Charity Vision, a Provo NGO dedicated to providing cataract surgeries in developing countries, is combining with local charity Big Heart Little Heart for the Gift of Sight Gala. The event will take place at the Provo City Library on Dec. 9.
One hundred percent of proceeds will go to funding these life-saving surgeries, which average $25 per patient in the countries where they take place.
According to the site restoretheirvision.org, Charity Vision has provided more than 300,000 surgeries to date in more than 25 countries.
Some of those countries include Brazil, Nigeria, Jordan, Indonesia, Syria and Tonga.
Charity Vision’s goal also extends to training doctors in the areas where the NGO conducts their work. To date, Charity Vision has enabled more than 300,000 physicians in developing countries to perform cataract surgeries.
The site emphasizes the affordability of cataract surgeries and other similar operations as a significant reason behind the NGO’s growing success.
“Treatments available for curing blindness are among the most successful and cost-effective of all healthcare interventions,” the website says. “We can have a huge impact on needless blindness for a very low cost. Simply stated we can help more — with less.”
Still, the website says they are eager to expand.
“We can do so much more,” it says. “We just need to increase our ability to supply them with the needed materials.”
A further reason for the affordability of the process is, as the site also states, are the hundreds of doctors who perform the surgery at no charge.
Dr. William Jackson, the NGO’s founder, maintains a blog (drjackson.posterous.com) reporting on the organization’s efforts. Currently, Jackson said, they are located in Rawalpindi and Islamabad, Pakistan, where they are teaming up with local hospitals to provide treatment.
Because of this affordability, every ticket bought will represent an entire surgery; in other words, for every gala attendee, someone in a developing country receives site.
As stated in the press release featured on provogala.org, the event will include live jazz, dancing, refreshments, and a silent auction. Dress is business casual.
Tickets can be purchased from the same site — provogala.org.
