Fundraising

HOW DOES MY MONEY HELP?

By raising funds through Coastrek, you will be:

RESTORING someone's dignity and independence by giving them the gift of sight

PROVIDING new opportunities for the families and loved ones that care for them

EMPOWERING communities by returning active and able members back to society

Joy, 4yrs, sees her reflection in the mirror for the first time after her sight was restored at Sabatia Eye Hospital in Kenya

Why we need YOUR help:

There are an estimated 39 million people around the world who are blind, most of whom live in developing countries where malnutrition, inadequate health services and poor sanitation lead to a high incidence of eye disease.

4 out of 5 of these people who are blind do not need to be, it is preventable.

Your fundraising efforts through Coastrek will enable The Fred Hollows Foundation to continue their sight-restoring work across the world to change lives.

Childhood blindness needs to be treated early. Tragically, if not detected before the age of seven, it can be irreversible.

How YOUR support will change lives:

The aim of The Fred Hollows foundation is to build capacity at all levels, from village health centres to regional hospitals and national ophthalmological networks.

Your fundraising efforts will go towards training local doctors and health workers, building and upgrading facilities, and providing equipment in order to achieve long-term sustainable eye health care.

Like Fred, they believe in working through partnerships with individuals, communities and governments and speaking out when they see a need.

One of their key roles is advocacy in support of their vision of a world where no one is needlessly blind.

The Fred Hollows Foundation has been a driving force in the development and implementation of blindness prevention programs in some of the poorest and most isolated regions of the world.

Today, they operate programs in over 19 countries throughout Africa, South Asia and South East Asia, and work extensively with remote Indigenous communities in Australia.

The POVERTY link

Studies show the link between blindness and poverty, as people are often unable to work and look after themselves, and family members need to miss school or work to care for them, reducing income and opportunities further.

Alleviating blindness is an effective way of alleviating poverty in the developing world.