When Claire was 5 and in kindergarten, she was referred by a KidSight vision screening. Her parents made an appointment with their family eye doctor. Claire walked out of that appointment with a new pair of glasses. Her mother, Laura, said, “I thought it was no big deal at the time and did not understand the severity and long road ahead of us.”
Claire’s eye doctor prescribed glasses and patching for her amblyopia and strabismus to strengthen her weak eye. After a year of patching, her eye turned inwards and, by the time she was age 7, she was going blind in one eye. Because she couldn’t see out of one eye, she had no depth perception, was cross-eyed and had other vision issues. Her parents and eye doctor decided it was time to go through with eye surgery since patching alone hadn’t strengthened her eye. During this period, she was painfully shy. In fact, she would only talk to her immediate family and grandparents.
Claire is now 13 years old. Her treatment was so successful that she doesn’t even need to wear glasses anymore. Her eye doctor only requires her to come in for an exam every 3 years – a big change from having to go to the office every 6 months. She is confident enough to perform in theater, dance, and is even her school’s student council president! She loves to be on stage and in the spotlight. In Claire’s story you can see the bright future that a screening from KidSight provides. Even now, 8 years after her screening, Claire still talks about things she couldn’t see before.
Claire’s bright future is now. Eight years ago, she was so shy she couldn’t speak to anyone but
her immediate family. Now, Claire is a leader full of promise, willingly sharing her experience. She wants other young people to know that what they are facing may be hard, but they can push through it. She inspires others to grow and learn – thanks in part to a short KidSight screening. You made it possible for her to be a leader, a dancer, an actor, and performer. Participating in KidSight screenings is so easy for children that they often don’t even remember that it happened. Yet, this simple act of screening has a profound impact on the future of the children we serve. And your support makes it possible.