Humboldt Lions Club assists children
Members of the Humboldt Lions Club are, front row from left: Pat Hill, Heather McKenney, Jeff Lane, Mary Miner, Mary Mulligan, Bob Connor, Deb Strachan, Jo Kollmorgen and Rick Nelson. Back row from left: Paul Origer, Chuck Strachan, George Bruder, Karolee Wilson, Mick Hatcher, Shirley Bakken, Brian Jergens, Roger Day, Russ Dugan and Jim Kirkpatrick. Other members not pictured: Nate Vento, Don Waderick, Elwin Hodges, Erica Knudson, Dean Clasen, Diane Amundson, James Illg, Andy Lemmenes, Jim Lemmenes, Jim Strachan, Derek Thoms, Shanna Miller, Kirk Whittlesey, Jack David, Bruce Eastman, Dana Hesse, Kis Landolt and Jerry Raether.
The Humboldt Lions Club has been serving the Humboldt area for over 60 years. Many of their projects assist children and adults and other special events. Sunday, Sept. 11 the Lions Club will be participating in the annual fundraiser that assists children’s eyesight. It is called Iowa Kids Sight.
Young children often can’t tell you if they don’t see well. Or maybe they think that their poor vision is the norm. But permanent vision loss can occur if not caught within the first few years of life. That’s why screening young children is so important.
Amblyopia (often called lazy eye), for example, can be corrected if caught early enough. The child wears a patch over the stronger eye, forcing the weaker eye to strengthen. Half of children, however, are diagnosed with this after the age of five – and by that point, the vision loss in the weak eye may be permanent.
Children six months old to those entering kindergarten are screened by Iowa KidSight, a partnership between University of Iowa Stead Family Children’s Hospital in Iowa City and Lions Club volunteers across the state. Out of all the children screened, about 5 percent are referred to an eye doctor. And of those children, about 90 percent need some type of corrective treatment.
Issues caught by the screening can include far-sightedness, near-sightedness, differences in refractive errors, astigmatism, things inside the eye (such as cataracts), and muscle imbalances. The program has benefited thousands of kids by helping them see better, read better, and thrive. How awesome is that!
Humboldt Lions Club members will be posted at the Intersections of Highway 3 and 169 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., this Sunday, Sept. 11.
All donations will graciously benefit our children. We accept all types of monetary donations; including loose change which all of us seem to have in our vehicles. Please be generous for this wonderful cause.
This past summer Humboldt Lions Club had the Snack Shack open for every ball game at Heinz Field. They also provided Sno-cones at the recent Humota fundraiser and provided Sno-cones at the middle school for their Positive Behavior Interventions & Supports incentive program.
Have you ever thought of joining an organization like Lions, Kiwanis, Rotary, etc? A community our size is so fortunate to have many opportunities to volunteer. Give it some deep thought and join.
Each time we complete a project, we feel so good about what we accomplished. If not joining the Lions, maybe you give your time and talents toward other volunteer efforts. Humboldt Lions Club is on Facebook and their current officers are Heather McKinney – President, Karolee Wilson – Vice President, Erica Knudson – Treasurer and Deb Strachan – secretary.
