Lions Recycle for Sight

The two Juneau Lions Clubs -- the Juneau Lions and the Juneau Mendenhall Flying Lions -- held their annual Recycle for Sight community eyeglass collection drive today.  This is where we ask the citizens of Juneau to bring in their used and unwanted eyeglasses to be recycled.

Lion Mike Norton and Lion Ted Burke

Ninety three pair of used eyeglasses were dropped off today....  Some sunglasses, some reading glasses, some were broken, but all will be shipped to the Aurora Borealis Recycle Center in the North Pole for repair and re-distribution.

We Serve!
Lion Nancy Norton
#Lions100

Recycle for Sight Drive

The Capital Area Lions Joint Sight Conservation Committee.... more commonly known and referred to as the Joint Sight Committee.... had their annual Recycle For Sight drive on Saturday, October 10, at the Nugget Mall.

We have eyeglass collection boxes set up in every eyecare center in Juneau but this is a time when we ask people to really search through their dressers, desks, glove boxes, drawers, purses, etc., and bring all their unused and unwanted eyeglasses to be recycled.

After all, they aren't doing anyone any good stuffed in a drawer somewhere when they can do so much good elsewhere.

For you see, after we collect all your unwanted eyeglasses, they are shipped to the Aurora Borealis Eyeglass Recycle Center in the North Pole.  This is a Lion-run project where they sort by type of eyeglass (i.e., prescription, single lens, double, triple lens, sunglasses, readers, etc.), clean, repair, categorize, AND ship approximately 40,000 pair of eyeglasses to Alaskans and others in need world wide.

So next time you get ready to throw an old pair of eyeglasses away because they are outdated, take them to any eyecare center in Juneau for recycling.  Or wait until our annual collection drive in October of each year.

By the way, this year we collected 245 pair of eyeglasses!  Thank you, Juneau!

This year we also took our PlusOptix vision screener to have available should anyone want their eyes screened.  We screened 7 with no referrals.  Not bad.

For more information on this program, contact Mike Norton, Chair, at mikennancy@gci.net.

Thank you for helping make this drive a success!   #Lions100

We Serve!

Worldwide Week of Service in Sight

October 4-10 is Lions Worldwide Week of Service to Sight.  What is your Club doing to eliminate preventable blindness and bring awareness and improve sight in your community?

Lion Mike Norton, 2014

The two Juneau Clubs are having their annual Recycle for Sight community drive on Saturday, October 10.  This is where we ask the Juneau community to sort through their dresser drawers, desks, car glove boxes, boats, closets, purses, etc., and bring their unwanted eyeglasses to be recycled.

Lion Neil Atkinson at left, 2014

Every year this collection drive is a big success.  We will have our booth set up at the Nugget Mall and will also offer free vision screening and share about our financial assistance program for those who can't afford an eye exam or eyeglasses.

This is in addition to the collection boxes we have in every eyecare center in Juneau.  Every year we deliver thousands of eyeglasses to the Aurora Borealis Recycle Center in the North Pole.

Lion Nicole McCabe, 2013

Save the Date on this event!  

Saturday, October 10

10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

Nugget Mall

Click HERE for more details on how your club can participate.  

This is part of our Centennial Celebration!  #Lions100

We Serve!
Lion Nancy Norton

A Successful Recycle for Sight Drive

Yesterday the two Juneau clubs had their annual Recycle for Sight Drive at the Nugget Mall.  It started out a little slow but I think that was because the mall is practically empty with stores and there wasn't a good reason for people to show up.  

But once they did, they delivered!  

At present, the Joint Sight Conservation Committee (aka Joint Sight Committee) has eyeglass recycle boxes in all the eyecare facilities in Juneau.  Used eyeglasses are collected all year long.  The problem.... most people don't know this.... and we haven't figured out why.  We collect quite a few glasses from these eyecare facilities every year (around 2,000), but when you're telling this to inquiring minds, they simply aren't aware these recycle boxes exist.  Or they know that Lions do it, but don't know how to reach us...

A huge thanks to Lions Ted Burke, Tim Wilson, and Lion President Sasha Soboleff from the Juneau Club for hanging out yesterday.  And Lions Soapy Lingle, Neil Atkinson, and President Mike Norton for supporting the effort from the Mendenhall Flying Lions Club. Oh, and that's Leo the Lion from the Juneau Club--she came to support our efforts!  (A big thanks to Lion Tim's daughters!)

It often takes a village.... or a community.... to get things done.  In this case, our joint efforts collected 192 pair of glasses that we may otherwise have not received.     

I read an article from the Aurora Borealis Recycling Center and it said that they collect about 40,000 glasses each year and re-distribute about 30,000.  Where there's a need, there's a Lion or two or three helping to get the job done!  

We Serve!
Lion Nancy

Recycle for Sight Drive

I don't know about you, but I tend to collect stuff.... after all, you never know when you might need that spare set of glasses that is 18 years old!

Because we realize this about most people, we are willing to take your old, unwanted and unused eyeglasses off your hands!  Heck, we'll even take your old sunglasses, reading glasses, AND cases! It doesn't matter if they're prescription or non-prescription.  Why you ask?  Because there are millions of people "out there," throughout the world, that can't see, that don't have glasses, and can't afford glasses.

This is part of a unique program with Lions Clubs International that we call Recycle for Sight.

On Saturday, October 25, we will be having a community drive where residents are asked to bring all their old eyeglasses to the Nugget Mall from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.  If you can't make it Saturday, you can drop your glasses off at any eyecare provider in Juneau.  You can find a list of places HERE.

This unique recycling effort is brought to you by the Juneau Lions Club and the Juneau Mendenhall Flying Lions Club as part of their Joint Sight Conservation Committee.  Members from both clubs collect eyeglasses throughout the year and forward them to the recycling center in North Pole where they're cleaned, categories, and distributed around the world.  You can read more about the center HERE.

Last year we collected 66 pair of used eyeglasses.  We hope that as the community becomes conditioned to watch for our drive, we will start gathering more.  We will wait for you.

We Serve!
Lion Nancy

First Annual Recycle For Sight Drive

We all know about the Lions eyeglass recycle program.  But where did you learn about it?  Did you see a poster at one of the eyeglass drop off sites that identified them as participating in the program?  Did your vision center ever tell you what they did with your old eyeglasses? 

My husband had been a lion for a few years before it dawned on me that the only reason I knew about the Lions eyeglass recycle program was because of his involvement with the Lions.  I wear glasses but I did not know about this worthwhile project.  When I get new glasses, I'm not told about the program.  To be honest, I've never seen the drop off box or a poster identifying them as a participant.

So it seemed to me that the Joint Sight Committee might want to do a little promotion, let the community know we do this.  Don't rely on the vision centers to educate people on this opportunity.

We had our first ever (as far as I know) Recycle For Sight Drive yesterday and collected 155 pair of glasses!  This far surpassed any expectation I had!  To be honest, I thought we might collect a dozen, maybe two.... I was ready to be a wee-bit disappointed but would chalk it up to being our first drive....  But it goes to show that this town is a giving town.... 

Again, a big thanks to Lions Neil, Ted, Nicole, and Bruce! 

Lion Nancy