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D.C. Area Hour Eyes Vision Stores and Davis Vision Partner with Neediest Kids Organization

Posted on: Wednesday, 11 March 2009, 09:42 CDT

New Relationship Provides Eye Exams and Eyeglasses to Students in Need

WASHINGTON, March 11 /PRNewswire/ -- On Thursday, March 12, Hour Eyes, Davis Vision and the Neediest Kids / Bridge to Success organization will announce a new partnership which will provide eye exams and eyeglasses to students in need who do not have the resources to pay for such exams and eye wear.

Following a successful "pilot project" which has already provided exams and services to nearly 200 children in need, additional details about the expanded partnership will be detailed at a public event at the 1775 K Street Hour Eyes location. Nineteen Washington, D.C. area Hour Eyes vision retail stores through this new relationship will be providing screenings, eye exams and eyeglasses to students in need.

"By evaluating the vision and eye health of those in need, we can initiate care immediately and help to correct or prevent conditions that might negatively affect a person's vision or general health," said Laura Dyer, Davis Vision's assistant vice president, Community Outreach & Media Relations. "Davis Vision reaches out on an ongoing basis to the communities we serve to help those in need access proper vision care, and our new relationship with the Neediest Kids / Bridge to Success organization will help us to do just that by offering services and eyeglasses."

Hour Eyes will provide exams and eyeglasses at no charge to students identified through the Neediest Kids / Bridge to Success network of school systems. Students are identified by their school professionals -- social worker, teacher, counselor, nurse, or principal -- and, school professionals must request these services from their respective school systems. The program serves eight area school districts, including:

• Alexandria, VA
• Archdiocese of Washington
• Arlington County, VA
• Fairfax County, VA
• Loudoun County, VA
• Montgomery County, MD
• Prince George's County, MD
• Washington, D.C.

"Neediest Kids serves as a vital bridge to success for students in the metropolitan Washington area. We work with schools and school professionals throughout the area to give each and every student the opportunity to be successful in school and in life," said Lynne Filderman, executive director of the Neediest Kids organization. "When students go without the basics, they lose the very chance to be successful in school and in life. We are excited about this extraordinary partnership with Davis Vision and the D.C.-area Hour Eyes retail locations since it will help many students to receive the much-needed eye care and glasses. We are very grateful for the commitment of Davis Vision to our area students. This collaboration is the essence of the community coming together to benefit our children."

About Davis Vision, Hour Eyes

Davis Vision, Inc. and Hour Eyes are part of the HVHC Inc. group of companies, which also includes Viva International Group and Eye Care Centers of America. One of the nation's premier managed vision care companies, Davis Vision has been providing comprehensive vision benefits for over 45 years, and currently serves over 55 million individuals nationwide through an extensive blended network of approximately 30,000 participating ophthalmologists and optometrists, as well as many opticians and top national retail providers. For more information about Davis Vision, visit www.davisvision.com.

About the Neediest Kids organization

Neediest Kids is a Washington, D.C. area nonprofit organization that provides an emergency fund to area school systems used to purchase goods and services for their students in need. All students should have access to the basics -- clothes/uniforms, school supplies, eye exams and glasses, medical and dental care, transportation, etc. -- so they can stay in school and thrive. In 2008, the organization distributed over $1.2 million in cash and in-kind goods helping over 17,000 students. What has not changed in 35 years since Neediest Kids was founded is its mission to provide students with the basics that they need to stay and succeed in school, giving them the foundation to achieve their full potential as adults. For more information about the Neediest Kids organization, visit www.neediestkids.org.

SOURCE Davis Vision, Inc.

Source: PR Newswire

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