BEING benevolent always held special meaning for Matilda Rajaram, who was encouraged to become a member of the Lions Club of Georgetown Stabroek so she could volunteer to make community-based projects come alive.

The 68-year-old told the Pepperpot Magazine that in 2007, a customer who became a friend encouraged her to become part of the group, and she accepted the invitation to see what it was all about. Today, she is a valued member of the Lions Club of Georgetown Stabroek, where her input has breathed life into two successful projects.

Rajaram related that on November 1, 2024, the Lions Club of Georgetown Stabroek made a monetary donation to a child who is living with cancer. She, along with two other members, made the presentation to the minor in the presence of the parents to coincide with Cancer Awareness Month, which was held in October.

In addition, Rajaram, along with Diana Dornellas and Juliet Robertson, on November 14, 2024, gifted diabetes testing kits to two persons who have diabetes at the Kitty Health Centre, Georgetown. The handover ceremony was witnessed by both members of the Lions Club of Georgetown Stabroek along with staffers of the primary healthcare facility. She stated that the presentation was done for World Diabetes Day, which is observed on November 14 annually.

Rajaram added that being part of the Lions Club of Georgetown Stabroek is meaningful because she likes to interact with people, and it gives her something worthwhile to do.

She pointed out that the Lions Club of Georgetown Stabroek has 30 members, both local and overseas, and they meet twice monthly to find ways they can uplift others. Rajaram told the Pepperpot Magazine that she is originally from Bartica, Region Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni), and resides at Da Silva Street, Kitty. She is a mother of five children and six grandchildren. Her last visit to her hometown of Bartica was in January this year, and she has two brothers and a sister still residing there.

A simple life

She revealed that her husband passed away 20 years ago when her last child was only six years old. That child will be celebrating her 27th birth anniversary on Saturday, and she is a doctor at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC).

Rajaram has been a dressmaker for the past 36 years and supported herself and her children via that profession with the assistance of her grown children. Apart from that, she enjoys the simpler things in life, such as taking care of the chores at home, cooking, and shopping.

She likes to go to the stores to select raw materials (fabrics) to sew, get buttons covered at the Stabroek Market, and do her grocery shopping.

“As a member of the Lions Club of Georgetown Stabroek, I serve according to their slogan: ‘Where there is a need, there is a Lion.’ In natural disasters, such as the hurricane in the Caribbean, we came together and raised funds to assist the people who were affected,” she said.

Rajaram is an “on-the-go” kind of person who doesn’t like to sit idle doing nothing. She keeps herself busy at home or in the field, volunteering for a good cause.

She noted that having something to do is just what she needs, and when she has a bit of free time, she likes to spend it alone reflecting, listening to the radio and gospel music, since she is not a person who watches television.

The Georgetown Stabroek Lions Club is a volunteer organisation committed to humanitarian service. Founded 22 years ago, the club will continue to serve the community indefinitely.

With a friendly demeanour and a free spirit, Rajaram takes the time she has now to make a difference in the lives of others and contribute to society through the Georgetown Stabroek Lions Club.