The Austin Downtown Founder Lions Club in collaboration with the Registered Opticians of Texas conducted a free Early Childhood Vision Screening on Saturday, January 30, 2010 from 10:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the Hyde Park Christian Church (Rev. (and fellow Lion) Jacqueline Baker, Senior Pastor).  Children, ages from 6 months to 4 years old were the targeted population for the screening, which aims to detect Lazy eye, eye turns, myopia, near and farsightedness, astigmatism, cataracts and differences in strength between the two eyes.

Thirty children were screened, three were referred to a pediatric ophthalmologist for further testing and four more were told that their children may need more screening as they grow older.  Other findings that came to our attention during the period of preparation and doing the actual screening are that 50% of children who have difficulty learning can attribute it to some kind of vision problem and that 50 students attending Pearce Middle School in Northeast Austin currently need glasses.  Lion J. P. Kirksey provided us with information for getting glasses for those students.

The Club thanks the Austin Travis County Health Department (Carole Barash, PIO officer), Any Baby Can (Marcela Lizcano, children's health intervention and screening officer) and Lion Sam Johnson and his assistants who conducted the screening on behalf of the Registered Opticians Association of Texas for their assistance in making the screening a success.  All of them were magnificent.  And last, but certainly not least, a tip of the hat to the fellow Lions who CONTINUE TO GIVE new meaning to the Lion's motto "WE SERVE".