Lions International has for some time collected old spectacles for recycling and to assist this, the Lions Club of Frome have recently collaborated with Frome Selwood Rotary to introduce an expanded scheme in Frome which, since it was established earlier this year has already collected a staggering 6000 pairs to date.
The recycled glasses are used in other countries around the world. For an instance, sun-glasses to children working in the salt mines of Chile, assisting with education in Africa, India etc.
Nothing wasted; All unusable frames with gold coatings have this recovered and with the UK numbers donated last year generated a magnificent cheque of £27,000 which also went into the Lions International, Sight First Campaign with again, nothing wasted; unrequired cases donated to Dorothy House and sold as recyclable plastic to support the marvellous work they do.
Collection boxes for this scheme have been placed in the following places in Frome: Boots/ Dorothy House/ EYE-TEC / O’Toid Opticians on the bridge / the Cheese and Grain and Health Centre. We especially thank Specsavers for re-joining our scheme again but urge donors to use the collection bins at all these locations.
The initial collection, of which luckily Lion Tony had a trailer attached to his car at the time was a huge haul of nine bags of “nearly half a Tonne” taking some six hours of nonstop work and numerous coffees to sort them through with a few of the unusual / pre, war pairs donated to Humphry Barnes MBE of Frome Theatrical Company for use in their excellent, Memorial Theatre shows we all enjoy.
Frome Lion, Tony House, who leads the project locally, said “The remaining specs, now weighing “only” some six hundredweight were then carefully boxed and labelled ready to be freely transported via Parcel Force who forward-on to the main distribution centre in France and once examined for prescription strengths send them to Lions International “SIGHT FIRST” centres around the world where they are freely distribute, going on to say, bearing in mind, at all stages this is achieved, entirely voluntarily.
Tony continued, Lions of area 105W area (Mid Wales to Frome) are attempting a Guinness Book of Records, attempt at the longest chain of spectacles in the world currently standing at 16,530 pairs, just over a mile in length, we aim for 50,000 pairs equalling some six or more miles, so please, we urge you, dig out your old spectacles and drop them in one of our collection bins..
As always, Lions and Rotary thank the Frome businesses for enabling these collections and the people of this area for their generosity and donations of their unwanted glasses.
