The Kiwanis clubs of Alcoa, Foothills and Maryville hosted a Remote Area Medical (RAM) Clinic at Heritage Middle School on July 12-13, serving over 700 in need of medical attention.
Services included 259 eye tests, including some 72 children who received new glasses, 648 tooth extractions, 183 fillings, 13 mammograms and much more.
The RAM Clinic was started by Stan Brock and is based in Knoxville. Stan goes to various parts of South America and elsewhere with medical volunteers. More recently they started doing events in the US where needs exist.
Herk Holbert, President of the Kiwanis Club of Alcoa reported that the Kiwanis Clubs of Blount County (Alcoa, Foothills and Maryville),had three months to put the (Remote Area Medical) RAM clinic project together for the surrounding counties. The joint clubs had newspapers, TV, and posters coverage. The posters were both in English and in Spanish. Many Kiwanian members and their spouses wore t-shirts with the local club's name on them. Lt. Governor Bob Palmer also listed the event in the Division V News.
In addition to the on site work by the three clubs, many Kiwanians helped procure donations of food and housing for the many volunteer medical personnel who came from all over to serve ... a new and very rewarding 'hands-on' project for for the three Kiwanis clubs located in Blount County.
Herk reported, "We might have a couple of new members as results of us working together." "the main focus of the project was to help families get the treatment they needed. We are so proud of the success of this first time-event. We did an outstanding job and we are going to do it again in 2010."
A challenge was issued by Herk - "You might want to join us and see what great clubs can to do together. That is what Kiwanis is all about."
