By Rusty Nixon Correspondent
PLYMOUTH — The Plymouth Lions Club is interested in the eyesight of the community’s children.
To that end, the Club is sponsoring an informational dinner at Christos’ Banquet Center in Plymouth Monday, Nov. 17 at 6:30 p.m. to help area residents spot potential problems. Dr. Brian Baird of The Eye Care Center will have an informative presentation designed to help recognize those problems. The dinner is sponsored by the Lions, Zentis Food Solutions and Town and Country Press.

“Parents and many other people sometimes see something in a child and immediately react with ‘Oh, no. Is my child going blind?’” said Missy Williams of the Lions Club. “This presentation is designed to show people how to catch potential problems.”
Along with the presentation there will be dinner provided and the meeting is open to all area residents who RSVP to Williams at 574-276-7430 or to Dave McLiver at Shelter Insurance at 574-935-8440.
The club is also looking for new members to join the ranks of those who are interested in helping battle blindness. They will outline their programs at the meeting as well.
“Helen Keller called the Lions Club her ‘Knights against Blindness’,” said Williams. “We just want to get the word out that we are here and open to new faces and new ideas.”
The Lions Club traditionally runs many local programs designed for kids, including pre-school eye scanning.
“When I take a picture I always get that ‘red eye’ thing, and when we do the scanning they take a picture of the eye and it’s that red eye that they are after,” said Williams. “They’re able to take that picture and pick out problems like amblyopia, or lazy eye, in its early stages when it can be treated and not be a problem.”
The club also works with area doctors to provide complete eye exams and glasses for underprivileged children in the county. Children are referred by school nurses or teachers and applications are reviewed to provide care for those in need.
“Lots of parents would like to be with their children all the time but sometimes that’s not possible,” Williams said. “School personnel can sometimes spot a problem that others might not notice.”
The local Lions also take regular mission trips to Mexico to provide eye care help, and participate in the Indiana Eye Bank program that provides transplants. They take donations of used eye glasses and hearing aids and also award the Keiser Scholarship to worthy Plymouth High School grads each year.
Williams says the club would also like to begin youth programs in the near future.
“We’re looking for young people with fresh ideas to get involved with the club,” said Williams. “We just want everybody to know that we are here and deeply involved in the community.”