Dear colleagues,

 

This January I will be traveling to Tegucigalpa, Honduras, with a group called Unite for Sight.  I will work with a partner eye clinic to screen for eye disease, implement education programs, and coordinate sight-restoring surgery for children and adults. I must raise a minimum of $1500 to help the local eye clinic in Honduras pay for surgeries and eye care to those in need. Hopefully I will raise much more to help as many people as possible.

Here is a quick fact: $50 can restore a patient’s sight. $250 can restore sight for five people.

To donate, please visit my Fundraising Page at: https://maestropay.com/uniteforsight/volunteers/ref/897cb902e2b747f3872a8e4b23fcd9b1. 

 

You can also visit and join my fundraising group on Facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/laura.akers#/group.php?gid=113406809856&ref=mf. 

100% of your donation will provide eye care to patients living in extreme poverty.

Here are some facts on why eye care is an issue:

• 60-80% of children who become blind die within 1-2 years
• Unite For Sight not only restores vision, but also empowers patients and their families.
• Blindness in the developing world has a significant effect on families, employment, income, and on the education of children within the family.
• Social stigma related to blind patients is commonplace in many communities in the developing world.
• Those who are blind are oftentimes considered to be a burden to the family because they are not able to contribute to a family’s income.
• Instead of attending school, children within a family are frequently assigned to the role of the caregiver of blind adults.
• Blindness and visual impairment impacts employment opportunities and income levels for individuals and families.
• Reduced employment opportunities and lower income levels negatively impact the local, regional, and country-wide economics.

If you can’t donate monetarily, send me your used prescription eyeglasses or non prescription UV-protected sunglasses! I have to bring 500 pairs of glasses with me to Honduras.  I will be setting out a collection bin in the downstairs break room at HSL if you have any used glasses you can donate. 

Unite for Sight has opened my eyes to the debilitating blindness that affects many parts of the world, I hope it has done the same to you. I would be very grateful for your support and contributions.

 

 

Laura Akers

Graduate Library Assistant

J. Otto Lottes Health Sciences Library

University of Missouri-Columbia

Columbia, MO 65212

lmdw35@mizzou.edu