What is a Leo Club?
A Leo Club is a youth organization of the Lions Club International. The first Leo Club was charted on 5 December 1957 by Jim Graver, the coach of the Abington High School, Pennsylvania baseball team. He was an active member of the Glenside Lions Club. The club was founded with the help of William Ernst, another local Lion. It adopted the high school's colors of maroon and gold.The word Leo stands for:
Leadership - Experience - Opportunity
Leo Clubs encourage youths to develop leadership qualities by participating in social service activities. A Lions Club sponsors, initiates, and helps support a Leos Club. Leo Clubs participate in a variety of projects - health care, elderly, children with disabilities, education and literacy, and self-development. These projects can be done by the club alone, with the help of another Leo Club, the sponsoring Lions Club, or an outside organization. To collect funds, the club can conduct fundraisers.
Leo Club meetings are conducted similar to a Lions Club. Members call each other, Leos - much like Lions Club members call each other, Lions. Officers consist of a president, vice-president, secretary, treasurer, and board of directors. Meetings are held monthly for the club and the board.
Who can join?
Anyone between the ages of 12 - 18 years of age can join the Leos Club. After 18, they may join a Campus Lions Club, if attending a college or university after high school graduation, or a local Lions Club.