Morrison Lions elected Tracy Muur as President and Darlene Smith as Vice President. Jim Blakemore was re-elected Treasurer, and Bob Countryman will again serve as Secretary. Clarence Harridge was elected Lion Tamer; Ken Jansma was elected Tail Twister. Officers will be formally installed this summer, prior to the start of the Lions year beginning in September.
Recently The American Legion contacted the Lions Club regarding replacement of the flagpole located by Lake Carlton at Morrison-Rockwood State Park. The existing pole did not survive a very windy winter. The cost was split between the organizations. It is good when two community groups can work together to take care of a need. Thank you to The American Legion for their help with this project.
The club will participate in the Community Recycle Day on Saturday, June 18, 2016, from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at Morrison Junior High School. We will collect glasses, cell phones, hearing aids, and keys. An annual donation was also made to Camp Lions, which provides camping experiences to visual- and hearing-impaired children and adults.
Keith Hamstra, left, was in charge of the Tuesday, April 5, meeting. Once again Mike Senneff, right, from Fulton, IL, presented a very informational program about two close friends, Henry Dornbusch and Marvin Hook, from Fulton. They were fellow classmates, who both received draft notices on the same day in November 1942. They were on the same bus going from Fulton to the induction center in Chicago, IL. They ultimately were assigned to the 103rd Infantry Division anti-tank gun crews. They were in training together at Camp Claiborne, LA, from December 1942 to November 1943. Henry was married while he was in training at Camp Claiborne to Ruth Hockman from Morrison, IL. Ultimately, both young men were sent for advanced training to a camp in Texas from November 1943 to September 1944. When that training ended they arrived at Camp Shanks in New York and shipped to Europe. Both served in Marseilles, France, but in different capacities. During an operation in mid-March 1945 where there were heavy casualties, Hook recognized the body of his good friend, Dornbusch. He was still wearing a bracelet that his bride had given to him. A question-and-answer period followed. It was a sad story but definitely tells the realities of the men who served then and now to keep our Country free.
Ken Jansma will have the program for our meeting on Tuesday, May 3. Meetings are held on the first and third Tuesday of each month at Happy Joe’s, 109 W. Main Street, Morrison, at noon. We cordially invite anyone interested in knowing more about what Lions do to attend any of our meetings. You can also visit our website at
www.e-clubhouse.org/sites/morrisonil.