Lion George Wiant has the distinction of being a charter member of the Prescott Sunrise Lions Club, holding membership since April 8, 1961. He has served in every official capacity, some more than once, and recently received recognition for 40 years of perfect attendance. .

PRESCOTT SUNRISE LIONS CLUB

1961 - 2008

PAST is History
PRESENT is Life
FUTURE is Hope

The things the Prescott Sunrise Lions Club has accomplished, and the efforts of Individual Lions is the basis on which the Present and Future are expanded upon. This club has earned countless awards as the outstanding club in its district, and received numerous letters of appreciation from those whose life has been touched over these 47 years. This brief history only touches on some of the activities remembered.

Our club was chartered in the Spring of 1961, with Stan Frazier as Charter President. We were a small group of eager workers, with only one or two who had ever before been a Lion. Our first fund raising project (it didn't raise any funds) was to sponsor an evening of barbershop and Sweet Adelines music at Hendrix auditorium. Everything fell into place, except the weather, but it was a start and great evening.

For several years the club sponsored a circus just South of the current Prescott High School. Back in those days Ruth Street was a dead end street, and the circus was actually held kinda "out in the sticks". Other projects in those early years had the Lions cleaning trash on both sides of route 69, Lynx Lake, and other roads around Prescott. Only a current day Litter Lifter could imagine or appreciate some of the "treasures" we reclaimed and took to the city dump, by the truck loads.

Oh yes, and who can forget those "fresh frozen" fish sales. Then came the only project of its kind in Arizona the Prescott National Forest Nature Trail in Groom Creek. Those involved in building this project can still point to bruses from man handling the monsterous power poles that Lion Roy Bennett brought to the site on the sides of his gasoline semi truck to build the bridges. And some muscles still ache from the memory of hauling tons of asphalt in wheelbarrows to pave the trail. Since that time interperative signs, benches, and other improvements ha ve been added to help folks appreciate this high country nature trail adventure.

Then came the yearly Journey for Sight bicycle rides. Funds were pledged for the number of miles ridden, and Don Henning was known for his rides from Prescott to Ash Fork, or over Mingus Mountain. Since Al Cheney is still active in the club it must be assumed that he found his way back from all those round trips to Chino Valley enough miles to equal his age at that time. The riders also included the younger set on tricycles, and even joggers and walkers made trips.

Wait a minute We need to go back to May 1962 and the first Scholarship Breakfast held at the Panorama Restaurant (our meeting place on East Gurley). Invitations were sent out to parents and students, but since this was an entirely new idea for Prescott (to honor our high school students for their academic accomplishments) attendance was a huge question. Would anyone show up on a Thursday morning for breakfast. As all of the students and their parents arrived the Lions soon found themselves forced out into the front of the restaurant, and even onto the sidewalk. What a great beginning for a project that is carried on even today.

Now the projects started to build, to the point where there was always something Planned Happening or just Finished. Things like the sale of American flags, Halloween candy sales, turtle races, tamale sales, raffle tickets, yard sales, dunk tank, White Cane sponsorship, and Salvation Army bell ringing. Today we focus on our annual Bed Race & Raffle, White Cane Day,and the collection of newspapers as prime income projects.

"Books" could be written about our annual Bed Race and Raffle, and the twice a week collection of newspapers in Prescott Valley or our annual Prescott area Health Fair. This has always been, and is truly a working Lions Club of dedicated men and women.

And where did the money from projects go? Well, our club decided from the very beginning to take care of any school child's need for glasses, examinations, and even operations. We send children to Camp Tayitee for the handicapped in Pine Top-Lakeside for a week; we provide funds for Leader Dogs for the blind; sponsor the yearly Prescott area Health Fair; work with the local blind programs, and the Blind Center in Phoenix; we have collected donated eyes for transportation to Phoenix for cornea transplants; we support the district sight and hearing projects, as well as International Lion programs; and we continue to give an American flag to every Prescott child in the first grade, year after year.

Our club not only sponsors delegates to district, state, and international conventions, but we have sponsored many Lions meetings right here in Prescott. Just maybe that is why six of our members have gone on to become a District Governor. Ken Waters started it off, followed by Robert Newlon. Then there was Paul Hendzel, and finally Chuck Solvay. One of our early members, Jack Stidham, found it necessary to leave Prescott before becoming a District Governor, but he made it anyhow..

One of our members went on to obtain the office of International Director to Lions International, after being a District Governor and holding just about every local and district office Joe Preston.

In fact, our club is in possession of a letter from International Lion headquarters stating that they have no record of any Lions club, other than ours, ever having a District Governor and. an International Director serving in the same year.

It would be very difficult to list all of our members who have held the office of Deputy District Governor or Zone Chairman and the list would be really long if we included all the Sunrise Lions who have served on district and state committees. This has always been one very active service club.

And finally, the following Lions have had the privilege of leading this club as President. In order, they are: Stan Frazier, George Wiant, Richard Walraven, Ken Waters, Robert Newlon, Chuck Solvay, Joe Kremer, Roy Campbell, Hadley Hicks, Paul Hendzel, Joe Russo, Jerry Williams, Doug Norton, Roy Bennett, John Duran, Robert Sweeney, Dick Martin, Chuck Baldwin, Tony Martinez, Tony Humphrey, John Hood, Bob Reichmuth, James Riddle, Scott Helfinstine, Mark Earnhart, Jim Myers, Brad Campbell, Mal Barrett, Mark Alver, Todd Sturdevant, Mike Beatty, Lloyd Anderson, Joe Matheny, Mike Garcia, Steve Franklin, Keith Everett, Al Cheney, Chuck Rhoads, Keith Powers, Calvin Mohr, Wes Edmonds, Tom Kosel, Frank Rochon, Stan Stobierski and Bill Brye..

By George Wiant Charter Member, Life Member,  Melvin Jones Fellow and now a Life Member on inactive status.