Saint Agnes Medical Center and CalViva Health have donated $40,000 to The Children’s Movement of Fresno to help fund eye exam clinics in communities throughout the Central Valley. 

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The funds will provide children in Central, Firebaugh, Las Deltas, Fowler and Fresno unified school districts with pre-screenings, full eye exams and glasses from the Tzu Chi Mobile Vision Clinic and Eye-Q Vision. The mobile clinic is equipped to make glasses on-the-spot and at no-cost to families.

“It’s amazing to watch these children be able to see once the glasses are made for them,” said Eric Linville, director of community benefit and outreach for Saint Agnes Medical Center. “Now, they are able to learn because they can see for the first time in their lives.”

According to a statement from the medical groups and The Children’s Movement, the partnership is meant to help boost the number of Fresno County children reading at grade level by the third grade. 

“Through this collaboration came the idea to sponsor the mobile vision clinic,” said Gregory Hund, CEO for CalViva Health. “With only 38 percent of our children ready for kindergarten in Fresno County, we have a lot of work to do. One priority became making sure vision care was accessible for our children’s health.”

Saint Agnes and CalViva funding will support the cost of the glasses, personnel for the mobile clinic, medical products and supplies and the internal staff necessary to coordinate the collaborative. 

“We are honored to receive these donations,” said Steven Voon, chief operation officer and executive vice president of Buddhist Tzu Chi Medical Foundation. “We hope the improved eyesight will help advance students’ studies. We are also very grateful for this partnership—one person or organization cannot do it all, but a collective effort of everyone will make a bigger impact on the community.”