At a press conference held on Thursday, July 20, Tampa Bay Buccaneers Chief Operating Officer Eric Land was proud to announce the donation of more than $40,000 in vision screening equipment to the Hillsborough and Pinellas County school systems on behalf of the Glazer Family Foundation.
Buccaneers Owner and President Malcolm Glazer benefited from vision services as a student. It should come as no surprise, then, that the Glazer Family Foundation wants to ensure that local schoolchildren receive similar opportunities to have vision problems identified.
The Glazer Family Foundation vision program, reinstituted this year after a short hiatus, will support vision testing programs in the school districts of two counties within the Greater Tampa Bay area each year. Beginning with Hillsborough and Pinellas Counties this year, the foundation's vision program will provide screening equipment to two new school districts each year until every district in the Tampa Bay area receives the needed support to ensure that children can learn in an environment where vision problems are not an obstacle.
"This project is very close to the heart of the Glazers," said Land. "We're thrilled to be part of being able to help children find a way to receive corrective lenses and go on to become great students."
Through the renewed program, each Hillsborough and Pinellas County school will receive the necessary supply of three different items that aid in vision screening among students. The items being donated include the Titmus i300, the SureSight Vision Screener and the Good-Lite Model A eye cabinet.
The Titmus i300 measures vision with unprecedented ease, speed and accuracy. The SureSight Vision Screener is a portable, lightweight machine that offers the first objective, accurate vision test that ensures reliable, early detection of refractive error, the primary vision disorder in children. The Good-Lite Model A translucent portable eye cabinet allows tests to be done in areas where the lighting conditions are not ideal and will allow screeners to set up and test more efficiently.
Last year in Hillsborough County schools, about 48,000 students from kindergarten through high school received vision screenings. Sandra Gallogly, supervisor of school health services of Hillsborough County, expressed her gratitude for the equipment which will allow such copious screenings to be conducted more efficiently.
"Hillsborough County schools wants to say a big thank you to the Glazer Family Foundation for the SureSight vision training systems," said Gallogly. "Thank you very much for being concerned about the health of the children in Hillsborough County."
Marlyn Dennison, director of student support services of Pinellas County, was also on hand to say a few words on behalf of the students at 140 schools who will benefit from the vision equipment.
"Our students will appreciate this most of all because they're the ones who will benefit from this," said Dennison. "If a student can't see, they can't learn and that is very important to us."
The Glazer Family Foundation is dedicated to assisting charitable and educational causes in the West Central Florida region. The foundation works with established not-for-profit organizations that work with youth and families to help identify and create programs that support positive social and economic development within our communities.
