COLLEGE STATION, Texas — “Each of our screening machines costs upwards of $6,000 so the money raised goes toward that," said Glenda Schneider, lead for KidSight Vision Screenings.
She also says every dollar counts for the initiative, which helps school-aged children with free eye exams. The program gets its help from things like the College Station Noon Lions Club Christmas Tree Lot.
“The proceeds go to the programs the Lions Club supports, we support local non-profits like Habitat for Humanity and the Salvation Army. The money we make here stays in this area,” said John Wester, Co-Chair of the Noon Lions Club Christmas Tree project.
Central Texans can find hundreds of Virginia Pines at the lot on 2605 Texas Ave S, College Station, Texas on W. King Cole Drive, which opened Wednesday.
Schneider says fundraisers like the tree sales assist in keeping kids’ vision where it needs to be in and out of the classroom.
“We screen mainly six months to 12th grade — we go into the schools and help the nurses do that because they’re so overworked as it is, and still have to do their state-required screenings and so we can go in and make their jobs a little bit easier," she said.
So far in 2023, KidSight has helped over 4,000 children in the Brazos Valley from schools in College Station to Calvert.
Tree lot Schedule:
Friday, Nov 24 – Sunday, Nov 26 from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
The tree lot will remain open weekdays starting Monday, Nov 27 from 4 p.m. - 8 p.m until all trees sell out.