(PRESS RELEASE) MIDVALE, UT — It is a moment 20 years in the making. When 9-year-old Santi Morales visited an EyeCare4Kids mobile clinic at a Salt Lake-area Boys and Girls Club, he became the 400,000th child to be helped with vision care and free eyeglasses. His visit marked a singular event in the history of the non-profit, whose goal is to provide free screenings and eyeglasses to children around the world.
“It is an emotional time, a happy time and a time of reflection,” says EyeCare4Kids founder and president Joseph Carbone. “Our goal has always been to help the one child, but when you do that year after year, for 20 years, in eight clinics, in four states, the numbers catch up to you. And today, as we celebrate the 400,000th child helped, we truly remember the faces and smiles of every single child as they put on their new glasses for the very first time.”
EyeCare4Kids is just weeks away from a grand opening for its main clinic in Midvale, Utah. That expansion, to be celebrated on October 29, provides EyeCare4Kids the clinic space sufficient to care for an additional 20,000 children annually in Utah alone.
And, the organization is in full launch mode, introducing its initiative to ‘Sight The World’. Our global initiative, Sight The World – “Any Child…Anywhere” in full swing. Children around the world will be able to receive screenings and eyeglasses, right from their own devices. It is a ground-breaking initiative Carbone has dreamed of for years. “We truly love every single child we help,” he says. “Our goal is to reach one million children by 2025, and we know with the help of both individual and corporate donors, we can bring sight to every child who needs glasses.
EyeCare4Kids (www.EyeCare4Kids.org) is the world’s leading provider of free eye care services, including vision screenings, eye exams and eyeglasses. Established in 2001, EyeCare4Kids has helped more than 400,000 individuals receive the vision care they need, but simply cannot afford. With both stand-alone and mobile clinics in four states and expansion projects to Sight The World, the organization has an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau, four-star rating from Charity Navigator and is the recipient of numerous honors, including the prestigious Ernst & Young Social Entrepreneur Award. Featured in People Magazine, Dr OZ, NBC Nightly News and Costco Connection.