Local and International Volunteers Working Together to Restore Sight.
The Lamu Center of Preventative Health (LCPH) was proud to host another successful Eye Care Outreach Clinic in July 2026, providing comprehensive eye care services to residents of Lamu and the surrounding communities.
The clinic offered vision screenings, glaucoma screening, evaluations for common eye diseases, and prescription eyeglasses at no cost. For many individuals, this clinic represented their first opportunity to receive professional eye care. Improved vision can transform lives by helping children succeed in school, enabling adults to work more safely and productively, and allowing older adults to maintain their independence and quality of life.
Thanks to the dedication of our volunteers and the incredible support of our partners, this year’s outreach exceeded all expectations. During the clinic, we provided care to 550 patients, distributed more than 1,200 pairs of prescription and reading glasses, and performed glaucoma screenings and comprehensive eye evaluations, helping identify patients with cataracts, glaucoma, diabetic eye disease, and other vision-threatening conditions requiring ongoing care.
This accomplishment would not have been possible without the outstanding efforts of our volunteer eye care providers—Dr. Zenah Gheblawi, Dr. Angela Demetrulias, and Dr. Kirti Patel—who generously donated their time, expertise, and compassion to serve the people of Lamu.
We also extend our sincere appreciation to our dedicated volunteers and LCPH Board members Miaad Mafazy, Midhat Mafazy, and Rebecca Mafazy, whose hard work and commitment were essential to the success of this mission.
A very special thank you goes to our past Board members and longtime friends of LCPH, Mike and Jackie Bauer, who traveled to Kenya to volunteer alongside our team. Their generosity, dedication, and willingness to serve played an important role in making this outreach a success.
We are deeply grateful to the Lions Club of Canada for their generous donation of eyeglasses, ensuring that hundreds of patients left the clinic with improved vision and renewed opportunities to learn, work, and thrive.
Finally, we offer our heartfelt gratitude to the Mafazy family in Lamu—Majid, Thuweba, Said, Sundus, and Zainab—whose tireless local coordination, hospitality, and unwavering support made this outreach mission possible. Their dedication behind the scenes was instrumental in ensuring the clinic ran smoothly and successfully.
The July 2026 Eye Care Outreach reflects LCPH’s commitment to delivering compassionate, culturally responsive healthcare while building lasting partnerships between local and international volunteers. Together, we are not only restoring sight—we are preventing avoidable blindness, improving educational opportunities, supporting livelihoods, preserving independence, and strengthening the health and well-being of our community.
To every volunteer, donor, partner, and supporter who contributed to this mission, thank you. Your generosity continues to restore vision, bring hope, and make a lasting difference in the lives of the people we serve. We look forward to continuing this important work together for many years to come.
