Newcastle Lions Club annual appeal for recycling items for Africa underway.

On Saturday 13th May between 9.00 am and 3.00 pm ,Newcastle Lions Club will hold their annual recycling appeal to help people in Africa. Through the great generosity of the owner Daniel Mc Cann, the drop off point for the collection will be at Mc Cann's Fish & Chip Shop Main Street Newcastle. The Lions wish to stress that under no circumstances ,nothing is left at Mc Cann's until the Saturday of the collection. As in previous years, the Lions are looking for, good or broken tools such as saws, hammers or spades. Sewing machines both treadle and electrical and adult bicycles, rusty or good. Newcastle Lions are already running a fantastic recycling programme for used spectacles, if you wish you can leave these also.

The Lions have been thrilled to hear about the fantastic work of the Downpatrick based Tools for Solidarity. As part of the Lions annual collection , tools and sewing machines are despatched to TFS. Today the group has two volunteers, John and Sofia working in Tanzania. They are, helping to train students how to use a sewing machine so that they then can become self sufficient . Downpatrick and Belfast TFS have three training centres in Iringa, Mwanza and Njombe Tanzania. In December 2022 , TFS sent out a container of sewing machines and tool kits to Iringa. In Tanzania TFS volunteers are also providing vocational training for people with a disability . As part of this project those with a disability will receive, training ,tools or a sewing machine and some small capital to start their own business. If you have a sewing machine but are unable to bring it to Newcastle, please contact the Lions on 07725725932 for collection.

Newcastle Lions members, Marian Mc Greevy and Lion President Liz Murphy with Teresa Mc Cann and Daniel Mc Cann and lions Robin Mc Caren, Terry O'Reilly and Dan O'Reilly display some of the items the Lions hope will be donated on Saturday 13th May at the drop off point at Mc Cann's Fish & Chip shop.

Sewing machines donated previously from County Down now being used to help families in the Njombe village South Tanzania.

Lions make a push for defibrillator appeal

Following a fantastic collection in February for Lions International's Turkey Appeal at Base Coffee, Lion President Liz was thrilled to be invited by Base owner Charlie Magennis to hold another collection over the Easter weekend 8th & 9th April.

Having had to abandon the February collection which was to help the club's defibrillator appeal, when the Turkey Earthquake disaster occurred, the club collected instead for that. With the club still needing to find some finance to pay for replacement parts for the defibrillators located around the town, they were pleased to make the Easter appeal for the defibrillators. As well as maintaining and inspecting ten defibrillators located in Castlewellan, Maghera and Newcastle, the club are now at the planning stage of providing minimal awareness training in CPR and defibrillator use. The club have secured premises for training and are currently finalising dates over a three day period.

In other news regarding Newcastle Lions, on Thursday the club were thrilled to make a presentation regarding their recycling initiatives for spectacles and other useable products such as sewing machines, tools and bicycles at the Northern Ireland Resource Network Connecting and reconnecting day at CAN, Compass Advocacy Network at Lislagan Farm Ballymoney .CAN is a bold and creative organisation supporting children, young people and adults with learning disabilities ,autism and mental health issues on the North Coast of Northern Ireland .Representatives from many of the local councils, Bogside & Brandywell Initiative ,Bogside & Brandywell Initiative , CAN, East Belfast Mission, Queens and Ulster Universities and from Galway CRNI listened how the club had sent nearly 8,000 pairs of spectacles last year to Lions Medico France as well as helping three other charities with the products already mentioned. The club were invited to make a thirty minute podcast on their work , which NIRN will make available to help promote their message of reuse and repair.

Photograph. Newcastle Lions members Lion President Liz Murphy, our lion, and lions Tom Hughes Marian Mc Greevy and John Mc Donagh at Base Coffee

Newcastle Lions thank local opticians for helping repair and reuse of old spectacles.

Newcastle Lions are now providing suitable bins to our local opticians and also to some opticians in Belfast who have requested these, to take donations of glasses.

The bins help promote the work of the club with a contact phone number and the poster on it is eye catching . The glasses go to Lions Medico France where they are cleaned and distributed around the world to people in need. The club recently joined the Northern Ireland Resource Network. This group encourages environmental awareness, promotes ,rethink, reuse , repair and has many members whose details are on their website. In a first the club applied for a grant promoted by NIRN for their senior citizens outing

The club continues to try and attract new members . At Easter Lions will return to Base Coffee to try again and hold their defibrillator maintenance fund collection. Previously the collection was dropped when the Turkey earthquake occurred on the 10th February 2023. As part of the collection, club members will take names of those who would like to have CPR/Defibrillator awareness training , which hopefully will be taking place at the end of May in Newcastle, or even want to join the club.

Newcastle Lions President Liz Murphy checks the quality of the spectacles recycling bins going to opticians.