Upcoming service club open house aims to net new members
Jerry Volk joined the North Royalton Lions Club to honor the legacy of a lost friend. Geneva Prince didn’t think she had the time or the money to join the Rotary Club, but finally gave in at the fervent request of a friend. New to the city in 1959, newlywed Ada Ahrens and her husband joined a service organization to meet people and plant roots in their new city. Recently retired and “on the periphery” at Royalton Hills Lions Club meetings, Jacky Grimm was so enlightened by all the ways she could help people that she formally joined the vibrant group and even went on to serve as president.
There are many different life paths that lead people to join a service organization and no matter which route they take to get there; all paths wind up at the same grateful place.
Members of local service clubs will be on-hand to share their stories, exchange information and garner new members at an upcoming Service Club Open House set for 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. March 7 at North Royalton High School. The second annual event is an ideal way for residents to learn more about local service opportunities and club membership.
Door prizes will be awarded, in addition to free food and refreshments served. Attendees can use driveway #2 and door 13 to access the free event, which will be set up in Cafeteria 1, according to an informational flier posted on the City’s Facebook page. Representatives from the Rotary, Royalton Hills Lions, North Royalton Lions, Garden Club, Holiday Lighting Committee, Historical Society, Community Emergency Response Team (CERT), North Royalton Alumni Association, Community Band and Chamber of Commerce will be in attendance to meet with visitors.
“It was really amazing last year,” Grimm said of last year’s inaugural event. “The people there last year came because something about their life had changed, like they were new to the community, they were recently retired and wanted to see how they could give back, others were becoming empty-nesters and suddenly the time commitment of taking kids to lessons wasn’t there, some were families with children who had more free time in the summers and wanted to volunteer in the summer months. Joining a service club is not like having another job. It’s as much time as you can afford to give. It probably adds up to a couple hours a month.”
The event will be set up similar to an expo, with attendees walking from table to table visiting with service members and learning more about the mission and work of each group. Each group will have an interactive display with literature, photos and take-home material.
“They are all vital to the city,” said Mayor Larry Antoskiewicz of North Royalton’s service organizations. “They all help in a lot of different ways that take the burden off the city. Sometimes people don’t actually realize how much they do.”
North Royalton’s various service chapters have done everything – and more – from purchase technology for the schools, award yearly scholarships to graduating seniors, beautify the city with flowers and various structures, organize Easter egg hunts and other popular city events, donate funds for school trips, hold blood drives, adorn the city with Christmas lights and holiday festivities, visit nursing homes and pediatric hospitals, commemorate local history, assist with food bank distribution and pick up litter on city streets. Their goodwill efforts and generosity extends beyond North Royalton as well, with funds donated to help fight pediatric cancer, fund diabetes research, construct sensory gardens and assist countries overcoming natural disasters, among many other causes. Their accomplishments are numerous, growing, and can go unnoticed with little fanfare.
Jerry Volk, a retired local teacher who serves as president of the North Royalton Lions, recalled a time where his group, which advocates for the blind and visually impaired, helped a local high schooler get glasses.
“I had no idea he couldn’t see the board, but our local Lions chapter got him glasses so he could see,” Volk said. “We identify folks who are financially hurting, and we help them get eyewear for free.”
Longtime Rotarian and Holiday Lighting Committee member Geneva Prince has assisted with numerous service projects over the years and is excited to continue the legacy of the annual Easter Egg Hunt, previously hosted by the now defunct Kiwanis Club. The Rotary Club will partner with members of the high school Key Club for the April 5 event at Memorial Park.
North Royalton Garden Club President Pam Wetterau said the upcoming Service Club Open House is a great way to understand the enthusiasm members have for what they do.
“My organization, the Garden Club, is not just a bunch of ‘old ladies’ talking about geraniums,” she said in an email. “For more than 70 years we have tried to stay in touch with the needs of the time – war time victory gardens, early days of recycling, and now, how our efforts can help mitigate our environmental issues, better use of, and management of, our land and water. Each back yard has the opportunity to plant a tree and some flowering plants to feed bees, butterflies, and birds, or to plant some vegetables to help feed your family.”
Each one of North Royalton’s service organizations has a different focus and the March 7 open house can shed light on their activities and causes.
“It doesn’t matter if you are new or seasoned, if you want to get involved, if you want to meet people, if you just want to find out what your options are and things you can do, if you want to help people; to me this is an ideal place to go and learn all of your options,” said Ada Ahrens of the Royalton Hills Lions Club and an active member of Royal Redeemer Lutheran Church. “This is a true cross section of everything that’s out there. One of the things we made sure as Lions is that we gave out good, solid information and that we didn’t put any pressure on anybody. Everybody is there just to give out information about who they are, what they do and how they help their community.”
By SARA MACHO HILL
Contributing Writer