Updates and Announcements

Rosebud and Pine Ridge Reservations:

Several organizations (Remote Area Medical, Unbroken Circle Project, SD Lions, Indian Health Service, and more) have been struggling to meet the demand for eye care on these (and many more) reservations, particularly for school age children who often don’t have the resources or transportation to obtain glasses or other eye care to be effective and successful at school, the most important stepping stone for improving their future.  This year VOSH International was approached, asking for volunteers to provide care during clinics, which led them to SD VOSH.

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Volunteers from the South Dakota Lions Clubs and the Wisconsin Lions Club coordinated eye care missions on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in May and October of 2019, and are planning to go again in May of 2020.  These clubs are looking for Optometrists licensed in South Dakota as well as lay people (even with no health care experience) to volunteer for the mission, so please contact Bill Taubman, Wisconsin Lions Mission Chair at 715-520-7692 or wet38@centurytel.net for more information.

Gregory Hill and Eli Stokkan went to St. Francis on the Rosebud Reservation in August and participated in a three day health clinic hosted by RAM (Remote Area Medical) that provided medical, dental, and eye care to several hundred residents. In addition, Kathy Haivala, OD of Spearfish, and Alex Permann, OD of Chamberlain both volunteered for a day each. KSFY news was on site most of the day Friday from which they broadcast a weeklong series of stories from the mission (go to ksfy.com and Search for “RAM Health Clinic assists Saint Francis community”).  Another mission is being planned for August of 2020, and they are looking for Optometrists licensed in South Dakota as well as lay people (even with no health care experience) to volunteer, so please contact Marty Jones in St. Francis at 605-747-2142.