Around 50% of blindness in the world is caused by cataracts. This can be overcome with a relatively simple operation taking approximately 20 minutes and costing as little as $25.
During all my runs, whether it is in my hometown Sydney, across Australia or somewhere around the globe, I see amazing landscapes and scenery. Seeing is something that makes my running enjoyable. Too often we take seeing for granted, and we forget that millions of poor people lose their sight simply because they don’t have access to proper eye health care, lack of proper nutrition or suffer other unnecessary illnesses.
80% of blind people don’t have to be, and as little as A$25 can help a needlessly blind person to see again.
Why The Fred Hollows Foundation?
The Foundation’s vision of a world where no one is needlessly blind and where Indigenous Australians enjoy the same health as all Australians, is reason enough to raise money. The connection and decision to run for Fred was made when I was watching a documentary on TV about a blind Japanese runner conquering and finishing – against all odds – the famous Marathon des Sables in 2006.
That was when I decided to dedicate my efforts to raise money for the The Fred Hollows Foundation and help people around the world to regain their eyesight.
In 2015 alone, The Foundation supported training of 64,613 people including 232 eye surgeons, 35,185 community eye health workers, performed 890,066 sight operations including 137,216 cataract operations, treated 8.2 million people with antibiotics to combat trachoma, screened 3.4 million additional people’s eyes and built or upgraded 110 eye health facilities. The late Professor Fred Hollows worked tirelessly to tackle the crippling health conditions and inequities experienced by Indigenous Australians. The Foundation continued his work, supporting eye care and sustainable health systems in many of the most remote Aboriginal communities, in partnership with local Indigenous organisations. The Foundation also continued their efforts to reduce the gap in life expectancy between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians.
Run 4 Vision 