I'm running the London Marathon in April 2013 for the charity - Vision Aid Overseas, a charity dedicated to fighting poverty by transforming access to eye care.

We really take spectacles for granted here in the UK.  670 million people worldwide are disadvantaged because they simply do not have access to spectacles and this prevents parents from being able to work and provide for their families and children from receiving education.

I trained as an optometrist in New Zealand and work for Johnson & Johnson Vision Care based in Wokingham, near Reading.

In February, I will travel with a team of volunteer eye care professionals to Lusaka, Zambia to train local optical technicians and provide vision services to patients in local villages.

Vision Aid Overseas is a non-governmental organisation (NGO) which utilises the professional skills of optical volunteers to establish Vision Centres and train eye care workers.

Since the charity was founded 27 years ago, it has helped over 1 million people to see in countries such as Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Ghana, Malawi, Sierra Leone, Uganda and Zambia.  Donations from fundraising are vital for the charity to continue its operations overseas. Just £5 pays for an eye test and a pair of glasses.

 For more information see www.visionaidoverseas.org or watch this great video from Fiona Bruce; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnlMZZ6Zsc4

‘I am really excited to travel to Zambia and pass on some of my optical skills and help provide a sustainable solution for the huge number of people whose vision is uncorrected.  As an optometrist I know the impact that helping someone with their vision can have on their life.  Just by providing a patient with a simple pair of glasses is life-changing for them.’

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