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When it comes to giving back to his community, Gary Nelson's contributions can be viewed through a variety of lenses.
The Frewsburg resident currently serves the area as a business owner and volunteer of two organizations with a focus on subjects both visual and extraterrestrial.
A board-certified and New York state-licensed optician, Nelson has been an owner of Hall and Laury Opticians -- 707 Fairmount Ave., Jamestown -- since 1980. His designation as a board-certified optician was awarded to him by the National Academy of Opticianry through The American Board of Opticianry in July 1976.
Additionally, he has been a member of the Frewsburg Lions Club for more than 25 years. Through his practice as an optician, he has been able to further the Lions' mission to assist those with vision problems who are unable to afford insurance by providing them with glasses, at cost, through his business.
"I'm fortunate to be in a position where I can supply the Lions Club with glasses for needy people," Nelson said. "If someone needs glasses but doesn't have any insurance, I can get them glasses at cost and the Lions Club won't have to pay for them in full -- as they had done before.
"When I came aboard, the Lions Club was paying a lot for glasses, but I kind of put a stop to that. What was happening is that people with insurance were coming through the Lions Club to get their glasses cheaper, but that avenue was designed for someone who doesn't qualify for social services but can't afford the glasses. Now we're not seeing that kind of thing as much anymore."
Nelson said the Lions Club aims to assist those in the community struggling with vision and hearing by pairing them with the services and equipment they need to improve their quality of life. More recently, the Lions Club has been helping with visual screenings for children as young as 6 months for early detection of issues and conditions that could arise later in life. For those who are hard of hearing, the club also assists with the provision of hearing aids and testing.
Nelson also serves as president of the Marshal Martz Memorial Astronomical Association and its Martz-Kohl Observatory, located at 176 Robin Hill Road in Frewsburg, of which he has been a member since 1967. Under his tenure, the association and its facility have undergone a series of renovations and expansions -- the most recent of which comprised a $1 million project that saw the construction of a new building and the relocation of a 20-inch telescope previously owned by Dr. Ronald Kohl.
With the successful addition of these new facets to the facility, Nelson said the observatory has returned to its regularly scheduled series of public events and, in fact, has increased its program and event offerings.
"We've been pretty busy lately," he said. "Now that construction is more or less finished we've had more public events and been getting people from all over the country. We've done some work with NASA, and we're going to get more involved in astronomy and doing some more research. For example, right now we're watching a tabby star that lightens and darkens, and by getting the differential in the light pattern we can tell how far away it is. We've tracked some comets, and now with the new scope there's a lot more to do up there."
Nelson said the observatory will be open to the public Monday, Aug. 21, when North America will bear witness to a solar eclipse. He said visitors can view the eclipse in a number of ways, including through a solar scope, TV monitors that will project a live feed taken from the observatory grounds and through specially made glasses that will allow them to view the eclipse safely with their own eyes.
Martz Observatory currently operates a recently remodeled website, which contains more information about the observatory and its upcoming events, at martzobservatory.com. More information on Hall and Laury Opticians can be obtained by calling 664-4708 or visiting hallandlauryopticians.com.