Return to flip book view

Rosie’s KidSight Story Brought to you by Tennessee Lions Charities, Inc., a 501c3 organization. Tennessee Lions Charities has made pediatric vision care its primary mission. We launched our KidSight Outreach vision screening program in 1997. Since that time more than 675,000 children have received free vision screenings and follow-up attention. More than 40,000 children have been referred for treatment since our program launched. Vision problems affect 5-10% of preschool and 25% of school-age children in the US. Undetected and untreated vision problems can prevent the development of the brain's binocular function, resulting in Amblyopia or "lazy eye." Amblyopia is the leading cause of monocular blindness and a leading cause of vision impairment. Our KidSight Outreach program focuses on the early detection of Amblyopia which must be identified and treated as early as possible to prevent low vision and/or blindness. Tennessee Lions Charities’ staff work with the parents of children referred for possible vision problems. These follow-up efforts and our focus on preschool children set our KidSight Outreach program apart from other vision screening programs. Our program works to ensure that every child receives the treatment needed.

Rosie’s KidSight Story is a work of fiction. Names, characters, and incidents are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental. Copyright © 2024 Arthur Wilhoite and Tennessee Lions Charities, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or in any means – by electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise – without prior written permission of Arthur Wilhoite and Tennessee Lions Charities.

We are so grateful to the donors who supported this project. Cheatham County Lions Club Arthur Wilhoite We would also like to extend a special thank you to Plusoptix Inc. for allowing us to recreate their vision screening device. The Plusoptix binocular vision screeners have been used to provide preventative eye screenings for hundreds of thousands of children in Tennessee. Imagine the impact they have on the world! Thank you again, Plusoptix Inc.!

Have you met Rosie? She’s a lot like you.

Rosie likes to run and play with her older brother, but sometimes she can’t see the ball. Rosie likes to jam with her dad, but sometimes Rosie knocks things over when she doesn’t pay attention.

Rosie likes to help her mom in the garden, but sometimes, the plants and dirt and holes all blend together for Rosie. Rosie’s favorite thing to do is sing! Rosie always sang in her old school’s plays. She knew her parents were always there, but she never saw them from the stage.

Last summer, Rosie and her family moved to a new town. Before they could start their new schools, Rosie and her brother had to go to their new doctor for checkups. The doctor and nurses listened to their hearts and lungs, checked their weights and heights, and gave both Rosie and her brother a shot. The only thing that Rosie missed was checking her eyes. “Do you think she could read the eye chart?” one of the nurses asked Rosie’s mom. “We are still working on the alphabet,” Rosie’s mom said. “I know the ABC song!” Rosie said excitedly, but her brother covered her mouth before she started to sing. “We can wait until next time for Rosie,” the nurse said. Rosie watched her brother cover one of his eyes and read the letters the nurse pointed to. She tried to remember what letters he said. Next time, Rosie wanted to read the chart like her brother.

A few weeks later, Rosie’s mom walked her to her new preschool. Rosie’s first day at her new preschool was probably a lot like your first day at a new preschool. First, Rosie met her teacher, Miss Grady. Then she made a new friend! But Rosie’s favorite part was when she and her classmates sang a few songs!

After they finished singing, Miss Grady taught the class her alphabet game. It made Rosie nervous because she could not always recognize the letters. “Miss Grady! Can I go to the bathroom?” Rosie asked when it got close to her turn. This is what Rosie saw when she looked at the flashcard. Can you tell why she was nervous?

Instead of going to the bathroom, Rosie hid in the hallway and listened to her classmates play Miss Grady’s game. “Tina, can you tell me what this letter is?” Miss Grady asked. “Uh… is it N?” “Oh, you are so close. It does look like the letter N if we flipped it. Let me give you a hint… It kind of sounds like a buzz….zzzz…zzzz…” “Z!” Tina shouted. “That’s right! You guys did so great! I like to play this game every day because we are going to start using these letters to make words!”

“Oh,” Miss Grady said. “Well, it is hard to mess up my games. As long as we all try, everyone can play and learn. Okay?” “Okay,” Rosie said. “Good! Now, let’s go outside with the other kids!” Rosie felt better, and playing with her new friends helped her forget about the alphabet game and how it had made her nervous.

At the end of the day, Miss Grady passed out folders for Rosie and her classmates to take home. Miss Grady went over everything, but Rosie was so excited to tell her mom and dad about all the fun she had and her new friends that she did not pay much attention until Miss Grady said something that scared Rosie. “Friends, do not forget, the Lions will be here on Friday to test your eyes! Make sure your parents bring these forms back!” “Did she say lions were coming?” Rosie asked. “Yeah!” Silas said. Rosie closed her eyes and imagined a lion dressed like a doctor. Rosie was quiet when she walked home with her mom. Her mom asked questions, but Rosie did not say much about her day. Her parents tried again at dinner, but all Rosie could think about was a lion breathing in her face as he checked her eyes.

When Friday came, Rosie walked with her classmates to the school’s gym to meet the Lions and get her eyes checked. Miss Grady opened the gym door, and Rosie covered her eyes before walking inside. Inside the gym, Rosie heard Silas shout and felt him run away from the line. Rosie uncovered her eyes. There weren’t lions in the gym, just four people in bright yellow vests. Rosie watched Silas run to the group and hug one of them. “Silas, let’s wait our turn,” Miss Grady said.

“Miss Grady,” Rosie said. “Where are the lions?” “Right there, “ Miss Grady said to Rosie and pointed to the people in the yellow vests. “Class these are members of the Lions Club. They’re going to check your eyes as part of their KidSight program.”

Rosie watched a few classmates go and sit with people from Lions Club, but she could not hear what they talked about. She tried to picture all the letters she could remember so she could say them like her brother did before school started. Finally, her turn came and Rosie walked to the front of the gym and sat in the chair across from Silas's grandfather. “What’s your name?” Silas’s grandpa asked her. “Rosie.” “Alright Rosie…”

“I know the alphabet song, but I can’t recognize all the letters yet,” Rosie said quickly, interrupting Silas’s grandpa. “Well, that’s okay,” Silas’s grandpa said. “All you have to do is just look here at the nose on this smiling face. Think you can do that for me?” “I can do that!” Rosie said. Rosie kept her eyes open wide and looked at the nose. The machine whistled and chirped a little as it scanned her eyes.

In a few seconds, it was over. Rosie got a sticker and walked back to stand with her class. The next week, Miss Grady gave Rosie’s mom the screening results. It turned out that Rosie needed to see a special doctor who helped kids with eye problems. The doctor explained that Rosie had a disease called Amblyopia. A vision problem that can only be corrected if it is caught very early. Amblyopia makes one of Rosie’s eyes work harder to see. Rosie needed glasses, but she also had to wear a patch for a few hours every day. Rosie loved the eye patch! It took some time, but she also learned to like her glasses.

With her glasses, Rosie can still run and play, and now she can catch the ball when her brother throws it! Rosie can still jam with her dad in her glasses, but now she is learning to play guitar too! Rosie still gardens with her mom, but now she only falls if she gets dirt on her glasses. Rosie can do all the things that she did before she knew she needed glasses. She just does them better! She is less afraid to try new things too!

A few months later, Miss Grady asked Rosie to sing a song in her preschool’s winter play. When Rosie started to sing, she discovered her favorite thing about having glasses.

Rosie could see her family and new friends in the audience! Thanks to the Lions Club’s KidSight program, Rosie can see so much more of the world, especially the things that matter most to her.

Rosie’s KidSight story is just one of thousands. Lots of other kids have let the Lions Club check their eyes. When your town’s Lions Club comes to your school, church, or daycare to host a KidSight vision screening don’t be nervous or scared. You saw how easy it was for Rosie and how important it can be for you as you keep growing. It is a big world. The Lions Club wants to make sure you don’t miss any of it.

www.TennesseeLionsCharities.org