Category: Reports

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Choteau Lions Club’s New Constitution and Bylaws

The Choteau Lions Club is thrilled to announce the adoption of our newly-updated Constitution and Bylaws. As a club dedicated to serving our community and enhancing our operations, this essential update reflects our commitment to best practices and to the principles of Lions International. The new governance documents follow the Lions International Club Constitution and Bylaws template, with a couple of key modifications that honor our longstanding local practices.

Key Modifications:

  1. Biennial Elections/Officer Terms: Unlike the standard annual cycle, we have codified our tradition of holding officer elections every two years, ensuring a smoother transition between leadership teams and allowing for strategic continuity.
  2. Four-Year Director Terms: We extended the alternating director terms to four years, reinforcing stability and continuity in decision-making while providing ample time for directors to implement meaningful initiatives.

Hosting on Gitbooks:

You can now access these updated documents easily and conveniently via our new Gitbooks platform at docs.choteaulions.club. By hosting them on Gitbooks instead of our WordPress website, we can offer a modern, user-friendly platform that:

  • Improves Accessibility: The intuitive and responsive design adapts to any device, making it easier for all our members and stakeholders to stay informed.
  • Enhances Searchability: With Gitbooks’ built-in search features, you can quickly locate specific articles or sections, improving productivity and reducing the frustration of manual searches.
  • Facilitates Version Control: The platform’s version control functionality ensures that all users have access to the most current and accurate documents while maintaining a transparent update history.
  • Supports Collaboration: Gitbooks enables real-time collaboration among our leadership and committee members, streamlining future updates and making the editing process more efficient.

We encourage all members to review these documents and familiarize themselves with the updates. Your understanding and engagement with our governance framework help ensure that the Choteau Lions Club continues to operate with excellence, transparency, and dedication to our mission.

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Choteau Bandshell Progresses with Help from Lions Club and Community

The Choteau Lions Club has been working hard to bring a permanent bandshell stage to the Choteau City Park adjacent to the Choteau Pavilion and Community Center. After local musician and Lions Club member Rich Clough presented the idea, the City of Choteau agreed to a location, and the Lions received an outpouring of support from the community. Donations and pledges of financial support, including a generous donation from the First Bank of Montana, provided the Lions with the confidence that this project could be accomplished and would be a welcomed asset for the community.

Lions Rich Clough and Sean Darby led the fundraising and construction efforts, and progress has been steady. Last fall, a concrete stage was constructed, and during the fall and winter months, large timber support materials were purchased and milled in Western Montana. Once they were transported to Choteau, winter work was done indoors to get ready for erection of the shell framework.

Following the recent Choteau Chamber of Commerce Annual Easter Egg Hunt at the park, the timbers were transported to the park area, and Lions Club members completed sanding the timbers while Sean and Dave began the process of measuring, notching, and preparing the framework for its erection. Once the framing is up and secured to the concrete stage, it will be ready for roofing and enclosing the side walls. Electricity for lighting and music equipment outlets will then be installed.

The Lion’s Club hopes the Bandshell will be ready to use over the 4th of July weekend, and the community is welcome to watch the progress of the project during the next couple of months. Donations for the completion of this project are welcomed and would be greatly appreciated. Donations can be made online or checks can be mailed to:

Choteau Lions Club
PO Box 633
Choteau, MT 59422

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Tennis Courts, Swimming Pool, and Band Shell: Lions Club Makes Progress on Three Projects

First Bank of Montana-Choteau Vice President Karrie Crabtree and President Lyle Hodgskiss stand with Choteau Lions Club member Rich Clough last week at the site of the new permanent band shell being built this summer with a major $20,000 from the bank to start the project rolling. Acantha photo by Melody Martinsen

Back in 2017, the Choteau Lions Club launched a fundraising campaign through a hunting gun raffle in a bid to renovate the tennis courts situated across the street from the swimming pool. The initial target was to generate between $30,000 to $40,000 for the project, which was later revised upwards. With three more gun raffles in 2018, 2019, and 2021, the club managed to raise the required $40,000. Unfortunately, the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic resulted in a delay in the renovation work due to rising costs.

Continue reading Tennis Courts, Swimming Pool, and Band Shell: Lions Club Makes Progress on Three Projects
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2018 Trip of the Month Vacation Giveaway

2018 is the 6th season for the new Choteau Lions Swim Pool. Since the new pool opened in 2013, completion projects and additional improvements have been a work in progress. The Choteau Lions Swim Team families and the Lions hosted a swim meet in June 2017 at the Choteau Lions Swim Pool for the first time in many years. In July 2018, Choteau hosted the Divisional Swim Meet. The Choteau Lions Club continues to sell engraved bathhouse wall tiles to fund the pool’s long-term repair and replacement expenses. The main source of funding for the pool’s annual operating costs is the Choteau Lions Trip-of-the-Month vacation giveaway program. This project has been the lifeblood of support for pool operation and maintenance for the past 24 years.

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Agenda for Meeting March 5, 2018

John Henry’s at 6:30 pm

Agenda

  • Call the meeting to Order
  • Introduction of guests
  • Minutes of the February 19th Meeting
  • Grace

Program

  • Choteau High School Principal Wendy Hammond

Old Business

  • Nominating Committee Report
  • Joel Alzeheimer Award criterion

New Business

  • Port Authority/MEDA request – Steve Dogiakos
  • Be My Eyes app information – Steve Dogiakos

Committee Reports

  • Calendar Committee report
  • Gun Raffle Committee report

Drawings

  • 50/50

Adjourn

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Minutes of February 19, 2018 Meeting

The meeting was called to order by President Stan at 6:30 pm. The minutes of the February 5th regular meeting and the February 12th Board of Director meeting were read and approved as written.

Program

Cassidy DeBruycker and Faith Shepherd of the Choteau High School speech and debate team presented their “Humorous Duo” program for the club membership. This was an outstanding presentation and they won first place at State with this duo. Only 3 other students from Choteau High have ever won first place at the state competition.

Old Business

Clayton discussed the Joel Alzheimer Award project. He suggested that we develop some criterion to base our selection of future awards. The criterion should be broad-based and should celebrate volunteerism in Choteau. All of the work that Jack and Clayton have put into this project is really appreciated.

New Business

President Stan said that the Lions Club Committee assignments have been sent out to the membership. If anyone wants to be on different committees or to be taken off of committees, members need to contact Stan or Tom.

Committee Reports

Community Calendar

Gary reported that the Acantha is in the process of printing the community birthday calendars and they will be delivered to the Lions by mid -March.

Gun Raffle

Don said that Bucks Sporting Goods is working to purchase the guns on our list for the gun raffle. The gun raffle committee cannot proceed with printing until they are sure the guns are available.

Drawings

The winner of the February 2018 trip of the month to Universal Studios was Amy Ameline.

50/50 winner: Joe Haas

There being no further business the meeting was adjourned at 7:45 pm.

Respectfully Submitted,

Thomas D. Rogers, Secretary

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Agenda for Meeting February 19, 2018

Due to bad weather Terina Hill will not be able to make it to our February 19th meeting to present her program. So we will meet at John Henry’s for our Monday evening meeting and not at the Boy Scout hall. The order we placed with John Henry’s for 8 pizzas to be delivered to
the Scout hall has been cancelled.

We will have Faith Shepherd and Cassidy DeBruycker of the high school speech and debate team present their “Humorous Duo” program. This will be a very entertaining program and look forward to seeing everyone.

Secretary Tom
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