The History of The Lions
Just three years after it’s formation, the organization became international when the first club in Canada was established in 1920. Major international expansion continued as clubs were established, particularly throughout Europe, Asia and Africa during the 1950s and 1960s. Perhaps the single event having the greatest impact on the association’s service commitment occurred in 1925 when Helen Keller addressed the Lions at their international convention in Cedar Point, Ohio. It was there that she challenged Lions to become “knights of the blind in the crusade against darkness.” In 1990, the Lions launched their most aggressive sight preservation effort to date, SightFirst. The more than $130 million-plus program strives to rid the world of preventable and reversible blindness by closing the gap between existing health care services and those that remain desperately needed. The Lions make up the single largest service organization in the country. Here in Indiana the Lions Clubs work tirelessly to establish and support projects in their local communities but have also adopted several critical state projects including the Eye & Tissue Transplant Bank. Lions Cancer Control Fund of Indiana, Inc.Treating patients. . . Teaching physicians . . . Researching for a cure The purpose of the Indiana Lions Cancer Control Fund, Inc. is to establish, promote, manage and control a fund to be used exclusively for the control of cancer. Every project and all expenditures are devoted to the treatment of cancer patients, training of health care professionals who care for cancer patients and research that, one day, may lessen the threat of the diseases called “cancer.” This Not-For-Profit Corporation under the direction and supervision of its Board of Trustees shall receive and disburse funds to accomplish this purpose. Contributions are received from Lions Clubs, individuals, organizations and other such sources. Current programs include:
To this end, the Officers, Trustees, and Liaison of the Indiana Cancer Control Fund, Inc. ask for your help to accomplish these programs. Every Lions Club in Indiana should support each state Lions project. Other organizations and individuals should also be educated and encouraged to become active donors. Our need increases daily. Please give your fully tax-deductible gift to this very worthwhile project which prolongs life, relieves pain, and gives hope to thousands battling cancer. For more information please contact Lion Dottie Flack at 317-274-4059 or dflack@iupui.edu or visit our website at lionscancercontrol.org. Indiana Lions State ProjectsLeader Dog ProgramFounded by three Detroit Lions Club members in 1939, Leader Dogs for the Blind provides dog guides to people who are blind and visually impaired to enhance their mobility, independence and quality of life. Each year, over 270 students attend our 26-day residential training program to be paired with a guide dog. This is a life-changing event that opens the doors to independence, safety and self-worth for many of our students. In addition to our guide dog program, we offer programs that enhance a person’s independence and quality of life in other ways, including orientation and mobility training, Trekker training, and seminars for Orientation and Mobility professionals. Currently, Leader Dog is the only facility in the Western Hemisphere to teach Deaf-blind students to work with a dog guide. Thanks to generous donations from our supporters, our dog guide services are provided free of charge, including room and board and travel to and from our campus in Rochester Hills, Michigan, for students living in North America Leader Dog is recognized as a “Best in America” Charity by the Independent Charities of America (ICA). For more information on this wonderful program please visit www.leaderdog.org . Speech & HearingIn the 1970s, the Lions of Indiana recognized that a need existed for those individuals with speech and hearing impairments and created a statewide committee to develop programs and projects for the Lions of Indiana to be of service to those with speech and hearing impairments. From this beginning, this project developed into the fourth major state project of the Lions of Indiana. Speech and Hearing became an official state project of the Indiana Lions in 1981 with the adoption of a constitution and bylaws at the 1981 Lions State Convention held in Indianapolis in April of that year. This new project was incorporated as a not-for-profit corporation under the name “Indiana Lions Speech and Hearing Inc” in October of that year. |
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Hearing Aid Loaner Bank
Indiana Deaf Camps FoundationThe Indiana Lions Speech and Hearing is a proud sponsor of the Indiana Deaf Camps Foundation, Inc. The Deaf Camps Foundation is a not-for-profit organization that sponsors camps and trips for the deaf and hard-of-hearing in Indiana. Cochlear Implant ProgramWhat is a Cochlear Implant? A Cochlear implant is a small device that provides a sense of sound to children and adults who have severe to profound hearing loss and who cannot hear and/or understand speech with hearing aids. While hearing aids make sound louder and clearer, Cochlear implants provide useful sound by directly stimulating undamaged nerve fibers in the inner ear. The Food and Drug Administration in the United States first approved Cochlear implants in 1985 for adults and in 1990 for children. Today, over 20,000 individuals have received cochlear implants, including over 8,000 children. Pre-School Hearing Screening
It is extremely important that children have their hearing tested at the earliest possible time. If a problem is detected, corrective measures can be taken and possibly prevent a lifetime of hearing difficulties. Schools in Indiana are required to test a child before they enter Kindergarten, but if there is a serious problem, this can be too late. A hearing problem can effect a child’s speech development, their ability to learn, and to develop socially. Newborn Infant Hearing ScreeningAs of July 1, 2000, Indiana Law mandates that all hospitals in Indiana (subject to a minimum birth requirement) be required to perform a hearing screening on all newborn infants prior to release from the hospital. There are approximately 85,000 babies born in Indiana each year, and of these, 3 in 1000 (or 250) babies will be detected with some hearing impairment. The Indiana Lions Speech and Hearing, Inc. is partnering with Riley Children’s Hospital and First Step, a division of the Family and Children’s Bureau of Child Development Agency of Indiana. This partnership ensures that any newborn infant found to have a hearing impairment where hearing aids can help will be provided with a hearing aid as soon as practical. Hearing aids can be applied as early as 2 weeks old. This program is designed as a temporary loan until permanent aids are acquired. This program will allow the Audiologist to try different times and strengths of hearing aids on the infant, before making a final recommendation. For more information, please contact the Indiana Lions Speech and Hearing Inc. at www.indylionsspeechandhearing.com Lions Cancer Control Fund of Indiana, Inc.Treating patients…Teaching physicians…Researching for a cure The purpose and function of the Indiana Lions Cancer Control Fund, Inc. is to establish, promote, manage and control a fund to be used exclusively for the control of cancer. Every project conducted by this fund is devoted to the treatment of cancer patients, training of health care professionals who care for them and research that, may one day lesson the threat of the diseases called cancer. Lions Cancer Control Fund, Inc. is a not-for-profit corporation under the direction and supervision of its Board of Trustees. |
Melvin Jones’ own group, the Business Circle of Chicago, agreed and after contacting similar groups around the country, an organizational meeting was help on June 7, 1917, at the LaSalle Hotel in Chicago. The new group took the name of one of one of the groups invited, “the Association of Lions Clubs,” and a national convention was held in Dallas in October of that year. A constitution, by-laws, objects and code of ethics were approved. 
The Lions of Indiana operate a Hearing Aid Loaner Bank under the control of the Indiana Lions Speech and Hearing, Inc and managed by Kira VonVlon, an Audiologist, at Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis.
This Hearing Aid Loaner Bank is open to all citizens of Indiana and is designed to be a short-term assistance program for those individuals requiring amplification. The hearing aids are normally loaned for a period of up to six months while the final resources are found to obtain a custom fitted permanent hearing aid. Since 1981, there have been over 2900 hearing aids loaned by the Indiana Lions Speech and Hearing project.
The Indiana Lions Speech and Hearing state project is striving to make available to all Indiana children of pre-school age the opportunity to have their hearing tested by an Indiana Licensed Audiologist, courtesy of their local Lions Clubs.
