Imagine going throughout your entire adult life and never having your eyes checked.
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That was what it was like for 30-year-old Uganda-born Moses Goire.
Growing up in Uganda, Moses never got the opportunity to have his eyes tested, but that all changed on Thursday when he received his first eye examination at Specsavers Dubbo.
Moses described the eye test as a “new experience” but said all was “going very well”.
“About 90 per cent of the people in my hometown district in Uganada never have the opportunity to have an eye test,” he said.
At eight years of age Moses was sponsored by Dione and Jack Carter, of Nyngan.
The family formed a strong bond with Moses and were able to help him get an education and go to University.
It wasn’t until Moses had graduated from university that he was able to visit his sponsor family in Australia.
He worked with Dione and Jack and the 3CN Church in Nyngan, to form Life Charity Focus Uganda (LCFU).
LCFU is a non-profit organisation that operates in Nyngan and Moses’ home town of Budaka, Uganada.
Mrs Carter said Moses had become very close to the Nyngan community and the sponsor parents that support LCFU.
Specsavers Dubbo became involved with the charity after Mrs Carter came in for an eye test last year and after telling Optical Dispenser Lachlan Cusack about it, the store jumped on board to help Moses and LCFU.
“As soon as I heard about the fantastic work LCFU does in Uganda I knew I wanted our store to get involved,” Mr Cusack said.
Specsavers Dubbo has been collecting second-hand glasses in the store ever since.
After being cleaned and regarded the glasses are passed onto Dione to deliver on her trips to Uganda.
Hundreds of pairs of glasses have since been collected by Specsavers Dubbo to help LCFU.
So it was only fitting that Moses and the Carter family took the two hour trip to Dubbo on Thursday so that he could receive his first ever eye test.
“It was his idea to get the eye test and he wanted to get it done in Dubbo, ” Mrs Carter said.
The Carter family were there to support Moses and everyone was immensely proud.
Mr Cusack took Moses for his pre-test before optometrists Yvonne Gilmour and Claire Gillham did his eye exam.
Mr Cusack said it was amazing that Specsavers Dubbo could help in some way and that the local Dubbo community have been amazing in their support in donating second-hand glasses.
It is hoped that Mr Cusack will join LCFU on a trip to Uganda later this year where he can help dispense glasses.
Read more about LCFU on their Facebook page.