The Giving Tree
Unite for Sight
Sometimes it’s easy for healthy people to take their good health for granted, whether it’s the ability to see, hear, speak, feel or move around. There are people who live each day without these abilities. Thankfully, there are groups that create resources for people with health problems. Unite for Sight is one of those groups.
When Jennifer Staple was 18 years old, she founded Unite for Sight. She was a sophomore at Yale University, and she believed that no person should lose their sight because they cannot afford care for their eyes. Now in her twenties, Jennifer still leads Unite for Sight with this philosophy. This group is committed to making preventable blindness disappear. They provide free vision screenings, teach the public about eye disease and the importance of regular eye exams, and host an eyeglass drive. Unite for Sight makes these opportunities available to the public at local community centers like schools and libraries.
According to www.uniteforsight.org, 80% of blindness is preventable, and 36 million people are needlessly blind. Unite for Sight has helped build and support local eye clinics for people with problems with their sight. With more than 4,000 volunteers, Unite for Sight has helped 600,000 people receive the proper eye care they need. There are volunteers that work in the United States as well as volunteers who work in countries around the world, where blindness can lead to worse problems. For example, the mortality rate of people suffering from blindness in Africa is four times that of someone who can see.
Unite for Sight has won many awards, including Global Youth Action Network's Global Youth Action Award and Join Hands Day Excellence Award, and has been featured in the New York Times and on CNN.
There are many opportunities to help Unite for Sight. You may donate eye care equipment and eye glasses or you may volunteer your time. You may also request a speaker to come to your town to inform the public of the importance of eye care health. Jennifer Staple, Founder, President & CEO of Unite For Sight, and several ophthalmologists are available to address schools, organizations or companies. For more information, you may visit their Web site at http://www.uniteforsight.org.
Know someone under the age of 18 who has started their own charity? If so, let us know!