on the main stage at Kellogg Park 1
p.m. Saturday, when crowds are always
amazed at the abilities of the dogs to
provide help to those with impaired
sight.
The pups and qualified leader dogs,
along with their handlers will be in the
Lions booth the rest of the festival
weekend to talk about the process of
training a puppy to become a leader
dog, along with the volunteers who
raise the dogs.
Fern Vining, the immediate past
president of the Lions Club of
Plymouth, said that the volunteers in
the tent will also have information
about the club which is now also
actively involved in KidsSight screen-
ing, a major effort to identify visual
problems of children at an early age.
“We hope to be able to offer the
screening during the festival,” she said.
“We have screened youngsters as
young as 6months of age.”
The Lion's Club KidsSight effort is a
national program designed to safe-
guard the vision of children from 6
months through 6 years of age.
According to educational experts, 80
percent of learning is visual, so if a
child can't see well, he or she can't
learn well. Most young children do not
have their vision screened until they
have problems learning of paying
attention in school and by then, it may
already be too late, according to the
Lions Clubwebsite.
Unless vision problems are detect-
ed early and corrected, they risk
becoming permanent, a situation the
Lions Club is working to correct
through state and local programs.
The Plymouth Lions Club was
charted by Lions Club International in
1947 and the first official meeting of
the group took place in January of
1948.
Currently, the Plymouth Lions Club
helps support: Beaumont Hospital
Silent Children's Fund; First Step;
Leader Dogs for the Blind; Lions
Hearing Center of Michigan; Lions of
Michigan Service Foundation;
Michigan Eye Bank; Madonna
University/LionsHearing Center; Paws
with a Cause; Penrickton Center for
Blind Children; American Diabetes
Association; Juvenile Diabetes
Research Foundation, Bear Lake, a
camp for visually impaired youth,
American Legion, Plymouth District
Library and the Plymouth Historical
Museum, in addition to the KidsSight
effort.
FALL FESTIVAL 2016
Page 28
Lions
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