Lions Eye Bank of Texas

Lions Eye Bank of Texas (LEBT) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit based in the Texas Medical Center at Baylor College of Medicine’s Cullen Eye Institute, founded in 1953 by Baylor and the Lions Clubs of the Texas Gulf Coast. The organization’s stated mission is to restore sight by collecting and distributing donor ocular tissue for corneal transplantation and for research and education. LEBT serves four Lions districts across the Texas Gulf Coast (including Houston, Beaumont, Port Arthur, Nacogdoches, Corpus Christi, Victoria, and the Rio Grande Valley) and reports providing corneal tissue for more than 2,100 people each year. The eye bank operates in partnership with Baylor College of Medicine’s Department of Ophthalmology and maintains active Lions Club governance and fundraising programs (current Executive Committee listed for 2024–2025), indicating ongoing operations and donor-facing activity. The organization’s EIN (51-0204327) was verified against public IRS/Form 990 records and nonprofit registries; recent public filings (fiscal year ending June 2023) report modest annual revenue and positive net assets, consistent with a small, operating regional eye bank.