The Lions Blog

In addition to being well-known for sight services around the world, Lions also offer help for the hearing impaired. For example, the Table View Lions Club in South Africa recently provided second hand and reconditioned hearing aids to local deaf children in need.

Lions clubs and Lions hearing foundations collect thousands of hearing aids each year and send them to regional Lions Hearing Aid Recycling Centers. These hearing services enable Lions to provide affordable hearing aids for those with limited financial resources, giving them a better opportunity to lead happy, healthy lives.

How does your Lions club help the hearing impaired in your community?

Access to clean water is essential to life everywhere. The lack of clean water in many areas throughout the world is a serious health issue that leads to millions of deaths each year. Today on World Water Day, we encourage Lions to focus attention on the importance of fresh water and how your club can take action.

In the above video, Lions provide clean water to villages, educate people about hand and face washing, build latrines and more. Lions Clubs International Foundation (LCIF) provided support for each of the local clubs featured in the video. LCIF has approved 124 projects totaling US$3 million in water-related projects including water wells, tanks, latrines, water purification and treatment, irrigation and agriculture support.

Read more stories that show how Lions are addressing the water issue:

• Lions in Action: Clean Water in Mali
• LCIF: Clean Water in Malaysia

The Manila Continental and Centrum Lions Clubs in the Philippines conducted a joint Reading Action Program project. The Lions distributed 50 sets of books, pencils, pads of paper and crayons to 3- to 5-year-old children at a local day care center.

Today’s photo is a submission through the Lions Submit a Photo page. Submit a photo today to share your club’s success stories!

Does your Lions club provide educational services for children?

Has your club thought about organizing a campus Lions club at a local college or university? Consider the following benefits for everyone involved as you begin reaching out to students and schools.

For Lions:

• Expand your reach! Forming a campus club means more hands for community volunteer work that makes an even bigger impact.
• Connecting with younger members helps your own club gain fresh insight and ideas.
• Campus Lions clubs members may consider joining a traditional Lions club once they graduate, or may even want to start their own cyber club or special interest club.

For Students:

• Service-minded students will get the opportunity for hands-on volunteering.
• Campus club members develop leadership and teamwork skills, which will help them in the business world.
• Connecting with Lions opens the door to a network of volunteers and community leaders that will become invaluable after graduation.

For Colleges:

• Colleges and universities can provide leadership and volunteer opportunities for students.
• Humanitarian service within the campus community is increased.
• The campus gains support from a well-recognized service club with an extensive volunteer network.

Learn more about starting a campus club.

How does your club get young people involved in your community?

Hearing loss can affect children’s educational development, interfering with their ability to communicate and develop valuable skills. Even minimal hearing loss can put children at risk for academic difficulties, so it’s best to identify signs early on. Your Lions club can help by organizing a hearing screening at a local elementary school.

Here are tips for organizing a hearing screening for children:

• Work with local schools and day care centers to determine if your club’s service is needed. You can also contact children’s clinics, special education programs, family service agencies and foster care agencies.
• Arrange for hearing professionals and use of testing equipment.
• Possible locations for your screening include a school, library, community center or house of worship.
• Encourage your local Leo club to become involved and volunteer the day of the screening.
• Promote your event by placing flyers in highly visible areas, posting information and updates on Facebook and sending out emails.
• After the screening, follow up with families whose children had difficulty hearing, and provide information for further evaluation by a medical provider.

How does your Lions club help children with hearing impairments in your community?