Lions Club wins fundraising raffle, gets visit from president

The Seaford Lions Club won a raffle — and the prize was to spend a lunch day with Douglas Alexander, the past international president of Lions Clubs International, on Aug. 15.

Alexander appeared at the Seaford Lions Club’s summer social event, spending time with Seaford members as winners of the club raffle. 

The Seaford members welcomed Alexander with open arms and some summer grilling, and the past international president was even honored by state Sen. Steve Rhoads, who presented Alexander with a proclamation from the State Senate, thanking him for his service to communities around the world.

“His legend certainly precedes him,” Rhoads said of Alexander. “He does so much good for our community, and it’s special to have the opportunity to honor him, because here’s someone who’s traveling the world and spreading the work that the Lions do.”

Lions Clubs International is the world’s largest service club organization with around 1.4 million members and more than 40,000 clubs throughout the world. Alexander said he has traveled to Korea, Thailand, Australia, Taiwan, and many other regions of the world to spread his work, but his introduction to helping communities began in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, where he joined the Lions Club in 1984.

He attended meetings and enjoyed the club’s activities in improving communities, but Alexander said a pivotal moment in his early membership came during the fall. Around Thanksgiving, Alexander volunteered to deliver meals to less fortunate families in the neighborhood. He recalled the time he dropped off a Thanksgiving turkey to a family residence, and the mother’s outward appreciation made him realize he was on the right path.

“When you see the faces of people when you help them, it’s priceless,” Alexander said, “because you know you’re doing something good.”

Since then, Alexander has made numerous contributions to his community, such as being a transporter for the Lions Eye Bank, a not-for-profit organization that recovers and delivers donated eye tissue to fight corneal blindness. 

Decades of helping his community led Alexander to become vice president of the International Lions Club, receiving the call on Jan. 7, 2020. He said he had to think about it before accepting the position, because he didn’t want to take on the responsibility if he didn’t think he could give it his all.

His family convinced him to accept the role, and the following year he became the first Black international president in the club’s 106-year history.

“We truly make a difference in people’s lives,” Alexander said. “As we build our life’s legacy, we ask, ‘What did you do while you were here to make a difference?’” 

That feeling was shared with the Seaford Lions Club, a nonprofit organization that encompasses volunteers from different backgrounds, including landscapers, funeral directors, judges and attorneys, who just want to help.

“You don’t have to be in a business.” Seaford Lions Club member Charles Wroblewski said of the group. “All you have to do is be there and work, and every one of these people are good workers.”

The Seaford Lions Club has been heavily active in the community. In the past year, the club reported taking part in around 100 service activities and providing more than 2,000 volunteer hours. They host a blood drive every February, and transport corneas through the Lions Eye Bank of Long Island. 

“They’re a phenomenal club,” Lorri Reiger, member of the Lions Clubs International Foundation, said of the Seaford club. “They do a lot of service. They fundraise so they can do the service, and they support a lot of foundations.”     

Recently, the Seaford Lions Club has been donating money to provide aid to those affected by disasters, such as the Maui wildfires. In Seaford, the club has helped fund food pantries, give out scholarships, organize fundraisers and support youth organizations.

For George Brennan, president of the Seaford Lions Club, charity work comes natural to him. He grew up as a Boy Scout, altar boy and even helped run a basketball league for his parish. He hands out pocket constitutions to new members and scholarship recipients, highlighting the last line of the Declaration of Independence, where they pledge their honor, their fortunes, and their lives for the country and each other.    

“Everything we do deals with moral and ethical responsibilities,” Brennan said of the Seaford Lions.