Center for Vision Loss Announces More than $94,000 in Corporate and Foundation Gifts

By Agency Team |
Participants and counselors form the Camp I CAN! summer program

The Center for Vision Loss – the only service agency in Lehigh, Northampton, and Monroe counties that advances independence for people with visual impairments and healthy eyesight – amassed more than $94,000 in corporate and foundation gifts during the second half of its 2019 fiscal year, which ended on June 30.

The gifts will be used for a variety of purposes – including agency operations, specific programs or sets of programs for people with visual impairments, free vision screenings for children, and the Camp I CAN! summer program for children. They are listed below with their respective designations.

  • A $35,000 grant from an anonymous foundation to support agency operations.
  • A $20,000 grant from the R. Dale and Frances M. Hughes Foundation for escorted transport services in Monroe County.
  • A $15,000 grant from the Northeast PA Lions Service Foundation for vision rehabilitation services.
  • A $10,000 grant from the Lions of Pennsylvania Foundation to support the purchase of a transport vehicle for its Lehigh Valley campus.
  • A $5,000 grant from the Dr. Claus Jordan Endowment by the Lehigh Valley Health Network – Pocono Foundation to provide assistive technologies to clients with visual impairments in Monroe County.
  • A $5,000 grant from Sanofi Pasteur for escorted transport services in Monroe County.
  • A $2,000 grant from the Walmart Foundation – awarded through the Walmart store in Allentown, PA – for children’s vision screenings in the Lehigh Valley.
  • A $1,375 grant from the Walmart Foundation – awarded through the Walmart Distribution Center in Tobyhanna, PA – for escorted transport services in Monroe County.
  • A $1,000 grant from the Teenworks group of United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley for the annual Camp I CAN! public service project.

The agency’s escorted transport service provides access to medical care, food supplies, and agency programs. Services for clients that improve quality of life also include life skills classes, socialization events, recreational activities, and support groups. Low vision care centers at the agency’s Lehigh Valley and Monroe campuses provide specialized low vision eye exams and offer assistive technologies and devices.

Free vision screenings for children ages 6 months and up are performed with state-of-the-art handheld devices that use non-invasive lasers to read a child’s visual acuity and can detect several serious conditions. The Camp I CAN! summer program teaches kids ages 7-13 orientation, mobility, socialization, and practical skills through fun activities. Campers also discover that their impairments do not prevent them from serving their communities.