On Sunday at Naparima Boys’ College, a partnership between the Rapidfire Kidz Foundation and Republic Bank Limited resulted in 51 students from the San Fernando Boys’ and Girls’ Government Primary Schools receiving new pairs of glasses.
This generous gift will now provide the students with clearer vision and a renewed outlook on learning.
President of the Blind Welfare Association of Trinidad and Tobago, Deonarine Ragoo, reminded attendees that blindness is one of the most crippling conditions that can affect any human being.
He is therefore calling on corporate Trinidad and Tobago to assist in mitigating issues associated with blindness and vision problems.
“So we call upon you this afternoon to let us rise to that occasion, to join with the Rapidfire Kidz Foundation, the Trinidad and Tobago Blind Welfare Association, corporate Trinidad and Tobago, like Republic Bank and See-Vu Optical and so many others who come together from time to time to bring relief and support for this worthy cause.”
He is also asking for assistance in covering the cost of vital equipment like Braille displays, which are needed for the full rehabilitation, training, and education of visually impaired persons.
“This piece of equipment, the Braille display, costs about $25,000 each. And many of us cannot afford this piece of equipment. And therefore, I call on Corporate Trinidad and Tobago, the State, we call for support, for subsidies, for assistance in accessing this equipment.”
General Manager of See-Vu Optical, Premnath Sookdeo, taught the students how to properly care for the new glasses.
“When you wear glasses at the end of the day, never dry-wipe your glasses. The reason for that is that during the course of the day, sometimes tiny particles get on that lenses and when you dry wipe, that lens will scratch. You may not see the fine particles, but it will scratch.”
The President of the Rapidfire Kidz Foundation, Kevin Ratiram, congratulated the students on receiving their glasses and also imparted some crucial advice.
“They need to strike a balance, as it were, between screen time and other things, not just reading, things like outdoors activity, spending time with family, even sitting to have a meal with a family, because we always want to ensure that our children are well-rounded children. You don’t want children that can only play video games or scroll on a computer screen or on a smartphone.”