BY MARY SLOAN
Special to The Clarkston News
Once again, Rotary Club members Jeff Lichty and Mary Sloan went on an eye care mission.
Last summer they went to a small village in Peru, while on this trip they went to the island of Grenada in the West Indies. The trip was in conjunction with a group called Volunteer Optometrists in Service to Humanities.
The group took about 4,000 pairs of eyeglasses to the people of the area. Because Dr. Nelson Edwards, the VOSH member who organizes the trips, is a Rotarian, other Rotary members learn of the projects and become involved.
On this trip the team was made up of three doctors, six student doctors, two opticians and six lay people. Working with the Grenada East Rotary Club, the team serviced four clinic sites around the island over a period of seven days. In addition to the adults who came to the clinics, school children were screened and examinations were provided to those who needed them.
For those who even remember, our knowledge of Grenada is usually limited to the news coverage of the invasion (or ‘intervention? as they prefer to call it) in 1984, and the ‘rescue? of the medical students at St. George’s medical school.
It is a lovely island and the people are wonderful. Tourists usually are only exposed to the capital city, St. George’s, where the cruise ships dock. The rest of the island is beautiful but quite poor for the most part, but offers waterfalls and beaches for those who care to find them. It is called ‘The Spice Island? because of it’s nutmeg, (the world’s second largest producer), mace, cinnamon and cloves. The delicate smell of the spices hangs in the air.
It’s a beautiful place to visit. For Jeff and Mary, getting to know the people has been one of the best parts of the trip. Mary first went to Grenada in 2000 on her first eye care mission. It was then she first got to know the Rotarians, since they accompany the team to all the clinics and ensure that their leisure time is filled with quality activity, often in the home of local Rotarians.
The experience made such an impression, Mary retired from her teaching position so that she could participate in more world community service activities through Rotary. She says she didn’t realize how much could be accomplished club to club, people to people on an individual, rather than at a government level.
This year it was an especially wonderful experience for these two Rotarians. At the home of one of their host Rotarians, Mary and Jeff were married amidst the bougainvillea and in the company of people sharing their same ideals of bringing peace to the world through love and understanding.