Leo Club History :

In 1957,  Coach Jim Graver and William Ernst of the Glenside Lions Club, Pennsylvania, USA, formed the world's first Leo Club. All 35 members of the Abington High School baseball team joined Abington Leo Club. The first Leo club was charted on December 5, 1957.

Leo Clubs were formally adopted as an official program and project of Lions Clubs International in 1967, the year of the Association's Golden Anniversary.

In 1968, newly formed Leo clubs began sending their requests for club certification to International Headquarters. On October 17, 1969, forms requesting certification for the Abington High School Leo Club reached headquarters. On this date, the world's original Leo club was formally recognized as a part of the international Leo program. Leo John Hebert of Baederwood, Pennsylvania, served as president of the Abington High School Leo Club.

In total, more than 6,100 Leo clubs in 140 countries with approximately 152,000 members are proud to volunteer to serve others in their local communities and to call themselves Leos. These young community leaders are friendly, active and dedicated to creating new and exciting youth volunteer opportunities by participating in their local Leo clubs.

Today, the Leo Club Program is stronger than ever. Community service remains the cornerstone of the program. Like their Lion counterparts, Leo club members enjoy serving their neighbors and watching positive results unfold.