Nonprofit teams up with the Hawks to give metro Atlanta kids the gift of clear eyesight

Maxwell Mills says he knew something was wrong with his eyesight when it started interfering with his ability to read and get his work done in school.

"It was just really difficult and kind of irritating to me because I like to do math equations," Mills said. "And I like reading, and when I tried to read a book, it was very blurry…"

That's why a group of organizations stepped in to help. The nonprofit Vision to Learn is leading an effort alongside the Atlanta Hawks to donate thousands of free glasses and eye exams at schools and libraries in the metro in what's called the Atlanta Vision Project.

The nonprofit said that in Georgia alone, it has given away 50,000 pairs of glasses to children in need over the past eight years to help fight illiteracy and poor academic performance. Its goal is to give away another 50,000 pairs to kids around Atlanta over the next three years.  

Mills received a free eye exam and one of these glasses alongside more than 100 other children at his school, Fairburn's E.C. West Elementary School in March.

"If kids can't read by third grade, they're not at grade-level reading," Ann Holister, the president of Vision to Learn, said. "Studies show that they're four times as likely to drop out of high school. So, this is an intervention that's proven to work."  

Now that he's seeing things clearly, Maxwell says he's gotten back to enjoying his favorite graphic novels and chapter books. He even says he likes to brag about his glasses during recess.

"When I win a game, they're like 'How did you win so fast?'" Mills said. "It's because I can see."

Maxwell's dad says they are thankful for the program.

"With everything rising, inflation, it just, that's one less thing to burden me and my wife as parents, to worry about glasses, because glasses are expensive," Michael Mills said.

Maxwell says his new glasses have boosted his confidence through making it easier to check his work.

He sees himself differently and more clearly, too.