Polaris Raffle
The annual raffle sponsored by the MT Lions Sight & Hearing Foundation culminated at the Helena Convention on Saturday night when International Director, Robert “Ski” Marcinkowski from Fairbanks, Alaska pulled out the winning raffle ticket. The winner was Lion Steve. The Raffle netted the foundation $18,400 and represented the 3rd highest profit since they started the ATV Raffle. (The highest profit was received right after COVID).
By Lion Peggy Tobin2025 District 37 Post Convention Report – Irish Theme
Over the next few months a series of convention reports will be published to share the experiences of many Lions who attended the 2025 District 37 Convention held May 2nd and 3rd in Helena MT. If you have stories or photos to share, please send them via the “Submit Club News” option on the website.
The 2025 District Convention had an Irish theme which began at the Friday evening gathering. Decorations, Irish Dance demonstrations and a lesson on how to play Hurling were all part of the fun..
Club Treasurer Financial Checklist for July
Welcome to the new Lionistic Year!
As we turn the page to another year of service, I’d like to extend my heartfelt congratulations to District Governor Corinna, First Vice District Governor Jon Kimble, Second Vice District Governor Gary Lewis, and all of our dedicated club officers across District 37 a successful, inspiring, and rewarding year ahead.
Your commitment and leadership make a powerful difference in our communities, and I look forward to working together to support the financial health of our clubs throughout the coming months.
Start the new fiscal year strong by working through this checklist:
- ✅ Review prior year’s ending balances and carry over amounts
- ✅ Confirm all signers on club bank accounts are correct and current
- ✅ Reconcile year-end bank statements to make sure no outstanding transactions
- ✅ Prepare and present a beginning-of-year financial report to your board and club
- ✅ Ensure your club’s annual 990/990-N filing is up to date if the fiscal year ended June 30
- ✅ Verify any bonding/insurance coverage for club officers, if required
- ✅ Check dues invoicing from Lions Clubs International
- ✅ Update your club budget for the year, including anticipated expenses and fundraising plans
- ✅ Confirm your membership roster is accurate to avoid paying dues on dropped members
- ✅ Review club governmental filings with the Montana Secretary of State to ensure good standing with state
- ✅ Familiarize yourself with the Lions Club Treasurer e-book and resources in the Lions Club Treasurer Page
By Lion Steve DogiakosZone 5 Report-July 2025-Zone Chair Tom Naegele
June 11, 2025 – Approximately 30 Helena, Broadwater/Townsend and Gold Rush Lions and Family members attended the Helena Senators vs Great Falls Chargers American Legion Baseball Game on June 11th. This was a social, fund raiser and new member recruitment event.
By ZC Tom NaegeleZone 8 Report-July 2025-Zone Chair Bob Graves
May 19, 2025 – Zone 8 clubs including Choteau, Fairfield and Sunburst met at the Senior Center in Choteau to share their club projects, ideas for future zone projects and pizza! Zone Chair, Bob Graves did a great job of outlining the goals of having in-person Zone meetings as it was the first in-person meeting that had been held in several years. The next meeting will be hosted by Fairfield.
By ZC Bob GraveChoteau Lions Club Launches $10-Grand Pool Payout Raffle to Support Community Swimming Pool
The Choteau Lions Club is excited to announce the launch of its brand-new fundraiser: the $10-Grand Pool Payout Raffle. This dynamic new raffle replaces the club’s long-running “Trip of the Month” raffle, which successfully supported the club’s projects for over three decades.
The Pool Payout Raffle aims to help sustain and improve the Choteau Lions Swimming Pool while continuing to fund vital community Lions Club projects like park improvements and youth programs.
Here’s how it works:
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Tickets are $100 each or 2 for $150
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A grand prize drawing for $10,000 will be held on August 14, 2025
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Two early bird drawings will add excitement and more chances to win:
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- July 4th: a BBQ grill plus 50 lbs. of Montana beef
- July 31st: a CZ Redhead 20-gauge shotgun
Local pools are more than recreation: they are community anchors, providing safe, healthy summer fun for kids and families. The Choteau pool is no exception. With the cost of maintaining and operating community pools rising each year, support from programs like this raffle makes a tremendous difference.
Purchasing tickets is easy! Tickets are available online at https://choteaulions.club/10k-raffle.
We encourage all Montana Lions to help spread the word, support your fellow Lions, and ensure the Choteau Lions Swim Pool continues to be a shining example of service in action.
By Choteau Lions
Did You Know? Lions Trivia
JULY TRIVIA
To Walk with Lions: 7 Spiritual Principles I Learned from Living with Lions Paperback – by Gareth Patterson (Author)
“To Walk with Lions” describes the seven spiritual principles of the lion: Self-Reliance, Loyalty, Fellowship, Willingness to Care, Unconditional Love, and Courage. Do these traits sound familiar? There’s a reason that we are called LIONS!
What is the main purpose of the Lions Club International? Our mission is to empower Lions clubs, volunteers and partners to improve health and wellbeing, strengthen communities, and support those in need through humanitarian service and grants that impact lives globally, and encourage peace and international understanding. And we fulfill it every day, everywhere we serve.
Special Notices – July 2025
ALL CLUB SECRETARIES
IF YOU HAVE NOT ENTERED YOUR OFFICERS FOR THE 2025-2026 FISCAL YEAR,
PLEASE CALL LION PEGGY TOBIN AT 406-461-4206 OR EMAIL HER AT [email protected] !! YOU WILL NOT HAVE ACCESS TO THE LIONS PORTAL UNTIL THIS ISSUE IS RECTIFIED.
For Club Treasurers
PLEASE NOTE THAT LCI DUES WILL BE INCREASING JULY 1, 2025. THE INCREASE WILL BE $2/YEAR ($1/6-MONTH BILLING CYCLE) FOR FULL MEMBERSHIPS. NOTE: New members are charged at a prorated amount depending on date joined.
District 37 Club Officer Training Videos
These videos are all accessible via the district website, www.montanalions.org under “Training/Resources”.
- Club President: Trainer PDG Mike Tobin
- Club Secretary: Trainer Lion Peggy Tobin
- Club Treasurer: Trainer PDG Mike Collins
Short videos about how to do specific secretary or treasurer tasks:
Filing your 990-N (e-Postcard) (9 minutes)
With the release of the new LionPortal, we have added links to some of the short videos provided by LCI:
Newsletter Information
Any Lions club member can submit information associated with any type of Lions project or general club information. You can submit Club News ANYTIME! You are also welcome to email your news (hopefully with photo) to: Lion Peggy Tobin at [email protected].
Website Updates
The new “Tri-Fold Generator” is now available for clubs to create their own club brochures using a tri-fold format that your club can use to share your information to prospective new members. You will find it under Training/Resources on the website.
Free Club Websites!
The club-level website is still being offered by Montana District 37 at NO COST! If you don’t already have a domain name, Deanna can provide one for a cost of $20/year after the first year. If you are interested in getting a website for your club, please contact Peggy Tobin at [email protected] or call 406-461-4206.
Dates to Remember – July 2025
JULY CLUB ANNIVERSARIES
68 years of service!
Billings Heights 07/23/1957
UPCOMING DISTRICT MEETING DATES
MT Lions Sight & Hearing Foundation – August 2, 2025 @ 8:00am MT School for the Deaf and the Blind, Great Falls, MT
District Cabinet Meeting – August 2 2025 @ 10:00am MT School for the Deaf and the Blind, Great Falls, MT
2026 DISTRICT 37 CONVENTION
MARK YOUR CALENDARS!!
APRIL 17-18, 2026, COLUMBIA FALLS, MT
LIONS CLUB INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION SCHEDULE
2025 Orlando, FL – July 13-17 (Updated)
2026 Hong Kong – Jul 3-7
2027 Washington DC – July 2-6
2028 Singapore -June 23-27
2029 Minneapolis, MN
2030 San Antonio TX
2031 – Helsinki Finland
UPCOMING USA/CANADA FORUMS
USA/CANADA LIONS LEADERSHIP FORUMS CAN BE RELATED TO ALL AREAS OF YOUR LIFE – NOT JUST LIONS
2025 Atlantic City, NJ – September 18-20
Registration is open online at
https://members.lionsforum.org/event-5804241/Registration
2026 Memphis TN – September 3 – 5
2027 Huntsville, AB – September 16-18
President Fabricio’s Final Message 2025
Make Your Mark with International President
Fabrício Oliveira
Dear Lion,
As I come to the end of my presidential year, I want to thank you all for making your mark through your dedicated service. Every time you served your community and invited a new member to join our mission, you helped us continue our legacy as the world’s greatest service organization.
While you celebrate your incredible accomplishments, now is also the perfect time to prepare your new officers for their roles and your clubs for the new year.
Congratulations once again on your achievements! I look forward to seeing how you continue making your mark as a Lion, every day, with every act of service.
At your service,
Fabrício Oliviera
International President
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