– Veronica Earl, Greg Downes and Michelle Sabou collect pre-loved prescription glasses for Lions Club. Picture: Donna Oates
PRE-LOVED prescription glasses can give a new view on life to people in the world’s poorest countries.
Le Pine Funerals Ferntree Gully is helping Lions International’s Recycle for Sight program collect half a million pairs of glasses throughout Australia this year.
The branch is a drop-off point for people to donate their specs to Timor Leste, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Fiji, Sri Lanka, Zambia and Tanzania.
After being sorted by prescription and cleaned, the glasses are sent overseas where optical qualified men and women distribute them to children and adults in need.
Spectacles with scratched lenses or broken frames are repaired or recycled, and some fitted with standard lenses.
“Most people update their frames every couple of years to change up their look,” branch manager Greg Downes said.
“But now, instead of storing the old pair away, you can donate them to a program that ensures they’re put to good use – helping someone achieve a better quality of life.” The branch collected about 200 glasses last year, and Mr Downes is aiming to beat that figure this year.
“Donating your old glasses is such a small way to make a big difference in someone’s life,” he said.
Mr Downes said his customers were sometimes unsure about what to do with their deceased loved one’s glasses.
“Knowing that the program will pass their often great quality spectacles onto people who will be better off can cheer up some family members,” he said.
“They say that mum or dad hated seeing things go to waste, so donating to the program is a positive way to honour their life.”
Lions Recycle for Sight Australia chairman and CEO Ken Leonard airlines and bus companies also supported the program, with glasses a common lost property item.
Glasses can be donated at Le Pine Funerals, 1096 Burwood Highway, Ferntree Gully, between 9am and 5pm daily.
