An organization has to take in more money than it expends. That’s Business 101, even for a nonprofit. We serve, and there is nothing I like to talk about more than service! However, it’s a fact that a club has to have sufficient funds in its coffers to conduct service projects and make much- needed donations in their community and to our Lion affiliates – LCIF, Alabama Lions Sight, Helen Keller Memorial, Alabama Lions Eyeglass Recycling Center, etc. Accordingly, every year, year in and year out, our clubs find unique, creative ways to raise vital funds from the public to use in service. The variety of fundraisers executed by 34B clubs is astounding! One of my favorites things as I travel around the district is discovering how each club makes money. I am always amazed and proud of how the clubs have carved out a niche in their community! From horse shows in Northside, to a turkey shoot in Leeds, to a duck race in West Elmore, we promote and execute these programs with precision after years of practice. Each club has stories to tell, sometimes “big fish” stories, about how long their fundraiser has been in existence, about quirky things that have happened over the years, and about the comradery the annual event brings to their members. Faces glow with pride as these stories are recounted. Sometimes when our newer clubs struggle, it’s partially because they cannot seem to get a toehold in their town. Other service clubs may have the main events locked down after doing them for decades. It’s important that these clubs are the beneficiaries of the great ideas our established clubs have brought to fruition. Whether you are touting “Vino for Vision” in Hoover, the “Charity Poker Run” on Lake Martin in Alexander City, or you’re cruising “Cars on the Coosa” in Wetumpka, please report these events in the Lions Portal to celebrate your success and lend inspiration to our newer Lions. I also love to hear how Lions have taken a fundraiser they have executed for 25+ years and are still looking, every single year, to improve execution. How in the world do you go from sponsoring a community beauty pageant to adding an auction where 33 baskets of peaches go for over $80,000? I’m looking at you, Clanton Noon Lions Club! We all know beauty and talent are big business and the Clanton Noon, Clanton Evening Lions Club, and the Jemison Lions have turned their pageants into a well-oiled machine. Some of our club’s fundraisers are large and high profile, while some are small and discreet, but they are all effective! This year, the Anniston Lions Run for Sight sold so many sponsorships for the official participant shirt that the printer had to tell them no more could be added. Now that’s a problem we should all have! Although every club is different and fundraisers run the gamut, they all have one thing in common and that is Lions finding a way. Our small but mightly club in Oxford sells Christmas trees annually, our Autaugaville Lions Club makes dollars from selling raffle tickets for a multi-night stay in a mountain cabin, and our Northport Lions cook up a delicious “Big Country Breakfast” in their community. Not to be outdone, our Liberty City/Reeltown Club raffles select firearms and our Greensboro Lions Club runs concessions at sporting events. From the simple to the complex, the small to the large, the less than $1,000 to the over $80,000, our Lions can compete with the best when it comes to fundraising to keep service alive in their communities. If your club is not highlighted in this article, stay tuned, because it will be in the future. Every club counts! DG Tracy Thompson