Of the 32.4 million people who are blind worldwide, 3 out of 5 are women and girls. Yet statistically they’re less likely to find treatment. Meaning for these women and girls, their options in life are narrowed as they miss out on education and work.
“Can I go to school today?”
In the remote region of Transmara in Kenya, one of these girls was three-year old Faith. Abandoned by her parents because she was born blind, Faith was taken in by her remarkable Aunt Helen – a woman who never stopped believing in a better life for this clever and curious little girl.
Every day Faith would wake up and ask her Aunt Helen: “Can I go to school today?” For Helen, it was heartbreaking to think that a child who wanted to learn so much may never have that chance.
Instead of sending her to school, Helen would hoist Faith on her back, carrying her as she worked in the fields. It’s backbreaking to carry a child in this way, but with no one else to look after Faith, there was no choice.
Despite having five other children of her own to look after, Helen took her responsibility for Faith in her stride. Her family live a modest life in a small hut and they only have the basic necessities.
None of her other children have shoes, but when Faith couldn’t see, Helen made sure Faith had two pairs of shoes: as a blind little girl with bare feet could easily hurt herself.
One hour to give her sight!
People in Helen’s village said Faith would never see - she was born blind and would stay that way. But Helen knew the kind of life that lay ahead for Faith if she remained blind forever. When she heard about an eye clinic through an outreach program, Helen walked 25 kilometers with Faith on her back. She didn’t care – she would do anything for her little girl.
“I would sell all my cows, everything we have, to give her sight...” - Helen, Faith's aunt...
Doctors at the eye clinic told Helen that Faith’s sight could be saved with an operation at Sabatia Eye Hospital. It was a 5 hour drive and too far away for Helen to get to, but The Fred Hollow Foundation organised for Helen and Faith to get to that hospital.
Once there Dr Ollando, an ophthalmologist trained by The Fred Hollows Foundation, performed the surgery on Faith in under an hour while Helen anxiously paced the halls.
Her dream came true!
“If I get a pen, I'll go to school...” - Three year old Faith
The next morning, when the eye patches came off, it was clear that Faith could see - and the first thing she wanted was a pen.
Helen is overjoyed to see Faith’s transformation. She’s now an independent little girl who is constantly playing with the other children in the village. She once used to hide her face in the folds of her aunt’s skirt, but now she scampers around with her friends, only needing to come to her aunt when she’s hungry.
When a girl can see, she can learn
Education for girls and women leads to possibility. But, in places like remote Kenya, education for blind girls and women isn’t feasible. Even at the young age of three, Faith understood this, but now with her sight saved, her life can take shape in so many different ways.
Sixty per cent of the world’s blind are women and girls. Like Faith, there are so many girls around the world with no access to education if they can’t see, so we need your help.
DONATE TODAY.
A gift of just $25 dollars will support women in developing countries facing discrimination due to their gender and avoidable blindness.
$25 will restore sight to one person, allowing them the opportunity to live an empowered and normal life.
Your support will help someone like Faith, with a life changing transformation.
See how we opened the world up for Faith - http://www.hollows.org/faith#Video