To kick off the new year at our Santa Barbara Vision Care Program (SBVC) clinic in Goleta, SEE had the pleasure of serving two wonderful ladies by the names of Marina and Rosa.
Marina is a 74-four-year-old woman from Guatemala who was experiencing severe headaches because of her vision loss. Due to her thyroid condition, Marina’s eyes were watery every morning, and she began to struggle with day-to-day activities.
“I don’t buy clothes often and feel overwhelmed by the process of shopping because I can’t see the tags,” said Marina.
Concerned about her finances, Marina was unable to afford the care she needed. Fortunately, her social worker referred her SEE’s SBVC clinic, where she received an eye exam completely free of cost. During her visit, she also received a voucher to refill her bifocal prescription lenses at no charge, and was given a pair of free polarized sunglasses after her dilation.
After Marina was helped, Dr. Chang attended to 31-year-old Rosa, a mother of four. Rosa’s last eye exam was four years ago, and she has since needed her prescription glasses to be updated. Hoping to find affordable eyecare, Rosa heard about SEE while visiting the county clinic.
“I was motivated by the fact that this is more accessible financially for us,” said Rosa.
Rosa was also given a voucher for a free pair of glasses, finally getting her prescription updated for the first time in years. After her eye exam, Rosa expressed her gratitude for SEE’s accessible care:
“Especially with the pandemic, I’m grateful for the support given to us at this time,” she said.
SBVC is happy to have started the new year strong by serving our community so individuals like Marina and Rosa could get the care they needed!
