People like David need your help | The Fred Hollows Foundation AU

Nobody should lose their future to blindness

David’s parents first noticed his eye problems before David turned 5 but did not have the money to do anything to help him. Like most Kenyans, they live in a remote area and the cost of eye surgery was beyond their reach.

David’s younger brother, Bramwell, became his brother’s guide and protector to keep him safe. But this meant that neither boy could go to school.

“I don’t want Bramwell to spend all of his life looking after his brother,” their father Samuel says.

While the other children tried to include David in games, he was cautious about getting hurt. It was hard enough to watch David isolated from his peers. But his parents also worried about Bramwell, who was losing out on his chance of an education.

As his vision worsened, David was at risk of becoming permanently blind.

Luckily for David, a community health worker trained by The Fred Hollows Foundation found David and was able to organise help. They arranged transport to the hospital where David could get surgery. Thanks to the kindness of supporters like you, David got the life-changing help he needed.

David’s parents were without hope

When David’s parents noticed his sight was failing, they feared for his future.

“Because of our situation, I want David to get a good job so he can leave the situation and put him to another level. That’s a wish for every parent,” his father says.

If a child does not have surgery to remove their cataract early enough, their brain does not learn to read signals from the eye – and they can be blind for life. David’s family live in extreme poverty, and surgery was out of reach.

Thanks to people like you, David now has hope for a better future.

Help transform the lives of more families like David’s

The people of Kenya need your help

Four out of five people in Kenya who are blind don’t need to be. Difficulty accessing health services and low numbers of health workers means they can’t get help. With your support, we can address these significant barriers in the way of quality eye health care for all.

Time is running out

If a child’s cataract is not treated in time, their brain can’t learn to recognise signals from the eye, and they can stay blind for life. You can help us get to people sooner with and restore their hope for a better future.

Children like David are at risk

Blindness limits a child’s access to education and ability to learn. Up to 75% of children’s learning and development is acquired through vision. Childhood blindness can affect social and emotional development and is associated with delays in crawling and walking. Your kindness can help us restore a future for these children.

Remoteness in Kenya is a barrier to accessing eye health

Of the ophthalmologists working across Kenya, half are based in the capital Nairobi, which means that 92% of people, about 40 million people, are cared for by fewer than 50 eye doctors. But you can help us reach them.

Bramwell and David are still bound by their love for each other, and blindness no longer holds them back.

After David’s surgery, as the patches were removed, and the doctor shone a torch in his eyes, David smiled and reached out to the light.

His father, Samuel, was overjoyed to see his child’s sight restored thanks to supporters like you.

A future transformed

The surgery opened a new world of possibilities to David, and he was enrolled in school. David has become an unstoppable force, is attentive in class and a rising star in the field. The eye surgery has brought out his gift as an agile footballer.

“You remember his younger brother Bramwell used to hold David’s hands to guide him; he no longer does that,” Samuel told us.

Bramwell is still by his brother’s side, but he is no longer tasked with caring for him. He can now go to school and experience life like any other child.

Before the surgery, it seemed as if the two brothers were heading for a lifetime of hardship. Now they have hope of a future filled with more opportunities.

Restore sight to people like David

Help carry on Fred’s vision

Fred Hollows worked tirelessly to end avoidable blindness and has left a legacy that The Foundation now strives to honour. He once said, "caring about other people is what being a human is all about."

It’s caring people like you who have kept Fred’s vision alive and allow us to carry on our sight-restoring work. But there is much more work to be done. Every year about 14,500 new cases of cataract are discovered in Kenya. 

With your support today, we can improve the lives of thousands of people, securing their future and giving them something wonderful to look forward to - the gift of sight.

In Kenya we are working to:

Increase surgical rates and improve quality of eye health services focussing on cataract, trachoma, uncorrected refractive error and childhood blindness
Strengthen community engagement and capacity to increase demand and uptake of high-quality health services, with a special focus on women
Support and strengthen health systems at national and county level to effectively plan, resource and monitor eye health services
Develop strategic and effective partnerships for sustained eye health outcomes

There are 328,000 people waiting for cataract surgery in Kenya. And just like Fred, we won't stop until we reach them. Thank you for believing that everyone has access to quality eye care, no matter where they live.