Thousands of children struggle with poor vision, making things like learning in school and playing sports difficult. Eva Viele, a 9-year-old from Woolridge Elementary, chose to donate to her new favorite charity, Conexus, this holiday season.

“For the holidays, each member of my family was going to donate to a charity that meant something to them,” Eva said. “I figured this is a very great charity, and a little money can go a long way.”

Eva, who got her glasses in 1st grade, was initially shocked when she found out that so many other kids her age had poor vision.

Click HERE for the entire story.

Wednesday is a day that Conexus optician Fatim looks forward to each week. It’s a day known as ‘Glasses Distribution Day.’

For the past couple of weeks, children at area schools have been screened for eye problems, had their eyes tested and then picked out new glasses — some for the first time.

“So, this is basically everything that we do, this is what it falls down too,” Fatim said. “This is the exciting part.”

8News recently visited Ettrick Elementary school and got to see students getting their brand new glasses, many of them elated to see clearly for the first time.

“The second that they put the glasses on, it is like the whole world opens up to them,” Ashley Hall, Executive Director of Communities in Schools for Chesterfield County, explained.

Click HERE for the entire story.

Conexus, a local non-profit organization that provides free glasses and eye exams to children in need, has focused on giving the gift of sight this holiday season.
Children helped through Conexus’s Gift of Light program got the chance to put their new frames to the test on Tuesday while checking out the Tacky Light tour in Glen Allen.
​
8News joined in on the fun to see the children’s priceless reactions when they got a chance to look at the lights, some for the first time with 20-20 vision and others for the very first time.

​“They struggle in the classroom because they can’t see, but they struggle in life because they can’t see,” Jeff Baldwin, who is with Conexus, said. “So, to provide them with a brand new pair of glasses with a prescription just for them, is a beautiful thing.”

Click HERE for the entire story.

“It is very important for students to learn, to learn how to read, to learn how to concentrate. You can’t learn to read if you can’t see,” Sandra Griffin, a staff nurse with Richmond Public Schools, said. “You can’t learn to read if your eyes are tired and you have a headache.”
G.H. Reid Elementary school is one of the many schools that Conexus is working with this year.
“We have 710 students at this school, and so we screened 500 this year and 30% of those students have to be seen by a physician for their vision,” Griffin explained. “That is a significant number of kids.”

When the children step into Conexus’ mobile clinic, it’s just like stepping foot into an eye doctor’s office with all the same state-of-the-art equipment. While inside, the students are tested for a variety of concerns.

Click HERE for the entire story.

“About one-third of the kids sitting in a classroom are unable to see well, and 80% of what a child learns in a classroom is through their eyes,” Tim Gresham, CEO, explained. “So, if a child is sitting in the classroom, not seeing as well as they should then they are not going to be as successful as they could be.”
​
Studies have shown that children who might not be able to see clearly could act out in class, disrupt others or become disengaged from the learning process.

​Conexus works hand-in-hand with local schools to pre-screen student’s vision, and those that fail will then go through a routine eye exam, just like they were sitting in an optometrist’s office.  But in this case, the office comes to the school.

Click HERE for the entire story.

The ‘Gift of Light’ campaign, launched in 2013, supports Conexus programs such as VisioCheck, its screening program, as well as its Mobile Vision Clinic program, a free program that provides in-school non-dilated eye exams and prescription glasses to children. The Mobile Vision Clinic exams are performed by state licensed optometrists and, if prescribed, students are able to choose their very own pair of glasses and a Conexus optician will return a few weeks later to distribute the glasses.

“Right here in our backyard, we know that poor vision is a barrier to a child’s success,” said Tim Gresham, Conexus CEO. “We also know that the vast majority of children in our region did not visit an eye care professional before starting the school year, so our vision screenings and Mobile Vision Clinic programs are a critical component to that child’s chance at success because studies indicate that about 80% of what a child learns in a normal classroom setting is through their vision.”

“Over the years, the ‘Gift of Light’ campaign has had numerous variations, but a partnership with Virginia Eye Institute, VEI, has always been the cornerstone,” explained Jeff Baldwin, Conexus Communications Director. “This holiday season, we are proud to continue that relationship with VEI and we are extremely excited to add our friends at James Limousine and WRIC-TV 8 to the mix.”
​
“When so many of us Richmonders think of the holiday season, one of the first things that comes to mind is the Tacky Lights,” added Gresham. “Because of Conexus, thousands of children will see these lights clearly for the first time this year!”

Read more HERE, or donate to the campaign HERE.

Conexus for Children's Vision has been screening kids for vision problems and providing free glasses, and they’re doing it in some of the biggest pockets of poverty in the community.
When 6-year-old Tay-shun Williams put his new glasses on the first time, his hand flew to his mouth, giggled, and smiled ear-to-ear.

This past school year, Conexus screened 54,408 children across the Commonwealth, referring 16,959 for additional eye exams; a 31.2% rate. The national average is 25%.

You can read the entire NBC 12 story HERE.