Our project
The kids in the Mision Mexico refuge all come from deprived backgrounds, but now live in a loving home environment, go to school and even learn to surf.
Entirely donor funded, the refuge provides for the kids' needs, and with the love and support of the volunteer staff, the kids thrive. But, they have not had access to optical care or had their eyes tested.
For more about the volunteers and kids at Mision Mexico, you can visit their website at
lovelifehope.com
How our trip can help
The inability to see properly for reading, looking at the blackboard or even to easily see friends in the playground can have long term impacts for kids.
Our visit will not only test the ocular health of the kids currently in the refuge, we will also leave equipment and train staff so they can do basic visual screening themselves to identify problems after we’ve left.
We will check refractions and that the eyes work together properly, check ocular health, and provide glasses for the kids who need them. We also want to give all the kids a pair of sunnies.
We will take our own equipment and also leave a few tests so that we can teach some of the volunteer staff to give a vision screen. This might mean they can detect earlier the kids who are desperate for eyecare.
A little about us
We are optometrists who see the person behind the glasses.
Together we believe that eye tests are only the beginning of the story that can lead to people leading fuller lives with access to good sight.
We were inspired when we heard the story of Mision Mexico, run by two amazing Australians, Pam and Alan Skuse and their incredible support staff. The Skuse's went to Tapachula about 10 years ago for a year of volunteer work. When the orphanage was closed
half way through their trip due to lack of funding they decided that rather than let the children be left on the streets they would run the orphanage. They bought land to improve the facilities so that they are now able to now support about 50 children.
