Vision buses bring free eye care and glasses to Boston students who need them
BOSTON - Even without 20/20 vision it was hard to miss the big yellow bus parked outside of the Curley School in Jamaica Plain recently.
20/20 Onsite's buses visit schools in Boston to help students improve their vision with free eye care and glasses.
"Kids who put that first pair of glasses on that they've ever worn have this tremendous feeling. It's a really emotional experience to be able to see for the first time," 20/20 Onsite CEO Sonali Bloom told WBZ-TV.
That's their goal with the mobile bus fleet. Their mission is to break down obstacles to getting access to vision care by bringing the care to where people are. They want it to be a whole experience.
"A real memorable experience in which they've learned something new about their own eyes about their own vision," VP of Clinic Operations, Ivan Quiroz said.
One elementary student who was getting glasses for the first time through 20/20 onsite told us she had a "good and fun" experience and that she would recommend it to other students.
This year, 20/20 Onsite will provide free eye exams and glasses for students in 15 Boston Public Schools that have previously failed an eye screening and may not have access to care. They told us 1-in-4 children need glasses to see the board.
"Parents might have a really hard time taking off from work to take kids to a provider, they might have a hard time finding someone near them to come and see so we bring it to them at school," Bloom explained.
After the students have their eye exam, they check out a big wall of glasses and choose a pair that's provided free by Warby Parker. Since starting the program in 2015, 20/20 Onsite has given out more than 10,000 glasses.
For more information, visit their website.