Meetings

Used Eyeglass/Hearing Aid Collection
If you have used eyeglasses you no longer need, please donate them to the Lions Club for recycling. Lions accept prescription and reading glasses, sunglasses and empty plastic and metal frames. Children's glasses are especially needed. The club maintains many eyeglass/hearing aid collection sites throughout the Springfield-Franconia area, including most libraries, vision centers and Walmart.  By donating your used eyeglasses you can help those in need see clearly, possibly for the first time in their lives.  Please donate your used glasses so others might see. Click HERE for a list of collection sites managed by the club.

Procedure for Obtaining Free Eyeglasses through Fairfax County
The Club Secretary receives a request for free eyeglasses through the District L Webpage.  The request includes the person's name, telephone number, and an e-mail address.

The Secretary tells the requestor the following:

Fairfax County residents may apply for free eyeglasses through the County's health departments. The fastest and easiest way is to call the Fairfax County Health Department at (703) 569-1031 and request to speak with someone in Family Services who will set up an appointment and take the request from there.

The program is needs based. Family Services will determine who is eligible to receive eyeglasses, perform an eye examination, and give the requestor a prescription.  The patient receives a letter of notification from the Springfield-Franconia Host Lions Club that she/he is eligible to receive eyeglasses at no cost. She/he will take the letter and the prescription to Lens Crafters across from Springfield Mall to receive the glasses.

Lens Crafters bills the Springfield-Franconia Host Lions Club for the glasses.

Eyeglass Recycling Center
Club members sort, wash, and package used eyeglasses at the Northern Viriginia Eyeglass Recycling Center in Arlington, VA several times each year in lieu of a regular dinner meeting. Lions clubs collect and distribute glasses throughout the world.  Glasses are provided to those in need free of charge to the individual. A pair of glasses may make the difference between someone being able to work or not, or a child being able to read or see the blackboard in school. For some, it means seeing clearly for the first time in their life.

Glasses and Hearing Aids
The club provides new eyeglasses and new or re-conditioned hearing aids to those in need right here in Springfield-Franconia.  Need is determined by Fairfax County agencies who pass the requests onto the club.  The club then ensures that the identified parties receive the much needed glasses or hearing aids. Free sight and hearing screenings are provided by the Lions of Virginia Mobile Sight and Hearing Van.

Local Activities
Within the Springfield-Franconia area the club supports Echo and Koinonia with yearly monetary donations and toys at Christmas. The club has also partnered with Garfield Elementary School to provide much needed support to low-income students and families.

State//National/International Activities
Each year, members of the club support the Remote Area Medical (RAM) project to support residents in WISE County, VA. RAM was started in 2000 and has been conducted each summer since. RAM is a joint service project by the Lions of Virginia and the Remote Area Medical Volunteer Corps from Knoxville TN. Southwest Virginia and northeast Tennessee suffer from chronic high unemployment, poverty, and a lack of adequate health insurance. Many people are forced to make difficult choices, such as either buying food or medication, paying for doctor visits or for utility bills. Volunteers at RAM support on-site medical, vision and dental evaluations and care. Many glasses from the Northern Virginia Eyeglass Recycling Center are passed out each year. These glasses greatly affect the ability of adults to work and support their families and for children to suceed at school.

Club members have also supported several International medical and humanitarian missions to Bolivia, El Salvador, and Vietnam. These missions typically consist of sight screenings, eye glass distribution and eye surgeries. Some missions include other medical and dental treatment. Blindness, low vision or other major eye related medical problems including glaucoma, cataracts and trachoma are rarely treated locally in these areas.

Donations
The club donates over $20,000 per year to various local, state, national and international charities including:

Local:

Garfield, Crestwood and Lynbrook Elementary Schools

Koinonia

Echo

American Legion Boys and Girls State

Hayfield High School Leo Club

Lions Club Service Award

Hidden Pond Nature Center

State:

VA Lions Eye Institute

Special Needs Equipment

VA Lions Hearing Foundation

Lions of VA Mobile Sight and Hearing Van

Northern VA Eyeglass Recycle Center

Lions Help Line

Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation

VA Lions Hearing Aid Bank Foundation

Old Dominion Eye Foundation

Northern VA Lions Youth Camp

Lions Bland Music Scholarship Foundation

Lions of VA Foundation

Remote Area Medical (RAM)

National/International:

Shelter Box, USA

Foundation Fighting Blindness

Canine Companions for Independence

Leader Dogs for the Blind

Lions Club International Foundation (LCIF) 

ALL funds received by the club, either from personal donations or from club fundraisers, are donated to charity.

Eyeglass/Hearing Aid Collection Sites

Springfield- Franconia Host Lions Eyeglass/Hearing Aid Collection Sites (Can call to see if any donations present)

Richard Byrd Library
6520 Commerce St.
Springfield, VA 22150-3499
703-451-8055
Hours: Sun Closed, Mon-Tues 10 am -9 pm, Wed-Sat 10am-6pm

Visionworks, Springfield Town Center
6535 Springfield Mall
Springfield, VA 22150
703-971-4739
Hours: Sun Closed, Mon-Wed 11 am-8 pm,
Fri-Sat.10 am-8 PM

MyEyeDr.
6406 Springfield Plaza
Springfield, VA 22150
703-451-4577
Sun: Closed. Mon, Wed & Fri 10 am-7 pm,
Tue & Thurs: 10 am-8 pm, Sat 9 am-6 pm

Visionworks                                       
8424 Old Keene Mill Road                            
Springfield, VA  22152
703-569-6611
Hours: Sun closed. Mon-Fri 9 am-7 pm.
Sat 9 am-5 pm

Clarkson Eyecare
6098 Franconia Rd.
Alexandria, VA 
703-971-0544
Sun: closed, Mon-Thurs: 10 am-7pm,Fri 9am-6pm,
 Sat: 9 am-3 pm

Kaiser Permanente Vision Services
6501 Loisdale Court
Springfield, VA
703-922-1112 
Hours: Mon-Fri 8 am-5 pm.

Gene Sweetnam, Optometrist
5204 Rolling Rd.
Burke, VA
703-425-2000
Hours Sun Closed. Mon-Thurs 9am-5pm. Friday Closed. Saturday 9am-1pm (open every other Sat.

 

Eye 2 Eye Optometry Center,
Hilltop Shopping Center
6475 Old Beulah St.
Alexandria, VA
703-822-0570
Hours: Mon-Fri 9am – 6 pm

The Vision Center (Wal-Mart)
5800 Kingstowne Blvd.
Kingstowne, VA 22315
703-922-0220 Hours: Mon-Sat 9 am- 6pm

Optical Center, Base Exchange
8651 John J. Kingman Rd, Bldg. 2321
Fort Belvoir, VA 22060
703-781-7047 Hours: Mon-Fri 9am-6pm, Sat 9-5
Sun 7am-4pm

John Marshall Library
6209 Rose Hill Dr.
Alexandria, VA 22310
703-971-0010
Hours: Sun Closed, Mon-Tues 10 am -9 pm,
Wed-Sat 10am-6pm

Kingstown Center for Active Adults
6488 Landsdowne Center
Alexandria, VA 22315
703-339-7676 Hours: Mon-Fri 9-4, Sat-Sun Closed. 

Kingstowne Library  
6500 Landsdowne Centre
Alexandria, VA 22315
703-339-4610
Hours: Sun Closed, Mon-Tues 10 am -9 pm, Wed-Sat 10am-6 pm

Kings Park Library
9000 Burke Lake Rd.
Burke, VA 22015
703-978-5600,
Office@lrucc.org, Kathy Heyman Office Admin Hours: Sun Closed. Mon-Tues 10 am -9 pm, Wed-Sat 10am-6pm

Grace Presbyterian Church
7434 Bath St.
Springfield, VA 22150
703-451-2900, ext.#1        

Little River United Church of Christ
8410 Little River Turnpike
Alexandria, VA 22003
703-978-3060 Hours Mon-Fri 9:30 am 3:30 pm

Eyetown
6506 Loisdale Road, Suite 106
Springfield, VA 22150
Ph 703-347-6633
email
info@EyeTownVision.com
Hours: Sun: closed: Mon-Fri 10 am-7:00 pm, Sat 10 am-6pm

First Baptist Church of Springfield
7300 Gary Street
Springfield, VA 22150
www.fbspringfield.org
703-451-1500  
Church Office Hours:  Mon-Fri- &:30 am-4:30 PM
Retrieve glasses Mon or Wed 9-3

Target Optical      website: targetoptical.com
6600 Springfield Mall,
Springfield.22150-1712

Phone: (703) 388-5210, Representative: Katie
Hours: Mon-Fri10 am- 8pm, Sat 9am-6 pm, Sun 12 pm-4pm

Greensprings Village CVS Pharmacy Store #48372
7440 Spring Village Drive, Springfield, VA 22150
Phone: 703-913-1200 or 703-923-4645, pick EXT #7.  
Hours: Mon-Fri 9am-5pm, Sat 9 am-1 pm

LENSCRAFTERS
6575-O Frontier Drive
Springfield, VA 22150-USA
PH 703-971-8200, Representative:  Rachel Anthony
Store Market Manager:  Arcenio Bonilla
Hours: Mon-Sat 9am-7pm, Sat 12 noon-6pm
Rachel Ph # 703-447-4908

 

Family Optometric Associates (FOA) Optometry
8651John J.  Kingman Bldg.2321
AAFES Exchange
Fort Belvoir, VA 22060
Hours:  Mon-Fri 9 am-5:30 pm. Sat 9 am-4pm.
phone:  571-339-8328, email: foa-fb@foapc.com

Franconia Rec Center
6601 Telegraph Road
Alexandria, VA22310
ph 703-922-9841,EMAIL:  joseph.blackwell@fairfaxcounty.gov

Walmart Vision Center,
7910 Richmond Highway
Alexandria, VA 2230
Representative: Lewis Zojol
Hours: Sun: closed, Sat: 9 AM- 6pm,
Mon, Tues., Wed, Thurs, Fri. 9 AM- 7PM
Ph: 727-754-0577

Lions Clubs International News
Connect with Us Online
Twitter