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District 33-Y Announcements

We present here various announcements of  interest to Lions and people interested in helping others.

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(Dates in red are when the information was added to the web page, not the date of the event.)


2007 - 2008 Club Activity Report Result - Lions International's Report on club activities and donations - Oct. 3, 2008
Sri Lanka Eyeglass Recycling - The fruition of collecting 30,000 pairs of eyeglasses for Sri Lanka - June 29, 2008
Family Dues - Read about the reduced dues available to family members - October 8, 2006
Multiple District Flags - Who to contact if you need state and country flags.  Updated: June 7 2006
MD33 Resource Guide - Resources for helping with Membership, Extension, Retention, and Orientation - Feb. 10, 2006
Media contacts - an Excel spreadsheet of Media contacts for your press releases - July 18, 2005
Visions in Preschoolers  -  A state mandated requirements that the Lions can help with - May 18, 2005
America Diabetes Association Asks Our Help - Diabetes is a leading cause of blindness - Dec 21, 2004
Y.A.N.K.S. - Ever wonder how our sub districts got their letter designations? - June 23, 2004
Hearing Aid Development - LCIF to help develop hearing aid - December 11, 2003
Lions Eye Health Program - Information about the LCIF initiative to increase awareness - October 31, 2003
Lion-Quest - a youth development program with sure-fire results - May 13, 2003




2007 - 2008 Club Activity Report Result

Evey Year, Club Secretaries file reports on the activities of clubs. Lions International has condensed this into a report. See how your club measures up to the average. Download the Report: http://www.lionsclubs.org/EN/content/pdfs/activity_report_results_2007_08.pdf

Sri Lanka Eyeglass Project - Lions Give Sight to 30,000


In 1927 Helen Keller had a dream and challenged the Lions to become the Knights of the Blind on a crusade against darkness.  The Lions accepted the challenge and have dedicated themselves to fighting preventable and reversible blindness around the world.

On December 26, 2004 Sri Lanka was hit by a devastating tsunami that displaced a staggering 2.5 million people, and thousands lost their eyeglasses and the Lions wanted to help. At the Lions International Convention in Hong Kong, in July 2005, three Lion's District Governors (DG) in training had a dream.  DG Rafel “Lucky”Wijeyeweera of District 306 C1 of Sri Lanka requested DG Jean W. Martin, of Greenfield in District 33Y Western Massachusetts, and DG George Hart, of East Bridgewater in District 33S Eastern Massachusetts, to assist his people by collecting and shipping 30,000 pair of used eyeglasses to him, for distribution in Eye Camps by his local Lions Clubs.  “In the United States we often take things for granted, such as walking into a store to purchase a pair of glasses whereas in Sri Lanka residents travel hundreds of miles and wait in lines for days just to get a pair of eyeglasses” said Lion Hart.

The Lions of Massachusetts traditionally recycle used eyeglasses however they had never done such a large volume, nor been responsible for the entire recycling process. “We thought this would be a relatively simple project, but when the glasses started piling up, we realized what a huge undertaking it actually was” said Hart. In order for the glasses to be ready for shipment each pair need to be “processed” which includes the initial sorting and cleaning (about 2 hrs per 500), reading to determine the strength, bagging, sorting by prescription and boxing for shipment. Of all the glasses received only two thirds received are complete and usable.

Over 50,000 pairs of glasses have been received from 100+ Lions and Leo clubs across the two Massachusetts districts. Although every Lion or Leo who handled the glasses are responsible for the success of this project, Lions Paul & Ann Snow, Gary Lewis & Larry Whalen of 33Y, and Lion Ed Olney, DG Joe Rizzo and the Dighton Lions of 33S were integral players in this project.  Most glasses were moved via Lions during trips to scheduled meetings however, some of the Lions went above and beyond with weekly deliveries or traveling across the state to get the glasses where they needed to be. In all 3,100 Lions throughout Massachusetts contributed over 5,000 volunteer hours in the effort to provide this gift of sight to the people of Sri Lanka. 

The Lions received donations in kind from Commonwealth Packaging of Chicopee, Stevens Elasto-Merics of Easthampton, Ophthalmic Consultants of Boston, Ophthalmic Instrument Co. of Stoughton and the Acushnet Lions.   The following companies donated their time in assisting the Lions in “processing” & shipping the glasses: Lens Crafters, Florence Optical of Northampton, Dr. John Galt, Girl Scout Troops 496 & 501 in Palmer, Barnstable County Sheriff’s Correctional facility, Quadrant Softwear of Mansfield, students from the New England College of Optometry, Extra Space Storage, Glancy Crane and Rigging Co of Avon, Paul Wolfe Motors of East Bridgewater, North American Terminals of Holbrook and Go Global Logistics.  These companies and individuals made it possible for the Lions to make this dream come true. 
 “We’d like to thank them for their donations and assistance with the shipping process” said current 33S District Governor Joe Rizzo. 

For three years the Lions of Massachusetts have worked to get these glasses ready for shipment and on June 17, 2008 about 20 Lions from Districts 33Y and 33S joined together to deliver the 30,000+ glasses to North American Terminals for the glasses to begin their four week journey to Sri Lanka.   DG Joe Rizzo of 33S worked with the Sri Lanka embassy and worked out all the final details with incoming DG Dr. Senarath Rekogama of District 306A1 to receive the shipment and have the customs and duty taxes waived in Sri Lanka.   The glasses were shipped by Go Global Logistics via boat on June 24th and will arrive at the Lions Gift of Sight Trust, c/o The Gift of Sight Hospital in Ratmalana, Sri Lanka on July 15th, 2008. 

The greatest demand in Sri Lanka is for reading glasses, however all types of glasses have been sent. It is the responsibility of the Lions of Sri Lanka to distribute the glasses to the many needy individuals at Eye Camps, where Optometrists and Ophthalmologists will perform vision testing and provide glasses for free. The Lions of Sri Lanka will most likely contribute at least 5,000 man-hours on this project and some shipping costs to complete this “Dream”.

This International Lions project is an example of how each Lion and Leo (and every individual who donates a pair of glasses) makes a difference, no matter how big or small their contribution.  30,000 people will have greatly improved lives because a dream at a Lion’s International Convention.   “I am so proud of the Lions: never once did they question why we were doing this project or doubted the fact that it could be done.  We are lucky to be part of Lions, the largest service organization in the world, which allows us the opportunity to help others fight blindness” concluded Martin.

Download the Press Release: Sri Lanka 30,000

Family Dues Structure

The new Lions Clubs International Family Dues Initiative kicks in on January 1, 2007. Read more about it on the Lions International Website. Also, you can download the Certification Form there. http://www.lionsclubs.org/EN/content/programs_mem_family.shtml

State and Country Flags Location


Over the years, Multiple District 33 has purchased many flags of countries, states and geographical areas in which Lions are active. We also have some other flags relative to Lions. These flags are available to Lions, Lioness and Leo clubs for use in parades, at anniversary parties and other events the clubs wish to have them at. This is the source of the flags we use at the Big E Parade, at Midwinter and at the State Convention.

Bryan Murphy of the Woburn Host Lions Club has taken over the task of storing the flags. Any club that wishes to use the flags should contact him.  His contact information is bryan@dustpipe.com of the Woburn Host Lions Club, PO Box 316, Woburn MA 01801. Woburn Lions Tel: (781) 933-8297 weekdays 9 AM - 4 PM or answering machine 24/7, Fax (781_ 933-2099 (24/7).

There are many geographic areas for which we do not yet have the flags. For anyone wishing to purchase a flag for the Multiple District, the cost is $210.00 for an in-stock flag and $250.00 for a custom flag. (A stock flag means a flag that is in stock and standard design;  a custom flag means the flag needs to be custom made due to color and design.)

Many 33Y clubs and persons have purchased flags in the past. The donor's name will be documented on the flag pole. When an International Director from that area is in office, that flag is displayed at our state convention and the name of the donor announced during the flag ceremony.

MD33 Resource Guide


The Membership and Extension Division of Lions Clubs International has just the right resources to help you put the pieces together.

All puzzles begin as a jumble of pieces. Each piece is an essential part of the whole picture, but until the pieces are properly assembled, the true potential of the picture cannot be realized.

Like a puzzle, a great Lions club is only as good as its individual parts. Separately, there are many interesting pieces, and when properly working together, the result is an active club making a significant difference in the community.

Putting together the pieces of a successful club is not difficult. It involves taking a good, hard look at your club; creating appropriate, measurable goals; obtaining the needed resources to meet your goals; creating an action plan; and following through with the steps necessary to meet your goals.

The pieces are all right here. Simply choose the ones that are right for your club and assemble a successful membership picture that will benefit your community and your members for years to come.

The Resource Guide is available is available on the through the Multiple District website: http://www.lions-md33.org/documents/MD%20Membership%20Resource%20Guide%202005.pdf         

Media Contact Information


PDG Pamela Hodgkins has provided us with an excel spreadsheet that is a very complete listing of all the media addresses for our area. Feel free to use them to get your club information out to the public. You can download the list by clicking on this link: http://www.lions-33y.org/forms/MediaAddresses.xls  (22 Kb)

Vision in Preschoolers

Vision in Pre-Schoolers is the Commonwealth of Massachusetts' program mandated in September 2004 to be the method by which ALL pre-school children will have been screened and certified as such by a trained screener prior to admission to any public school in Massachusetts.

The method finds amblyopia and vision problems in young children as well as adults at a 95% accuracy rate. The current and now obsolete method you must pass at the Registry to get your drivers license every five years maybe is accurate to 10% for adults only. The apparatus costs less than $100 and the screening training takes maybe two hours, so a Lions Club can easily afford to become the screeners in their local communities.

American Diabetes Association Asks Our Help



Dear Friends of the American Diabetes Association:


I am writing to you to ask that you join the many Lions Clubs throughout the New England area in supporting the American Diabetes Association.


As you may know, the American Diabetes Association is the nation's leading nonprofit health organization providing diabetes research, information and advocacy. Our mission is to prevent and cure diabetes and to improve the lives of all people affected by this disease.


Your contribution will help us to fund programs such as our diabetes camp for children, advocacy initiatives, community outreach, and scientific research. Thanks to wonderful organizations like yours, we are moving forward in the fight against diabetes.


If you would like to have a speaker come to one of your club meetings to talk about ,diabetes we would be happy to provide one for you. Please let me know so that we can schedule this after the first of the New Year.

We would be so grateful to have you on our team in this fight. We thank you in advance for your generosity and wish you a peaceful, happy holiday season.


Please feel free to contact me with any questions.


Sincerely,

Sheri Baron

Market Manager

American Diabetes Association

617-482-4580 ext. 3502

sbaron@diabetes.org

Y.A.N.K.S - How it came to be

VDG/PDG Jean W. Martin has gotten onto the trail of the naming of our sub districts after receiving the question: " How did our districts get the Y-A-N-K-S designations? Here is her answer, thanks to the help of PID John Hoyle and PCC L. Doug Sime:

Prior to 1949 the state of Massachusetts had 3 districts: A, B, C.

At the 1949 State Convention, held in Magnolia, MA., June 17 - 19, a resolution proposing the division of District 33 into five
sub districts, to be known as Y-A-N-K-S was adopted.

YANKS was first used as a description for patriots in the revolution, then it became a sort of term of endearment. Since this change was just after World War II, the word YANKS was a popular slang word for American Troops serving in Europe, and since we now had 5 districts, we needed names for our districts, and Wendell Ring of Leicester, MA proposed the names Y-A-N-K-S. And, it was voted that way.

So that's the story, and we're sticking to it.

LCIF Helps Develop Hearing Aid

(From The Lions International Web site:  )

LCIF is helping to develop the world's finest low cost hearing aid. The long range plan is for Lions worldwide to take a leading role in improving the lives of millions of hearing impaired people.

LCIF has approved US$600,000 for the Lions Affordable Hearing Aid Project (AHAP) to design, manufacture and distribute a high-quality, low cost hearing aid. AHAP is moving forward steadily. A digitally programmable hearing aid already has been developed, a manufacturing and distribution site were established in southern India, successful clinical trials were conducted in the United States and a fulfillment center is planned for New Jersey (USA).

Hearing impaired people are an overlooked population, especially in developing countries. The World Health Organization estimates that at least 250 million people have a disabling degree of hearing impairment. The average cost of a hearing aid, US$1,450 in 2000, is prohibitively high for the poor. Only 12 percent of the 6 million hearing aids sold in 2000 were sold in developed countries, which is home to 70 percent of the global population.

AHAP is manufacturing the hearing aids for US$40 to $50. Its price will range from $0 to US$500 depending on a client's ability to pay. The income realized from sales in wealthier countries will subsidize the cost in poor countries. Lions will be the exclusive distributor of the hearing aid to all Lions' groups and all U.S. non-profit groups.

Many Lions clubs currently provide either low cost refurbished hearing aids or high-priced new hearing aids to the deaf in their communities. AHAP will allow Lions to deliver new high-quality hearing aids to those who cannot afford them.

The hearing aids are being made in India at Aurolab, a world leader in manufacturing affordable medical technology. Aurolab developed the low-priced intraocular lens used in Lions' anti-blindness projects. Aurolab is part of the Lions Aravind Institute of Community Ophthalmology, initially funded with a US$1.26 million SightFirst grant. The lead manager for the hearing aid project is one of the originators of Aurolab, social entrepreneur David Green of U.S.-based Project Impact.

A pilot project will offer the hearing aid to Lions as a member benefit. If successful in parts of the United States and India, the member benefit could be extended to other regions.


Lions Eye Health Program

"The Lions Eye Health Program (LEPH is a community-based education program that allows Lions Clubs, other community organizations and individuals to promote healthy vision in the United States. "

Please visit their web site for information on the program (http://www.lehp.org/about.htm), on the Anatomy of the Eye (http://www.lehp.org/diseases.htm), on Glaucoma (http://www.lehp.org/diseases_glaucoma.htm), and on Low Vision (http://www.lehp.org/diseases_low.htm)

Lion-Quest

Lions-Quest is a premier life-skills, character education, prevention, and service-learning program for young people. It has helped more than 6 million students around the world ages 5 to 18 reach their full potential.


An e-mail received by District Governor Jean W. Martin:

Greetings!. My name is Shmir Corzine. I am a Program Coordinator for the Lions-Quest Department of Lions Clubs International Foundation. As I hope you are aware, the Lions-Quest program was purchased by LCIF in September 2002. This change should allow for increased visibility and exposure amongst Lions and schools. LCIF hopes that it can count on your support to make this a reality. The change in ownership will not affect the basic program or its content, with the exception of violence prevention materials, which were not part of the sale. Limited supplies of Working it Out and Working Toward Peace are still available through PMDS, but the future of the programs remain unclear at this time.

We continue to offer materials and regional and contracted workshops for Skills for Growing (K-5), Skills for Adolescence (6-8), and Skills for Action (9-12). If you are interested in observing a workshop and your schedule will permit, we would like to invite you to attend a currently planned regional workshop, and those sites and dates can be found by visiting our website at www.lions-quest.org. To schedule workshops in the U.S. please call 1-800-446-2700; outside of the U.S. please contact the Lions-Quest department directly at (630)571-5466 ext. 648 or 649, or e-mail us at jwester@lionsclubs.org or scorzine@lionsclubs.org.

We are happy to inform you that grants are once again available to begin or expand upon Lions-Quest activity under LCIF's Core 4 grant program. Under the revised regulations for this grant, Multiple Districts or several sub-districts working together can request up to $100,000 from LCIF. Individual sub-districts can request up to $25,000.

Clubs and districts are encouraged to explore how to participate in Lions-Quest programs, and districts interested in requesting a Lions-Quest grant should contact the LCIF grants department at (630)571-5466 ext. 328.

The LCIF Lions-Quest Department looks forward to working with you and developing a solid partnership with our Lions Districts and District Governors, in order to reinvigorate the Lions-Quest Program. We are currently developing new promotional materials for this effort as well.

Please feel free to contact me with any questions you have about the Lions-Quest program or to request materials or assistance in putting together a presentation for your district. A sincere thanks from Lions-Quest, bringing Lions and communities together!

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Credits:


Page maintained by Lion Dennis Waller (Northampton Lions Club)
Lions Logo courtesy: The International Association of Lions Clubs.
Multiple District 33 Map: PDG Lion Paul Viano. Conversion by Lion Al Porter. Modified into an imagemap by Lion Dennis Waller
Last Updated 7/19/2009