Seeing Life More Clearly
Like millions of children around the world, Handapangodage Don Rusiru Harita Perera, a fourth-grader at St. Johns School in Panadura, Sri Lanka, did not realize his vision was poor. His father, A.D. Prasad Ranjan Perera, was also unaware of the visual impairment his son was facing. Childhood vision problems are a serious concern, not only because they are frustrating and interfere with learning and development, but because some conditions can lead to serious vision loss or blindness if not corrected early.
A powerful partnership
Fortunately, Perera took part in a Sight for Kids vision screening at his school. Sight for Kids, a program of Lions Clubs International Foundation (LCIF) and Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, has screened 14 million children in Asia since it began in 2002. The program screens children for refractive error and other vision problems, including myopia (nearsightedness), which causes significant vision loss in more than 15 percent of children under the age of 15 in many Asian countries. To date, Johnson & Johnson has committed $2 million to fund the program.
A close call, but a crisis averted
“We are very grateful to the Lion’s program,” said Perera’s father. “The specialist told my son that he would have gone blind in one eye, if not for the timely medical attention provided by the Lions.” After multiple screenings, Perera was transferred to a hospital where an eye specialist for children patched his good eye. His vision was soon restored, almost matching his healthy eye. Lions also provided him with free glasses.
“This has made our lives happy, especially for all the service we received from the Lions hospital free of cost. We could not have afforded the specialist treatment, medicines and glasses,” said Perera’s father. “We wish all success to the Lions who are saviors of children's sight.”
