Leos have left an impressive legacy these past 60 years. While we often celebrate the global achievements of Leos’ service, we know that each Leo club has its own unique story and achievements. For the 2021 Leo Video Contest, we asked Leos to create a video that showed us what their club’s #LeoLegacy was. We encouraged them to share what they’re most proud of in their club’s history, how they’re documenting their club’s story and how they’ve prepared their club’s leaders to continue their legacy.
Against all odds, these club members were committed to service, and it left us in awe to see how much drive and determination they had despite not being able to see.
Each of the videos we received gave us a snapshot of the Leo club’s biography and the inspiration behind their work. We received 42 submissions from Leos in 20 countries around the world. We are delighted to announce that the 2021 winning Leo club is Tema Supreme Leo Club from Ghana.
In their video, they shared how the mission of Lions Clubs International being the Knights of the Blind attracted three visually-impaired members to their Leo club. These new members inspired the club to create their signature project “Being the Eyes of the Blind.” The project raises funds to provide financial support, food supplies and domestic needs for visually-impaired people registered in the Ghana Blind Union. The creator of the video, Leo Paul Asare, shares what their motivation was in creating the video and what’s next for their club.
What was your club’s inspiration for your signature project “Being the Eyes of the Blind?”
As a recently chartered club, we were really inspired by our three visually-impaired Leo members. Against all odds, these club members were committed to service, and it left us in awe to see how much drive and determination they had despite not being able to see. This encouraged our club members to understand the importance of their own commitment to service and rally behind them and decide to help the visually-impaired community that is closest to them.
Additionally, we had the support of our Lions, starting from when we were chartered by our District Governor Lion Dr. Kwaku Mensah Bonsu. He believed that our club was an inspiration and told us that we were more than capable and to strive for greatness with every activity and event of the club. With his backing and the influence of our members, we knew we could make an impactful change for good in these peoples’ lives.
What led you to put the video together for the Leo Video Contest?
We have actually entered the Leo Video Contest twice before. The first year we chartered, we entered and earned a spot in the top 10. The second time, we made it into the top three! This encouraged us to put our best foot forward and go for the gold with this year’s challenge. We were ecstatic to receive the first-place recognition this year.
What will you use the $1,000 first-place Leo Video Contest reward for?
The money we receive as the first-place winners of the 2021 Leo Video Contest will help us expand “Being the Eyes of the Blind” to reach more people in the Ghana Blind Union and provide not only services of food and home goods, but also services for blind and partially sighted persons to lead lives of dignity, productivity and independence.
Check out the top 10 videos for the 2021 Leo Video Contest on the Lions Clubs International YouTube page.
Lion Melissa Nadeau is the 2021-2022 membership chair of the Chicago Windy City Lions Club.
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