ON October 12, St John South Africa came together with Lotus FM at the SABC studios to celebrate World Sight Day.

St John is a non-profit organisation that provides first aid, healthcare and support services in over 40 countries.

“Eye care is very important to us at St John, and we hope with this eye-care celebration that many people will start coming to our eye clinic,”
said Chris Martin, the special projects manager at St John South Africa.

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They have an eye hospital in Baragwanath (Johannesburg) and an eye clinic in KE Masinga Road, Durban. Durban locals come out in numbers to visit the clinic.

Saras Naidoo from Glenwood said she’s very happy that she received an eye test, and that, at 82 years old, her eyesight has become very bad,
and she has cataracts in her right eye.

“I was so excited when I heard that St John will be doing free eye tests. At our elderly age, it is very hard to move around and do things you love because of eye problems,” added Naidoo.

St John supports and partners with many other non-profit organisations, such as the Denis Hurley Centre, whose members were present at the celebrations.

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The organisation runs an award-winning innovation called StreetLit, an NGO that collects second-hand and donated books with the purpose of reselling. The bookshop at St John’s only sells books for homeless people – the proceeds assist homeless people with earning a living and being able to support their families.

According to the Denis Hurley Centre, they currently have 20 street vendors who buy books from them to resell.

A lucky-draw competition, where two people could win an extensive eye test and tinted spectacles, took place at the end of the celebrations.

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