Weyburn Lion's Club member Clint Swanson has been elected to the position of District Governor for District 5CE.

Swanson, who is a charter member of the local club with 20 years of perfect attendance, was installed as District Governor at the recent Lion's International convention in Honolulu, Hawaii.

He was nominated for the position two years in advance, and attended training classes last September and April, and at the international convention, to prepare him for the position.

He will be the liaison between Lions International and 54 clubs in southeast Saskatchewan. The area is bordered by Highway No. 1 to the north, the U.S. border to the south, Highway No. 6 to the west and the Manitoba border to the east. There are 1,221 members in the district - just a portion of the 1.4 million members in Lions International, which boasts 44,000 clubs in 185 countries around the world.

"I'm honoured to be elected by my peers to represent the Lions and I'm excited about it. Of course I want tot do the best job I can," he said.

Swanson will bring a wealth of experience to the new position, as he has served as president of the local club in 1984 and 1998, served as secretary when his son Terrie was president, and has also served as treasurer.

At the district level, he has been on cabinet for 12 years, serving as secretary-treasurer, zone and region chairman, and most recently, environment chairman.

Swanson is also a Melvin Jones Fellow, a life member of the Lion's Federation of Canada, and has received one International President's Appreciation Award and two key awards.

Being a member of the Lions has brought other interests to Swanson - including his involvement in the Canadian National Institute of the Blind, where he was an active member for nine years and is an honourary life member.

Helping the blind and visually impaired has been the main goal of the Lions Clubs.

"I do believe in the Lions and what we represent. We who are sighted don't have any idea what it's like to be blind. That alone is enough of a reason to do the best we can for the visually impaired," he said.

The humanitarian focus of the Lions is another reason Swanson remains committed. For example, at the international convention, members found out a devastating earthquake had hit Iceland. Relief money totalling $25,000 was sent that day. The same amount was sent to Pine Lake, Alta. following their recent tornado.