Debby Parker has made it personal. The president of the Port Arthur Founders Lions Club wants new members to carry on the “rich tradition” of this club and she’s passionate about spreading the good works this club and Lions Clubs International does for the world.
It’s a “we serve” attitude that has helped people overcome “river blindness” from unclean water sources, supported eye banks and corneal  transplants and helped residents recover from earthquakes in Haiti and flooding in Deweyville.
“The more members we have, the more service we can give,” Parker said.
Parker is so passionate about educating Mid-County about her club that she barely looked up as a tempting croissant sandwich and soup of the day was placed before her at Courtyard Café in Groves. This is where the group meets each second and fourth Friday of the month to dine, hear a speaker and just have fun getting together. It’s informal, efficiently run from noon to 1 p.m. (Parker said she’s a stickler for time) and the dues are minimal for all you get.
This March Parker will visit businesses and do anything she can to encourage new membership.
“You have to have a heart for this work,” Parker said. “Once you’re involved in Lions, it gets in your heart.”
“We do a lot of things people don’t hear about,” Parker said, but she’d love to tell you.
Lions is turning 100 years old, functions in 220 countries and includes 1.4 million members. This club is one of the first 25 clubs formed, Parker said. She’s been through the scrapbooks and seen the evolution.
“That makes me really proud we have been around so long and I don’t want that history to go away,” she said.
The club offers family memberships to encourage spousal togetherness as all those good works get done
“Once you’re involved in Lions, it gets in your heart,” Parker said.
Call her at 409-363-4092 to get in on all this Lions Club passion.
Lunch at Courtyard Café is what I’d call another perk. When I visited with Parker, I enjoyed gumbo with shrimp and sausage with potato salad on the side.

darraghcastillo@icloud.com