MINNEAPOLIS—Pearle Vision and the global vision care non-profit OneSight have come together to launch a new program, ABSee, powered by Pearle Vision and OneSight, according to an announcement this week coinciding with World Sight Day. ABSee will provide no-cost access to eyecare and corrective eyewear to children in need in neighborhoods across North America where Pearle Vision EyeCare Centers are located, the announcement noted. On World Sight Day, volunteers from Pearle Vision and OneSight planned to work together to provide eye exams and glasses to hundreds of students at Earle Brown Elementary School in Brooklyn Center, Minn., the first of 10 planned vision care clinics, according to the announcement.

World Sight Day, coordinated by The International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness, is held annually on the second Thursday in October to focus global attention on blindness and vision impairment.

  
 

 Students and volunteers take part in last week’s eyecare clinic in Las Vegas.
Over the next 12 months, ABSee will bring vision care clinics to cities from Atlanta to Seattle and from Toronto to Puerto Rico, according to the announcement. At these clinics, volunteers will conduct vision tests and optometrists will perform eye exams on board a state-of-the-art mobile vision unit.

“Pearle Vision has been a long-time supporter of OneSight, and we are thrilled to bring our relationship to the next level with ABSee,” Alex Wilkes, general manager of Pearle Vision, said in the announcement. “We know that getting a pair of glasses can be life-changing for a child with a vision problem. With ABSee, we are underscoring our longstanding commitment to caring about the people behind the eyes, ensuring that every child, especially those with financial need, has access to quality eyecare and corrective eyewear.”

“OneSight is proud to partner with Pearle Vision to bring clear sight to students in need across our local communities,” K-T Overbey, OneSight’s president and executive director, said. “We believe everyone deserves access to clear sight and by working together, we can help students see and learn to their potential during this school year and beyond.”

One in four school-age children in the U.S. has an undiagnosed vision care problem, according to the American Optometric Association. Because 80 percent of learning is visual for children, it can become a challenge for students to achieve their full potential in school and in life.