Wolf Named Lion Of Year

Club Celebrates 87th Birthday, Honors Members

Danny Wolf didn’t think he stood a chance of winning the Noon Lions Club’s top honor -  Lion of the Year 2007 - he won Thursday. He’d only been with the group for a year. But he was wrong.

“While Pat [Greever, club president] was reading all those things about the winner, I was thinking, ‘Boy, whoever wins that has some big shoes to fill.’ I had no idea it could be me,” Wolf said when accepting the award.

Wolf started to figure it out well into the biographical information Greever was reading about the recipient.

“When he read ‘four children and five grandchildren,’ I figured that could be anyone in here. It wasn’t until he started talking about girls softball that I started to think, ‘Hmm … maybe?’” Wolf said.

Wolf had been instrumental in the early years of the Girls Softball Association and in the design and construction of the Gabe Nesbitt softball ballfields at El Dorado and Alma.

Wolf may have only been with the Lions for one year, but he made a real impression on the group. Greever read comments from other members such as “he’s the most positive person I’ve ever met,” “he brings a fresh and conscientious effort to every project he undertakes,” “other clubs would be jealous of his membership here – they would all want him for their clubs,” and “he makes us all do a better job by his challenge to us all with his [hard work].”

Wolf’s wife of 17 years, Shawnna, was on-hand for the noon lunch and had known her husband would be receiving the award.

“I’m glad I only knew for a day. I’m terrible at keeping secrets,” Shawnna laughed. “When I asked Danny what this lunch was for and he said it was a birthday celebration and awards, I asked him if he thought he’d win anything. He said some day he’d like to win the Lion of the Year, but knew he hadn’t been with the group long enough to have a chance yet.”

Other honors handed out Wednesday included Dan Strother who received the Melvin Jones Fellowship Award, and Sharon Butler and Robert Guthrie who were both honored with the Dan Wiech Fellowship Award.

Wednesday’s lunch meeting also was a celebration of the club’s 87th birthday. The members of the McKinney Noon Lions Club, founded here in 1920 by Melvin Jones, volunteer around the community in humanitarian efforts. Two of their biggest projects are collecting used eyeglasses for recycling and fitting needy adults and children around the world, and sponsoring summer camp for economically disadvantaged and special needs children.