Ephrata (Pennsylvania) Lions Club

The Ephrata Lions Club meets the 1st and 3rd Thursdays of each month, at 6:30 p.m at American Legion Post 429 (300 Cocalico Street, Ephrata), with some exceptions. The Club's business meeting follows the meal. Check our club information page for meeting details, or contact a club member to confirm meeting dates and locations. The Club is always seeking new members who are interested in community service. Interested people -- including non-members and visiting Lions -- are always welcome to attend.

Ephrata Fair Bingo

Same great location - in the tent behind the railroad station.

New price of 50 cents/card, which means increased winnings!

Hours:

• Tuesday, September 26: 4:30pm to 10pm
• Wednesday, September 27: 11am to 2pm (senior citizens bingo) and 4:30pm to 10pm
• Thursday, September 28: 4:30pm to 10pm
• Friday, September 29: 4:30pm to 10pm
• Saturday, September 30: 12 noon to10pm

We are in need of some volunteers to help at our Bingo tent at the Ephrata Fair Friday September 29th (4:30pm-10pm) and Saturday Sept 30th (12pm-10pm)! Please contact Cj Maywell at 717-951-1430 if you have an hour or more you could help! Every little bit helps! There are jobs where you do NOT need to be on your feet. All proceeds go back into the local community.

You can also click here to sign up to volunteer.

Veterans Market

The Ephrata Lions Club will launch a new community outreach program aimed at Military veterans. The new program will be held at the American Legion ballroom in Grater Park on November 12 from 11 a.m. until 4 p.m.

The Lions currently have no veteran programs in place,  but plan to change that with what they hope to be their first annual veteran-related event.

Kicking off this new initiative, the Lions will be hosting the first annual “Fundraiser” event that will give artistically talented veterans a free place to sell their wares, provide a free venue for nonprofit groups who support veterans to spread the word on their organizations, and allow other crafters to sell their handiwork. Non-veteran crafters will pay a small fee to join in on the festivities. The proceeds from table fees will be funneled back to veterans and veteran nonprofit organizations at the end of the day.

Admission to the event is by monetary donation or by bringing an item for the Stockings for Soldiers program. All cash donations will go back to support veterans in the community.

Music will be provided by Guitars for Vets on the ballroom stage from 1 p.m. until 3 p.m.

In addition, local New York Times best-selling author Larry Alexander will be present to
sign copies of his military books. He will also have books available for purchase.

Crafters/nonprofits/others interested in taking part can contact Kendra Rhinier at 717-587-6563 or at info@ephratalions.org. The Lions have room for about 20 vendors. Tables will be provided, and the event will be held indoors.

Community Support

The Ephrata Lions Club has partnered with Good’s Store to donate $100 gift cards to the 12 families that were displaced from the tragic fire on East Main Street in August. The Leos Club (students of the Ephrata school district) is also working with EASS to supply displaced students with clothing and other needs. Pictured: Rosa Beiler, Cashier Manager at Good’s Store and Steve Montpetit, Ephrata Lions Club President.

Disaster Aid Packages

Recent floods and fires across the nation have displaced a large number of Americans. They often end up at shelters with only the clothes on their back. To help care for them, Lions Clubs across the US have been gathering and assembling personal-care packages.

As part of this on-going service project, the Ephrata Lions recently put together packages for 300 individuals in need. The kits include: Toothpaste, Tooth brushes, Mouthwash, Dental Floss, Deodorants  Hand sanitizer, Mini first aid kits, Shampoo, Conditioner  Lotion, Soap Bars or Shower Gel, and Feminine Hygiene Products.

Disaster Aid is an on-going service project of the Ephrata Lions.

Honoring Ephrata Police

The Ephrata Lions held their Annual Summer Picnic in the Ephrata Township Park pavilion. The picnic was catered by Mission BBQ. As they have done every summer in recent years, the Lions invited the Ephrata Police to join them. It is always the Ephrata Lions' pleasure to show appreciation to our local police by having them join us for our Summer Picnic.  Through the years the Lions Club has enjoyed meeting and greeting them, and thanking them for the protection that they give our community.  It is a small token of appreciation to the men and women in blue. The Ephrata Lions Club supports our police and they in turn, are appreciative of our invitation.

Club History and Other Information

The Ephrata Lions Club was chartered on Feb 26, 1925. The Ephrata area, as well as our state, nation, and all corners of the world have since benefited from the individual and combined efforts of the club members. The club has certainly taken the Lions' motto “We Serve” to heart. After ninety-four years of community service, our club is justly proud to be one of more than 47,000 clubs in over 200 countries, in an organization with more than 1.4 million members.

Although the club is best known for the annual sport card show and the Ephrata Fair bingo, we also support the community through Adopt-A-Highway, the community Easter Egg Hunt, food drives, used eyeglass collection, and White Cane Days collections. Our other fundraising projects support Ephrata Area Social Services, Ephrata Baseball Association, Ephrata Community Ambulance, Ephrata High School Senior Service Award and Students of the Month, Ephrata Performing Arts Center, the Ephrata Public Library, Ephrata Recreation Center, Ephrata Youth Football, the Historical Society of the Cocalico Valley, Hugh O'Brian Youth Leadership seminar, Leader Dogs for the Blind, the Lincoln Fire Company, Lions Clubs International Foundation, Lions of PA Foundation, Mountaineers' Table, PA Lions Beacon Lodge Camp, the Pioneer Fire Company, Sight Conservation Committee of Lebanon County, the Samaritan Counseling Center’s TeenHope project, VisionCorps, and other community needs that arise.

Our Board of Directors meetings are usually held immediately following the 2nd monthly Club meeting (the 3rd Thursday).

Typical exceptions to the normal meeting schedule include the following:

• January of even-numbered years (2022): one meeting is usually moved to the 2nd Tuesday to meet with the Akron Lions Club.
• April: one meeting is typically moved to the Friday when the District 14D Presidents' Honor Night is scheduled. Holy week may also impact the scheduling.
  
• July: our only meeting is a special event. (There is usually no board meeting in July.)
  
• August: our only meeting is a family picnic usually at the Ephrata Township Park on the 3rd Thursday.
• October: one meeting is held at the District 14D Region III Rally, usually on a Thursday.
• December: our 2nd meeting is a family party, reservations are required.

There may be additional exceptions to our meeting schedule due to holidays, special activities, visitations, etc. Please check our club information page or the club meeting box (to the right), or contact a Club Officer or any Club Member to verify meeting dates and locations.

Other Notes

Interested in knowing more about the Club or in becoming a member? Contact any Club officer or member, or contact us at one of the addresses below.

Guests, new members, and donations are always welcome.

The Club is collecting eyeglasses, hearing aids, and inactive cell phones at our yellow "mailbox" at Martin's Country Market.

Donate to the Ephrata Lions Club

Due to the corona virus, the past few years have proven to be very difficult for the Ephrata Lions Club, as it has been for almost everyone. We have been unable to hold some of our larger fundraisers. That means we have limited funds for people unable to afford eye exams or eyeglasses, and we may not be able to donate to some of the other community organizations we normally support.

So if you can, please donate to the Ephrata Lions Club, so we can support other organizations and people in need in the Ephrata Area.

Contact Us

Email us at info@ephratalions.org.

Follow us on Facebook at "Ephrata Lions Club" (@ephratalionsclub)

Our mailing address is:

Download our membership application.

Other email addresses include: cardshow@ephratalions.org, publicity@ephratalions.org, and treasurer@ephratalions.org