The club's weekly in-person meetings are temporarily suspended due to COVID-19. We are continuing to meet every Thursday via Zoom until further notice. If you would like to join us at our meetings, Contact Us and we'll get back to you.

Take care and stay safe.

Lions Donate $3,000 to 6 AISD Schools

On April 28, the Austin Founder Lions Club met at the headquarters of the Austin Independent School District and presented 6 checks of $500 each to the principals of 6 public schools. These were schools that are named after now deceased Lions Club members. The schools are: Boone Elementary School, named after Lion George Boone; Cowan Elementary School, named after Lion Dennis E. Cowan; Kocurek Elementary School, named after Lion Willie I. Kocurek; Pickle Elementary School, named after Lion J.J. "Jake" Pickle; Widen Elementary School, named after Lion Carl T. Widen; and Gus Garcia Young Men's Leadership Academy, named after Lion Gustavo L. "Gus" Garcia. The principals of each school explained how they planned to use the money for their school and students. After the presentation of the checks, AISD Superintendent and fellow Lion Stephanie S. Elizalde updated club members on AISD budget and academic issues.

Roses Have Been Delivered

These are trying times, and a show of appreciation goes a long way. Austin Founder Lions’ annual Rose Day is an opportunity to show your appreciation to those who make your life work – like teachers, co-workers, doctors, hairdressers, gym trainers, babysitters, etc. – as well as those friends and loved ones who are special to you. Austin Founder Lions will deliver boxed, long-stemmed red roses across the greater Austin area on March 24 with your personalized message. This is an affordable way to make someone’s day special and show your appreciation while supporting AFLC’s community service activities.

Rose Orders Closed - Roses Have Been Delivered

If there was any problem with the delivery of your roses, please send an email to roses@austindowntownlions.org

Casino Night on February 25 Was a Great Success!

Everyone had a great time at the Austin Founder Lions Casino Night on February 25. Our thanks to all who participated including our wonderful sponsors. We are still tallying up the donations received and will provide that information here very soon.  Thanks. 

Austin Founder Lions have served the community since 1916, and the oldest Lions Club in the world is still relevant today. After testing Head Start students in eight schools this past fall, AFLC hopes to resume vision screening of pre-kindergarten children in the Austin Independent School District this spring. You’ll see Lions at community events to provide vision screening for adults and children.  The club also:

• provides eye exams and glasses for uninsured community members;
• recycles eyeglasses;
• supports organizations such as Texas Lions Camp, which serves children with special medical needs at no charge to the family
• supports Leader Dogs for the Blind
• supports LCI Foundation which provides emergency assistance to disasters worldwide
• provides scholarships for graduates from the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired; and 
• helps at Meals on Wheels. 

Sporting Clay Shoot-Out Helps JDRF, NFL Alumni – Austin Chapter

After a pandemic-forced hiatus, the Austin Founder Lions Club brought back its almost annual Sporting Clay Shoot-out last fall. The event generated $10,900 for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, and $4,100 for the NFL Alumni – Austin Chapter, which partners with Austin Founder Lions to host the event.

Thank you to our generous sponsors, and congratulations to all the winners! Click here for more information, sponsor recognition and photos from the event. 

Mobile App for Austin Founder Lions Club Members

Austin Founder Lions Club now provides a mobile app to help members more easily stay in touch with club activities and their fellow club members. The app is available for both Apple and Android devices. It is provided by Wild Apricot.

Using this app, you can:

• See a list of upcoming events, register and pay for them.
• View the details of events you've signed up for.
• Find other members of the club and contact them.
• Update your personal profile.

    

Eyeglasses Recycling

Want to help us give sight to the world? Find local eyeglass recycling drop-off locations HERE

According to The World Health Organization, 153 million people have uncorrected refractive errors (near-sightedness, far-sightedness or astigmatism). Most of these vision impairments are quickly diagnosed and easy to treat with corrective lenses.

Still, millions of people in developing nations are pushed deeper into poverty simply because they don't have glasses. They can't learn, because reading is difficult. They can't work to the best of their ability, because they can't see clearly.

It costs Lions less than 8¢ to provide a pair of recycled eyeglasses and change someone's life. For children, clear vision means a better education, healthier development and a better quality of life. For adults, it means greater employment opportunity and economic strength. For seniors it means less dependence on others. Lions clubs collect millions of eyeglasses each year, making eyeglass recycling one of our most popular activities. Will you help us in our mission to give sight to the world? Donate your used glasses today!

A History of Quality and Service

Established in Austin Texas in 1916, our club has been known as the Austin Lions Club, the Lions Club of Austin, and the Downtown Lions Club. In 1976, the name was formally changed to the Founder Lions Club of Austin. We are now known as the Austin Founder Lions Club and the history of the Austin Founder Lions Club is a long one of quality and service.

Past and present members include many of the most prominent names in both Austin and Texas' history - U.S. Congressman J.J. "Jake" Pickle, Austin mayor Gus Garcia, both Willie Kocurek and his son Neal Kocurek, and more - all dedicated to the service of humanity through the spirit of Lionism and its many community outreach programs.

We admit we are a bit proud of our status as the "world's oldest continuously operating Lions Club", but, we like to think that our efforts in community service are typical of Lions Clubs the world over. It's a story of garage sales, golf tournaments, rose sales and other kinds of fund raisers. It's a story of answering the needs of the community and of disadvantaged groups and individuals, through efforts such as our Eyeglasses Recycling program, support of the Texas Lions Camp and the Lone Star Eye Bank, eyeglasses for students and other projects. And it's a story of building and working with other Lions Clubs to promote teamwork in service.

We are perhaps most proud, however, to be a part of Lions Clubs International, which provides the opportunity to support nonpartisan service activities that are worldwide in scope. Through Lions International we can help fight blindness and other social problems around the world while promoting international understanding, and that's what makes our association so special. The club participates in projects with other clubs in surrounding counties known as Lions District 2-S3.