Why should I join?
You’ll get an opportunity to make new friends as we work and serve the local community; you’ll meet lots of people in Witney and the surrounding villages in West Oxfordshire.
You will be able to involve the whole family; your partner or children can come to the Witney Carnival and help out, or join you at any of our social functions. Your partner would also be very welcome helping out with our Christmas float and static collections.
We can give you the chance to become involved in local fund-raising initiatives and progress to running one of the clubs committees when you feel confident to do it. The choice of what and how much you do is down to you, this can be as little as 3 hours per month. We organise and get involved in a wide variety of fund-raising events and activities to help the local needy.
Friends of Lions
We have a number of people at present who are Friends of Lions, these may be ex-members, or the family of ex-members. For a variety of work or personal reasons, they feel unable to be full members of the club, but still like to help out on occasion and attend some social functions. Others have never joined the club, but again want to help out in their local community. Friends of Lions do not pay membership fees or have voting rights, but are very welcome in the club.
I am Pam, one of three new Lions inducted and welcomed at the meeting in February 2020.
When my family were younger I was involved with Scouts, Toddler Groups and the local school PTA. One of the key activities we all looked forward to was the Carnival and the visit from Santa at Christmas. I knew that the Witney Lions were key to these memorable events and that as a local charity they were involved in the surrounding communities.
As time went on and my children grew older the focus shifted away from these activities and organisations. Then, a few years later as I sat at the Witney Carnival in 2019 enjoying a beer at the Lions beer tent and tucking into a freshly prepared roll, I realised that I missed the enjoyment that taking part in fundraising and volunteering my local community area brings to you. Now that the children have grown up and flown the nest I have time to become actively involved in this again, so I approached the Witney Lions Club about getting involved in their activities.
In December 2020, despite Covid restrictions and the cold weather, it was a joy to see the childrens’ faces when they got to meet Santa on the statics we were able to do.
When I was (much!) younger, my father, a Lions member, brought me along delivering food parcels to those in need within our local community over the festive period. That night I learned first hand that I was extremely lucky to have such a comfortable and happy life, and how vital it was to support those within our community not so fortunate. Ever since, I have volunteered for the Lions and have loved every single event I have been apart of; from car parking duties, collections around Witney, sweet drops with Santa, to beer tents (my favourite!). The Lions are an amazing, caring, funny, driven bunch of people that need the younger generation to support this wonderful charity, which has given so much to our town and beyond over many decades, and we need you to ensure it can continue for many more. I am very excited to become a fully fledged member, and hope one day I will take my own children to deliver those Christmas packages!
‘My husband, who has been a member of Lions for more than 30 years, encouraged me to join. I always want to help others who need it and I had been a volunteer for different organisations for years in my home country, Vietnam. I believe everybody has compassion in their hearts and joining Lions awakens that’
How do I join?
If you would like to know more or have any questions, please email the Membership team at membership@witneylions.org.uk.
One of the best ways is to come along to one of our regular monthly business meetings, which are held on the second Monday of the month at The Blue Boar in Witney at 7.30 pm.