Bronco Club hosting benefit concert for Vision To Learn in Jackson County June 3
On Saturday, June 3, 2017, the Bronco Club in Bellevue is presenting Chicago cover band Sushi Roll for a concert to benefit Vision To Learn in Jackson County, a program aimed at improving kids’ vision. The show starts at 9 p.m. Doors open at 8 p.m.
The concert is part of a series of events the Bronco Club is hosting to support local nonprofits.
“The Bronco Club this year is trying to give back to the community so we’re doing several fundraisers to support great nonprofits in Jackson County,” said Mel Roeder, manager of the Bronco Club.
The Vision To Learn mobile clinic provided 135 Jackson County students with free modified vision screenings during the 2016-2017 school year. Those requiring a prescription (74) each received two free pairs of glasses—one to keep at school and one to take home. The pilot program was supported by the Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque, Theisen’s Home*Farm*Auto, Klauer Optical, and local donors Steve and Elaine Kahler.
“Vision To Learn provides students with a basic tool to be successful in the classroom and beyond,” said Corrine Kroger, Iowa Regional Director for Vision To Learn. “Providing kids with glasses changes their lives. They become more confident, participate more in the classroom, and do better in reading, math and other activities."
Community Foundation of Jackson County (CFJC) Executive Director Mary Jo Gothard added that the program has been a “perfect partner” to the Jackson County Campaign for Grade-Level Reading, an initiative focused on improving reading proficiency by the third grade.
“Learning to read may not be possible for kids who desperately need glasses,” said Gothard. “Vision To Learn offering two free pairs of glasses is life changing for them.”
As many as 20,000 students in Iowa lack the glasses they need to see the board, read a book and participate in class. Due to lack of health insurance, difficulty accessing eye care providers and other obstacles, many students who are identified in state-mandated school vision screenings do not receive the follow-up care or glasses they need.
Since 2012, the nonprofit Vision To Learn has addressed this problem by giving children access to vision care through Vision To Learn vision vans, mobile clinics that travels to school sites. Students receive a modified vision screening with full autorefraction from an optometrist and, if glasses are prescribed, can choose their frames from a wide selection of colors and sizes.
Tickets are available at the door on June 3 or by contacting Mary Jo Gothard at 563.652.4179 or Mel Roeder at mel@broncoclub.com. Tickets are $10 and all proceeds will benefit Jackson County Vision to Learn, a project fund of CFJC.
Tickets are also available from CFJC Board members Darwin Schipper, Steve Kahler, Chris Nissen, Kerry Schepers, Lucy Zeimet, John Hoff or Sheri Strathman.
Vision To Learn began operations with one van in Los Angeles in 2012, and now serves kids in low-income communities in over 180 cities from Baltimore to Honolulu. Vision To Learn serves the needs of the hardest-to-reach kids in low-income communities; more than 89 percent of kids served by Vision To Learn live in poverty, and 87 percent are kids of color. Since its inception, Vision To Learn has helped screen more than 430,000 students, provided almost 85,000 with eye exams, and provided 65,000 with glasses – all free of charge. For more information visit www.visiontolearn.org.
An affiliate of the Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque, the Community Foundation of Jackson County was established in 1982 as the Maquoketa Area Foundation to help individuals throughout Jackson County make a positive impact on the communities they care about. For more information, visit www.jacksoncountyfoundation.org.
Photo caption: Chicago cover band Sushi Roll will be performing a concert June 3 at the Bronco Club in Bellevue to benefit Jackson County Vision To Learn, a project fund of the Community Foundation of Jackson County.