GULF SHORES, Ala. - The Gulf Shores Lions Club will stage its second annual “Dinner in the Dark” fundraiser on Friday, February 15, with all proceeds going to Leader Dog for the blind, The Southwest Regional School for the Deaf & Blind, and other local sight projects.

The Lions Club focus is not only “To Serve”  . . . but to raise awareness of diabetes, preserve sight, and to service those who have already lost – or never had – the ability to see. The service club hopes this dinner will help bring awareness to people by experiencing what it is like to have a meal as a vision-impaired person does every day.

The Lions Club founded Leader Dogs for the Blind in 1939. Since then, Leader Dogs for the Blind has provided independent mobility to more than 14,000 visually impaired individuals.

The school’s services are provided free of charge. The school provides classes on using a Leader Dog, orientation and mobility (traveling safely) and Trekker GPS (talking navigation tool). At Leader Dogs for the Blind, people can learn to use a Trekker GPS unit instead of memorizing directions that may or may not get them to where they want to go.

The Southwest Regional School for the Deaf & Blind is part of the Mobile County School District and serves grades PK-12. The mission statement of the Southwest Regional School for the Deaf & Blind is to create a positive, supportive educational environment that provides opportunities for sensory impaired students to reach individual potential in the areas of academics, independence, responsibility and social competence.

The event will be held at the Gulf Shores United Methodist Church, 1720 Gulf Shores Parkway, Building B Auditorium at 6 p.m. with entertainment by Dale Clock, a pianist and vocalist.

Tickets can be purchased at the Gulf Shores Methodist Church Building B box office, in “Thee Coffee Shop” at the Winn-Dixie shopping center. For more information, call 251-968-3561 Richard Switzer or Madeline Avinger at mavinger@gmail.com.