One of my favorite companies,
TOMS, has an all-new product line - eyewear! The premise is the same as their shoe line - for every item you buy from them, they will help a person in need. When you buy shoes, they give shoes; but when you buy eyeglasses, they help restore sight to a needy person around the world. Here's how it works:
"With our eyewear line, One for One™ means more than just giving eyeglasses. While prescription eyeglasses are a part of the holistic eye care TOMS supports, we have learned that people’s needs can be quite different. We've set up our approach to be able to address the most widespread needs. So one person buys a pair of TOMS glasses, and one person receives the eye care that he or she needs. We deliver that care through partnerships with expert eye care organizations on the ground, which makes sense since we wouldn't dare to pass ourselves off as eye care professionals. With our support, our Sight Giving Partners organize screenings right in the community to identify the people who need care. TOMS then helps our partners provide care in one of three ways:
1) Medical Treatment: Treat a person's sight-threatening condition such as infection, injury or disease, by administering medical treatment such as prescription medications and removal of foreign objects from the eye.
2) Prescription Eyeglasses: Determine the corrective lenses a person needs and provide the right pair of eyeglasses. The patient gets to choose new frames and even check out their new look in a mirror. We're told even the grandmas in Tibet insist on seeing their reflection to choose the right frames!
3) Sight-Saving Surgery: Perform a commonly needed operation, such as cataract surgery, which can be a 15-minute procedure. Cataract surgery is particularly impactful as cataract is a leading cause of blindness in the world."
Before you head out for some sun this holiday weekend, check out TOMS eyewear for a great way to stay stylish and help give sight to someone less fortunate.
Here are a few of my favorite styles (all images courtesy of
TOMS). You can check out the rest of the new TOMS collection
here (
women's and
men's).
