2012 Feb - Lions Australia

8
10,000
satisfied
Schoolies
It could well be a Lions record.
In one night Queensland’s Lions Club of Burleigh
Heads supplied and cooked 10,000 sausages – for
Schoolies!
“When the organisers of Schoolies decided that
Tuesday 22nd November was to be a quiet
Schoolies night they turned to one of the oldest
Lions Clubs on the Gold Coast,” said President of
Burleigh Heads Lions Ross Bussell.
Burleigh Heads Lions has over 54 years of
service to their community so the club was an
obvious choice for the Surfers Paradise beachfront
event.
With such a large order it was all hands on deck
for five hours. But to see the youngsters smiling
and happy was worthwhile, and we knew they were
being fed and looked after. For us too there was
lots of fun and laughter
For more than 20 years on the last Sunday of
each month at the Burleigh Beach markets, we
have cooked sausages so we consider ourselves
Happy sausage servers ... new member Jean
Rose (left) and Burleigh Heads MP and Lion
Christine Smith get in the spirit of the event.
Lion Paul Trewartha (right) shows off his skill at
the grill at the Schoolies Sausage Sizzle.
experienced in the art.
The Schoolies event was great exposure for our
club and Lions and we made a great deal of money
which we shared with the new Tallebudgera club
which assisted us.
– Merv Rose
Meet Polly the miracle Papillon
Polly the Papillon cross may look like your average household pet but actually
she’s a lifesaver – and in more ways than one.
This little pooch was trained as a
“hearing dog” by Lions Hearing Dogs and
sponsored by Penrith Lions in NSW to help
guide her owner, Bianca Martin, 22, who is
deaf.
Polly responds to eight specific
household sounds, including smoke alarms
and doorbells, by running between Bianca
and the source of the sound until she
notices.
But Polly showed true heroism when she
recently alerted her owner to a two-yearold
child who wasn’t breathing.
"We were visiting my cousin Diane and
Bianca and her Hearing Dog mate, the
lifesaving Papillon Polly.
Polly ran up to me and tapped me, but I
didn't think anything of it because Diane
was there (to hear),” she said.
“When she came up twice more, I
followed her.”
Polly led her to the next room where her
cousin’s daughter was in a cot.
She realised the baby wasn't breathing
and her lips had turned blue.
"My cousin rushed to put her on the
ventilator and, thankfully, the baby started
breathing again,” said Bianca.
"Without Polly who knows what would
have happened. She was given a very, very
big bone to chew on after that.”
Story: Emily Crane,
Western Weekender, Penrith
Photo: Melinda Jenkins
Lion