LOW Lions, Lionesses Serve Needy at Rural Health Fair 350 Miles Away

For three days last month, a southwestern Virginia fairgrounds became a giant clinic for more than 2,700 needy people from the Appalachian region of Tennessee, Kentucky, and Virginia. Unemployed, uninsured, or underinsured, they received free health care--in many cases having driven hundreds of miles to get it. The tenth annual Rural Area Medical Health Fair in Wise also attracted more than 1,740 volunteers, including doctors, dentists, nurses, technicians, and others there to help in any way they could. Among the latter: 13 members of the LOW Lions and Lioness clubs, volunteering their time 350 miles from home.

Most worked in the Lions District 24C Sight and Hearing Mobile Unit, screening patients for vision and hearing problems; some registered patients or escorted them from place to place. Three Lions mobile units from other areas of the state did similar screenings.

All told, the four Lions mobile units screened 1,225 people for vision, and 1,029 went home with new pairs of eyeglasses they likely had needed for a long time.

Patients--3.2 percent of them children--took advantage of assorted types of free health care, adding up to 5,598 patient “encounters” over the three days. Dental care was provided to 1,460 patients – 4,304 extractions, 1,668 fillings, and 266 cleanings. Officials estimated that the value of the health care received topped $1.6 million.

LOW Lions Club members who served were Tom Walker, Dick Hornaday, Sue Simmons, Jerry Davis, Don Rogers, Orville and Mary Dee, Larry Deem, Joe Davidson, and Don Namuth. LOW Lioness Club participants were Paula Hornaday, Millie Davis, and Joann Deem. For all, it was an extremely gratifying experience.

As one Lion who has been participating for five years put it: "You feel so fortunate that you're not one of those people down there who need help, and you feel so fortunate that you're able to help them."