Shriners to hold screening clinic

Few people know it but each year the members of the Western Sacramento Valley Shrine Club of the Ben Ali Shrine Center opens their hearts to babies, children and teens needing medical help.

For 85 years the Shriners organization has provided free medical care for 835,000 children worldwide, according to its Web site. It gets its money through donations, membership dues and fundraisers.

It’s unknown how many children have been helped in the Mid-Valley region, from Colusa to Corning, but local Shriners have dealt with some serious cases they’ve identified at screening clinics held each year in Willows.

“We’ve had children come in with bone disorders, scoliosis and problems associated with healed burns,” said Glenn County resident Gary Hansen, Screening Clinic Chairman. “We are extremely fortunate to have our flagship hospital in Ben Ali Shrine jurisdiction. It is the only one of our 22 hospitals to specialize in all four Shriner’s medical disciplines – orthopedic, spinal cord injuries, burns and research.”

No insurance? No problem. Treatment is free.

This year’s screening clinic will be held Saturday, May 17, at Glenn Medical Center between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m.

The process starts with paperwork so Hansen urges parents with their children come at 9 a.m. Children from Colusa, Glenn and Tehama County are eligible for screening.

The Shriner organization was established as a men’s fellowship in 1870 as an appendant body to Freemasonry. Until 2000, before being eligible for membership in the Shrine, a person had to complete either the Scottish Rite or York Rite degrees of Masonry.

Today, any Master Mason can join. Shriners are physicians, lawyers, truck drivers, contractors, heads of state, clergymen and movie stars.

“Both of my grandfather were Masons,” Hansen said. “But I owe my becoming a Shriner to my dad. He’s frail now, but he was an outstanding and dedicated member for many years.”

The  charitable arm of the organization is the Shriner’s Hospitals for Children, a network of twenty-two hospitals in the United States, Mexico and Canada. It was originally formed to treat young victims of polio, but as that disease was controlled, the Shriners broadened their scope. They now deal with all pediatric cases, most especially with orthopedic injuries and disease and burns. The Shrine has pioneered new treatments for these conditions.

There is never any charge for treatment at a Shriners Hospital, Hansen said. The organization will take insurance information in the event a child treated at Shriner’s Hospital in Sacramento requires additional services from UC Davis.

And there is no requirement for religion, race, or relationship to a Freemason. Patients must be under the age of 18.

For additional information about the upcoming screening clinic or the Shrine organization, contact Hansen at 934-4734.