WELCOME TO THE
FUQUAY VARINA LIONS CLUB
HISTORY-Melvin Jones
- Founder of Lions Clubs International
- Melvin Jones was born on January 13, 1879, in Fort Thomas, Arizona. Melvin Jones made his home in Chicago, Illinois.
- On June 7, 1917, Lions Clubs International was born.
- One of his greatest honors was in 1945 when he represented Lions Clubs International as a consultant in San Francisco, California, at the organization of the United Nations.
HISTORY-Timeline
1917 The Beginning of Lions Clubs International
1920 Lions Go International
When the Border Cities in Windsor, Canada is established.
1925 Becoming “Knights of the Blind"
” Helen Keller addresses Lions at the International Convention where she famously
challenged Lions to become "knights of the blind in the crusade against darkness."
1945 Uniting Nations
Representatives from 46 nations meet to establish the NGO section of the United Nations.
1957 Leos Are Introduced
The Leo Program is developed to provide the youth of the world with an opportunity for personal
development through volunteering.
1968 Establishing Our Foundation
Lions Clubs International Foundation is created, with the mission "serving communities and
impacting lives through humanitarian service projects and grants."
1990 Launching SightFirst
Lions launch a campaign to help restore sight and prevent blindness on a global scale.
2017 The 100th year of serving local communities and the globe is celebrated at the Lions
Clubs International Centennial Convention in Chicago.
We Are Just Getting Started
As we continue to move further into our second century of service, our commitment to
making a positive impact on the world is stronger than ever.
Eighty-three years of service to the Fuquay-Varina community.
- The Lion’s Club was one of the first Service Clubs in 1941 to be organized in Fuquay Varina.
- June 30, 1925, Helen Keller addressed the 1925 Lions International Convention and asked the Lions to become “The Knights of the Blind.” Since that time the efforts of all Lions Clubs have been to aid and assist Sight Preservation.
- The FV Lions have been faithful to that cause. They have sold light bulbs, brooms made by the Blind (and still do), sponsored a circus for a few years, & held a rodeo to benefit this effort.
- In more recent years they have sold Christmas trees for over 30 years & currently are sponsoring the 29th annual golf tournament to support this effort. The FV Lions club has raised & donated over a million dollars through their fund-raising efforts.
- In September of 2022, our request was approved to create a 501(c)(3) organization called Fuquay Varina Lions Club Foundation.
Funds raised help members of our community in many ways:
- Leader/Guide Dog
- Boys & Girls Home
- Fishing Tournament (VIP) visually
- Impaired Persons
- Clinical Eye Research
- Radio Reading Service
- Governor Morehead School
- Hearing and Sight Conservation
- Peace Poster
- LEO's Youth Exchange
- Technology for the Blind/E Sight
- Childhood Cancer
- Eye Exams & Glasses
- Provide Meals for local Read & Feed events, an innovative tutoring program.
- Audiometers to FV High School, Banks Road Elementary School, FV Elementary School & Lincoln Heights Magnet elementary. Impacting 45,000 students.
- Funding for Fuquay Varina residents (blind and/or visually impaired to attend Camp Dogwood for a week.
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Scholarships - Two Scholarships to Eligible graduating students in Fuquay-Varina & Willow Spring.
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Camp Dogwood - a recreational retreat center for individuals with visual challenges. It is an inclusive program designed for adult residents of North Carolina who are blind or visually impaired.Our commitment to serving the blind and visually impaired extends beyond traditional assistance.
- Collecting, repairing & recycling tens of thousands of pairs.
- KidSight Program – The Lions offer free screenings from 6 months to age seven. 80% of a child’s learning comes through their vision. The #1 cause of preventable vision loss in the USA is amblyopia.
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The vision screening may detect the following:
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Nearsightedness – cannot see far away
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Astigmatism – cannot see far away/close up
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Amblyopia – “lazy eye”
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Anisocoria – pupils are unequal
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Anisometropia – one eye is blurred
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Misalignment – eye turning in or out
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Farsightedness – cannot see close up
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Lions Clubs International is the world's largest service club organization with more than 1.4 million members in approximately 46,000 clubs in more than 200 countries and geographical areas around the world.
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