Sycamore Lions Club donates more than $2K to Sycamore Fire Department

SYCAMORE - The Sycamore Lions Club recently donated $2,160 to the Sycamore Fire Department to purchase a piece of training equipment for paramedics in honor of longtime Sycamore Fire Lt. and Lions Club member Gene Listy.

Gene served as a city of Sycamore firefighter for more than 50 years. He was an active member of the Sycamore Lions Club for 20 years, according to a news release.

The money was for the purchase of a training manikin that will help paramedics learn how to treat patients struggling to breathe, including for practice with airway intubation techniques.

The Lions Club donation bought the Deluxe Difficult Airway Trainer that features a manually inflatable tongue to simulate obstructed airway and is designed for training the management of difficult airways.

The airway trainer has the following features: manually inflatable tongue to simulate obstructed airway or tongue edema; anatomically correct internal anatomy facilitates airway management skills using manual maneuvers and mechanical devices; updated airway allows for insertion of standard airway devices with the addition of other devices; oropharyngeal and nasopharyngeal airway insertion; endotracheal and right mainstem intubation; needle or surgical cricothyrotomy; retrograde intubation; bag-valve-mask ventilation; and tracheal suctioning

Lions Club members presented the fire department with a check Nov. 18.

The Sycamore Lions Club is dedicated to improving the quality of life for the handicapped, the poor, the sick and the aged. Its primary focus since Helen Keller challenged the Lions to be “Knights of the Blind” has been preventing blindness and supporting programs for visually impaired individuals. Since 1948, the Sycamore Lions Club has offered people in Sycamore the opportunity to give something back to their community, according to the release.