( from left): Murray Lions Club members Alli Robertson, president, Doug Crafton, director, Grey Martin, MHS LEO Club member, Grace Cunha, MHS LEO Club president, Tony Jarvis, MHS principal, Vicky Crafton, first vice-president, and Ken Wolf, member at large.
Article by Libby Gerdes, Murray Ledger and Times
MURRAY - The Murray Lions Club recently donated braille printers to the local high schools for blind and visually impaired students in need.
The Rogue ViewPlus Braille Embosser works by printing an inserted worksheet on braille-compatible paper. According to Murray High Principal Tony Jarvis, there is a freshman student who needs to use this printer, as well as students in lower grades that will use it for years to come.
Lynsey Smith, special education director at Calloway County High School, said the school has a couple of visually impaired students who might benefit from the printer.
Billie Martin, special education teacher at Murray High, presented the need for braille printers to the Lions Club Board.
“The board makes decisions about our big purchases and action items,” said Alli Robertson, president of the Murray Lions Club. “If we have a need that has arisen in the community, we bring it to the board.”
Martin’s daughter, Grey, is a member of the Murray High Leo Club, the Lions Club youth affiliate. The Leo Club was officially chartered in May.
“Billie came to the Leo charter ceremony for Grey, and there she started a conversation about the printers,” said Doug Crafton, Lions Club director. “We then followed up by inviting her to present to the board, and she ultimately joined the club as a member.”
Sight projects are one of the primary focuses of Lions International, so club members were eager when Billie came to the board meeting, Robertson said.
“You’ve never seen a group of people so excited to spend some money,” she said. “(The fact) that there was a need completely in line with our mission as Lions, and they came to us with that need, and we were able to fulfill that need. That was very exciting.”
And it’s not just one-sided. Mrs. Koebbe’s fourth grade class at Murray Middle raised a record 221 pairs of eyeglasses for the Lions Club in February, according to Robertson, who also said the Leo Club plans to embark on a similar project. #murrayschools