Jim de Boom -- COMMUNITY & CLUBS

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED: Jim Turner, volunteer coordinator for the Feb.

27 Leigh and Lucy Steinberg Spirit Run being held for the benefit of

schoolchildren in the Corona del Mar zone, is seeking hundreds of

volunteers to help with the event.

It’s Orange County’s largest 5K/10K and kids’ run. Help is needed with

preregistration on Saturday, Feb. 26, and race setup and operations on

Sunday beginning at 5 a.m.

Volunteers will receive a free T-shirt and meet new friends. Individuals,

families, service clubs and community groups are welcome to volunteer.

Applications are available by calling Turner at (949) 640-5350.

DISTRICT CONVENTION: Members of the Costa Mesa-Newport Harbor,

Harbor Mesa, Newport Beach and Costa Mesa-Orange Coast Breakfast Lions

clubs and their spouses are in Primm, NV., this weekend attending the

Lions District Conference. It’s a multi-district event where they will

hear about Lions International thrusts, outstanding club programs and

enjoy great fellowship and motivation.

SPEECH CONTESTS: The Harbor Mesa Lions Club will host the annual

Student Speaker Contest on Monday. Students from Newport Harbor High

School will compete in the contest with the winner having the opportunity

to advance to the regional, district and multiple-district levels.

On Wednesday night, the Newport-Balboa Rotary Club will host its annual

Speech Contest with students from Corona del Mar and Newport Harbor high

schools participating. The winners will also have the opportunity to move

on to the regional and district levels.

MOBILE MEALS: Once in awhile, I get a letter from a reader pointing

out a mistake or two in my column. This time, it came from Magna Schley,

the retired Hoag Hospital dietitian who started the Mobile Meals program

and considers it one of her legacies to the community. She noted that the

program’s proper title is Mobile Meals, not Meals on Wheels. As a member

of Soroptimist International, she asked the club if it would back it

financially and the club chose the name -- Mobile Meals. Hoag Hospital

and the Soroptimist Club started the program in 1974 with eight

customers, one route and Soroptimist drivers. Food is prepared at Hoag

for distribution once a day to shut-in senior citizens in Costa Mesa and

Newport Beach, and volunteer drivers are needed. Drivers pick up the food

at Hoag and visit with the shut-in for a few minutes upon delivery. The

Rev. Bob Parry, a Mobile Meals volunteer, says the number of seniors

needing Mobile Meals service is increasing and so is the need for

drivers. For more information or to volunteer, call (949) 645-8050.

And Magna, that is some legacy you have given to the community. I salute

you and all the Mobile Meals volunteers! If only each of us could do as

much ...

SERVICE CLUB MEETINGS THIS WEEK: Want to get more involved in your

community, make new friends, network, or to give something back to your

community? Try a service club! You are invited to attend a club meeting

this week. Many clubs will buy your first guest meal for you.

* TUESDAY: 7:30 a.m. -- The Newport Beach Sunrise Rotary Club meets at

the Balboa Bay Club; 6:30 p.m. -- The Costa Mesa-Newport Harbor Lions

Club will meet at the Costa Mesa Golf and Country Club; Soroptimist

International of Newport Harbor meets at the Pacific Club for its annual

“Affairs of the Heart” event, honoring distinguished women.

* WEDNESDAY: 7:15 a.m. -- The South Coast Metro Rotary Club will meet at

the Center Club; The Newport Harbor Kiwanis Club meets at the University

Athletic Club; Noon -- The Exchange Club of Orange Coast meets at the

Bahia Corinthian Yacht Club.

* THURSDAY: The Costa Mesa Orange Coast Breakfast Lions Club meets at

Mimi’s Cafe for its monthly business meeting; Noon -- The Kiwanis Club of

Newport Beach-Corona del Mar meets at the Bahia Corinthian; The Costa

Mesa Kiwanis Club meets at the Holiday Inn; The Exchange Club of Newport

Harbor meets at the Riverboat Restaurant for a program on the Newport

Aquatic Center; The Newport-Irvine Rotary Club meets at the Irvine

Marriott to hear Keith Nelson, a professor at UCI.

* COMMUNITY & CLUBS is published every Saturday in the Daily Pilot. Send

your service club’s meeting information by fax to (949) 660-8667, e-mail

to o7 jdeboom@aol.comf7 or by mail to 2082 S.E. Bristol, Suite 201,

Newport Beach 92660-1740.