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Adams Lions Spreading Word on Activities, Vision Care
By Tammy Daniels, iBerkshires Staff
08:49PM / Monday, July 27, 2015
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The Lions District 33Y Eyemobile at Hi-Jinx Night on Park Street in Adams on Monday.

Richard Laing of the Adams Lions addresses a Triad meeting in North Adams last weeek.

Children look at lights on this end of the Spot vision screener, which has to be used in semi-darkness.


Richard Laing of the Adams Lions displays the reader side of a handheld vision screener. The digital device allows the club to swiftly screen for vision issues.

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Anyone who's gone to a local street fair has seen the Lions Club Eyemobile. But the club does more than just free eye exams.

It recently funded an eye operation for a young child at a cost of $14,000 or $16,000, sent thousands of prescription glasses overseas to poverty-stricken areas and mentors young adults in civic service through its Leo Clubs.

"All this is going on and we're trying to bring this out to the public about what we're doing," said Richard Laing of the Adams Lions last week.

Laing was invited to speak to a meeting of the local Triad, an informational group for seniors that partners with local law enforcement, about some of the club's intiatives.

The Adams Lions, part of District 33Y of Western Massachusetts, is now 77 years old. It's raised thousands of dollars for scholarships, youth sports and charities.

The Leo Club at Hoosac Valley High School, one of only two high school chapters in the district, has had an impressive participation rate over the years. Like its adult counterpart, it raises funds for charities, such as the Salvation Army, and volunteers in the community.

"As most of us know, service groups are getting smaller and smaller and smaller," said Laing. "But to let you know, the Adams Lions just added 15 new young people this year. ... so we hope to turn it around."

The Lions are best known for their work in eye and vision health. District 33Y last year was awarded a grant for a portable Spot Vision Screener, made by Welch Allyn. The handheld device allows fast screening of possible vision issues for ages 6 months and older.

Subjects look into the digital device from a distance of about 3 feet in a semi-dark area. Lights and sounds are used to get children's attention for the few seconds the screener needs to measure their pupils. It also has wireless printing capability so a screening record can be provided.

"We went to Clarksburg and did 310 students. We started at 9 o'clock and by quarter of 12, we went home," he said. "That's how fast this is."

One parent in Lee took her child and the screening record to their ophthalmologist. Laing said the doctor contacted him to tell them that the screener had been 100 percent correct in its diagnosis.

"From this camera to what they use with all their equipment, we're trying to find out how accurate this is," he said, adding he didn't like to say it was 100 percent but was comfortable with 95 to 98 percent.

The screenings are designed to uncover any vision issues early on and get children to see an ophthalmologist or optometrist.

"We're not doctors, we can't evaluate anything that's going on so all we're doing is getting information and forward them to an opthalmologist at a younger age," Laing said.

That's critical for children because it's estimated that 80 percent of slow learners have an undiagnosed vision problem, he said. "So someday, I want to see that 80 percent go away."

The local club has also been partnering with the local Operation Nehemiah to get prescription glasses to the Sudan.

When Laing asked how many ophthalmologists were in Sudan, he was told, "we have one for 9 million people."  

"They need help," he said bluntly. The Lions sent a device for testing eyes and 2,500 pairs of glasses all with identifed by prescription. Another 5,000 more have been sent since and the club is now looking at doing a similar project in India.

"When you get a pair of glasses you don't need, you see a [donation] box, put them in," he said. "What we do is pick them up, clean them, we have a machine that checks the prescription on them."

Donation boxes can be found in some spectacle shops and doctors' offices or at Walmart.  

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