FOCUS - JUNE 2017 5 Larry Doble of the Greenbank Lions Club says he was shocked to be chosen to receive the prestigious Melvin Jones Fellowship award. This honour is the highest award from Lions International for Dedicated Humanitarian Services and it is usually bestowed on a Lions Club, not given to an individual. Larry was singled out because of his important work with the Vision Screening Project. The presentation was made at the Lion Convention in Oshawa on April 30. Larry received “an impressive plaque,” plus $1,000 U.S. ($1,300 Canadian) to help prevent blindness. For25years,LarryhasbeenamemberoftheGreenbank Lions and he took over the job of Vision Screening Chair in October 2015. Since then, fundraising efforts have paid for four new vision screening units, worth $26,000. Now there are sev- en modern new machines available to test the vision of senior kindergarten and grade one children. Free of charge! Here’s how it works. The purpose of the eye test is to detect a lazy eye. If one is identified, the child wears a patch on their good eye for about a month to give the weak eye a chance to become stronger. “The sooner the better is important for lazy eye de- tection,” Larry pointed out, “for the childrens’ learning curve.” The old cameras tested each eye individually and the results were not always conclusive. The new unit tests both eyes together and it only takes 10 seconds. If necessary, parents are advised to take their child to an optometrist. Larry not only does eye testing himself, he also trains other Lions on the use of the vision screening equipment. The 5,000 children who benefit are from Durham Region, York Region and Trillium Lakelands District. Larry formalized agreements with the area school boards to ensure that insurance and police checks were all in order for the volunteers. “I do not do this to get awards,” commented Larry. “I do it for the betterment of the community.” By Lynn Campbell, Focus on Scugog Award-Winning Greenbank Lion Larry Doble sees to it that kids have good vision Larry Doble receives the Melvin Jones Fellowship award from Governor David Mills, District A-16, on April 30th. COACH HOUSE STUDIO Antiques, uniques, Décor & More New items arriving daily 605 Regional Rd. 21, Port Perry (The Old Utica Store) 905-982-2705 • www.coachhousestudio.ca IT’S A DESTINATION SHOPPING LOCATION www.ppaaart.blogspot.ca • ppartists@yahoo.ca Free DrawS Presented by the Port Perry Artists’ Association SPRING SHOW & SALE ORIGINAL PAINTINGS BY LOCAL ARTISTS JUNE 9 5-8PM I JUNE 10 &1110AM-4PM LATCHAM CENTRE, PORT PERRY FREE ADMSSION CREDIT CARDS ACCEPTED Oil, Acrylic, Watercolour, Pastel and Mixed Media 2017