ONESIGHT AND LUXOTTICA WHOLESALE BRING VISION CARE CLINIC TO SUMMER CAMPS
FOR 3,000 FRESH AIR FUND YOUTH IN NEW YORK
OneSight Continues Longstanding Partnership with Not-for-Profit Organization, The Fresh Air FundFISHKILL, NEW YORK, (July 26, 2016) – OneSight, an independent nonprofit leading the global movement to eradicate the vision care crisis, launched their vision care clinic in Fishkill, NY to service children attending The Fresh Air summer camps.
For the 12th consecutive year, OneSight is teaming up with The Fresh Air Fund’s summer camps in Fishkill to bring free, comprehensive eye exams and eyeglasses to the 3,000 children from low-income New York City communities, who attend the summer camp at the Sharpe Reservation. Since the partnership began, OneSight has impacted 30,000 campers. Clinic presenting sponsor, Luxottica Wholesale, will also provide 150 volunteers over the four-week clinic from offices in Manhattan and Port Washington, NY.
“We know that children living in underserved communities are one of the most susceptible groups to undiagnosed vision problems, providing eye exams and glasses to a child in need can fundamentally change their future,” said Dawn Yager, Vision Care Clinic Manager for OneSight. “We’re proud to once again partner with The Fresh Air Fund who shares our vision of impacting children’s lives so they can reach their full potential.”
Across the U.S., 1 in 4 school children have an undiagnosed vision problem significant enough to impact their academic performance and globally, 1.1 billion people need glasses but lack access to vision care. OneSight’s mission is to combat this crisis by providing immediate and long-term solutions through sustainable and charitable vision clinics both globally and nationally. Luxottica employees and doctors travel the globe to staff and volunteer at OneSight clinics.
“We are incredibly proud to support the OneSight clinic in Fishkill this year,” said Fabrizio Uguzzoni, President of Luxottica Wholesale North America. “As a founding sponsor of OneSight, these clinics have become a core part of who we are at Luxottica – we are more focused than ever on raising awareness around the vision crisis and helping to provide access where it’s needed most. This particular clinic will give more than one hundred of our New York employees an opportunity to have an impact close to home. It’s a very meaningful moment for the company.”
From July 2, 2016 through August 13, 2016, OneSight’s vision care clinic will visit all encampments at the Sharpe Reservation in Fishkill. EyeLeen, the mobile vision care unit sponsored by LensCrafters, is equipped with state-of-the-art technology to provide a full diagnostic eye exam and staffed by volunteer optometrists to provide the highest quality care onsite.
“We are grateful for OneSight’s generosity and support for so many years,” said Fatima Shama, Executive Director, The Fresh Air Fund. “The Fresh Air Fund's partnership with OneSight is a vital one in providing our campers with free eye exams and glasses that improve their ability to experience their summer with us, but as well when they return to their communities and schools during the year. Thousands of our campers have benefited from this extraordinary program, and we look forward to many more great summers together.”
Clear vision has the power to unlock a child’s full potential. When vision problems are identified during screenings conducted at schools, 67% of students do not receive the necessary follow-up eye exam or glasses and as result, as many as 90% of students who may need glasses do not have them. This issue is even greater for children from poor urban areas, many of whom are ethnic minorities and experience more than twice the normal rate of vision problems. Through the longstanding partnership with The Fresh Air Fund, OneSight directly serves those most in need of clear vision.
The Fresh Air Fund offers free summer camping programs to children from low-income New York City neighborhoods at the Sharpe Reservation in Fishkill, NY. Every summer, 3,000 New York City children explore outdoor adventures and benefit from educational experiences on close to 2,000 acres of wilderness. Fresh Air Fund runs five camps throughout the summer for a variety of age groups from age eight to fifteen.
In addition to generous presenting sponsor support from Luxottica Wholesale North America, the four weeks of vision care clinics in Fishkill are also made possible with volunteer and funding support from Aetna Foundation, Combined Insurance and Coburn Technologies.
About OneSight
OneSight, a global nonprofit 501(c)(3) sponsored and founded by Luxottica, is dedicated to providing sustainable access to a comprehensive eye exam and quality eyewear to those in need around the world. In 27 years, OneSight has helped 9 million people in 41 countries and 47 states see clearly and leading innovative programs and partnerships to help millions more. For more information, visit www.onesight.org.
About The Fresh Air Fund
The Fresh Air Fund, an independent, not-for-profit agency, has provided free summer experiences to more than 1.8 million New York City children from low-income communities since 1877. Each summer, nearly 4,000 children visit volunteer host families in rural and suburban communities along the East Coast and Southern Canada. 3,000 children attend five Fresh Air camps in the summer on a close to 2,000-acre site in Fishkill, New York. Young people also participate in year-round educational enrichment programs at camp and in New York City. For more information, visit www.freshair.org.
About Luxottica Group S.p.A.
Luxottica is a leader in the design, manufacture and distribution of fashion, luxury and sports eyewear. Its portfolio includes proprietary brands such as Ray-Ban, Oakley, Vogue Eyewear, Persol, Oliver Peoples and Alain Mikli, as well as licensed brands including Giorgio Armani, Burberry, Bulgari, Chanel, Coach, Dolce&Gabbana, Michael Kors, Prada, Ralph Lauren, Tiffany & Co. and Versace. The Group’s global wholesale distribution network covers more than 150 countries and is complemented by an extensive retail network of over 7,200 stores, with LensCrafters and Pearle Vision in North America, OPSM and LensCrafters in Asia-Pacific, GMO in Latin America and Sunglass Hut worldwide. In 2015, Luxottica posted net sales of approximately Euro 9 billion and approximately 79,000 employees. Additional information on the Group is available at www.luxottica.com.