Ikoyi Lions Club marks World Disabilities Day with empowerment outreach in Lagos

By Juliet Umeh

Lagos Ikoyi Diamond Lions Club, under Lions International District 404-A3 Nigeria, has commemorated World Disabilities Day with a Disability Empowerment Project aimed at promoting inclusion, advocacy and support for persons living with disabilities.

The outreach, hosted in partnership with Theseabilities Foundation, focused on raising awareness about disability issues, promoting the inclusion of people with disabilities in all aspects of life, advocating their rights and dignity, and making donations to beneficiaries.

Speaking at the event, President of Lagos Ikoyi Diamond Lions Club, Arc. Lion Ladipo Lewis, described the initiative as one of the club’s early service projects, noting that the club is less than six months old.

Lewis said: “This is one of our activities slated for this month, the Disability Empowerment Project. We are here to give to the needy and to support organisations that are already doing the work.”

He explained that Lions International, with nearly 1.5 million members globally and with  headquarters in Oak Brook, Illinois, United States, is driven by service to the less privileged.

He said: “Every month, Lions engage in activities ranging from feeding the hungry, school outreach, empowerment programmes, to giving specifically to the blind, the deaf, pregnant women in maternity wards, and anyone in need. Our mandate is to impact our neighbourhood,” he said.

Lewis said the decision to partner with Theseabilities Foundation was deliberate.

“We do not claim expertise in disability matters. Lions International encourages us to partner with organisations that have experience so we can leverage their expertise in reaching those in need. This partnership allows us to strengthen their impact so they can better serve those they support,” he added.

In her remarks, District Governor Lion Mary Onu, said the celebration was organised to affirm the abilities and potential of persons with disabilities.

She said: “We are here to celebrate Disability Day because we acknowledge that one disability does not mean total inability. Over the years, we have discovered that people with disabilities are often extraordinarily gifted in other ways.”

Onu encouraged beneficiaries to see the Lions Club as inclusive and open to all.

“This is a club for everybody. Having a disability does not mean you cannot be part of us or help others. We are here to celebrate, to support and to stand with you,” she said, thanking the host for the opportunity to engage directly with the disability community.”

Chairman of Theseabilities Foundation, Pastor Ituah Igbodalo, expressed appreciation to the Lions Club for the outreach, describing disability as not a limitation but often a gift.

“We believe there is ability in everyone. God made the deaf, the dumb, the blind-He made them all for a reason,” Igbodalo said.

He explained: “What we are trying to do at Theseabilities is to make life better and to create space for those considered physically challenged. Sometimes what people call a disability is actually a gift,” he said.

Igbodalo shared stories of individuals with disabilities who discovered exceptional talents, stressing the need for society to nurture such abilities rather than stigmatise them.

He also outlined the foundation’s advocacy efforts, including pushing for the enforcement of laws requiring organisations to employ persons with disabilities, promoting disability-friendly buildings, supporting adaptive sports such as blind football and wheelchair basketball, and empowering beneficiaries through education and small business support.

“Our aim is to be the voice, the support and the help for people who need support. We are grateful for this visit and we hope this marks the beginning of a partnership that will go very far,” he said.

The event ended with the presentation of donations to beneficiaries and a reaffirmation of Lions International’s commitment to sustained community service and inclusive development.

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