The Diabetes Research & Wellness Foundation recently partnered with the local Lions Club to serve the residents of Virginia.  In an effort to raise awareness about diabetes and the seriousness of diabetic eye disease the Lions of Virginia District 24-A are educating their members about diabetes and have recruited volunteers from across the state to participate in diabetes, blood pressure and retinopathy screenings. Working with local communities, they offered blood glucose and blood pressure testing, as well as educational information.  For those individuals who had a diagnosis of diabetes, a specialized camera was on hand to photograph the blood vessels in the eye; those photographs were then read by an ophthalmologist and patients were referred for care as needed.  Many of the attendees had no healthcare provider and local county social workers were present to connect individuals to local services.  DRWF’s Kathy Gold, RN and CDE worked with the Lions to screen patients and provide education to individuals identified as at-risk.  DRWF’s educational brochures provided much-needed information to individuals with diabetes or prediabetes, and DRWF’s diabetes identification necklaces were provided to those living with diabetes.