Thank You Yosemite! Successful Spring Blood Drive 2015

Many thanks to the Yosemite community for another successful blood drive! This year's annual Spring Blood Drive in Yosemite Valley collected 41 pints of blood from 46 potential donors. The Lions Club Eyemobile provided free eye health exams as well as  education and information.  We had many returning donors from the community, new community donors ("First Time Ever!") and several park visitors who donated while vacationing (including one gentleman from Australia!). 

As always, the Yosemite Lions Club provided free orange juice, doughnuts and t-shirts for all donors. Special thanks to club member and blood drive coordinator Bill Thomas, and club volunteer Diane Stewart for always making the drive run smoothly.

We look forward to hosting the annual Fall Blood Drive in El Portal during October.

Summer in Yosemite with Yosemite Lions Club

Summer has come and gone in Yosemite, along with our annual summer fundraisers: Gear Swap, Mosquito Festival and Golf Tournament. The newest club event - the gear swap - raised $200 at the Curry Village Community Center in June by giving community members the opportunity to sell and swap old gear for hiking, fishing, biking and camping in Yosemite National Park. In August, we hosted the Mosquito Festival at the Yosemite Valley School to celebrate the leaving of the mosquitos from Yosemite (or at least we hope so!) and raised $874. Our biggest fundraiser of the year, the Yosemite Lions Club Golf Tournament, raised $5000 from 68 golfers at the Wawona Hotel golf course on September 6th. BBQ dinner on the hotel lawn and a prize raffle capped a perfect summer day in Yosemite. We are ever thankful for the enthusiastic participation in the tournament by so many community members and offer congratulations to this year's tournament winners:

1st Place Team:  Bill Carroll, Bob Blumerich, Rich Waller and Mike Lewis

2nd Place Team:  Jim Barstow, Guy Bostick, Kyle Hypes, Dave Gunderson

Golfers with the Longest Drive:  Kevin Lauterbach and Max Ringrose

Pink Lady Winning Team:  Brian Burt, Loren Fazio, Jodi Gover, Gary Rosenfeld

Special thanks to Lions Club Volunter Shari Baudoux for again being Registrar Extraordinaire and keeping everyone in the know, along with club members Audrey Lanting, Brett Archer, Jennifer Cleary, Bil Gleason, Michelle Hansen, Alison Grove, Kym Wright-Youngdale and Jodi Gover for keeping it all running smoothly.

Volunteer Shari and club members Michelle, Bil, Audrey, Brett, Alison and Jennifer.

We started off summer with officer elections in June and are pleased to announce our new club officers:
President Brett Archer (former club secretary)
Vice President Michelle Hansen
Secretary Alison Grove
Treasurer Audrey Lanting
Club members are also busy recruiting new members this year. Would you like to become a Yosemite Lion? See any club member for details or join us for noon lunch at The Ahwahnee the first and third Thursdays of each month.

Just before we teed off in Wawona in late summer, we received a visit from Lions Club District Governor Kent Christensen and entourage at our bi-weekly lunch meeting in the first week of September. Kent shared news about Lions and introduced us to the rest of the district cabinet while having lunch at The Ahwahnee in Yosemite Valley. Kent also presented awards to some of our club members for years of service with Lions Club: Jodi Gover for 15 years, Yolanda Cheley for 10 years and Sean Pence for 10 years. We are proud to serve with such dedicated club members!

Jodi Gover and Kent Christensen

We are set to host the annual fall blood drive, along with the Central California Blood Center, in the community of El Portal just outside of Yosemite's west gate and even planning a new fall fundraiser with a dinner of Mexican food at Curry Village. Stay tuned for details, and we hope you will consider donating blood this year.

Recap: Spring Events with Yosemite Lions Club

Spring in Yosemite is about waterfalls and wildflowers, but it is also about the beginning of event season for Yosemite Lions Club. Each year in April we host a Pancake Breakfast for the annual Spring Fling held in the community of El Portal that raises funds for the El Portal school. This year's breakfast was not as successful as years past, but we hope to see you there next year with a hearty appetite.

May is now filled with club events. Last year, the Yosemite Rotary Club disbanded and we have taken on a few of their annual events to continue the tradition. This year we hosted the former Rotary Annual Easter Egg Hunt for children in the Yosemite community at the Yosemite Valley School. Kids find eggs with prizes and candy, and they also have their photo taken with the Easter Bunny. The American Cancer Society Relay for Life takes place every May in the town of Mariposa, and the Yosemite Hiking for a Cure team sponsored by the Yosemite Lions Club again contributed great fundraising efforts to support cancer research. Team Captain Teri Tudela and Past President Kym Wright-Youngdale anchored the team at the event by participating for the entire 24 hours. Our team raised $3000. May also sees our annual Spring Blood Drive hosted with the Central California Blood Center in front of the Yosemite Valley visitor center. This year we collected pints of blood for a life-giving cause.

New to the event roster for Yosemite Lions Club is the annual Summer Gear Swap. Hosted at the Curry Village Community Center, the gear swap allows Yosemite residents to sell, buy or swap gently-used gear for something new to you.

In addition new events, we are pleased to announce the new members of Yosemite Lions Club - Jennifer Cleary and David Crow. Jennifer and David both work for DNC Parks & Resorts at Yosemite.

Next update: Summer Gear Swap, Mosquito Festival and the Golf Tournament!

Happy New Year from Yosemite Lions Club!

We are so pleased to announce that two new members have joined the Yosemite Lions Club: Lyn Maher and Bryan Hammil, both residents of Yosemite Valley and employed by DNC Parks & Resorts at Yosemite. We are off to a great start for 2014 and we hope it is our best fundraising year ever. See the recap below of events in 2013.

Club Treasurer Brett and new members Lyn & Bryan

2013 Event Wrap-up: After El Mosquito Fiesta in July, we held the annual Yosemite Lions Club Golf Tournament in early September at the Wawona Hotel. Our two largest summer events were also our most successful - we raised a record-breaking $6800 at the golf tournament this year! After the successes of summer, we are also pleased to announce that our annual fall blood drive, held at the community center in El Portal, collected 48 pints of blood from the Yosemite community. As always, we could not do these good deeds without you! Bill Thomas, club member and blood drive coordinator, thanks you from the bottom of his heart!

Take a look at the fun we had at the golf tournament this year on yet another perfect late summer day in Yosemite National Park. Though the Rim Fire was still burning to the north, we appreciate the support of all those who braved Mother Nature to participate. Tournament winners received gift certificates for any DNC lodging, retail or restaurant operation in Yosemite. Congrats to tournament winners young Max Ringrose and his family team including Bill Cordry from Oakhurst!

Many thanks to all the club members who worked hard to host this fundraising event. Special thanks to volunteers Shari Baudoux and Cynthia McFann - Shari for once again being our registrar extraordinaire and Cynthia for taking on our newest addition to the registration table: bake sale goodies! The tournament committee consisted of co-chair club members Audrey Lanting and Michelle Hansen, along with volunteer Shari Baudoux and club president Kym Wright-Youngdale. Thanks to club secretary Brett Archer for stepping into the raffle auctioneer role, with thanks to Bil Gleason, Yolanda Cheley, and Alison Grove for making the tournament run so smoothly! Despite the club's best efforts, we can't have a golf tournament and BBQ dinner without the staff of the Wawona Hotel and golf course so we thank Joe Alfano and his wonderful staff for their support.

 

 

Upcoming events include the Pancake Breakfast at Spring Fling in El Portal in April and our annual Spring Blood Drive hosted in Yosemite Valley. We hope to see you at both events, so check back for details. Happy 2014!

Spring Events with the Yosemite Lions Club

Spring has arrived and we're looking forward to seeing you at club sponsored events in April and May. Come out and enjoy spring in Yosemite as we host the annual pancake breakfast at Spring Fling in El Portal on April 27, 2013. In addition to our pancake fundraiser for the El Portal school, Spring Fling involves a 5K fun run called the El Portal Spring Run-Off, food vendors, craft vendors and live music at the El Portal Community Hall. If you're lucky, you'll also catch the California Poppy show that debuts each spring in the Merced River Canyon just outside of El Portal.

Each spring, in the Yosemite gateway town of Mariposa, the Yosemite Lions Club is proud to sponsor the Yosemite Hiking for a Cure Relay for Life team representing the Yosemite community. The American Cancer Society's Relay for Life is a 24 hour fundraising event held at hundreds of venues across the country. Team members raise funds by pledging to walk a designated number of hours during a 24 hour time period to symbolize that cancer never sleeps. Located at the Mariposa County Fairgrounds, teams walk the track from 9 AM on Saturday May 18, 2013 through 9 AM on Sunday May 19. The event includes contests, team fundraisers, food, music and games to help keep the teams on the track for 24 hours. We are always looking for more team members and if you'd like to join us this year, please send us email at yosemitelionsclub@yahoo.com, join our team online at the Mariposa Relay for Life website or contact any of our club members.

On May 22, 2013, we return to Yosemite Valley for the annual Spring Blood Drive. Hosted in conjunction with the Central California Blood Center, the Bloodmobile will be parked in front of the Yosemite Valley Visitor Center from 10 AM to 3 PM to accept blood donations from community members and visitors. As always, donors receive a free t-shirt along with doughnuts and orange juice. We hope you'll join us for this important event that supports life-preserving efforts in our California community.

Thanks for the Tacos and Holiday Fundraiser: Trees and Wreaths For Sale!

Each year the Yosemite Lions Club hosts a holiday fundraiser selling trees and wreaths online and a portion of the proceeds go to support our club. By partnering with Dutchman Tree Farms in Michigan, we receive $10.00 for every tree and $5.00 for every wreath sold. The best part is that these trees or wreaths are then shipped FREE directly to your home. There are several trees to choose from and the wreath comes with a big red bow. You can skip the trip to the tree lot or send a great wreath gift and support a good cause all at the same time!

Please consider our fundraiser - you can be anywhere to purchase and they will ship anywhere in the U.S. Check it out at the following link:

http://dutchmantreefarms.com/organization/YLCCA

You can place an order anytime between now and December 11th to have holiday greenery at your door before the Christmas holiday - you can even schedule a delivery for a specific date.

Yosemite Lions Club's annual fall blood drive successfully collected 54 pints of blood on October 24th in El Portal. In the words of Diane Stewart, club volunteer: "We had 64 potential donors with 10 deferrals, for a total of 54 collected pints of precious blood. New donors and faithful friends, thank you for your generosity--your gift saves lives!"

In other fundraising news, the Yosemite Lions Club annual Mosquito Festival, re-imagined this year as El Mosquito Fiesta, raised $800 for the Yosemite community. On October 25th at the Curry Village Community Center in Yosemite Valley, we served 75 plates of delicious Mexican food to hungry diners that included many new faces we haven't seen at club events before. Many, many thanks to Maria La Veaga for preparing the Mexican feast - her reputation for Mexican food contributed to the success of this event. Event chair and Lions Club Treasurer Brett Archer worked hard to present a new twist on a long-time annual event, providing club exposure for an entirely different part of the Yosemite community. Brett also enlisted many volunteers to assist the club with this event and we thank them wholeheartedly! We worked hard and had fun, and we hope to see these new faces at upcoming YLC events. 

Treasurer Brett is ready to serve some food

President Kym is ready to collect some money 

Happy diners in the CV Community Center

Brett and Maria, the Queen of Mexican Cuisine!

Volunteer Kurt and Club Member Mike

October Events: The Mosquito Festival and the Fall Blood Drive

The club is sponsoring two exciting events this week: The Mosquito Festival in Yosemite Valley and the annual Yosemite Lions Club Fall Blood Drive in El Portal. On Wednesday, October 24th, the blood drive, sponsored in conjunction with the Central California Blood Center, will take place at the El Portal Community Hall, from 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM. In addition to juice, doughnuts and free t-shirts for blood donors, we will also be collecting used eyeglasses to recycle for the Lions In Sight program.

On Thursday, October 25th, in the Better Late Than Never category, the club will be hosting the annual Mosquito Festival in Yosemite Valley at the Curry Village Community Center. This year's festival, known as "El Mosquito Fiesta" features a Mexican dinner prepared by Maria La Veaga - formerly of the Curry Village Taco Stand. Maria's menu includes enchiladas, tacos, burritos, beans, rice and chips & salsa included in one of three different dinner combos: one item $8.00, two items, $10.00, three items $12.00. As always, proceeds from this event will benefit the Yosemite Community.

We hope to see you in El Portal on Wednesday and at dinner on Thursday evening!

Looking Forward to Fundraising in 2012 (with a rewind to 2011)

We're heading towards spring here in Yosemite, though we really haven't had much of a winter!  Before winter came tiptoeing to the Sierra, the Yosemite Lions Club held another successful fall blood drive in El Portal at the community center.  Lions Club Member and blood drive coordinator Bill Thomas arranged once again for suitable decor and snacks for the annual October event, along with his ever-faithful supporter and Lions Club Member Diane Stewart.  Our blood drive marketing savvy has increased - we announced the drive in the Mariposa Gazette.  In previous years, the blood drive operation was set up inside the community center.  This year the Central California Blood Center's Bloodmobile was parked just outside, making the community center available for snacks and socializing with donors.  Every donor receives a free t-shirt, along with complimentary orange juice and sugary snacks to reset blood sugar levels after donating.  Thanks goes to the Yosemite and El Portal communities for making the blood drive a success - we appreciate your support!

Diane and Bill at the blood drive

Central California Blood Bank Letter Fall 2012 We added a new fundraising opportunity in 2011, one we hope will become a new tradition in the Yosemite community.  Every winter holiday season, the Yosemite Lions Club sells holiday trees and wreaths in front of the Village Store in Yosemite Valley.  This year we partnered with a tree farm in Michigan - Dutchmann Tree Farms - that provides online fundraising opportunities for non-profit organizations.  By ordering a tree or wreath online from Dutchmann, the Yosemite Lions Club received a portion of the proceeds to raise funds for community projects.  We raised just over $100 with this opportunity and everyone who ordered was very pleased with their tree or wreath.  We hope to spread the word about this great opportunity since purchasing a holiday tree and having it delivered to Yosemite with absolutely NO SHIPPING FEES seemed like a holiday gift in itself!  We'd like to thank Dutchmann Tree Farms for helping us help the Yosemite community.

After everyone took trips to the High Sierra in December and January due to the lack of snow, we realized that El Portal's Spring Fling is just around the corner in April.  The Yosemite Lions Club annually hosts a fundraising pancake breakfast at this event and we hope to have more details soon.  Soon after Spring Fling, the club will be sponsoring the Yosemite Hiking for a Cure team for the American Cancer Society Relay for Life fundraiser held in Mariposa on May 19, 2012.  Want to join our team and help fight cancer?  Check out our Team Page for details and if you can't join, consider donating to this worthy cause.

As always, we look forward to our summer fundraising events, the Mosquito Festival in Yosemite Valley and the Golf Tournament in Wawona.  If you've attended these events and have ideas or fond memories, we'd love to hear from you!  Don't forget to find us and "like" us on facebook, too.

Don't Be Scared - Giving Blood is Easy This October!

Please join us for the Yosemite Lions Club Annual Fall Blood Drive in El Portal at the community hall on Wednesday, October 26th.  As always, all donors will receive a free t-shirt along with orange juice and doughnuts!  The Central California Blood Center's Bloodmobile will be on hand to accept your donations.  Give the gift of life by donating blood this month.

Yosemite's Successful Blood Drive

Thanks to members of the Yosemite community, an all-time record number of blood units was collected at the Yosemite Lions Club Spring Blood Drive on May 4th this year.  A total of 60 units of blood were processed by the Central California Blood Center, with many donors this year attending the Yosemite Blood Drive for the first time.  The Lions Club EyeMobile also provided eye health exams to 25 people.  Thanks to Lions Club members Bill Thomas, Brett Archer, Diane Stewart and Kym Wright-Youngdale for providing the orange juice, doughnuts and free t-shirts to all blood donors.  With your generous contributions, the success of the blood drive provides vital support to the Yosemite community with the gift of life.

Spring Blood Drive in Yosemite Valley

 
Twice a year - in the fall and in the spring - the Yosemite Lions Club hosts a blood drive for the Central California Blood Center.  This year's spring blood drive takes place May 4, 2011 in Yosemite Valley.  The "Bloodmobile" will be parked in front of the Yosemite Valley Visitor Center, along with another mobile unit for free eye health screenings.  From 10:00 A.M. to 3:00 P.M., all blood donors will receive free t-shirts along with complimentary doughnuts and orange juice.  Your donation ensures an adequate supply of blood is available to support your community and ultimately save lives.  See you in Yosemite Village next Wednesday!

Save the Date: Yosemite Lions Club Fall Blood Drive in El Portal October 27

Meet us at the El Portal Community Center Next Wednesday, October 27, to donate blood and we'll give you doughnuts, orange juice and a free t-shirt to say thanks for your contribution!  The blood drive takes place from 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM, so we hope you can work it into your schedule.  See you there!

Getting Ready for the Mosquito Festival in Yosemite Valley!

Check out the raffle prizes available at this year's Mosquito Festival: rock climbing shoes, climbing rope, trekking poles, books signed by fabulous Yosemite photographer (and Lions Club member) Mike Osborne, dinner at the Wawona Hotel and at Yosemite Lodge, and brunch at the Ahwahnee, just to name a few!  Raffle tickets are sold for $1.00 each or 6 tickets for $5.00.  Grilled tri-tip dinner at the festival is $10.00 adult, $5.00 child and $7.00 vegetarian (no tri-tip!).  All tickets are available at the event in Yosemite Valley at the Yosemite Elementary School and proceeds from all ticket sales benefit the Yosemite Child Care Center, so come on by for dinner and cross your fingers for lucky raffle tickets - the more you buy, the better your chance of winning.

Yosemite Spring Blood Drive May 2010

The Yosemite Lions Club held their annual Spring Blood Drive in Yosemite Valley in front of the Valley Visitor Center.  The drive collected 40 units of blood for the Central California Blood Center. Lions Club members Bill Thomas, Diane Stewart, Michelle Hansen, Kym Wright-Youngdale and Jodi Gover were on hand to distribute orange juice, doughnuts and t-shirts to blood donors as a thank you for their contribution. Every year member Bill Thomas coordinates two blood drives in the Yosemite community, a Spring drive in Yosemite Valley and a Fall drive in El Portal.