Author: Corinne Waldon

For two decades, Dr. Tom Wilk, Dr. Michele Naruszewicz, and the entire team at Mountain View Optometry have shown up for the World Sight Day Challenge, year after year, without fail. Since 2006, they’ve raised more than $93,000 for sustainable vision care around the world. More than donations, they’ve built a legacy.

And they didn’t slow down in 2025, even with a major clinic renovation underway. Instead of pulling back, they leaned in, launching an online fundraiser and extending their momentum through the holiday season with a “12 Days of Giving” campaign that was as creative as it was effective. Through emails, social media, newsletters, and in-office outreach, they inspired 30 online donors and rallied their community around something bigger than themselves. Combined with a generous practice donation, Mountain View Optometry raised more than $6,400 in 2025 alone.

“Since we began practicing more than 25 years ago, we have been proud supporters of Optometry Giving Sight. Their simple message of addressing preventable blindness worldwide resonates with our staff and patients during the annual World Sight Day fundraisers. OGS’s dedication aligns with our values of compassionate care and giving back to communities in need.” – Dr. Tom Wilk

Dr. Wilk’s commitment to OGS goes beyond the fundraiser. He’s also a former member of our Board of Directors, where his leadership left a lasting mark on the organization.

To Dr. Wilk, Dr. Naruszewicz, and the whole Mountain View team: thank you. You are exactly the kind of partners who make this mission possible.

Optometry Education Around the World

Grantees: VOSH California, Charis Vision and Health Mission, Canadian Vision Care, University of Cape Coast

Every donation to Optometry Giving Sight funds two kinds of impact: the patient who receives an exam or a pair of glasses today, and the optometrist who will provide that care for decades to come. Many of our funded projects include an education component — here’s a closer look at four whose training work is particularly central to their mission.

VOSH California — Nicaragua
VOSH California has been foundational to the development of optometry in Nicaragua, helping to establish the country’s first optometry school at the National Autonomous University of Nicaragua (UNAN). An OGS grant is now funding a Specialty Contact Lens Clinic within the Visionary Clinic in Managua, providing hands-on training to UNAN students and graduates in scleral and rigid gas-permeable contact lens fitting — services previously unavailable in the country — while delivering affordable, advanced care to patients who need it most.

Canadian Vision Care — Philippines
For more than 12 years, Canadian Vision Care’s Eye Train project has delivered eye care from two converted railway cars in Manila — a permanent, locally managed clinic that has served over 120,000 patients and now functions as a clinical training site for Filipino optometry students. An OGS grant is helping to expand the clinic’s capacity and deepen its outreach, including immersive learning experiences when Canadian optometry teams visit each year.

University of Cape Coast — Ghana
OGS awarded a grant to UCC’s School of Optometry and Vision Science to launch Opto-SCOPE, a program that embeds mobile eye care units within Ghana’s existing community health compounds in the Central Region. Final-year optometry students gain hands-on clinical experience through the program while bringing vision services to rural communities that currently have none — a model designed to be replicated and sustained well into the future.

Charis Vision and Health Mission — Nigeria
In partnership with Arthur Jarvis University in Akpabuyo, Cross River State, OGS helped fund a state-of-the-art optometry clinic — one now reported to house diagnostic equipment not available in many Nigerian teaching hospitals. The clinic serves the surrounding community while giving optometry students hands-on clinical training. Late last year, the facility was formally commissioned in a ceremony that also celebrated the induction of seven new Doctors of Optometry.

By investing in this life-changing work, we are helping to build a future where quality eye care is not a one-time gift, but a lasting, local reality that the community owns and sustains. Your donations make a difference now and into the future.

Celebrating Henderson Vision Centre as the Second Highest Practice for the 2025 World Sight Day Challenge.

For the team at Henderson Vision Centre in Winnipeg, Manitoba, supporting Optometry Giving Sight isn’t a new initiative; it’s simply part of who they are. The practice’s connection to OGS predates its current practitioners, rooted in the longstanding commitment of Dr. Scott Mundle, and carried forward with enthusiasm by the colleagues who followed.

That continuity paid off in a big way with Henderson Vision Centre being among the top practices for the past several years. In 2025, they ranked as the #2 highest fundraising practice in all of Canada and the United States for the World Sight Day Challenge — raising a remarkable $10,318.

Dr. Melina Chow, who joined the practice and inherited that giving spirit, puts it simply:

“We’ve been supporting OGS since before I joined the practice. Dr. Scott Mundle was very involved with OGS, and we have continued to support them. The work OGS does goes beyond helping people who live in developing countries; they train people there as well and develop continuity of care within those communities. And it’s so easy to bring it up to patients, for them to see and understand the mission, and ultimately to raise funds for OGS.”

But Dr. Chow is quick to share the credit. “I just really want to shout out my staff — they’re the ones that drive our fundraising and make it all happen!”

With over 40 years of serving the North Winnipeg community, Henderson Vision Centre brings that same dedication to patients near and far. We are deeply grateful to the entire HVC team for their generosity, and for showing what’s possible when a practice decides to bring its whole team along for the mission.

CooperVision, a global leader in manufacturing innovative contact lenses, has been a steadfast champion for Optometry Giving Sight (OGS) since the initiative’s inception. As a global lead sponsor, CooperVision’s multi-faceted support has been instrumental in addressing the needs of the more than 1.1 billion people worldwide who suffer from vision impairment. To date, their collective efforts have generated more than $3 million in contributions for OGS.

Their commitment is felt across the globe through several key initiatives:

• Employee Giving and Matching: Annual company matches of employee donations and fundraising events at CooperVision sites worldwide.
• Patient Engagement: Innovative patient rebate programs and cause-related marketing campaigns that invite consumers to join the mission.
• The Ambassador Program: Each year, select CooperVision employees join an OGS outreach program to see firsthand the impact of their support, such as the 2019 mission to Uganda.

Strengthening the Leadership Bond

In 2026, CooperVision’s Senior Director of Global Professional Affairs Karen Walsh joined the OGS board of directors. With a distinguished career in clinical education and research, Walsh brings a wealth of expertise to the board’s leadership.

“Joining the board of Optometry Giving Sight is a natural extension of my work to support eye care professionals and expand access to care,” says Walsh. “I have long admired OGS for its focus on building permanent infrastructure and training local personnel—creating a world where vision care is a right, not a luxury.”

A Legacy of Support

Beyond financial contributions, CooperVision’s partnership helps fuel OGS programs on six continents that have provided eye care services to millions, trained more than 14,000 eye care personnel, and established over 130 vision centers.

“Our long-standing partnership with Optometry Giving Sight reflects CooperVision’s belief that meaningful change requires sustained commitment,” says Jerry Warner, president of CooperVision. “Together, we’re not just responding to today’s challenges. We’re building the foundation for a future where quality vision care is available to every community, everywhere.”

We extend our deepest gratitude to CooperVision for their extraordinary long-term commitment. We look forward to our ongoing partnership as we work together to provide the gift of sight and eliminate preventable blindness on a global scale.

Dr. Lee Dodge and Visualeyes Optometry.

For more than 15 years, Dr. Lee Dodge has been a dedicated supporter of OGS. A donor since 2010, Dr. Dodge has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to global eye health through consistent contributions, including his current role as a monthly TEAM OGS donor and a quarterly PECAA donor.

Last year marked a significant milestone in his partnership with OGS, with his annual contributions reaching a record high of more than $4,000. His long-standing support, which has also included participation in the World Sight Day Challenge, has directly fueled the establishment of sustainable vision centers and the training of local eye care personnel in underserved regions.

“Our office proudly supports Optometry Giving Sight because it helps bring vision care to communities near and far,” Dr. Dodge says. “Knowing we’re part of the mission to eliminate preventable blindness and vision impairment by providing eye care and eyewear to those in need makes our work even more meaningful.”

We are incredibly grateful to Dr. Dodge and his team for their decade-plus of generosity. It is through the steady support of dedicated professionals like him that we are able to transform lives through the gift of sight.

A Life Helped in Somalia

For two weeks, 28-year-old Ismail Ahmed Adaawe from Mogadishu, Somalia, struggled in silence following a bike accident. He wore dark glasses not for style, but to survive the intense pain of an untreated corneal abrasion. Lacking the means to pay for care, he felt his only option was to wait and hope for the best. “I couldn’t afford the medication,” he explained, “so I just waited.”

No one should have to wait in pain. Ismail finally found the relief he needed through a comprehensive examination and proper treatment—provided at no cost to him, thanks to a project funded in part by Optometry Giving Sight (OGS).

Ismail’s story represents countless others in the Somali community who often suffer in silence. Donations from people like you enabled us to support Aden Adde International University’s Himilo Eye Trust vision center.

The Himilo Eye Trust center exists to ensure that financial limitations never stand between a patient and their vision, providing a place where every individual can be seen, treated, and respected.

Building a Legacy of Care: New Vision Centers in India and Somalia.

Grantees: Mission for Vision and Aden Adde International University.

Each year, donations to Optometry Giving Sight (OGS) enable us to issue grants to fund projects globally that provide immediate eye care to those in need today, and expand optometry so vision care is available for years to come.

Expanding access to eye care in underserved communities requires more than short-term interventions—it requires a permanent, locally rooted presence. Two of Optometry Giving Sight’s recent grants are funding vision centers in India and Somalia, which demonstrate how establishing sustainable vision centers can transform the health of a community for generations.

India: Mission Jyot

In the rural Fatehpur District of Uttar Pradesh, India, Mission for Vision’s “Mission Jyot” vision center project is building a primary eye care hub where none existed before. In this region, preventable blindness often persists simply because the nearest clinic is too far or too expensive for the average family. In partnership with the trusted Shri Sadguru Seva Sangh Trust hospitals, this new vision center is designed to bring comprehensive screenings and treatments directly to a population that has historically been left behind.

The scale of Mission Jyot is ambitious. Over the next three years, the center expects to screen more than 18,000 people through a combination of facility-based care and mobile outreach camps that travel to remote villages. Beyond standard exams, the project will provide over 1,400 pairs of eyeglasses and facilitate nearly 700 sight-restoring cataract surgeries for those requiring advanced treatment. By prioritizing school screening programs and door-to-door awareness efforts, the initiative is catching vision problems early and shifting the local culture toward proactive eye health.

Somalia: The Himilo Eye Trust

In Mogadishu, the Himilo Eye Trust vision center, led by Aden Adde International University, is a newly launched initiative to provide free, comprehensive eye care services. The grant will be used to establish a fully equipped eye examination center offering free exams, affordable glasses, medications, and cataract surgeries in partnership with Charity Vision Somalia.

The center will also serve as a clinical training site for 50 optometry students, addressing the shortage of skilled eye care professionals and strengthening the future workforce. By combining service delivery with education, the project aims to reduce preventable blindness and improve visual health outcomes for underserved communities. The Himilo Eye Trust vision center is designed to become self-sustaining through the affordable sale of glasses and eye drops, with a goal to cover at least 50 percent of operational costs in the first year. The project is locally led, embedded within Somali institutions, and supported by strong partnerships with the Somali Optometry Association and Charity Vision Somalia.

A Lasting Foundation

While these two projects operate in different environments, they share a common DNA: sustainability. Both function as social enterprises, targeting financial self-sufficiency within a few years by leveraging a cross-subsidy model: modest service fees and eyewear sales to paying customers fund care for those in need.

By investing in these permanent foundations, we are helping to build a future where quality eye care is not a one-time gift, but a lasting, local reality that the community owns and sustains. Your donations make a difference now and into the future.