas program includes numerous awards
Submitted
At their annual Christmas Dinner and Program Night held Dec. 19 at the Wyndham Hotel, the Westfield Lions presented several awards to well-deserving Lions. Prior to the awards portion of the meeting, the Lions were served dinner by the Westfield High School Foodies and entertained by the WHS Signature Sound Choir.
After the Signature Sound Choir, Lion President Bill Nesbitt presented Perfect Attendance pins to 24 Lions. This included a 50-year perfect attendance pin for Ted Engelbrecht and a 55-year pin for Bob Benson.
The Club’s signature fundraising event is its semi-annual Texas Hold ‘em “Poker for Sight” tournament. This year, Tournament Chair Mike Birk recognized three Lions for their outstanding efforts to make the tournament the biggest and best in the Midwest. Lion Don Collins received the “Tournament Star” award for his work collecting donations for each tournament’s “high hand” 50/50 pots. On average, Collins raises about $2,000 per tournament with his hard work.
Lions Ted Engelbrecht and Bob Benson also received Poker for Sight “Special Recognition” awards for their dedicated work over the years at the tournament. Engelbrecht has manned the player registration table and Benson has served as the concession stand co-manager at each session. These Lions have served in these roles since the tournament started in 2008 and are now stepping back for a well-deserved break.
The top award a Lion can receive is the Melvin Jones Fellowship (MJF), named after the founder of Lions Clubs International. Lions earning additional MJFs after their initial award receive Progressive Melvin Jones Fellowship (PMJF) awards. This year the Westfield Lions presented the first two 2-time PMJFs in the Club’s 94-year history. Lions Tracy Rogers and Mike Birk were the recipients of the award. Rogers is recognized as the lead “pit boss” at the poker tournaments and Birk continues to elevate the quality of each tournament and drive repeat business.
The last two awards presented at the meeting were also new awards for the Westfield Lions Club. Lion Dave Sobczak received the Westfield Lions Club “Life Membership Award” for the countless hours he has put into developing the plans for their clubhouse renovation project and shepherding the project through the regulatory and permitting phases. Sobczak is also serving as the construction manager for the project, which is nearing completion. When finished the Westfield Lions will arguably have the nicest Lions clubhouse in the state.
A second Westfield Lions Club Life Membership was presented to Jeff Larrison for his years of service as the Club’s secretary. Since serving as Club president in 2010, he has been the Club’s secretary. In addition, he has served as the Indiana Lions District 25D Cabinet secretary four times. He currently chairs the WHS SOS Club committee, Avenue of Flags committee, Dictionary Project committee, and the Club’s Union Street Ecology Tour committee.
The Westfield Lions are proud to serve their community and are actively looking for people interested in joining them in making a difference in Westfield. For information on the Club and how to become a Lion, go to WestfieldLions.org.
Photos provided by Westfield Lions Club
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