The Jungle Jargon

MEETING SCHEDULE

February, 2009

February 3 - Board of Directors Meeting - 7:30PM, Boy Scout Room (Town Hall)

February 4 - Regular Meeting - 7PM, Cranbury Station; Dinner: Chicken Parmigiana

Program: Dr. Pam Paskowitz, director of the Summit Speech School will talk about deafness - its causes, teaching deaf people to speak, and other issues related to hearing loss.

February 18 - Regular Meeting - 7PM, Cranbury Station; Dinner: Broiled Salmon

Program: Lions Mel Bray, PCC and Jim Hynes, PDG, respectively the President and Executive Director of the Lions Eye Research Foundation, will provide a presentation and update on LERF.

March, 2009

March 3 - Board of Directors Meeting - 7:30PM, Boy Scout Room (Town Hall)

March 4 - REGULAR MEETING SUPERCEDED BY ANNUAL JOINT MEETING WITH HIGHTSTOWN, BELOW

March 11 - Annual Joint meeting with Hightstown LC - 7PM, Theo's Restaurant; Dinner: TBD

Program: Guest Speaker from and discussion about the Lions Eye Bank of New Jersey.

March 18 - Regular Meeting - 7PM, Cranbury Station; Dinner: Corned Beef & Cabbage

Program: Lions History - Some of our Past Presidents will speak about the club during their time in office.

Things To Know

Even though we send a revised "Calendar of Events" with each dues mailing, we'd like to remind all members to PLEASE, share the Jargon with your Spouse, so that our events may be better scheduled on your personal or family calendars for better attendance. Please Note that Spouses are invited not only to attend the meetings, but to become Members under the Family Membership Initiative. In any event, Spouses are wholly encouraged to attend "Spouse Night" meetings. Our next "Spouse Night" is our Lion of the Year Dinner on April 15.

There will be a very special presentation made at our February 4 Meeting and we are hoping that as many members as possible will attend!

SPECIAL NOTE: Our annual joint meeting with Hightstown alternates schedules - this year we are on their schedule; Please Note - our FIRST March meeting will be on March 11, in Hightstown.

All four winners of our 2009 Super Bowl Pool 50/50 were sold by Lion Don Herr, and the winners are:
   1^st Quarter - Walt Caldwell; Half - Don Patterson; 3^rd Quarter - Tony Alfano; Final - Mike DeRosa
   Congratulations to all the winners and thanks for helping us raise a few dollars!

Nominations are now being accepted for the Cranbury Lions Club Board of Directors for the Lion Year 2009-2010. All interested Lions should contact 1VP John Kobland or Director Andre Mento.

If you have not gotten your tickets yet for the New Jersey Lions Night at the NJ Devils, you can still order them directly from the Devils, until 2PM Friday, February 6. The February 7, Devils v. LA Kings Game is completely sold out; an additional game has been added, next Sunday, if anyone wishes to go - Same deal for Lions: $65 face value balcony seats for $45 ... we will still get the additional $10 per ticket donation...and an added "bonus"...it's "hat night" - ticket holders will get a Devils ball cap. If interested, call the number on the card you received in the mail, before 3PM, Friday, February 6. Remember! This is Lions Night, but non-Lions are welcome to attend and get the Lion discount on tickets - if you know someone who enjoys hockey, invite them - - and raise a few bucks for our Projects Account!

Lion Frank Vesci is Chairing the Mid-Winter Art Auction, at Fellowship Hall in the Cranbury Presbyterian Church on February 21. As we did last time, all members will receive 4 tickets for the Auction. If you plan to attend the auction, feel free to purchase two for you and your spouse. However, we are asking that you SELL all four tickets. Although it would certainly help, we would rather you didn't buy the tickets and donate the money, because this event can only be successful if we have people in the audience. Those that attended last time may recall that we had some very fine original pieces from numerous artists, provided by local artist and gallery owner Kathie Morolda. Ms. Morolda will provide the art and run the actual auction again. However, Lion Frank will need at least 10-15 volunteers for the event; we will need a few volunteers to bake and serve coffee; we will need "runners" all night long; we will need a set-up crew on Saturday afternoon; and a breakdown and clean-up crew on Saturday night; someone to work "the gate" - sell tickets, provide "paddles", sell 50/50, and extra "silent auction" tickets. Of Course we can all help between now and then by obtaining Ad Journal Sponsors ($25 Business Card Ad; $50 Full Page Ad) and donations for a silent auction [Certain merchants have already been assigned to existing members of the committee - If you have an idea for a donation, please check with Lion Frank to insure we don't ask the same merchant twice]. Some of you may recall we did this a few years ago and the event proved to be fairly successful, but like any of our events, they can only succeed if you are there! Sign up for Lion Frank's Committee at the meetings, or contact him, directly, at (215) 493-5193.

We have 38 pre-sale tickets for the Eastern League All-Star Game on August 15. This game will be our July meeting. The cost of all members' tickets is being paid by the Club; members will be billed $17 each for any additional tickets ordered. Tickets will be provided to members, based on orders, as soon as they are received from the Trenton Thunder.

The Board of Directors at the Jamesburg Home for Boys, an MD-16 State approved organization and an organization that the Cranbury Club has closely supported throughout our 76 year history, has requested our assistance in forming a new LEO Club at the facility. The Club will be open to (rehabitable) non-violent offenders, who wish to render service to the community; our Board of Directors has approved this Club Service Project, and, VERY IMPORTANT, is seeking at least 2 members who would be willing to serve as LEO liaison advisors to this Club. Information regarding the Advisor and Leo Clubs, in general, can be downloaded from the LCI website at: http://www.lionsclubs.org/EN/content/pdfs/leo65.pdf; a hard copy booklet is available from PDG Bob for the Advisor Volunteer(s). It should be noted, however, that the Leo Club will not be "up and running" too soon; the "School Officials" have not approved the service project between the facility and the NJ Lions Eye Glass Recycling Center, for security reasons, and there is a minor snafu /major inconvenience to the Advisor(s) concerning "regular entry" to the facility. Until these items are worked out, this project is "on hold". However, since most of the Supporting Club's Advisory work can be done off-site, with an on-site employee, who will need a "Contributing Club Contact", we may still be able to move forward if an Employee Advisor is found. Notwithstanding the logistical problems, any members who would like to volunteer as Leo Advisors should contact President Mike or PDG Bob, so that we can "hit the ground running" when the project comes to fruition.

The District 16-D Charity Ball will be held on Saturday, March 21, at the Pines Manor in Edison; Cash Bar Cocktails at 7PM; Dinner at 7:45PM; Dancing until Midnight. The cocktail hour will include International cheeses, crudités, marinated vegetables, fresh mozzarella with tomato and basil, shrimp, mussels and calamari marinated in lime juice and olive oil; Dinner will be Orecchiette pasta with baby spinach, pine nuts and pesto, followed by a choice of roast breast of chicken with artichokes, tomato and prosciutto in white wine sauce; or, braised Asian short ribs; or, sliced roast sirloin with caramelized onions; or, grilled salmon with mango salsa; or, baked shrimp with tomatoes; or, fried calamari marinara; accompanied by seasonal vegetables and rosemary Yukon potatoes; followed by pastries, coffee, and/or tea. And this sumptuous meal and dancing until Midnight is only $60 per person. This is our 16-D Charitable Foundation's ONLY means of income for the year, so we have been asked to be generous. Individuals may purchase a Patron Ad for $5 per line; business ads are $50 for a half page and $100 for a full page (inside covers and back cover are $200). There are raffles and a 50/50 at the event, to help raise funds. We are trying to put together at least one table for our Club. Anyone who would like to attend, please contact PDG Bob.

Since we already have a few volunteers from Cranbury, we should follow through on our commitment and plan to sponsor a New Club in Plainsboro. To accomplish this, we need a few committed Lions to contact local businesses, local government employees, and perhaps run a membership drive in the shopping plazas and the new "downtown" area to gather local residents as members. This would not be unprecedented; the Cranbury Lions sponsored the Hightstown Club, as well as the (now defunct) Hamilton, Jamesburg, and (former) Plainsboro Clubs. There's no doubt that this will be a large undertaking, but the satisfaction obtained at the completion of this project will make every Cranbury Lion proud! As it is with all our projects, the more volunteers we can get, the easier the task! Time is becoming of the essence - Interested Lions should contact President Mike, Membership Chair Jon Goldstein, or PDG Bob, ASAP.

It has been recommended that a member of the Club be totally familiar with the Lions Clubs International Insurance Policy, which covers us under its umbrella, and be available to inspect our event sites and complete a form as it may apply to any particular event or fundraiser, as the new Club "Safety Officer". It is interesting to note that, other than being familiar with the policy, and completing any form that may ever become necessary (but only if necessary - in the last 76 years, no one can remember ever having to fill out a safety form!), this Club Position is about as easy as anything could be. Anyone interested in this position - especially members with insurance-related backgrounds - should contact President Mike.

A quick notation about the USA/Canada Leadership Forum this coming September 24-26. If, in addition to learning more about our Association and how to become a better Lion, you'd like to ride a Mississippi Riverboat, visit the birthplace of Rock 'n' Roll, catch the Blues at a hot club, see Graceland, visit the National Civil Rights Museum, check out pandas at the zoo, or just have the World's Best Barbeque, this year's Forum is in Memphis, TN ... and it is expected to be one of the best Forum's on a never ending list of great Forums. For more information or an application, see PDG Bob.

It feels like winter, but baseball season is coming! Mark your calendars for our Trenton Thunder 50/50 on Friday, June 12, Thunder v. Mets; and our Annual Baseball Outing on Saturday, August 22. Although you can reserve your ticket for the August game now, more information about these events will be available at a later date.

Coming Soon...

The Board has approved a "Service Day" Project for the Club - on a Saturday in the near future, we will meet in the morning and, as a group, serve on the line, or wherever needed, at TASK for approximately 2 hours, after which we will go to the NJ Eyeglass Recycling Center and help sort, fix or otherwise recycle eyeglasses at the center for a few hours. More information will be available shortly. This will be a Club Service Project, and it is expected that we would have a large turn out since, as Lions. We Serve!

Our next White Cane Collection will be April 17 & 18. Lions Jeff Grundy will Chair the Event, and is working on a schedule as we speak! A sign-up sheet will start circulating shortly. Please be generous with your time.

Membership - Membership - Membership

Last year's theme was "the Challenge to Change", and, through change, we can increase our Membership while rejuvenating existing members to help to keep the Club young-at-heart, active, and viable! Cranbury Lions Club President Mike will continue to accept the Challenge to Change, and is asking ALL members to assist Membership Chair Jon Goldstein in attracting and bringing in new members. To get information about membership options or to obtain membership applications contact Membership Chair Jon, Secretary Bob Virgadamo, or President Mike. In any event, we MUST begin a proactive campaign to bring in new Members! Let's try to keep our Lions Club from being Cranbury's "best kept secret".

As a "bonus", all new members and their sponsors will be personally invited by International President Al Brandell to attend the Induction Ceremony under the Globe at Flushing Meadow Park (the site of the 1964 World's Fair) on World-Wide Induction Day - March 7, 2009 - and to be inducted by International President Al, himself. There has also been a pin designed just for the occasion, which will be given to each new member and each sponsor; after the ceremony, all unused pins will be destroyed, creating an instant "collector's item".

...And Attendance...

Using the tag-line, "If you build it, they will come", President Mike is asking EVERY Cranbury Lion to provide suggestions on how we might be able to CHANGE the meetings to appeal to a broader range of the membership, in an effort to build a stronger Cranbury Lions Club. Please provide your suggestions to him directly.

Reminders

Do you know of an interesting speaker? You may be an interesting speaker! Please advise Program Chair Frank Marlowe with any and all suggestions for speakers at our meetings to: .

Any member who learns of the sickness or death of another member, or in a member's family, or any other similar incident or emergency, should contact Lions Frank Marlowe (Chair, H&W) and/or Dave Cook ("phone tree"), and/or Bob Virgadamo (e-mail notifications) so that all members may be notified as soon as possible.

Member Pick-Up - Ed Lawson (5 S. Main)

Lion George Smith has volunteered be the "permanent" pick up driver for Lion Ed; Lion Frank Marlowe has volunteered to be the "permanent" back-up driver. Drivers: if you cannot make your pick-up, please notify President Mike as soon as possible. Riders: please notify the assigned driver if you cannot make a meeting