Three guests in one night

The club hosted Lions first vice district governor Geoff Turnbull and second vice district governor Julie Ballard, as part of the district executive’s regular tour of the region.

Their discussions centred on the work of Lions in the community and the importance of recruiting members to continue the good work into the future.

Deniliquin Lions president Richard Fogarty said complementing the discussion perfectly was the induction of Rae McAuliffe as a Lions member on the evening.

“Rae’s mother Janine Lawrence is our secretary, and she encouraged her daughter to also get involved,” Mr Fogarty said.

“Driving membership of our club also drives what we as a club can do in our community, and we would welcome others coming on board.

“Our Lions Club gets involved in many projects, and runs the monthly Lions Community Markets in the Deniliquin Waring Gardens (on the fourth Saturday of each month).

“We’ll also be ramping up our Christmas activities very soon, including the sale of Lions Christmas cakes and the stocking raffle in conjunction with IGA.”

The third special guest at the Lions meeting was dementia nurse and now author Isabel Baker.

Mr Fogarty and wife Pat, also a Lion, met the author after their son Ged was diagnosed with younger onset dementia.

When they learned she was in the region to speak with the teams at Orana and Navorina, they asked if she would speak with Lions members about her book The A to Z of Dementia Care.

“We heard her talk in Wagga when we first brought Ged back to Deni, and she even came to see Ged a few times,’ Mr Fogarty said.

“Her book shares stories of different care methods and how to cope, and I would recommend it to anyone who has a family member or loved one with dementia.

“At Lions she spoke about the basics of dementia and, although she did not speak long, it was very informative.”

Anyone interested in learning more about Lions is asked to contact Mr Fogarty on 5881 5641 or 0407 815 641.