Clear Vision for All: Lions Eyeglass Recycling Initiative

Lions Eyeglass Recycling The Lions Club is widely known for collecting and recycling eyeglasses. This long-standing international tradition is well-represented locally. The District 2-E2 Eyeglass Recycling Center (ERC) became an official satellite of the Midland Texas Lions Eyeglass Recycling Center nearly 10 years ago and is now an independent entity of Lions District 2-E2. Located in Watauga, the volunteer staff processes tens of thousands of eyeglasses every year. Keller Lions Club member, Courtenay Martin, serves on the 10-member board of directors and is the president. Every Saturday (excluding holidays) they operate from 9AM – 3PM, sorting, cleaning, reading, and preparing recycled eyewear for distribution. Shipments go to the regional distribution center in Midland, TX, and are earmarked for specific missions. Over the past four years, the ERC has provided prescription eyewear to over 13,000 people locally and over 37,000 internationally. The international reach includes countries in Africa, Central America, Southeast Asia, South America, and Europe. Tens of thousands of reading eyewear and non-prescription sunglasses are also collected, sorted, and recycled. From Courtenay: “Our mission is simple: The District 2-E2 Eyeglass Recycling Center will provide eyeglasses, when available and without cost, to those missions who have a method of determining the refractive status of the eye.” Courtenay and the board cannot do all this work without volunteers. Last year, nearly 3,000 volunteer hours were logged for this humanitarian cause. Local civic organizations, such as the Keller Lions Club, scout troops, churches, corporate volunteer groups and other individuals and groups selflessly donate their time. The District 2-E2 ERC is located at 5621 Bunker Road in Watauga through the generosity of Lion Eloy Leal. For volunteer information, please reach out to the Keller Lions Club on our Facebook page. Post by Scott Zang