Posts tagged with "Formby"

A FORMBY optician has set out to Ghana to help villagers in need of eye care.

Alice Joyce, from Conlons Opticians, will set up a new glazing workshop and visit a number of villages on behalf of charity Eye Aid for Africa in her two week trip.

Conlons has donated two complete sets of glazing equipment and ZEISS has donated 2,000 lenses to be used for glasses for people in the central region of Ghana.

The Optometrist' in the Conlons glossary" href="/glossary/Optometrist">optometrist - along with colleagues from other north west branches - will spend her first week setting up the new glazing workshop.

The team will then spend their second week helping to perform more than 700 eye tests as well as helping to produce and distribute more than 1,500 pairs of glasses to people Near' in the Conlons glossary" href="/glossary/Near">near Kumasi in central Ghana.

They will see a number of patients ranging from young children who have never had an eye test before to adults - such as crane and taxi drivers - who rely on their sight for their livelihoods.

Eye Aid for Africa is a specialist charity set up by Alice and her husband, Patrick.

The charity works to make a difference to eye care in some of the poorer areas of Ghana.

For the past 10 years, with the voluntary support of British medicial and eye care professionals, the couple have performed numerous cotaract operations and dispensed thousands of secondhand spectacles in the south of Ghana Near' in the Conlons glossary" href="/glossary/Near">near the capital city, Accra.

Before setting out on the trip, Alice said: "We are delighted to have the support of Zeiss this year with their most generous donation of lenses.

"In Africa, access to optical services, as well as cost, prohibits many from being able to see clearly, if at all.

"The team and I are looking forward to being able to help people on this trip."

FORMBY-BASED Conlons Opticians has teamed up with primary schools to help teach youngsters how to look after their eyes.

The scheme involves optical advisers visiting primary schools to talk to children about how eye works, both in humans and animals and how important it is to look after them. They get quizzed on all things to do with eyes, as well as entering a colouring competition to win some designer sunglasses.

Formby branch manager Nicole Bentham commented: "Young children are taught many things at school, from internet safety to how to brush their teeth, but many don't know how important it is to look after their eyes and to have regular eye tests.

"If a child has trouble with their eyesight and it is not picked up quickly, it can have a real effect on their progress at school."

The children from Year 3 at Formby's St Jerome's Catholic Primary School entered their drawings and Ciaran Lunch, 7, was a winner. He received a pair of designer sunglasses.