Changing Lives Through Lenses

Vision is a privilege that can easily be taken for granted, but for many, clear sight depends on the expertise of dedicated opticians. Yet, not everyone has the luxury of easy access to an optometrist or the means to afford a new pair of glasses. 

Recognizing this, Lions Club member Josh McIntyre is on a mission to make vision care more accessible. By providing eyeglasses to those in need, he’s helping people see the world with newfound clarity
and ensuring that everyone has the opportunity to experience life through a clearer lens. 

As a New York State registered optician, Josh has a passion for helping people see by providing them the right prescription. He was inspired by his grandfather-in-law Lion John Banach PDG (past district governor) to join the Lions Club. The Lions Club is the world’s largest service organization, with more than 1.4 million members. They have several global causes with vision being one of them. 

Because of his occupation, Josh saw the Lions Club as the perfect way to help serve his community. “I saw it as a great opportunity to bring some of the knowledge and services that I can provide to the Lions Club,” shared Josh. 

He found inspiration when the non-profit organization Remote Area Medical (RAM) visited the Hudson Falls area. 

This organization provides similar health services and Josh thought, “If they can do this nationally, why can’t we do this locally?” 

He then began researching and reached out to another Lions Club in Niagara Falls. They invited him to one of their clinics where they were able to provide people with a no-questions-asked eye exam.
The exam provides people with a new or updated prescription which they can use to order the needed glasses. 

From there they are given the choice of a frame and then a date when their glasses will be ready. This is an incredible resource for people who need an updated prescription or can’t afford to replace old frames. “It gives them the opportunity to pick out new frames versus using the old ones that may not be well fit or ruined and glued together,” explained Josh. 

The clinic was a huge success and had an impact on hundreds of people. “This is something that is very rewarding seeing the amount of people that needed the glasses. We ordered 90 pairs of glasses within 6 hours,” Josh shared. 

He went on to say, “That’s about 90 people that couldn’t or didn’t have eyeglasses, [their] most recent prescription, and/or any prescription, are now going to be able to have that vision again.” 

In order to meet the needs of the mass amounts of people that need new glasses, Josh also participates in another program that reuses old frames. As people get new prescriptions and need to change their glasses, they often end up with older pairs that are still in excellent condition. 

Collection boxes for these old frames are located all throughout Glens Falls such as at optometrist and ophthalmologist offices, Crandall Library’s park entrance, banks, and Walmart. 

After the glasses are collected, Josh removes the old lenses and fits them with new prescriptions tailored to the needs of each individual. He can create both single vision lenses, used for either distance or reading, and bifocal lenses, which are convenient for people who need correction for both near and far vision. 

Currently, he has 300 pairs of frames that people can pick from. This not only provides people with something they need, but allows them to have a say in their appearance which is a huge confidence booster. They are able to see clearly and feel good about the way they look at the same time. 

The success he’s seen through these programs has inspired Josh to begin working on bringing a clinic to the Glens Falls area. 

“It’s inspiring me to bring that to the East side of New York, mostly in Glens Falls but not limited to Glens Falls,” Josh said. 

He wants to help even more people locally and even expand in the future to the Schroon Lake and Salem, New York region. If you’re interested in helping community members gain access to better vision care, consider dropping off your old frames in one of the donation boxes. 

This program is just one of the many ways the Lions Club helps the community and serves those in the area. For more information, please contact Josh at gflionjosh@gmail.com 

Photos Provided.