On Saturday, April 6, 2019 the Yarmouth Lions Club, Portland Adult Education and the Friends of Portland Adult Education worked together to provide vision care to 23 immigrant students who did not have any resources to pay for eye exams or corrective lenses. The efforts were a continuation of efforts started by Jane Cleaves, past President of the Yarmouth Lions and in whose honor a vision fund has been established by FPAE.
Teachers at Portland Adult Education identified the 23 students whom they believed had vision difficulties that impeded not only their school work but also their daily lives. Lions members volunteered to provide transportation- including a van to transport the students. The dedicated members of Eyecare Medical Group, including 2 ophthalmologists and 9 technicians volunteered their time to provide free screening services and prescriptions. With prescriptions in hand, volunteers and students went to the Scarborough Walmart Vision Center to fill their prescriptions. The store’s professional staff were gracious and flexible.
By the numbers: 17 students received prescription glasses, 1 student was recommended for cataract surgery (covered by Medicaid), 2 students were referred to the clinic for glaucoma screening and 3 were given reader glasses.
A job well done!
