Catching Vision and Hearing Loss Early in the U.P.

Treatment options for vision and hearing loss increase when vision and hearing problems are detected and treated early. When problems go undetected or treatment is delayed, costs rise exponentially, and normal treatment options are replaced with expensive treatment options like surgery, vision therapy or speech therapy. For underinsured and low-income families, that delay can affect a child's ability to learn and develop and an adult's ability to work and live independently.

Vision and hearing loss can affect people at any age. Children with even mild or moderate hearing loss can have difficulty learning, developing speech, and building interpersonal skills. For adults, vision loss can limit mobility and independence and make everyday tasks harder.

Lions of Michigan Service Foundation (LMSF), a public charity created in 1984 to help Michigan Lions Clubs provide community services, set out to sustain and expand audiology and eye care services for underinsured and low-income families in the Upper Peninsula. The project focused on early detection: identifying and correcting vision and hearing problems before they affect learning, work, and quality of life.

Over the grant period, LMSF provided vision testing for more than 700 U.P. children and further testing and treatment for vision and hearing issues for 88 U.P. residents. Services reached Chippewa, Delta, Dickinson, Houghton, Iron, Mackinac, Marquette, and Menominee counties. LMSF also partnered with eight U.P. Lions Clubs to help people with vision or hearing loss in their own communities.

One parent shared, "Thank you for all you do, your screening at our preschool is the reason we got our son's eyes checked, and now he's going to be able to see clearly!"

SHF awarded a $9,150 Care Access Grant in 2025 to support this work.