150 from Sattahip lose out on free eyeglasses at Nov. 10-18 ‘Gift of Sight’ event

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About 150 people in Sattahip won’t be getting the free eyeglasses they’d expected to receive at next week’s One Sight Foundation huge glasses donation event.

At the last planning meeting before the Nov. 10-18 affair at the Eastern National Indoor Sports Arena, Bandit Siritanyong, vice president of co-organizer Thai-Chinese Cultural and Economic Association, said 1,150 people in Sattahip District signed up for free glasses. The association and One Sight Foundation had allocated only 1,000 pairs for the district.

Bandit Siritanyong (center right), vice president of the Thai-Chinese Cultural and Economic Association, and Deputy Mayor Wutisak Rermkitkarn (center left) co-chair a meeting on free eyeglasses for Chonburi residents.Bandit Siritanyong (center right), vice president of the Thai-Chinese Cultural and Economic Association, and Deputy Mayor Wutisak Rermkitkarn (center left) co-chair a meeting on free eyeglasses for Chonburi residents.

Sattahip officials have been told to redraw their list of qualified applicants and prioritize who needs the free glasses most.

The foundation is comprised of more than 50 foreign ophthalmologists who will donate 4,000 pairs of glasses to Chonburi residents at the “Gift of Sight” event. “Gift of Sight” is a collaboration between the Public Health Ministry and One Sight Foundation of the United States, which organized a team of eye doctors from 40 countries to perform checkups and prescribe glasses.

Doctors will offer advice on maintaining good eye health and preventing eye diseases. Those at risk of blindness will be sent to a hospital or nursing center for further care.

Deputy Mayor Wutisak Rermkitkarn said at the Nov. 1 meeting that 800 people from Pattaya will receive glasses and service free.