HASTINGS, Neb.—Service and commitment have long defined the life of Hastings resident Leo “Doc” Lemonds.
Lemonds, who just turned 87, was honored for his 60-year affiliation with the local Kiwanis Club.
The surprise tribute was attended by several members of his family, including his wife, Marcella, and several of their children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Lemonds was an avid athlete at College View High School (now Lincoln Southeast), where he competed in football, baseball, track and baseball.
As luck would have it, the family relocated to Iowa just in time for Lemonds to be accepted into Iowa State Veterinary School in the mid-1940s. It was there he met Marcella at a dance at the Sigma Chi house. They married in September 1945, and will celebrate 65 years of marriage this year.
After graduating from veterinary school in 1949, he and Marcella moved to Hastings, where he started a practice that would span 34 years.
It was but a short few months after landing here that he was invited to join the Kiwanis Club by Ray Thompson, a Sunday school teacher at First United Methodist Church. Thus began his 60-year membership in the club.
Through the years, he has recruited 60 members, including two daughters, a grandson and two great-grandsons. All because Thompson happened to be a Kiwanian.
“I mentioned to him that I should belong to a service club, so he said, ‘Well, come to Kiwanis next Thursday,'” Lemonds said. “If he had been a Rotarian or an Optimist, that’s probably what I would have been.
“I’ve always been glad that he was a Kiwanian, because I’ve much enjoyed these 60 years.”
Highlights of his lengthy stint with the club include service as club president and district lieutenant governor, with international convention trips to France, Canada and Austria.
But it has been his involvement in service projects for children that has brought him the most satisfaction, he said.
“Kiwanis is a big thing for kids,” he said. “Our Kids Against Hunger is probably in many ways our best project. We’ve packaged over 250,000 meals.”
An avid storyteller, he has written 11 books—the majority of them dealing with his experiences as a veterinarian. In 1995, he compiled a 75-year history book detailing highlights of the local club from its inception.
Former Kiwanian Lt. Gov. Darrell Nelson has known Lemonds for more than 30 years.
“He’s a real people person, someone who is really dedicated to his community,” Nelson said. “It’s just been a real pleasure to know Doc through the years.”
Lemonds’ reason for joining a service club dates back to his college years and some words of wisdom spoken by one of his college professors.
“He said, ‘When you go out from here, you’ll want to support the town you’re in,'” he said.
“One of the ways he said was to join a service club. I practiced here for 34 years and got to give something back for all the good in my life that has happened.”
