RECEIVING THE GIFT OF SIGHT
By Jody Johnson-Pettit
For the first time in his life , 10-yearold Benny Francey can see his mom ’ s face , read books and watch his favourite movies .
The youngster from Selkirk , Man ., who has a rare disease called Leber congenital amaurosis that prevents him from seeing anything but silhouettes , recently received a pair of eSight glasses that allow him to see the world around him .
“ We are very blessed that this happened this year ,” Benny ’ s mom Jenna Cason told Optical Prism magazine recently .
She said her son is excited to learn new things each day with his new glasses on .
“ Reading is a huge thing for him , as he has only read Braille in his life ,” she says .
Benny ’ s aunt started a GoFundMe page to raise the $ 15,000 USD cost to purchase the electronic-assisted , customizable glasses from Ontario-based eSight Eyewear .
The glasses contain a camera that captures the user ’ s surroundings . A built-in computer then processes the footage and displays it on two LED screens in front of the user ’ s eyes . Full-color footage is clearly seen by the eSight user with unprecedented visual clarity and there is no discernible lag witnessed by the user .
The eSight glasses also include BioOptic Tilt , a patented technology that allows the wearer to adjust the position of the device and leverage their existing peripheral vision to allow for greater mobility .
40 Optical Prism | March 2017