Lions Clubs International has a series of worldwide causes: Vision, Diabetes, Childhood Cancer, Hunger, and the Environment. Individual clubs can support additional causes, based in part on members’ interests. Below are some examples of the charities and activities of the West San Jose-Campbell Lions Club in 2022.
Supported Charities
Vista Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired
The Vista Center provides a number of services for the blind and visually impaired. vistacenter.org
Our club provides monetary support and fundraising assistance, and volunteers sometimes assist clients at Vista Center events.
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Lions in Sight of California and Nevada
Lions In Sight provides no cost and low cost eyeglasses to those in need around the world. lionsinsight.net
Club members help collect, sort, and clean used eyeglasses. They sometimes participate in week long missions to distribute the eyeglasses in other countries.
Lions sorting used eyeglasses for reuse. 
Lions, optometrists, and technicians on a week-long mission in Mexico. 
Dr. Art Low checks a girl’s eyes.
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Canine Companions
Canine Companions for Independence is a non-profit organization that enhances the lives of people with disabilities by providing highly trained assistance dogs at no charge to the recipient. canine.org
We make annual donations to support the work of Canine Companions
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Lions Clubs International Foundation
Lions Clubs International Foundation supports projects in Lions’ areas of focus (Vision, Diabetes, Childhood Cancer, Hunger, Environment, Disaster Relief) that address unmet humanitarian needs for entire communities. These projects are led by local Lions who identify the need, develop the plan of action and carry out the project. lionsclubs.org/en/discover-our-foundation/mission
Our club makes donations to honor the efforts of club members.
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Guide Dogs for the Blind
As the largest guide dog school in North America, Guide Dogs for the Blind prepares highly qualified guide dogs, provides guide dog readiness skills, and offers youth programs to empower individuals who are blind or visually impaired.
Our club provides financial support.
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Grateful Garment Project
The Grateful Garment Project’s mission is to ensure that every victim of a sexual crime who seeks medical attention and/or law enforcement involvement is provided with whatever new clothing, toiletries, snacks, and other miscellaneous items that they may require. gratefulgarment.org
Volunteers from our club assist with sorting, labeling, and inventorying garments and supplies.
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Martha’s Kitchen
Martha’s Kitchen is a nonprofit soup kitchen that currently provides nearly 100000 meals and 250000 pounds of groceries each month to those in need. marthas-kitchen.org
Club members help dish up and package meals.
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We also work with, or provide financial support for:
- Lions Eye Foundation
- Second Harvest Food Bank
- City of Hope Diabetes Research
- Our City Forest
- American Cancer Society
- JacobsHeart.org
Activities & Fundraisers
Oktoberfest, and Boogie: Campbell’s Music Festival
The fall Oktoberfest and spring Boogie events take place in downtown Campbell, California, and are sponsored by the Campbell Chamber of Commerce.
Our club receives a donation for providing staffing for a beer and wine booth. Club members and friends pour and serve beer and wine for the public during shifts over two days at both events.
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Ballot Couriers for the Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters
Members of the public are recruited to assist with a number of activities related to Primary and General Elections.
Our club members, friends, and family members volunteer as couriers, collecting ballots from polling locations and ballot drop boxes. Ballots are immediately transported to the Registrar of Voters office, for which each individual is paid a stipend that is donated to the club.
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Family Fun Fest
At the Campbell Farmers Market, we set up a booth with activities for children. We also collect donations for one of our supported charities, and we collect contact information from individuals interested in volunteering with us.
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White Cane Day
In conjunction with National White Cane Awareness Day in October, we set up a table in a busy location and collect donations of money, used eyeglasses, old cellphones, empty printer cartridges, and used hearing aids. We also provide information about Lions in the local community.
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Calendars
Our club has produced annual calendars featuring restaurants located in Campbell, California.
Restaurants are contacted to make a donation to the club in return for being featured on the cover and/or for one of the months in the coming year’s calendar. The calendars are then distributed for free through the restaurants, Campbell library, Chamber of Commerce office, and other locations.
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