Start a Leo club
Sponsoring a Leo club provides Lions with opportunities to mentor and empower young leaders while fostering a commitment to community service.
Make a difference and sponsor a Leo club
Through involvement with a Leo club, Lions can energize and inspire members and even increase the sponsoring club's community exposure, attracting potential members such as young professionals, students, parents and families. If you need more inspiration to start a Leo club, check out the Why Sponsor a Leo Club video.
Get started with these steps
Does your Lions club want to sponsor a Leo club? Follow the six steps below to organize a new Leo club in your community.
- Step 1: Establish a framework
-
Determine if the new Leo club will be an Alpha (ages 12-18) or Omega club (ages 18-30), as well as if they will be community or school based. Community clubs are open to eligible young people in a local area, where school-based clubs draw members from students from a local school and work with a faculty advisor.
- Step 2: Identify potential Leos
-
Obtain the names of potential Leos from schools, universities, colleges, houses of worship, youth groups, friends and relatives.
- Step 3: Invite prospective Leos to an informational meeting
-
Explain the philosophy of the Leo Club Program and answer questions concerning requirements for Leo club membership, the relationship to the sponsoring Lions club and Leo service activities. You may also want to show these Leo recruitment pitch videos to help inspire them to join the club.
Distribute the Alpha Application for Leo Club Membership (Leo50-A) or Omega Application for Leo Club Membership (Leo50-O) and invite interested young people to join the Leo club.
- Step 4: Host a formation meeting
-
Organize a Leo club formation meeting to elect Leo club officers, discuss potential projects, accept The Leo Club Constitution and Bylaws and determine the place and time for club meetings.
- Step 5: Complete Required Paperwork
-
Complete in full the Leo Club Organization Report (Leo-51) with proper signatures. Include a list with the names of the club's founding members and return it to the Leo Club Program Department at leo@lionsclubs.org. The entire certification process can take four to six weeks.
After a club is approved by Lions International, Leo club officers should be reported in the Lion Portal or with the Leo Club Officers Report Form. All additional members should also be reported in the Lion Portal.
- Step 6: Plan an installation ceremony
-
Once the Leo Club Organization Report form has been approved, the sponsoring Lions club should launch the Leo club with an installation ceremony, presenting the Certificate of Organization and installing Leo club officers using the Leo Club Officer Installation and New Member Initiation Guide.
Financial obligations
Leo club organization fee
The Leo club organization fee is US$100 or the national currency equivalent. This one-time fee includes:
- The costs involved in processing the Leo Club Organization Report
- A Certificate of Organization
- A Leo club officers' kit
- A Leo club sponsor kit
- Leo lapel pins for each original Leo club member
Leo club sponsor levy
Lions clubs are subsequently billed an annual Leo club sponsor levy of US$100 or the national currency equivalent. The levy pays for Leo Club Program materials, mailings, club record maintenance, communications, awards and program resources. If a Leo club is canceled, the Leo Club Termination Form (Leo-86) must be received by the Leo Club Program Department by October 31 to receive levy credit for the current year only.
