After helping 400,000 children to receive eyesight, EyeCare4Kids founder Joseph Carbone and his wife Jan will pass the torch to new CEO Maggie Cline.
MIDVALE — Joseph and Jan Carbone sacrificed everything 25 years ago to provide eye care for kids in need. As a longtime optician, Joseph Carbone decided to close his for-profit practice and devote all of his time and energy to his nonprofit, EyeCare4Kids.
Throughout his 50 years of experience, he has had many memorable experiences. Carbone said it was his work in private practice that led him to establish a nonprofit providing free and low-cost eye care for children and families in need.
“I did 25 years of for-profit work and did quite well,” he explained. “Now, I have 25 years of nonprofit (work). I have a core belief that everybody should take what they learned from life … and bless the life of somebody else.”
On Monday, EyeCare4Kids held an open house to celebrate leadership transitions and reintroduce the community to the organization, which has been helping children in Utah see better since 2001.
During his 25 years of running a clinic, Joseph Carbone said he repeatedly saw how many children and families could not afford the necessary eye care for reading, learning or interacting with the world around them. He realized he wanted to do more to help them and, with his wife’s help, started the nonprofit.
“When (Joseph) came home and said he wanted to start a nonprofit, I almost laughed at him,” said Jan Carbone. “I knew nothing about being involved in a nonprofit. … We made every mistake.”
On the day of their grand opening, the Carbones and another couple of friends showed up to staff the clinic. Over 100 people came to the grand opening seeking eye care. In that moment, they knew they had something special and would need a lot more help.
For a time, the Carbones attempted to run both the clinic and the nonprofit simultaneously. The time and manpower needed to run both became too much to handle. So, the couple decided that they would have to close one of their clinics. They took a leap of faith and closed the one making money, took a second mortgage on their home and fully invested in EyeCare4Kids.
Today, the nonprofit operates 10 clinics in the United States and six in Africa, with numerous mobile clinics also traveling to other areas. Over 400,000 children have been served through the organization.
“Children don’t know what they don’t know,” Jan Carbone shared. “They don’t know that other people see something different than them. It is so rewarding to put glasses on these little kids and have them realize that there is a world out there that they have never seen.”
As part of their 50th anniversary, the Carbones will move their focus to the EyeCare4Kids’ African clinics.
“Joseph is the kind of person that you love being around because his passion and his vision are infectious,” said EyeCare4Kids treasurer Alan Hague.
Maggie Cline, former executive director at the nonprofit, will now take the helm. Her efforts have helped open new clinics across the nation and increase patient engagement.
The mission of EyeCare4Kids resonates with Cline, who was raised by a single mother.
“We did not have a lot of things. I love this so much because I get to help the people who are living the way I used to live. It’s very personal,” she said. “I know what it is like to not have basic needs (met). … It speaks to the cycle of poverty. If you are not able to learn, you will be stuck. This helps people with vision, which is everything.”
EyeCare4Kids offers the best equipment available at its clinics across the globe, often exceeding what is offered at a typical eye clinic.
“Even if a child doesn’t have $200 for an eye exam or $400 for glasses, they get the same service, exam and glasses,” Joseph Carbone said. “They deserve everything.”
He said 90% of all donations to the nonprofit go directly to children and families. The team strives to keep the focus on the children and allow the administration to take a backseat. Children are identified through school referrals, community events and recommendations. Lions Club International, the world’s largest service club organization, also works closely with the organization to aid its cause.
Throughout the years of service, Joseph Carbone’s outstanding moments include “watching the little miracles.” He believes that it is his mission to help children and families get professional eye care, regardless of their financial situation. With a large selection of glasses, the team believes that each child should feel comfortable and confident in their eyewear.
“I feel I am the one who has been changed the most in 25 years,” he said. “The biggest lesson I’ve learned is the goodness of people. The overwhelming majority of people are good. … The people we work with and help are sincerely and genuinely grateful for what we do for them.”
Looking toward the future, the team of “dreamers” hopes to continue making eye care accessible and affordable for low-income families.
“The sky is the limit and nothing is impossible. If we believe in doing something and want it to happen, we figure out a way,” Cline said. “We need to help each other because that is what life is about.”
For more information or to volunteer, visit the EyeCare4Kids website.
Source: Utah News