Help more people like Kipar - before it's too late
When we first met Kipar, we were stunned at how dusty this four-year-old boy was. Kipar was dusty because he was born with cataracts in both eyes that made him almost completely blind. There was no way he could trek the 10km in order to wash himself at the nearest source of water. The fact that Kipar was still alive is a credit to his family’s loving care. Blindness can be a death sentence for a child living in a developing country. Being born with cataracts often results in a life cut tragically short. Kipar’s father is enormously proud of his family, and loves his son deeply. He knew something was wrong with Kipar’s eyesight, but had no idea that blindness could be treated. Luckily for Kipar, word spread that The Fred Hollows Foundation could help. So he and his father set off, walking 25km in sweltering 35 degree heat to the nearest clinic. The transformation in Kipar after the operation was amazing. When he finally arrived home, he saw his family waiting in the distance. He ran to his mother, and threw his arms around her, both of them broke out into huge smiles. His joy, and theirs, was infectious. All the work and commitment to train doctors and nurses, screen and treat patients – it’s was all worth it in that moment. Not only has Kipar had his sight restored, he has a future ahead of him. He will no longer have to spend his days alone. He will be able to go to school, and learn to read and write.
You can help to restore sight to more people like Kipar. Will you make a donation of just $25 today?
Kipar now has a bright future ahead of him, and his father has hope for his son. “I am very, very grateful. I don’t know how I can pay people who have helped us back. People from nowhere have come and given us a lot of assistance and they are a part of me and my family now,” Kipar's father said.
Hundreds of thousands of people in Kenya are blind or suffering from cataract, and when those people are children, the situation becomes dire.
More than 328,000 people in Kenya are blind, with another 750,000 being visually impaired – yet 9 out of 10 of these people don’t need to be.
If left untreated for long, diseases like cataract and trachoma can cause permanent blindness. But with your donation, you can help us get to people before it’s too late.
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Clementine was just one of those people facing this scenario: she was desperate to help her son, but the village where they live is hours from the nearest hospital. Travelling is really not an option for people in her situation.
Without outreach programs like the ones run by The Fred Hollows Foundation, finding help would have been very difficult. But a community health worker visited the area where Eric lives, and contacted Dr Ciku Mathenge, a leading eye surgeon who has restored sight to thousands of people
Kipar’s father shared his hopes for his son’s future: “Education is the key to life now. This is the way I see it … now that Kipar can see better, I will make sure that when he is of age, he will go to school.”
Dr Kibata was the paediatric ophthalmologist who operated on Kipar. "To be blind in a place like this really means death," says Dr Kibata. "Without an operation, Kipar would be completely blind in a couple of years – probably dead by then. Whereas with a cataract operation and maybe some glasses, who knows where this child will be?”
Please donate today to help us give the gift of sight to people who would otherwise lose all hope to avoidable blindness.
Let’s finish the job Fred started – for a world where no one is needlessly blind.