ABOUT US

FREEDOM DISTRICT LIONS CLUB FOUNDATION, INC.

OUR MISSION

The Freedom District Lions Club Foundation, Inc. (the “Foundation”) is a 501(c)(3) “charitable organization” incorporated under the laws of Maryland and is associated with the Freedom District Lions Club, Inc., (the “Club”) which is a 501(c)(4) “community service social club” also incorporated under the laws of Maryland. Thus the Foundation and the Club are two (2) separate and distinct legal entities recognized by the State of Maryland and the United States, each with its own set of By-Laws, governance structure and legal responsibilities.

The Foundation was formed in 2000 to assist the Club in the Club’s community service goals. The Club, chartered in 1947, has a lengthy and successful history fund raising and using all its monies to serve the community through charitable gift giving.

Under federal law (IRS code) donations to a 501(c)(4) organization are not tax deductible; donations to a (501)(c)(3) organization are tax deductible. Thus a donation or contribution to the Foundation can be deducted from one’s income tax while donations or contributions to the Club cannot. This is the distinction that allows the Foundation to operate in a manner beneficial to the Club and ultimately, the community both organizations serve.

Generally speaking, the Foundation is the recipient of tax-free bequests and/or donations by the public and in turn the Foundation makes monetary grants to various organizations or individuals applying for same. The “pillars” of Lionism help guide the Foundation grants. The “pillars”, the Lions Club International service priorities, are Vision, Diabetes/Health, Hunger, Childhood Cancer, the Environment, and Youth. Organizations that support research or provide services to individuals in need in connection with these service priorities are most often the recipients of Foundation grants.

The Foundation acknowledges with deep gratitude the exceptionally generous bequest by the Shirley Bossum Trust made in memory of her late husband, George G. Leakins, Jr., a long-time member of the Freedom District Lions Club, Melvin Jones Award recipient 1995, and World War II hero.