Fifty-six percent of Guatemala’s 13 million citizens live below the poverty line and thousands of them, including many children, go blind every year. Seva’s Guatemalan partner, Visualiza, is the only institution in the country that screens children 5-15 for cataracts and other vision problems. Through the “Windows of Light” program, Visualiza screens over 30,000 children each year, most of whom would never otherwise be checked. Vivian was one of those children. Her family is desperately poor, her mother Consuelo having to support herself and four children on her own. Things were only made worse when Vivian was hit by a car and forced to spend three months in the hospital. Vivian nearly died, and even once she’d recovered, her right eye remained damaged and her face scarred.

Vivian and her mother just after her first eye surgery

After being discovered by Visualiza, however, Vivian received reconstructive surgery that corrected her vision. The difference between the sad, scared girl who received the surgery and the smiling one that emerged once its results were revealed is remarkable. In three months, she’ll receive another surgery, this one to correct her eyes’ asymmetry.

Vivian after her first eye surgery. A second surgery will be performed to fully correct her right eye.