Canton Ga. Lions Club

05/04/2026

SAVE THE DATE: JUNE 16 - Dinner in the Dark 👁️‍🗨️🍽️

Join the Canton Lions Club for a truly unique and unforgettable evening!

Dinner in the Dark 🌑
Downtown Kitchen (2nd Floor), Canton, GA 📍
June 16 | 7:00 PM ⏰

Step into a world without sight and discover how your other senses come alive. This immersive dining experience offers a powerful glimpse into the daily lives of those who are blind or visually impaired — all while enjoying a delicious meal in complete darkness. 👁️‍🗨️

Proceeds support vision programs right here in our community. 💛🦁

Limited seating available — reserve your spot today! 🎟️

04/27/2026

Canton Lions Club's Annual Golf tournament is being held at The Fairways of Canton on Monday, May 4. Consider treating yourself to a long weekend and come join us for a day of fun. Reach out to me if you're interested in fielding a team. We have space for a couple more foursomes!

Register today at https://www.cantongalionsclub.org/shop

Why support us? Here are some ways that Canton Lions Club serves our community:

- We provide comprehensive vision screening services for Cherokee County School District (CCSD) schools, select private preschools, and the Cherokee County Detention Center.

- We support summer camps for individuals who are blind or visually impaired.

- We raise funds to support the Canton Police Department’s “Shop with a Cop” program, benefiting underserved children during the holiday season.

- We sponsor Star Student Awards scholarships and recognize outstanding high school students each February.

- We promote participation in the Lions Clubs International Peace Poster Contest in local middle schools to depict the International Lions Peace theme of the year. The 2026 theme is "Harmony in Humanity".

- We supply and maintain sophisticated camera equipment for vision screening programs throughout our community.
- We support Diabetes Awareness initiatives.

- We assist individuals in financial need by helping to provide access to eye exams and eyeglasses.

- And more...

03/25/2026

Service Spotlight: SERV International Food Pack-Out

Fifteen Canton Lions 🦁 members and family volunteers recently participated in a food pack-out service project at SERV International. Special thanks to Lion Todd Baker for organizing the event. Together with community volunteers, the team packed 500 boxes of food to help families who are underserved in our community!

02/04/2026

CANTON LIONS CLUB ANNOUNCES CHEROKEE COUNTY STAR STUDENT

The Canton Lions Club, at a program held on February 3, 2026 at the Historic Downtown Canton Theater, announced that the 2026 STAR Student for Cherokee County is Levi Cone of Creekview High School. He was selected from among the eight STAR Students named for each of the high schools located in Cherokee County. As his STAR Teacher, Levi selected Drew Lawson, who was his teacher for AP English Language.

STAR Students are high school seniors with the highest score on a single test date on the SAT and have to be in the top 10 percent, or top 10 students, of their class based on grade point average. Levi will now move on to compete at the Region level of the STAR Program.

The other high school winners and their teachers were: Grace Dai (Morgan Clifton) of Cherokee High School; Hayden Galambos (Areli Nunez) of Cherokee Christian High School; Alexander Jian Lue (Kristy Wiggins) of Etowah High School; Michael Kerry McGuire (Hannah Mitchell) of iGrad Virtual Academy; Claire Park (Tracye Bulger) of River Ridge High School; Benjamin George Koster (Cathy Murphy) of Sequoyah High School; and Daniel Esteban Cabra-Lara (Kate McIntyre) of Woodstock High School.

“Each year we are honored to host these amazing students and teachers to recognize their achievement as the STAR Student and Teacher from their high schools. We are especially proud of Levi Cone and Drew Lawson and wish them success at the Region level,” said Shawn Tolan, President of the Canton Lions Club.

The PAGE Student Teacher Achievement Recognition (STAR) program is sponsored, administered and promoted by the Professional Association of Georgia Educators (PAGE) and the PAGE Foundation. Since its inception in 1958 the STAR program has honored nearly 28,500 students and the teachers selected as the most influential to their academic achievement. The Canton Lions Club has been the local sponsor of the STAR program since 1958.

01/12/2026

Canton Ga. Lions Club member Jacky Cheng will be a featured guest speaker at the upcoming MLK Day Unity Breakfast, Jan. 19. The event is free and open to the public!

In partnership with the County/City Government and sponsors, the Charlie Ferguson Community Center is re-launching the MLK Day Unity Breakfast.

On Jan. 19, at 8 a.m. enjoy a breakfast spread, and then at 9 a.m., join the community to hear from speakers including Ebony Steele, National Radio and TV Personality; Jacky Cheng, City of Canton, Digital Content Specialist; Kevin Williams, Chick-fil-A owner, Author, and New Ground Foundation Founder; and Dr. James Marshall Shepherd, UGA Professor and Leading International Weather-Climate Expert.

The event is FREE and open to EVERYONE!

01/08/2026

At our first meeting for 2026, we had the honor of welcoming Dan and Nancy Kohl, Cherokee County Chapter Co-Presidents of Sleep in Heavenly Peace - GA, Cherokee Co., as our guest speakers.

The Kohl's just recently launched the Cherokee County chapter of SHP, which is the leading non-profit dedicated to providing beds for children in need. SHP chapters host "build days" for volunteers to construct a set goal of twin beds, and donation drives for bedding and mattresses so that each bed delivered to a child in need will be ready for immediate use.

Applications to be a part of the Cherokee County Chapter of Sleep in Heavenly Peace are available starting Fri., Jan. 9, or if you want to volunteer your time for a build day, visit https://shpbeds.org/chapter/ga-cherokee-co/ for more information.

12/11/2025

At our recent annual Holiday Party at Downtown Kitchen in Canton, Ga., the Canton Lions Club honored four of our members for their years of service and contributions to the club!

1) Lion of the Year went to Craig Keith (right), and was presented by District Governor Steve Woodward (left), AKA Santa!

2) Woodward presented the Melvin Jones Award to honoree Debbie Bumgardner.

3) Club Chaplin Jack Weaver also received a Melvin Jones Award, as presented by Woodward.

4) Woodward presented the third and final Melvin Jones Award of the evening to Club Secretary Bobby Dyer.

The party was a fun night for all with music, great food, and lots of fellowship!

12/10/2025

🎁 Last Week to Donate! Cherokee Recreation and Parks is wrapping up its annual Hugs in a Blanket community outreach project, and there’s still time to make a difference for local seniors. We’re collecting new warm blankets, new slipper socks, and a heartfelt note to deliver to area nursing homes before Christmas, but donations close Dec. 12!

💛 Drop-off Locations:
• The WREC – 7545 Main St., Building 200, Woodstock
• Cherokee County Aquatic Center – 1200 Wellstar Way, Canton
• L.B. “Buzz” Ahrens, Jr. Recreation Center – Cherokee Veterans Park, 7345 Cu***ng Hwy., Canton

📅 Drop-off Hours:
Mon–Thurs: 9 a.m.–8 p.m.
Fri: 9 a.m.–5 p.m.

Let’s make this final week count and help bring warmth and joy to our seniors! 💙

12/09/2025

The winners of the Peace Poster Contest have been announced!

The theme of this years contest was "Together as One." The top three posters were selected from among 26 students of Ms. Dunn at Teasley Middle School.

Canton Lions Club members Marty Taylor (left) and Craig Keith (right) presented certificates and cash prizes to the winners of the contest. The winners were: 1st Place - Delylah Reney (second from left); 2nd Place - Adam Jacinto (second from right); and 3rd Place - Allison Hough (center).

The Club also presented the school with a $500 donation to their Christmas needs program! Congrats to all!

12/09/2025

The Canton Police Department extends our heartfelt gratitude to the Lion’s Club-Canton for their generous contribution to our 2025 Shop with A Cop. Your continued support allows us to bring joy to even more families in our community, and our mission would not be as successful without your support. We are truly grateful for your generosity and your unwavering commitment to those we serve. 🎁🎄💙

-CPD