New doors open for blind, visually imparied

Children targeted

To help the blind, Tao, the doctor, runs a program called See Me, placing the emphasis on children.

"For the visually impaired, childhood is the most important part of life, because their characters can easily become distorted and their education delayed," Tao said.

The program aims to reduce blindness rates through mass eyesight screening and by donating money to cover surgery costs, so that fewer children will become blind due to disease. Visually impaired children also receive psychological counselling, daily life skills training, education assistance and help in seeking jobs.

In 2014, Fang Huiwei, a 15-year-old girl from Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, was diagnosed with leukemia. She survived thanks to a bone marrow transplant, but her retina was infected with a virus and she lost her sight.

However, she did not give up. She reads audiobooks, makes different-colored plasticene figures purely from memory, and writes poems about her life.

This is an extract from The Bird Seeking Light, her favorite poem.

I cannot feel the sun's color

But it is no less warm

Even in the world of darkness

The music is still moving

The stories are still exciting

The audiobooks still dream-catching

I have no fear because

I know there are people who care

Who push the world forward

Me included.