Today we want to tell you the story of Jay, a 60-year-old man living in Lalitpur, Nepal with his wife and children. Jay and his family are poor, and they live in a small cottage. He does some farming and he owns a small shop.
Over time, Jay’s vision started to fade. He and his family didn’t know what to do because they didn’t think his condition could be treated. Jay’s family wanted to help him, but they couldn’t afford the treatment. What’s more, the nearest hospital was 12 km away, and he had no vehicle to get there.
“I was unable to do my daily activities. I couldn’t even recognize my friends and family anymore.”
Because Jay was the breadwinner of the family, losing his sight not only made it impossible for him to do the work he needed to do, it also affected the household income.
With his vision deteriorating, and his income with it, he didn’t know what to do. What would happen if he couldn’t provide for his family?
One day, a community health worker trained by Operation Eyesight was doing a door-to-door survey and came to Jay’s cottage. The health worker screened the family for their eye health, and diagnosed Jay’s condition on the spot. He had cataract in both eyes! When the health worker told Jay that his condition was treatable, he could barely believe it.
“Finding out that I could be cured was awful! I knew my family couldn’t afford treatment. We didn’t have the money to pay.”
But thanks to the incredible generosity of people like you, Jay was treated at Operation Eyesight’s partner, the Nepal Eye Hospital, free of cost to him and his family!
Now, Jay can see again… and with his vision restored, he’s become independent and able to do his daily work. He’s even started a small teashop!
“Without the support of the health worker, we wouldn’t have known that I could be treated. We used to think that my vision loss was because I was getting on in age, and I didn’t think I would ever see again.”
Jay is so grateful for the help he received. Now he knows he can support his family financially and emotionally.
“I am feeling better now that I can see things clearly. It feels like I’ve been born again!”
Generous donors like YOU made this possible. Your support helped turn Jay’s life around. And Jay can’t say thank you enough.
“I’m very thankful to the community health worker and the eye hospital for everything they did for me throughout my treatment, and I want to thank the donors who made it possible for me to be treated!”
Your support means the world to people like Jay, but there are thousands of others like him who still need your help. Please consider donating to our cataract surgery program to give more people the Gift of Sight and hope for a brighter future!