Ailish O’Reilly’s recent journey to Guatemala wasn’t just a trip; it was an eye-opener in every sense. Because she and her team are battling vision impairment in communities where basic eye care is scarce.

The Woodford woman is no stranger to dangerous foreign climes – previously she spent six years as an aid worker in Haiti and she saw the reality of life in Africa too through her work with Bohar.

This time she headed for a week to Guatemala to assist with the logistics of an eye care programme run by International Vision Inc, the same organisation she had linked up with in Haiti before.

Ironically, she had travelled halfway around the world and back before the electricity supply was restored to her home outside Woodford, after damage during Storm Éowyn!

But her time in Guatemala proved eventful too, in every sense.

This Central American country boasts a culture deeply intertwined with the natural world, shaped by its rich Mayan heritage.

Ailish had first worked with International Vision Inc in Haiti where she had organised annual clinic visits in Southern Haiti. In Petén she supported logistics; worked on the acuity testing and added a whole suite of Spanish words to her vocabulary.

The International Vision Petén Project 2025 saw the team return in full force. The diverse team is truly international, with volunteers hailing from the USA, Canada, Brazil, Denmark, Haiti, Ireland, and, of course, Guatemala.

Since their initial visit in February 2022, Dr Cheryl Ott, the founder of IVI, worked tirelessly to ensure the success of this year’s mission. It was particularly significant as it included cataract surgery for those in need.

The clinic was held in the town of El Remate in the mainly rural Petén region. Here, access to medical care is a challenge and eye care is often further down the list of more pressing health considerations.

During the weeklong clinic patients were screened for vision and eye health issues.

Those in need of prescription glasses selected from a vast collection of frames that have been donated by optician clinics from their stock.

These frames were then transported to the US for prescription lens fitting before being returned and distributed in March or April this year.

For those eligible, cataract surgery was scheduled at the clinic during the week – and the Woodford woman said that the gratitude of the patients was amazing.

Ailish recalled one memory of her week – an older couple heading out of clinic, hand in hand. She with a post-op bandage on her right eye; he with a post-op bandage on his left eye.

A split-second snapshot in the sunshine of the type of a jokes a couple together for over 60 years might make about being able to see each other again; children and grandchildren’s faces now clear and all the attendant daily activities they can do again.

In total there were 25 surgeries all with successful outcomes and 317 patients in the optometry clinic.

Even the arrival of howler monkeys in the trees around the clinic during the week did not disrupt their work!

To support International Vision Inc. and their mission donors can donate at https://www.internationalvision.org/

Pictured: Ailish O’ Reilly in Guatemala with her translator Ezekiel and IVI Director and founder Dr Cheryl Ott.