CABOT — Many members of the Cabot community have a passion for giving back, and some of those people belong to the Cabot Lions Club.
The Clothing Drive Challenge, which will benefit Big Brothers Big Sisters and Open Arms Shelter in Lonoke, will take place Aug. 12 at the Cabot Farmers Market.
The Cabot Lions Club will be set up in the parking lot of ReNew Community Church in Cabot from 8 a.m. to noon to collect donations.
Shelly Russell, president of the Cabot Lions Club, said the club partners with Big Brothers Big Sisters for the clothing drive.
Russell said the club provides the organization with clothing to resell and is paid per pound for collecting it.
“We use the money we receive to benefit others in the community. Last year, we didn’t collect many backpacks and suitcases, so our profits went directly to Open Arms Shelter so they could purchase more,” she said.
The bags are given to children at the shelter to pack their personal belongings in, she said.
Russell said the drive gives the club exposure in the community and allows its members to help people.
“Big Brothers Big Sisters gets a lot of clothing that they can resell at an affordable price to those in need, and children have backpacks or suitcases that they wouldn’t normally have when coming and going to the shelter,” Russell said.
Russell said the club made $488 at last year’s clothing drive and rounded it up to donate $500 to Open Arms Shelter.
Russell said the Cabot Lions Club has always focused on providing eyeglasses to those in need, partnering with several optometrists in the community who provide discounts and free eye exams.
The club contributes to a number of sight-related organizations, as well as local food ministries in the Cabot area, she said.
“I’m proud to be part of an organization dedicated to helping so many people,” she said.
“I was the second female to join the Cabot Lions Club in 1988, and they tell me I became the first female club president in the state of Arkansas in 1991,” Russell said.
Today the club is evenly divided between males and females, she said.
Russell said the club is always excited to welcome new members because the more it has, the more the members can accomplish.
“I have been so incredibly blessed in my life, and I hurt for those who have to struggle every day, especially those who struggle through no fault of their own. God calls us to serve and take care of those less fortunate, and this is one of the ways I feel I can do that,” she said.
Matt Weber, Cabot Lions Club secretary, said the club’s annual Memorial Golf Classic is the Lions’ largest fundraiser of the year.
“[The tournament] has had several names over the years, but a few years ago, we voted to rename it as a “memorial” so we could honor past Lions from our club,” Weber said. “The most recent loss was Rick Meadows, a very devoted Lion who devoted countless hours of service to the Cabot community.”
Weber said the four-person scramble will take place at 1 p.m. Sept. 11 at the Rolling Hills Country Club in Cabot.
Door prizes will be given out to participants, and awards will be presented to the top-three finishing teams, he said.
Admission is $100 per person or $400 per team.
Weber said a steak dinner is also included in the cost of admission.
Competitions include a hole-in-one, the longest drive and closest to the pin, he said.
Sponsors include Excel Ford, Centennial Bank, Colton’s Steakhouse of Cabot, Hertzog Family Eye Care, Wendy’s of Cabot, Farm Bureau Insurance, and Windows and More.
“We are still looking for more corporate sponsors and hole sponsors,” Weber said.
Proceeds raised from the tournament will provide eye exams, eyeglasses and vision screenings for children and adults in need.
According to a press release from the Cabot Lions Club, sponsorship will also be provided to people in need of vision-saving procedures, life-skills training and guide-dog training.
Weber said the club stands out by being community-oriented.
The club’s Rick Meadow Memorial Scholarship annually awards $1,000 to a Cabot High School student, and the club sponsors up to three students for the National Leadership Forum at Harding University in Searcy each year, Weber said.
“We don’t keep anything for ourselves,” he said. “Anything raised from the public is given back to the public.”
Staff writer Kayla Baugh can be reached at (501) 244-4307 or kbaugh@arkansasonline.com.