For a child who has struggled to see clearly, putting on a new pair of glasses can be a transformative moment.
That moment was repeated throughout a five-day community vision clinic, where 1,158 kindergarten through 12th-grade students and community members from across the Kansas City area received free comprehensive eye exams. Of those, 93 percent needed prescription glasses, which were also provided at no cost. A total of 908 pairs were made on-site, while additional prescriptions will be filled at a lab and delivered to patients.
The clinic was a collaborative effort among Fidelity Security Life Insurance Company (FSL), the OneSight EssilorLuxottica Foundation and Score 1 for Health, a preventive health program within the Center for Population Health and Equity (CPHE) at Kansas City University (KCU). Licensed optometrists and volunteers from the three organizations came together to provide vision care for to participants who may otherwise have limited access to eye exams and prescription eyewear.
For KCU student doctors, volunteering offered an opportunity to step outside the classroom and experience the impact of care firsthand.
“To be able to interact with the kids and help them see so much better than they could before makes it really meaningful to me,” said second-year medical student Sofia Stellar.
The experience was personal for Stellar who remembers struggling with her own vision as a child.
“I remember having headaches and not being able to really see very well when I was a kid,” she said. “You don’t realize that you can’t see that well because you’ve never been able to. Then, when I got my first pair of glasses, I could see the board, I could play sports with my friends. I could do everything. It made such a big difference to me.”
Now, she had the opportunity to help provide that same experience to children in her community.
“To be able to help provide that for the kids, it’s really special,” she said.
The clinic offered a reminder that vision can affect much more than how clearly a child sees. Difficulty reading or participating in the classroom can create barriers to learning and engagement, making access to vision care an important part of supporting a child’s overall well-being.
“There’s something magical about watching a child put on a new pair of glasses, look in the mirror and realize how much clearer the world can be. Those moments are a powerful reminder of why this work matters,” said Catherine Satterwhite, PhD, executive director of the CPHE at KCU. “It’s meaningful for the children we serve and our whole community. We're setting kids up for success in the classroom and thriving kids lead to thriving communities. We’re grateful to FSL and the OneSight EssilorLuxottica Foundation for our continued partnership in making this care available to children across Kansas City.”
For KCU student volunteers, it was a chance to see how something as simple as a pair of glasses can change a child’s everyday experience. For those who received care, the experience may be remembered as the day the world became a little clearer.
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