Ava Lions Prepare For Annual Walk/Run In May

In conjunction with the 75th anniversary the Ava Lions are putting the final touches on the plans for the annual walk/run event.  This year’s event will be Saturday, May 12, which is the second Saturday in May.

In the previous two years, the walk run event has had over 400 participants in each race.  Larry Morrison, Lions president, said, “We are always trying to improve the coordination and the layout of the race route.  We are trying to keep the safety of the runners and walkers in mind.”

He went on to say the Lions want to keep this as a community event and to ensure all monies raised by participants and sponsors  stay here in the local community to serve all the citizens of Ava.

Currently, the Lions are discussing ways to tie this year’s event into the 75th anniversary celebration of the Ava Lions Club.

In previous walk/run events, the runners’ packet has included a T-shirt, free food and drink coupons, meals, Branson tickets, free oil changes or tire rotations, haircuts and many other discount coupons and items that brought the value of each runner’s packet to over $400.

The Lions will be contacting previous participants and sponsors to sign up and support  this year’s event and hope to make this 75th anniversary walk/run the best one to date.

Project Graduation will be Sunday, May 20.  This event allows the Ava Lions to serve breakfast to all the graduating seniors, their chaperones and the parents that attended the project graduation festivities.  On Saturday, May 19, the seniors will spend all night at the YMCA in Springfield where they will play games, swim, and stay awake all night celebrating their achievements in a drug and alcohol free environment.  Upon returning to Ava at approximately 6 a.m. on Sunday morning, they will stop at the Lions concession building located at the Fox Trotter grounds and be served a hot breakfast, compliments of the Ava Lions.

Following project graduation, the Lions will only have a couple of weeks to prepare for the June horse show. The Lions will then open the concession stand for the Fox Trotter horse show and will serve concessions from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. each day of the show.  It will be a busy year for the Lions as they work on their annual projects while adding in additional community events to celebrate their 75th anniversary of their club charter.

Interested in becoming a Lion and helping serve the Ava community?  Contact any Lions member for information.  The Lions invite you to help them celebrate this landmark of serving Ava for 75 years. Ava Lions – We Serve.