In the following excerpt from the book entitled, Resilience and Renewal: The Story of Lions International and the Crisis of COVID-19, Kyle Hartje, Manager for the Membership Division at Lions International, reveals how he was inspired by Lions around the world who did big and little things–whatever was needed–to help those experiencing needs during the pandemic:
“I think there is something about the resilience of Lions clubs. I think when you are serving and you are giving back to the community, and you are doing it effectively, it is something. You can even go back and talk about how people just operate on the pleasure principle. The reason I serve others is because it makes me feel good. I think that there’s something in their nature that wants to serve, and I think they would have found a way to do it no matter what the obstacle. What inspired me were the knitting people; they would be knitting masks or something to give out to schools or wherever kids were being forced to go back to school. You would hear about all those things where they were doing big and little things, where they are organizing food drives, or concierge shopping, or something for an elderly couple afraid to leave their house–and then you have clubs that are taking on activities to make sure such people have food delivered to them. The ways Lions served was inspiring” (p. 19).
Liz Konkel, wrote in her 2025 review of Resilience and Renewal–published in The Pacific Book Review–that:
“Each interview reveals how their organization [Lions International] not only faced a massive challenge but also offered a chance to make a tremendous impact and difference, exiting the pandemic in an even better position to thrive in their mission. Although this story is inspiring enough on its own merits, hearing the moment-to-moment thought processes that guided this historic organization through troubled waters adds an extra layer of weight and power.”
If you want to read more about the inspirational way Lions International survived COVID-19 and inspired the world, use this QR code provided below to order your own copy today! Proceeds from the sale of the book are donated to the Lions Clubs International Foundation (LCIF) for humanitarian aid and disaster relief.
LCIF provided emergency grants to provide Personal Protective Equipment to frontline emergency workers. Image courtesy of Lions International.
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