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 So Much Happening at our LVRC

It’s an exciting time at our Lions Low Vision Resource Center in Olympia! During the last few weeks, we have received two nice grants to help expand our reach to all of District N.

Old District C and Olympia Host Lions Club went together and requested $10, 042 in Lions Clubs International District and Club Community Impact Grant funds. And then Northwest Lions Foundation for Sight and Hearing approved a second grant request by Olympia Host for $11,375.

Monies from the grants will greatly improve LVRC volunteer capabilities with new office equipment, and much needed phone and internet service. Even more exciting, we will be able to purchase state of the art technological devices for demonstrating to clients who might be interested in newer equipment than what we have to loan. And with added presentation and display materials, the LVRC will be able to go “on the road” to your Lions club or your community so you can help low vision individuals in your area too. To get a presentation about low vision anywhere in District N, just give us a call.

With all this activity, the LVRC could use more volunteers so that we can offer more workshops, more social events for people with failing vision, and more days open. If you can volunteer for a 4 hour shift once a month, give us a call. Training is provided and you will be working with an experienced site manager. 

Call our Lions EyeLine at 360 790-8667 for more information about a presentation to your club or to schedule a visit to the Center.

Lions Low Vision Resource Center Expands Offerings

Looking for a device that can help you read the paper or your electric bill? Want to try out some of the newer high tech devices before you commit to buying? Or just want to talk to someone who has experienced vision loss due to macular degeneration?

Now you can find all those resources right here in Olympia at the Lions Low Vision Resource Center (LVRC) at 2600 Martin Way E.  The LVRC is located in Suite G.  

The LVRC can help you with a variety of living aids for people with low vision - including high intensity lamps, talking watches, and big dial phones and computer keyboards. The Center also hosts workshops and training on devices – and social events especially designed to work for people with limited vision. 

Thanks to generous donors, most items at the Center are loaned out free of charge to individuals with limited vision. Funding for the Lions Low Vision Resource Center is provided by local Lions Clubs and donations, including grants from Lions International Foundation and the NW Lions Foundation for Sight and Hearing. All staff are volunteers. 

The Center is open on Wednesday and Saturday, by appointment. To get your appointment, call the Lions EyeLine at 360 790-8667.

August 18, 2023|Lions Clubs International, Olympia Host Lions, Vision and Hearing

Yep - that's how we are feeling today after getting word that Olympia Host Lions Foundation has received an $11,375 grant from our Northwest Lions Foundation for Sight and Hearing.  The funds are dedicated to improving  capacity for training workshops and presentations at our Low Vision Resource Center (LVRC) and remote locations.  

According to LVRC manager Michael Petty, the monies will be used to purchase state of the art technology so that clients can try out a variety of options.  A speaker system to accommodate listeners with hearing loss and a laptop for workshops at remote locations also are included in the grant funds.

"With this grant from Northwest Lions Foundation, we will be able to schedule in-house training on devices and take our workshops on the road to other clubs and groups," Petty explains.

This grant complements the $10,000 grant received earlier this year from Lions Clubs International Foundation (LCIF).  LCIF monies are being used to improve the LVRC capacity for service to clients with added internet and phone service, and better zoom meeting capabilities. The LCIF grant also supports printing materials to help Olympia Host Lions reach out to medical professionals, church leaders, senior living facilities, and other Lions clubs to share information about the Center.

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December 28, 2023|Olympia Host Lions, Vision and Hearing

2023 really was a very good year for the Lions Low Vision Resource Center (LVRC) in Olympia.

Managed by the Olympia Host Lions Club, the LVRC received several larger donations this past year - donations that helped to fund a major service expansion project. Thanks to this funding, we have been able to significantly increase our outreach to locate and serve individuals with failing vision:

• Purchasing more equipment to loan out to individuals with failing vision.
• Making more visits to other Lions Clubs to let them know how to help people in their community make use of the resources at the LVRC.
• More presence by our LVRC outreach team at public events, sharing information about what the LVRC has to offer
• Better paint colors within the LVRC that make it safer and easier for individuals with limited vision to move through our facility.

Donations from Lions Clubs, individuals and local businesses keep the Lions Low Vision Resource Center running day to day - you are the life blood of our Center. And we thank each and every donor. You are immensely important and make it possible to continue our ongoing service to those with limited vision.In addition, we say a special thank you to these supporters who really gave big to help us reach out better to more people in 2023. We appreciate your help!

• Flying Colors Painting Company - for our new brightly colored paint job and the donation of both paint and labor.
• Lions Clubs International Foundation - for a $10,000 plus grant to improve LVRC office capacity and outreach, helping us get ready to serve more people.
• NW Lions Foundation for Sight and Hearing - for an $11,000 plus grant to add much needed newer equipment to loan, to demonstrate and for training.

The Lions Low Vision Resource Center service expansion project is well underway and will continue into next year too. If you would like to help, with donations or by volunteering with the Lions, we welcome your help. Learn more at the Olympia Host Lions Club website at OlympiaHostLions.org or call the EyeLine at 360 790-8667. 

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Tips for Talking with Lions Clubs

Outreach visits require two Lions – one with limited vision and one sighted to drive plus to hand out glasses, get feedback from participating Lions 

Materials required – box of vision impaired glasses, LVRC Superman board, Superman flier to leave behind, business card from LVRC

(If more than two Lions made the visit, take along a white board and easel and dry erase pens and have the third Lion capture the feeling words on the white board in front of the room so that everyone can see the list when they remove glasses.)

Lion 1 – 

Here today to talk with you about our Lions Low Vision Resource Center in Olympia.

The LVRC actually began to take shape back in 2008 with a grant to the Olympia Host Lions Club from Lions Clubs International to do low vision outreach. Early efforts included a number of vision fairs and individualized support provided through a contractor at the Washington department of services for the blind. Since 2008 Olympia Host has been operating a store front operation in Olympia where low vision individuals can come to find resources that can help them to stay independent longer.

We loan equipment and handheld devices to people with low vision. The equipment might be a magnifying machine like the one shown here or a talking watch or a lighted hand held magnifying glass. 

We also seek out cutting edge low vision technology so that people can come to the low vision resource center and try out equipment before they buy. 

We provide training on phone apps and other devices. 

We also host social events – like card games and board game afternoons – to help people with low vision get together and support one another – because grief and depression are serious side effects of failing vision and talking with someone who has made the journey before you really can help.

Two important things happened for the LVRC in last year. First, the LVRC was named a District N project so we now are serving people with low vision throughout our new big district.  From Tacoma to the Oregon border.

And second, we received two grants – one from LCIF and one from NW Lions Foundation for sight and hearing. Together those grants provided more than $20,000 to help us improve our operations so that we could be ready to serve that wider area.

And part of that funding is earmarked to help clubs like yours take the low vision message out into your own community. . .

Fuzzy Vision?

Does it seem more difficult to recognize your neighbor or a loved one? Is your vision fuzzy? Or do you notice a “blind spot” in your central vision?

As we age, many of us experience age related macular degeneration (AMD). According to the Centers for Disease Control, AMD is the leading cause of vision loss for American seniors 65 and older.

This eye disease damages the part of your eye that allows you to see clearly when looking straight ahead. And AMD creates real problems for anyone doing a task that requires central vision -  like reading, sewing or crafts, or driving.

If you are experiencing AMD symptoms, a trip to your eyecare professional should be a high priority. And don’t delay - treatments for AMD are considered most effective in the earliest stages of the disease.

Then, if you are diagnosed with AMD or your AMD is progressing, ask your eye doctor about devices that can help you handle day to day tasks more easily. Vision aids range from brighter lighting to handheld magnifiers or high-tech devices that read your newspaper or utility bill to you. 

Many of these devices are available for loan or to try out at the Lions Low Vision Resource Center in Olympia. You will also find the Center offers a wide range of resources: Learn how to use your phone to cope more easily with low vision or discover games and social activities designed especially for folks with failing vision. Best of all, you will be able to talk to other people who have experienced vision loss from AMD themselves.

Don’t let AMD limit your life. Talk to your vision provider and then call the Lions Low Vision Resource Center (LVRC) too. Appointments at the LVRC are free -  call 360 790-8667.

The Lions Low Vision Resource Center in Olympia offers free resources for individuals dealing with limited or failing vision. The Center is a project of the Olympia Host Lions Club and supported by grants from individuals, businesses, the NW Lions Foundation for Sight and Hearing and Lions Clubs International Foundation (LCIF)

A series of emails to Lions Clubs and Zone Chairs throughout our district went out to offer our speakers at their meeting - 

Sat, Dec 30, 2023, 2:35 PMto tiannecurtiss

Hello President Tianne - Do your Lions know what it really FEELS like to have failing vision?  
A program from the Lions Low Vision Resource Center in Olympia can help them understand what people with limited vision actually face every day - and how Lions might be able to help.
Our speakers will bring you a short program suitable for your club meeting .  We include a hands on demonstration of low vision that has become very popular with our audiences.
There is no cost to you, of course. Our 2024 dates are filling up fast so arrange for a speaker by calling the Lions EyeLine at 360 790-8667.
Karen Sell, PDGLions Low Vision Resource Center
The Lions Low Vision Resource Center has been around since 2008 but just became a Lions District N project last year.  And right now we are in the midst of a big service expansion project, thanks to grants from LCIF and NW Lions Foundation for Sight and Hearing.  PLUS we have just been notified that we will be the recipient of all assets of the Hope Vision Foundation in Tacoma as they regrettably close their doors.  Learn more by visiting the Olympia Host Lions website at OlympiaHostLions.org or schedule a speaker at 360 790-8667.