Our Mission and Purpose
As a volunteer organization, the Lakewood Service League is committed to improving the Lakewood/East Dallas community by cultivating interest among its members in the economic, educational, cultural and civic conditions of the area.
Each year, its members dedicate countless hours to community projects and organizations. The League helps many charitable agencies and non-profit organizations meet their financial obligations by contributing thousands of dollars.
The service area includes zip codes 75204, 75206, 75214, 75218, 75223, 75226 and 75246. Lakewood Service League is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization.
Community Disbursements
During Fall 2022, we celebrated the Lakewood Park with donations of brand new playground equipment and hosted a fantastic ribbon cutting ceremony. Money raised over the past 20 years was put to good use in providing the park with some much-needed updates.
During our Reunion Luncheon in April 2023, the League was able to gift over $27,000 to our partner agencies. Each agency received a donation in the amount of $1,982, to symbolize the founding year of LSL.
2023 – 2024 Board Members
Our History
Founded in 1982 by Lou Alpert, the Lakewood Service League was formed by a group of women who wanted to improve the conditions of Lakewood Park so that the children of the neighborhood would have a safe, enjoyable place to play. Working in partnership with the Dallas Parks and Recreation Department, this group of women not only contributed funds, but also volunteered many hours of exhausting labor and converted what was nothing more than a muddy creek bottom into a lush, beautiful park. Since that time, this revitalized park has enlightened the lives of many area children while enhancing the value of the surrounding property. Today, Lakewood Park serves as the key-stone to the Lakewood Service League: it is a beautiful reminder of the life-enriching contributions the League can make to the neighborhood through the determination, commitment and volunteerism of the League members.
a note from our founder
Founder, Lou Alpert
When my children were young, I would take them to a playground in Highland Park….it was just better! Williamson Park was there; I had been going to play there since I was a child, but it was outdated and not particularly safe. You had to walk across a log just to get to the other side. A lot has changed since then – so funny to think about the park as it used to be! So a group of us got together in my living room on Lakewood Blvd along with assorted children and The Lakewood Service League was born.
Inexperience made our little group bold! Looking back, I think we must have been nuts to think we could just start this organization and build a park. We learned very quickly that the City of Dallas had some pretty interesting thoughts as well about our little endeavor. The more we got into it, the more we realized that our organization could do more than just build a park. My family had always been service oriented and the idea of a service component was very appealing. We drew up by-laws, installed officers, and became a 501©(3) organization. The Lakewood Service League was formally established.
We held our first fund-raiser at Lakewood Country Club. It was a formal affair with casino theme and an auction. My father was so afraid that I would fail that he bought almost every item in the live auction! Surprising everyone, we raised over $70,000. It’s rare in life that you have an idea and people listen, rarer still that they join forces with you and make something happen. The Lakewood Service League exists as a result of tremendous community support and the hard work of tons of amazing and talented women. As I looked out at the faces at the Provisional breakfast a couple of weeks ago, I was gratified and grateful.
The Lakewood Service League may have been my “Baby” but it is you, the members, who have nurtured, directed, and grown it into the successful and thriving organization it is today.
