Much of what the Pekin Lions Club does in the community goes unseen by residents. Which is ironic since much of what the Lions Club does relates to sight and hearing services. This year marks the 85th year that this bedrock organization has been improving lives in this community and across Central Illinois.

Terry Knollenberg serves as secretary for the Pekin Lions Club, an office he has held on and off since he first connected with the organization in 1996. He is very conscious of the fact that many residents only know the Lions for their fundraising activities, like the delicious donuts served up at the annual Marigold Festival (an average of 18,000 donuts served every year).

“I don’t think the Pekin Lions Club has ever done anything where everybody in the community said, ‘Yup, they did that,’” he admits. But to a child who is visually impaired or an older adult who cannot afford a professional hearing test or hearing aids, he says the services made possible by the Pekin Lions Club are life changing.

Services funded by the Lions include free sight and hearing screenings for children and adults, and an eyeglass and hearing aid bank. The local club provides support for the semi-annual Jacksonville Vision and Hearing Clinic and adult low vision mobility training. Camp Lions, a summer camp experience for blind and deaf youth and adults, receives support from the local Lions organization. There is no cost for participants.

For many years, the Lions Club has collected and recycled old eyeglasses and sunglasses. The eyewear is cleaned and sorted, often ending up in countries where vision issues are common but access to corrective glasses and vision care is not. Most recipients pay nothing for their glasses but benefit greatly from improved vision.

Since 1947, the Pekin Lions Club has distributed food baskets to as many as 400 local families each year during the holidays. Funds are raised through solicitation from the general public, an annual Soup Sampler Supper, Pancake and Sausage Day, and other events throughout the year. Another ongoing project is the collection and recycling of old sneakers through GotSneakers.com. Donated sneakers are either sent to countries where shoes are not available or unaffordable, or they are recycled, keeping them out of landfills.

“This is not something that the world would say, ‘Oh, that’s great.’ But the families and individuals are so appreciative,” Knollenberg says. He is thankful there are so many generous donors and supporters in the community, but admits that resources are not limitless.

“Sometimes a single club can’t support everything that is needed, but multiple clubs can,” he says. That’s where the Lions Illinois Foundation and Lions Clubs International step in. An example of this deep support is the recent purchase of a $200,000 mobile unit that travels the state providing free retinal and hearing screenings and services. Lions Clubs International matched local funds to make the purchase possible. The international organization has also stepped in and helped in the aftermath of natural disasters like tornados in South Pekin and Washington.

More than 49,200 independent Lions Clubs operate in 110+ countries and Vatican City, according to Knollenberg. Worldwide membership is more than 1.3 million, with major efforts underway to increase membership to 1.5 million by mid-2027.

Like many service organizations, the Pekin Lions Club finds itself facing an uncertain future. Active membership stands at about 20, Knollenberg says, and many members (like himself) are aging. New members have always been the lifeblood of the organization, and he invites community-minded men and women to consider how they could contribute as Lions Club members.

Why volunteer? “A person has to want to serve their community and help people with sight and hearing impairments,” Knollenberg says. “All it takes is a little time once in a while and a few meetings to raise the funds that pay for the services we help provide.”

When he first joined, Knollenberg says, “I saw what they were doing and I thought, ‘I can do that.’ Now I see what we do and I just keep growing with it.”

Knollenberg says planning is underway for a special 85th anniversary dinner and celebration in October. Details will be finalized and published soon on the club’s Facebook: www.facebook.com/pekinlionsclub. 

To learn how and where to recycle old eyeglasses, sunglasses and hearing aids, how to support the GotSneakers.com shoe recycling program, and other Lions Club activities, contact Terry Knollenberg at 309-202-3723 or [email protected]. The club meets for dinner and a brief business meeting every first and third Monday at 6:30pm at Trinity Lutheran Church, 700 S. 4th St.