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Grambling’s Lions club celebrates service

Grambling’s chapter of the Lions Club celebrated their 25th year of service. The theme for the night was “Reaffirming our Commitment to Lionism in Grambling.”
The banquet opened with a prayer by Rev. Henry Island. Dr. Frances Staten then presented the occasion. Afterwards, the history was read by Lamore J. Carter.
The Lions club was founded in 1917. With over 4500 clubs and one million members, it has since grown to be one of the largest service organizations in the world.
The club has helped communities throughout the U.S. as well as in other countries. It is a diverse organization.
Denene Stringfellow, sang two selections, one after the history- Ray Charles- America- and the other after the guest speaker “The Lord will Make a Way Somehow.”
After the dinner, Dr. Robert M. Dixon, GSU provost, vice president was the guest speaker.
“I’ve always been a sucker for challenges, and I have always welcomed challenges,” Dixon said.
Using diversity as his topic, he said people enjoy working with people they are familiar with. When people get comfortable with their surroundings or living area, it’s not easy to accept change.
Race and gender have been the cause of things such as war, discrimination and inequality. People usually have a narrow perspective of life, not allowing new experiences and ways of life to invade their way they have lived since birth.
This year, Morehouse had its first white valedictorian. That became a hot topic because the school is a HBCU. Some professors felt that it should have gone to an African American student, but times are changing, said Dixon. The world is becoming more diverse, cultures are beginning to intermingle, and everyone needs to except that fact.
Because of stereotypes, people who are uneducated as well as educated sometimes believe that one race can’t learn as well as another. Nor are they able to learn or comprehend as fast and efficient as another race.
Dixon said that their way of thinking was wrong. What will help someone to succeed or excel in life is desire, opportunity, and hard work. There is no one race that has the innate ability to succeed in everything they try and everyone else just can’t understand. With motivation everyone has the ability to excel in what ever they choose.
New members were invited to join the Grambling chapter of the Lions Club. Dr. Dixon was presented a five hundred dollar check towards the Black and Gold foundation. Dr. Carter was presented a charter member pen for his 25 years of service. Ruthie Bradford and Dr. Frances Staten were recognized for their 20 years of service as women in the organization.
The last award presented was a certificate of appreciation to the Grambling chapter of the Lions Club, they were also honored with being given a Grambling’s Lion Club Day. The Grambling chapter has been established for 25 years and the members of the Lions Club enjoy completing and fulfilling tasks. They plan to keep the program growing and going strong.