Lions are men and women who volunteer their time to humanitarian causes. Service History Worldwide, Lions clubs are recognized for their service to the blind and visually impaired. Today, Lions extend their commitment to sight conservation through countless local efforts, as well as through their international SightFirst program.
Lions also make a strong commitment to young people and are instrumental in youth outreach programs.
The unprecedented program joins leading blindness prevention experts, blindness prevention organizations, governments and Lions volunteers in an effort to establish long-term solutions in eliminating preventable and reversible blindness. Without intervention programs like SightFirst, the World Health Organization estimates the number of people who are blind in the world could double from 40 million to 80 million in less than 25 years. Lions establish and support a majority of the world's eye banks, hundreds of clinics, hospitals and eye research centers worldwide. Lions annually collect millions of old, unwanted eyeglasses for free distribution to the poor in developing countries. Lions provide thousands each year with free quality eye care, eyeglasses, Braille-writers, large print texts, white canes and guide dogs.