Top photo caption: A young patient is pictured in an undated photo after undergoing cataract surgery at a hospital in Guatemala made possible through the efforts of Visualiza and Vision for the Poor. OSV News photo/Julie Nestingen courtesy of the Seva Foundation
By Anne-Marie Welsh, OSV News
OSV News – Many profess that nothing is impossible with God (Luke 1:37), but a story unfolding in Guatemala has validated that Scripture daily for more than two decades.
An international partnership of those involved with Guatemala Brillando – a plan to end treatable blindness for 17 million Guatemalans by 2032 – recently had occasion to look back in wonder and gratitude.
They gathered for the opening of Hospital Oftalmológico Visualiza in Santa Cruz del Quiché, Guatemala, the fourth in a planned system of eight eye hospitals and 38 clinics across the Central American country, and they celebrated the innumerable connections that have made it all possible.
Chris Wurst – who has participated in what he calls over 50 “adventures” around the globe addressing vision problems and a longtime board director of Vision for the Poor – cut the ribbon for the latest hospital last fall. He remembers his first mission to Mexico.
“We were basically just giving out glasses,” he said. But even then, he witnessed transformation.
“After one woman received hers, she threaded a needle,” he said, “and everyone just started to clap. I was hooked.”
But it was Dr. Doug Villella of Erie, Pennsylvania, an eye doctor, who recognized that mission trips were not meeting the enormous need in Guatemala.
Soon after graduating from optometry studies, Villella participated in several mission trips to poor nations in the Western Hemisphere. Seeking a more sustainable approach, he was introduced to Vincent Pescatore, founder of an orphanage in Guatemala’s Petén region.
Their bond was immediate.
“Vincent said, ‘I need you to build an eye hospital,'” Villella recalled in an interview for OSV News. “He didn’t say, ‘Would you,’ he said, ‘I need you to.'”
Although Villella readily agreed, today, he finds it almost comical.
“I had no skill other than taking care of people’s eyes,” Villella told OSV News. “No grant writing, no idea how to run a nonprofit. But because of who and what Vincent was, I didn’t hesitate.”
And so, in prayer and trust, Villella began the work, inviting several board members of VOSH/PA, the Pennsylvania chapter of Volunteer Optometric Services to Humanity, into the fold.
A seismic shift occurred when Villella met Dr. Mariano Yee of Guatemala City. Yee, a young chief resident ophthalmologist and surgeon, was asked if he knew someone who could escort Villella’s group during another mission.
“I volunteered,” Yee remembered. He describes that outreach as massive, with hundreds of patients seen each day. But there were many who needed more care, people with cataracts and other eye diseases.
The doctors spent their evenings brainstorming ways to address the vast needs in a consistent, sustainable way.
“It was a good thing we were naive,” Yee said with a laugh. “When you don’t know how big the problem is, you’re like, ‘Let’s go and do it!’ But we saw the need and said, ‘Whatever it takes.'”
Nearly a quarter century later, Yee is flanked daily by two of his brothers: Nicolás, also an eye surgeon, and Juan Francisco, an architect who earned his MBA when his brothers asked him to oversee what is now Visualiza. A fourth brother is now in charge of operations for the hospital that just opened in the Quiche region. In addition to changing the landscape of eye care in Guatemala, the organization employs 410 people.
For the Yees, family is essential.
“It’s something that God called us to do,” Nicolás Yee said “And because he called us, God resolves the problems. On our own we can do nothing.”
The Yees credit their parents, who were deeply committed to the Catholic faith.
“My parents showed us how to live our faith,” Mariano Yee said. “Our house was always full of people, it was fun! We went to nursing homes just to talk with the residents. In high school, our parents took us to marginalized areas of Guatemala City to teach catechism to younger kids. We realized we had to give back.”
Now that the project has a track record and a detailed plan to ensure all Guatemalans have access to eyecare by 2032, the group is developing a model for other low and middle-income countries.
Another momentous leveling up occurred in 2006 when Visualiza and Vision for the Poor formed a partnership with the Seva Foundation, an international organization dedicated to creating equitable access to eye care in underserved populations.
Seva’s executive director is Kate Moynihan, a former regional director for Catholic Relief Services, the U.S. Church’s overseas relief and development agency. She has worked in areas ranging from the Balkans to the Middle East. Although Seva has supported the work of Visualiza for more than two decades, Moynihan recognized the potential when she took the reins in 2017.
“Kate and Doug knew their work was in alignment,” said Auxiliary Bishop Joseph L. Coffey of the U.S. Archdiocese for the Military Services and a director on the board of Vision for the Poor. “Seva has helped to elevate the excellence Vision for the Poor and the Yee brothers created.”
Seva’s research underpinning the work taking place demonstrates:
– Vision loss drains more from the global economy each year than the combined direct costs of all natural disasters.
– Ninety percent of people affected with vision impairment live in developing countries, where not being able to see often means a life of poverty.
– Restoring sight is one of the most cost-effective health interventions to reduce poverty.
Moynihan noted that treatable visual impairment is among the most prevalent yet under-prioritized health challenges globally, although the tools to address the situation already exist.
“What’s missing is global urgency,” she said.
Seva, along with the Fred Hollows Foundation, an international development organization committed to improving eye care globally, presented an investment case to the U.N. General Assembly this fall.
The people behind Visualiza continue to promote and provide high-quality, effective eye care to populations that otherwise would not have access. Seva and Vision for the Poor continue to mentor, fundraise and provide technical support, maintaining their commitment to sustainability.
Efforts in Guatemala have required $24 million to date, more than half of which has been raised by the Seva Foundation. Building the four remaining hospitals to provide nationwide access will require another $30 million. It also will point the way for developing countries across the globe.
The goal is audacious, but those involved are undeterred.
“So often we try swimming upstream,” Villella said. “But grace doesn’t flow that way. Now I go with the flow. I still bump into rocks, but I find ways around them.”
As for the future?
“It once seemed beyond imagination to create nationwide eye care in a developing country,” he said. “All we can do is keep trying. We will take steps forward in the dark, meeting with potential benefactors. The Holy Spirit will have to take over from there.”
Anne-Marie Welsh writes for OSV News from Erie, Pennsylvania.
Catholic journalism is needed now more than ever. Please consider supporting this work by signing up for a SUBSCRIPTION (click HERE) or making a DONATION to The Monitor (click HERE). Thank you for your contribution.