Loyal and noble; ambitious, enthusiastic and optimistic; proud, extroverted and sociable: all these are characteristics said to be typical of those born under the sign Leo, the lion at least by people who believe in horoscopes. But it would be a mistake to insist that only those whose birthdays lie between 23rd July and 23rd August are qualified to become members of the Lions Club. 

Nevertheless, the characteristics I have mentioned are a fairly apt description of the image generally attributed to the Lions”; but perhaps we should add the words generous, caring and committed, too. 

International President Madden, 

dear Mrs Bush, 

I welcome you most warmly on behalf of the Senate of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg. It’s a great honour to us that you have decided to hold your 96th convention in Hamburg for only the third time in Europe after Nice in 1978 and Birmingham in 1989. I’m sure our city will present itself to the 20,000 or more participants at its very best. We are delighted you have chosen Hamburg as the venue for your convention, and that we as a city have been able to make our contribution to holding it here. 

The 46,000 Lions Clubs have a total of 1,350,000 members in 207 countries that makes them the largest service club organization in the world. For 96 years in Germany since 1951 the members have given assistance, chiefly to promote the welfare of their local communities; that is, directly on the spot, but also on the international level in the battle against sickness and hunger, in disaster relief and in cultural matters. 

Above all it is your organization’s strong local and regional roots that explain its unique history of success: not only in the USA, which is traditionally charity-conscious, but around the globe. There is no local newspaper, no radio or television station, that does not report regularly on projects supported by the Lions. 

Under the motto We Serve”, every member of the Lions undertakes: 

• To put service to others before his own personal profit; 
• Not to jeopardize 
• another person’s existence for his own benefit; 
• Not to regard friendship as a means to an end; 
• To bear in mind his obligations as a citizen towards his own nation and the community; 
• To give sympathy to those in distress, active support to the weak and financial assistance to the needy. 

As the basis of a private association, these principles sound almost too good to be true. But they are certainly very fitting for Hamburg. The public spiritedness of this city is provérbial, and Hamburg is way ahead of its rivals as the metropolis of foundations”. 

At the present time there are about twelve hundred non-profit foundations that maintain our long, gratifying tradition of organized support for citizens by their fellow citizens. Together they have total assets of over seven billion euros. That means Hamburg has several hundred million Euros a year at its disposal from foundation funds which can be put to good use. 

In past centuries the social network” of which we are rightly proud today consisted almost entírely of charitable foundations that built almshouses and rent-free accommodation for the poor. The first orphanage was built in Hamburg in 1604, and the Plague House” was an early predecessor of the general hospitals. 

In the 21st century we work hand in hand: the modern foundations and many other initiatives in the field of social welfare cooperate excellently with the social security authorities and complement municipal aid for the needy in a way that is only possible and meaningful with personal initiative. 

But apart from emergencies we don’t, on principle, believe in mere charity; we attach importance to respectful treatment even of the poorest members of the community. 

The message of our invitation to everyone is: If you make an effort you shall have a fair chance of finding your place in our city, irrespective of your age, country of origin, gender or religion. 

With this in mind the government, as the competent authority for services of general interest”, should enable every individual to assume responsibility for his or her own life for the pursuit for happiness”, as it says in the United States Constitution. And those who make an effort must also reap the benefit of their efforts. Active citizenship complements that in its own special way. 

Ladies and Gentlemen, 

It’s the job of our politicians to establish the overall conditions under which individuals can develop their capabilities. But in order to function properly, a society also needs community spirit and readiness to give mutual support. It needs practical activity, idealism, and willingness to sacrifice time and money. 

The Lions Club exemplifies this deeply philanthropic and humanistic attitude. An attitude with timeless value. But that your organization also moves with the times can be seen from the fact that club membership that used to be men’s business” only is now open to women. The 51,138 German members of Lions are organized in 1,521 clubs. 97 of these are ladies’ clubs and 524 are mixed and that without any quota regulations at all! 

An international convention like this sends out important signals to all those who take part. One of these, that I hope will remain, is in the heading to your invitation to members: Meet friends in Hamburg”, is what it says. And if you were to find new friends here, too, that would please me most of all. 

Hamburg, the economic hub of Northern Europe with flourishing industries and emphasis on logistics, energy generation and research, is known chiefly as a port, as a waterside city. And there are good reasons for that: every year the harbour and the Elbe river attract hundreds of thousands of tourists and on the Alster lake you can set off on a sailing trip in the middle of town! 

But Hamburg is Germany’s metropolis for musicals, too, the creative centre of German fashion design, the home of the country’s biggest newspaper and magazine publishing houses and the seat of the German headquarters of Google, Facebook and Xing. 

I can promise you this: here in one of Europe’s greenest cities, with its wealth of parks and green spaces, you will never be bored. At the present time, the river islands in the vigorously developing southern part of Hamburg invite you to visit both the International Building Exhibition and the International Garden Show, and in the new HafenCity quarter you can watch Hamburg’s new landmark, the Elbphilharmonie” concert hall, growing from one day to the next. 

And conversely, Hamburg is looking forward to the Lions Convention and the many meetings and events associated with it. So once again: Welcome to you all, and I wish you a pleasant time in our city!