Community & Business
28 August, 2025
Lions members recognised
A COMBINED 35 years of membership has been racked up by two members of the Atherton Lions, who were recently awarded for their service by the Lions district governor.
Christina Vit and Neil Clarke embody what it means to be community champions, notching up 10 and 25 years of service to Lions respectively. They were both presented with achievement awards by a special guest at the club’s August business meeting, 201Q2 Lions district governor Toni Lanphier.
Ms Vit, the club’s current secretary, was recognised for her 10 years of service and she fondly recalled joining the Lionesses after returning from Cairns to live on the Tablelands.
“It was so good to go out in the community, to help and to do so many different things,” she said.
“Lions has given me the confidence to do things I would never have done.
“Helping out in the community is the best. You get to know people and get to talk to them about Lions and all their good work.”
Mr Clarke originally began his 25-year involvement in Lions after joining the Innisfail club in 1998. Having held other executive roles in the club, he was elected president of Innisfail Lions in 2005 whilst serving as Mayor of the Johnstone Shire.
Mr Clarke continued his active involvement in Lions, relocating to Longreach in late 2005 and Narromine in 2012.
“At my final Narromine Lions meeting, I was honoured to receive the highest award a person can receive in Lions, being the Melvin Jones Award,” he said.
Since moving to Atherton in 2016, Neil has served two years as president of Atherton Lions and eight years as the Christmas raffle coordinator, among many other roles.
Neil said that being a Lion was rewarding.
“I enjoy the community involvement and the fund raising,” he said.
