Honoring the life and legacy of Melvin Jones and recognizing the contributions of Lions Clubs International.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Utah (Mr. Cannon) for yielding me time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of House Resolution 399, a resolution I introduced to honor the life and legacy of Lions Club International founder, Melvin Jones, and to recognize the contributions of this fine organization.

Over 200 years ago at the end of the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, a curious woman asked Benjamin Franklin, ``Sir, what have you given us?'' He replied, ``a republic, if you can keep it.'' Part of our responsibility of maintaining our republic is encouraging the active involvement of our citizens and our government in serving our community. No one understood this better than Melvin Jones.

The club he founded, Lions Club International, embodies that spirit through a program called Liberty Days.

The history of Lions Club International of which I am a proud member from the Watertown, Minnesota chapter goes back nearly 100 years. After a humble beginning that began on January 13, 1879 in a dusty cavalry outpost at Fort Thomas in what was then known as the Arizona Territory, Melvin Jones moved east with his family to St. Louis.

Later, in Quincy, Illinois, Melvin Jones attended Union Business College and Chaddock College. After college, he moved to Chicago where he launched a successful career in insurance, first with the Johnson and Higgins agencies and later with his own business, the Melvin Jones Insurance Agency.

In 1909, he married women's professional golfer Rose Amanda Freeman, whose unqualified support was instrumental as Melvin worked tirelessly to get the Lions Club rolling. In 1913, an acquaintance invited Melvin to meet some local men who belonged to a club called the Business Circle. Like many groups at the time, the Business Circle was largely about old school ``scratch my back and I will scratch yours'' club.

After his election as secretary in 1915, Melvin began to wonder how much could be accomplished if only the members of the Business Circle would pool their energies and talent for the greater good of their communities. Despite broaching this novel idea with other business organizations, their feedback was mixed at best. So Melvin put this unique vision into action and launched his own organization.

On June 17, 1917, he assembled 20 delegates representing 27 clubs nationwide in the East Room of the Hotel LaSalle, and a consensus was reached that a national organization should be formed dedicated to community service. After a spirited debate, the club voted by secret ballot to name the new organization the Association of Lions Clubs. Jones advocated for the name of Lions because it was a symbol of courage, strength, fidelity and vital action, which helped set the standard for the club.

Furthermore, during the organization's constitution, he insisted that it include a plank that no club should hold out as one of its objects financial benefits to its members, a principle Melvin followed throughout his entire life.

The Lions Club caught on so fast that it was just 3 years later after its birth that the club became international when it chartered a new club in Windsor, Ontario.

One of the profound moments of the club's history occurred in 1925 at their international convention at Cedar Point, Ohio, when Helen Keller addressed, challenging the attendees, the Lions, to become knights of the blind in their crusade against darkness, and from then on, as my fellow colleagues have noted, the Lions have been serving and bringing sight to the visually impaired and made this one of their central priorities.

In 1927, the Lions Club had the support of 11,063 local clubs and comprised 60,000 members worldwide. In 1950, when Lions membership surpassed the 400,000 mark, the international board of directors conferred upon Melvin Jones the title of Secretary General of Lions Club International which was changed to Founder and Secretary General in 1958.

Throughout his life, Jones' refusal to accept the limitation of old age was an inspirational reminder to all Lions of his dedication to serving others.

In 1960, at the age of 81, even after several strokes the year before, he

commuted to the club each day alone from his suburban Chicago home, never missing a moment of the Lions International Convention where thunderous applause for the Founder shook the rafters.

On June 1, 1961, Melvin's perfect attendance record ended with his passing into the next life. Soon after, the international board of directors proclaimed January 13, Melvin Jones' day as a memory each year for his contributions to the world of Lionism. In 1965, the Melvin Jones Lions International Memorial was dedicated near his birthplace at Fort Thomas, Arizona.

In June 1999, the Lions international board dedicated a prestigious 50-foot spire in his honor as a lasting tribute to his memory.

During his remarkable life, Melvin Jones accumulated dozens of award, honors and accolades, including participation in a White House business leaders conference to discuss the economy in 1932 and representing the Lions Club at the preliminary planning for the United Nations in 1945.

Today, the Lions Club International is the largest network of service clubs in the world, comprising more than 46,000 clubs and 1.4 million members in 193 countries.

In addition to bringing sight to the blind, the Lions help build a brighter future for their communities by performing a wide range of services from cleaning up local parks and developing youth programs to assisting the hearing impaired and promoting diabetes awareness.

One of the Lions' newest and most exciting programs is the Liberty Day Program. Unfortunately, as most of us are well aware, over the years civics education has become only voluntary in many schools across the country. Even where it is taught, many American government and history books have left out the two most important documents in our history, the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. These omissions will have a detrimental effect on our republic, with young people learning less about our founding and how precious our democracy is.

As Members of Congress, we have a responsibility to give back to our communities and combat the cynicism and apathy that some of our constituents have towards government.

In the summer of 1966, two members of the Youth Service Committee of the Lions Club in Denver, Colorado, started a small program in Denver schools to distribute books containing the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. The program immediately got traction and volunteers sought out private donations for the printing of these little booklets.

Other Lions Club members and volunteers pitched in and recruited elected State officials in Colorado ranging from the Speaker of the State House, Russell George, to former Senator Gary Hart and Attorney General Gale Norton to speak to classes and distribute the books. The response was unbelievable.

Soon, every State had its own booklet on Liberty Day, and many have Statewide Liberty Day coordinators, who are continuously seeking to promote and collect private donations to print these books. In fact, in 2000, both the House and the Senate passed resolutions honoring and recognizing the contributions of Liberty Day.

I am proud to be State Chairman of Minnesota's Liberty Day program. In my State, I have had the honor of participating in more than a dozen of these celebrations, talking to thousands of students and adults, and the response has been overwhelmingly positive.

Liberty Day has evolved into more than just a celebration for students. It is a celebration in which the whole community can participate. Many communities celebrate by holding public lectures, displaying sections of the Declaration of Independence and Constitution in public places and staging mock debates on issues our Founding Fathers grappled with more than 200 years ago. These celebrations are terrific opportunities to connect with our constituents and provide an example and opportunity to give something back to our communities who have entrusted us with the responsibility of doing the people's business. It is also a chance to leave a lasting impression in the minds of young and old alike and erase some of the cynicism they have towards government and public officials.

In closing, none of the outstanding programs and services provided by Lions Club International that have touched the lives of many millions around the world would have been possible without the selfless dedication of Melvin Jones and the millions of volunteers who have followed in his pursuit of serving others.

I urge all of my colleagues to support this resolution and give Melvin Jones and the Lions Club International the congressional recognition they deserve.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 399) honoring the life and legacy of Melvin Jones and recognizing the contributions of Lions Clubs International.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H. Res. 399.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, House Resolution 399 recognizes the remarkable global contributions of Lions Clubs International, the largest service club organization in the world.

Lions Clubs work to aid communities in 190 different countries with all sorts of humanity's problems. From collecting five million pairs of used eyeglasses each year to give to those with vision loss, to collecting thousands of books for hospitals and schools in need, and to establishing disease prevention programs, the Lions Clubs consistently live up to their long-stated mission, ``We serve.''

Mr. Speaker, the resolution also honors Melvin Jones, the founder of the Lions Clubs. Jones grew up in Chicago and worked in the insurance industry as a young adult at the turn of the 20th century. He became affiliated with the business group known as The Business Circle, but was dismayed that the group focused only on improving the financial status of its members. Jones sought a business club that asked for more from its members.

On June 17, 1917, Jones pulled together leaders of business clubs from

all over the U.S. to discuss a new business-oriented organization that also would be committed to community service. The nascent group was called the Association of Lions Clubs, and it has grown into the largest service club organization on Earth with 1.4 million members worldwide today.

This year is the 125th anniversary of Melvin Jones' birth and, therefore, a fitting time to pay tribute to his commitment to volunteerism and service.

Mr. Speaker, the Lions Clubs International are truly worthy of commendation by this House, and I would encourage anyone interested in volunteer opportunities to think about contacting a nearby Lions Club chapter.

I thank the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Kennedy) for his work to honor Melvin Jones and the Lions Clubs. I know the gentleman from Minnesota has been a Lions Club member for many years. I congratulate the gentleman for advancing this resolution to the floor.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the mellifluous gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis) for his contribution to the Lions Club in his area.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Kennedy), the distinguished sponsor of this legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, today we honor the life of an American hero, Mr. Melvin Jones, and the institution he helped created, the Lions Clubs International. A driven and thoughtful man, Melvin Jones made his home in Chicago, Illinois and formed his own insurance agency in 1913.

Mr. Jones, like many other businessmen, worked extremely hard for his success. Unlike some, however, Melvin Jones did not find satisfaction in his personal success alone. He wanted to improve his community. He believed that he and other successful businessmen should work together for the betterment of the community.

Mr. Jones is quoted as asking at a businessmen's luncheon, ``What if these men who are successful because of their drive, intelligence and ambition were to put their talents to work improving their communities?''

Thus, on June 7, 1917, the Lions Clubs International was born. The first meeting was held in Chicago and two principles were set forth. One, meetings were not to be of a social nature, and members could not promote their own business interests.

The group was to focus on volunteerism and community service. Melvin Jones became so engulfed in the Lions Club that he left the insurance agency he had created to work for the club full time. He was a living example of the Lions Club motto, ``We serve.''

Although Mr. Jones passed away in 1961 at the age of 82, his legacy in the Lions Club lives on. Today with more than 46,000 clubs in 193 countries, Lions Club has expanded its focus to help meet the ever- increasing needs of our global community. One of the Lions Club's biggest programs is to improve the quality of eye care for the less fortunate. The Lions Club provides thousands of people around the world with free eye care. In addition, the Lions Club collects more than 5 million pairs of eyeglasses each year to be distributed in developing countries.

Melvin Jones, the man, whose personal code was, and I quote, ``You cannot get very far until you start doing something for somebody else,'' became a source of inspiration for people working all over the world for the good of mankind. I am delighted to know this history and origin of the Lions Club and proud to say that at one time I, too, was a member of a Lions Club and one of its creators in my own community and my own neighborhood, and I can remember distributing eyeglasses to people who needed them.

So we thank Mr. Jones for his vision, for his creativity, and his sense of giving back to his community. I am privileged to support this legislation. I view Mr. Jones as one of our real visionaries.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Lions Club International founder, Melvin Jones, for his legacy of volunteerism and community service. Melvin Jones was born on January 13, 1879 at Fort Thomas, Arizona, and passed away on June 1, 1961 at the age of 82. He founded the Association of Lions Clubs in 1917, the same year they held their national convention in Dallas, TX.

Melvin Jones abandoned his job at an insurance agency to devote himself full time to the Lions. He was a dedicated individual who gave back to his community and worked hard to improve the lives of others. Melvin Jones had a vision for the Lions to expand their focus to help meet the ever-increasing needs of our global community.

Today, Lions International has over 1.4 million members in over 170 countries worldwide. As a proud member of the Oak Cliff Lions Club in Dallas, TX, I am pleased to celebrate their 75th anniversary and salute each member who graciously gives their time, skills and resources for our communities and internationally. As global members, Lions provide immediate and sustained relief in time of disaster and offer long-term assistance to those in need. Lions International has raised millions of dollars for various charitable causes, including sight conservation, diabetes awareness and cancer research. For over 85 years, Lions International has benefited countless persons by fulfilling the mission set out by Melvin Jones in the association's motto: ``We Serve.''

Mr. Speaker, and I am pleased to honor the service and commitment Melvin Jones made to build a brighter future for our country, and I know my colleagues will join me today in recognizing his valuable contributions.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of House Resolution 399, honoring the achievements of Melvin Jones and recognizing the contributions of Lions Club International.

One of our Nation's great success stories began when Jones, then an insurance agent, looked around his business luncheon group and asked a question:

``What if these men, who are successful because of their drive, intelligence, and ambition, were to put their talents to work improving their communities?''

On June 7th, 1917, Lions Clubs International was born. Jones eventually left the insurance business to devote himself to the organization full-time. With his guidance, Lions Club International became one of the world's leading service associations. Jones's leadership was held in such high regard that he was recruited as a consultant during the organization of the United Nations.

Today, almost 1.4 million Lions Club members in 193 countries tackle problems like blindness, drug abuse prevention, diabetes awareness, and disaster relief. Lions build parks, support hospitals and establish water treatment programs. The largest Lions Club in the United States meets in Lubbock, Texas, where they've served since 1929.

The Lions have been with us for 85 years. Melvin Jones's philosophy that ``You can't get very far until you start doing something for somebody else'' has become the motto of service-minded folks the world over. Where there's need, they're there. Where there's work to do, they serve.