The Lions Club annual bike auction was a roaring success.

On May 14, the Lions Club hosted their annual bike auction at the McCready Centre and a record number of people came out to purchase bikes and help raise money for the club’s various charitable endeavours. Auctioning off roughly 60 bikes, the Lions raised $5,395 – much of which will be spent in and around Jasper.

Dianne Crayston, past zone president of the Lions Club, said the bike auctions started in 1970. Abandoned bikes were picked up by Parks Canada staff and local bylaw officers and donated to the club’s auction. Bikes are fixed up and made ready for sale by club members.

Originally, as some of the bikes were left behind by international visitors, the money raised at the auctions was given to international charities, but over the years that broadened to include local charities and initiatives in Jasper. Currently, the Lions support many causes with their fund-raising efforts, including medic alert tags for elementary school children, the Lions Club International Fund, the Jasper library, Alpine Summit Seniors Lodge, Santa’s Anonymous, the Jasper Crisis Team and local families in need – to name a few.

Dave Neilson, acting club president, said that this year the number of people at the auction surpassed any year he has seen since joining the Lions Club. Helmut Kreiner, an active Lion said, “It was the best one we have ever had.”

Today, bikes still come from bylaw and Parks staff who collect abandoned bikes and Crayston said that sometimes people in the community will donate their unwanted bikes to the Lions for the auction.

“We keep the bikes wherever we can store them throughout the year and work on them in the shop to make sure they are useable and sellable,” she said.

Neilson said the bikes sell well in Jasper; the majority of the people that come to the auction are seasonal staff that need transportation, and families with young children who need a bike.

Unless the club receives a special request for financial help, Crayston said the money raised is managed by the financial committee and given out to various charities and organizations.

“They know where it is needed,” she added.

See more coverage of Jasper’s Lions club in next week’s Fitzhugh.