A brief look at the history of the Savonranta Lions Club.
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Chapter 1 â What is the Lions organization? –  Top
The Lions Club is the world’s largest service organization, founded by Melvin Jones from the United States in 1917. The organization is religiously and politically neutral. The organization’s mission is to bring help to people in need. LC Savonranta operates locally in its own village, nationwide throughout Finland, and participates in international relief projects.
The Lions idea was brought to Finland by Lion Arne Ritari from Canada in 1950. That year, the first club, LC Helsinki-Helsingfors, was founded. Soon clubs were founded all over Finland.
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Chapter 2 â LC Savonrantaâs founding phase –  Top
Lions Club Savonranta was founded on April 1, 1967 and Charter Night, or the founding ceremony, was held on August 26, 1967. Charter Night means that the club is officially presented with a charter, or founding document. After the ceremony, the club is officially part of the global Lions network and is committed to the Lions values: service, volunteer work and community support.
The founding meeting of LC Savonranta was held at Koskikara Bar. The founding members were business owner Alpo HeikkilÀ from Savonrantan Osuuskauppa, municipal secretary Mikko Hiltunen from Savonranta municipality, farmer Pekka-Heikki Kansanen from Savonranta, economic advisor Ukko-Pekka Kansanen from Savonranta, merchant Aarne Laukkanen from SÀimene, construction manager Martti Makkonen from Savonranta municipality, farmer Seppo J. Mononen from Savonranta, forestry technician Reino Okkonen from Savonranta, forestry technician Jaakko PÀÀkkönen from Savonranta, farmer Jussi-Pekka Sairanen from Hankavaara, pilot Tauno SeppÀlÀinen from Savonranta, elementary school teacher Veikko Tabell from Rönkönvaara, police constable Risto Tikka from Savonranta, merchant Raimo Turunen from Savonranta and elementary school teacher Taisto Virtanen from Savonranta.
The first meeting place of LC Savonranta was a community college and the meeting day was always the second Friday of the month. In the 1967-1968 season, the club’s first president was Jussi-Pekka Sairanen, the secretary was Reino Okkonen, and the treasurer was Raimo Turunen.
A celebration in Sampola. Mikko Alatalo performed.
Chapter 3 â Activities –  Top
The first activities included rolling lumber, growing oats for Christmas wreaths, doing forestry work, selling Christmas trees and helping families in need.
Cooperation was carried out with other associations active in the community. Among other things, a broomball match was played with the Marttas and a propeller relay was organized. The club challenged the municipal government to a cross-country ski relay.
The club distributed scholarships to schoolchildren and helped adults in need, including helping a man injured in a traffic accident with farming and gathering firewood, and helping a war invalid with the construction of a residential building.
Even today, LC Savonranta distributes grants to low-income families with children and people living alone. Scholarships are awarded to schoolchildren, summer and winter camps are organized for children, and those in need are assisted in the event of a fire or other disaster. The locals can thank the lions for the completion of the new market roof.
Broomball match against Marta
Ready for a broomball match
Environmental care
Chapter 4 â Spouse activity –Â Top
The spouses’ motto: “Gentleness discourages a scoundrel, kindness a spiteful one, generosity a stingy one, truth a liar.”
The spouses of the Lions, or ladies, had their own activities until October 8, 2013, when they decided to stop their separate gatherings and work together with the Lions.
The spouses raise funds by organizing coffee breaks at various events. Examples of these include the coffee break organized in Sampola during the interval of the play “Kihlaus” performed by the Savonlinna Theater, the cultural event of Savonranta’s 140th anniversary, and the Regional Children’s Spring Festival. The spouses have also been in charge of the buffet at the school disco. The spouses have held a flea market and organized Christmas sales on the ground floor of the former Sale.
They have also raised funds by felting silk scarves and casting candles, which were sold at the Savonranta KÀdentaitajien shop in the Vuokala mill. The couple lit 384 candles. Silk scarves were felted as volunteer work several times, including in Sampola, at a holiday home and at Rönkkötalo.
A few summers ago, the couple organized a concert at the Monninsaari manor, where beautiful baroque music was performed by the players of the Savonlinna Opera Orchestra. The funds raised from the concerts were donated to talented music students in their own community.
The couple has used the funds they have raised, for example, by organizing recreation days for caregivers. At the recreation day organized in 2009, caregivers were able to go to the Savonlinna Theater to watch the play “My Aunt is from Another Country.” During the intermission, they were offered coffee and, after the performance, a meal at the Majaka restaurant.
Some of the funds were used to organize a recreation day on PÀivÀrinte. Participants in the recreation day received massages, pedicures, facials and barber services. Participants in the recreation day were provided with a ride from remote villages.
The couple knitted and donated 21 scarves to the cancer ward of Savonlinna Central Hospital to be given to women who have had breast cancer surgery. The yarn used for the scarves was donated by Novita Oy.
As for the criteria for scholarships awarded to children from Savonranta, the couple hoped that when deciding on scholarships, teachers would take into account sociability, activity, willingness to help and encouragement, without forgetting the student’s financial situation. Scholarships have also been given to 4H club members. For school trips, the couple distributed assistance of âŹ200â1,000 in several years, depending on the situation at hand.
The couple has remembered the elderly with various donations. Together with the Lions, the couple donated albs for confirmed children to the parish. Two car seats have been donated to the Savonranta clinic, funds were donated for a pain pump to be purchased for Savonlinna Central Hospital and a heart starter to be purchased for VPK. The Finnish Cancer Society was remembered with a donation and a sofa to be purchased for a nursing home was financed.
In the spring of 1993, the couple adopted a godchild from Sri Lanka. The child’s name is K. G. Rohani and he is the 367th godchild in the godchild program started by the Finnish Lions Club in 1986. The couple remembered the godchild in other ways than just paying the godchild fee. They sent the child birthday and Christmas gift money and bought a school backpack.
Chapter 5 – Childrenâs summer and winter camps –Â Top
LC Savonranta has been involved in organizing children’s summer and winter camps since 2004. At first, the camps were organized together with the Sortavala Creative Work Center in Savonranta and Sortavala in alternating years. The first camp was held at the parish camp in Kirveslahti. A busload of children arrived from Sortavala with their instructors. The children from Savonranta visited Sortavala in turn. One summer, the camp was organized as an international language camp at the East Karelian Folk High School in Punkaharju. At the camp, the children from Savonranta studied Russian for four hours a day, and the Russian children studied Finnish in turn. The rest of the day was spent on trips, swimming, and various games. In recent years, camps have been organized only for children from Savonranta. The camp location has become the Tanhuvaara Sports Institute in Savonlinna.
Summer camp at the college
Going swimming
Punkaharju Summerland is calling
Chapter 6 â Cooperation with the parish and other associations –Â Top
LC Savonranta cooperates with other associations operating in the locality. In the summer, the club organizes concerts in the church together with the parish. The Lions participate in the Veterans Day and Independence Day celebrations together with the parish, for example by carrying the Finnish flag and the veterans’ flag on Independence Day. A snow day event has been organized for children together with the church district, where there is a sledding hill and ski competitions for children, as well as a sleigh ride.
The Lions have participated in a deer hunt with the hunting club. During the deer hunting season, a lion moose has been hunted on a certain day. The Lions have cooperated with the Martas, for example, in organizing the Savonranta Day coffee and waffle baking. The club has participated in organizing various events with the Savonranta Society.
Independence Day flag raising
Chapter 7 â International activities –Â Top
LC Savonranta also participates in international activities. The club has its own godchild in Sri Lanka. The club members have a total of ten godchildren. Our club lion is a member of the Sri Lankan Godchild Committee, which plans and organizes the annual godchild trip to Sri Lanka. Many clubs have their own godchild and in addition, the lions have their own godchildren. Anyone who wants to help Sri Lankan children get a good education and get ahead in life can become a godchild.
The club provides assistance to Ukraine by participating in a project that delivers stoves and ambulances to Ukraine. The club has also helped Ukrainians by collecting clothes and participating in furnishing apartments for Ukrainians who have moved to the area, fleeing the war and seeking temporary asylum.
Sri Lanka godchild activities and godparents in Horana
Chapter 8 â Club officers –Â Top
The club officers each year are the president, 1st vice president, 2nd vice president, past president, treasurer, secretary, administrative secretary, membership director, club master, etc. The intention is that the position would change annually, but this does not apply to all of them. The treasurer has served commendably for twenty years.
