LOUISIANA LIONS INFORMATION
>The Louisiana Lions Eye Foundation is a 501-c3 non-profit organization formed in 1974 to help provide vision and hearing care to the residents of Louisiana who could not afford this care on their own. Our foundation is owned and operated by all the Lion members throughout our state.
The International Association of Lions Clubs is the world's largest service organization. Our motto is “We Serve”. The Lions' first international mission was adopted at the 1925 international convention after Helen Keller challenged the Lions to become “Knights of the Blind in the Crusade against Darkness”. Since that moment till today, the Lions have done more for the visually impaired than any other organization in the world. The Louisiana Lions Eye Foundation provides this care right here in Louisiana in the following ways.
- Treatment consists of local Lion clubs sponsoring qualifying patients through the Louisiana Lions Eye Foundation to receive vision care from the LSU School of Ophthalmology or local vision professionals throughout the state.
- Research and training consists of the Louisiana Lions Eye Foundation supporting research efforts and the education efforts of the LSU school of Ophthalmology located on the LSU School of medicine campus in New Orleans.
- And prevention consists of volunteer Lion members dedicating their time and effort to provide vision screenings to children as well as adults here in Louisiana.
In our modest beginnings in 1974, the Lions helped 85 people with vision related needs. Today, the Louisiana Lions Eye Foundation provides vision and hearing care nearly 2,000 Louisiana residents each year which would otherwise not be able to afford this care.
The Lions are proud to be associated with the medical breakthroughs in the Ophthalmology field accomplished by the LSU research departments, but we are also so proud of the educational programs at the LSU School of Ophthalmology where they are preparing the young minds of today to become the vision professionals of the future.
The Lions understand that “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”. So, in this nature we strive to help prevent blindness by early detection and early treatment of eye diseases through our vision screening programs designed for children and adults as well. Our children's vision screening program “CUBSIGHT” screen on average 32,000 per year looking for vision disorders in school age children between the ages of 1 year old to 6 years old. By identifying eye disease at an early stage we can prevent blindness in most of our state's youth.
For more information about the Lions or the Louisiana Lions Eye Foundation, please feel free to visit our website at www.LionEyes.org or contact us at 504.525.7235 or email lalioneyes@bellsouth.net