On Aug 25, seven Fairfax Lions toured the Northern Virginia Lions Eyeglass Recycling Center. We delivered 1300 pair of donated eyeglasses, and worked the “sorting process.” Meanwhile Burke Lions “read” the correction for each pair, so they can be packaged for medical mission teams. Last year, this recycling center delivered 30,000 pair for donated eyeglasses – the gift of sight!
During this virus shutdown period, about the only recurring service activity we still have in process is our eyeglass recycling. We collect donated eyeglasses, provide them to a Lions Recycling Center where they are processed and provided to mission teams to dispense around the world.
But, even that is curtailed. The new Lions recycling center for performing the actual processing of the eyeglasses remains closed to volunteer workers.
Our club still picks-up donated eyeglasses (and the occasional hearing aids) from our collection boxes around the community, and delivers them to the recycling center.
At some point, the center will open and we can again show-up to offer our services to characterize eyeglasses for sorting, boxing, and delivery by medical mission teams.
Our most recent report from the Club’s Eyeglass Recycling Committee states, for the past year (July 2019 – June 2020) we collected 10,138 pair of donated eyeglasses, and delivered them to the recycling center.
Below is the end-of-year (July 2018- June 2019) report from the Fairfax Lions Club’s Eyeglass Recycling committee. These volunteers work at least twice every month at the Northern VA Lions Eyeglass Recycling Center, and collect donated eyeglasses from various points in the Fairfax area.
Please note: 10,229 pair of used eyeglasses were collected and delivered to the Recycling Center – the most ever in one year! The Recycling Center has over the past 21 years delivered over 3.5 million pair of eyeglasses to persons in need around the world – WE SERVE!
Several Fairfax Lions serve twice each month at the EGRC. Their work includes collecting and taking to the center donated eyeglasses (can be several hundred pair of eyeglasses each trip) and “processing” eyeglasses for a few hours. Processing means running a pair of cleaned/serviceable eyeglasses through a machine that defines the corrective prescription, labeling a bag with the prescription, and bagging the glasses. Donated hearing aides are also taken to the center. A summary of this service so far in this Lions year, by the team from Fairfax Lions Club:
The results generated by ALL Lions Clubs in our District 24-A are very impressive, in terms of the numbers of donated eyeglasses recycled and delivered to persons in need:
10-4-17 Guatemala 1800
10-4-17 Guatemala 1200
10-10-17 Uganda 1600
10-11-17 Haiti 600
10-12-17 Panama 1200
10-13-17 Guatemala 1000
10-15-17 Panama 1200
10-20-17 Dominican Republic 1200
11-9-17 Haiti 300
11-9-17 Nigeria 1500
11-9-17 Nigeria 2450
11–13-17 India 1400
11-13-17 Ghana 1400
11-13-17 Guatemala 1000
11-27-17 Ghana 6600
11-29-17 Haiti 600
11-30-17 India 1450
11-30-17 Guatemala 1050
12-5-17 Ghana 1800
12-8-17 Ghana 6600
12-15-17 Ghana 1800
12-15-17 Guatemala 1600
TOTAL : 39,350 pairs processed and delivered
WE SERVE!
One of the core missions of Lions Clubs around the world is to support “The Gift of Sight.” In our Fairfax community, Life Scout Tyler Shin gave his time and energy to this mission. For his Eagle Scout project, Tyler collected 700 pairs of eyeglasses . The eyeglasses Tyler collected will go with eyeglasses collected by Lions Clubs, to the Lions Eyeglass Recycling Center.
Volunteers at the recycling center clean, polish, classify, sort, and box the donated eyeglasses. They are then distributed free-of-charge to needy individuals around the world – typically via medical mission teams (with the assistance of an optometrist on the team or at the distant location).
Fairfax Lions Club thanks and congratulates Scout Tyler Shin for his valuable service project!
There is a wonderful description of what happens to donated eyeglasses, after you donate them, and Lions deliver them to the Lions Eyeglass Recycling Center on Northern VA. Click this link: Journey of a Pair of Eyeglasses
Fairfax Lions Club is one of the largest service organizations in Northern Virginia. Our members are from all walks of life, we give back to our community in many ways, and we have a good time doing it! We welcome you!