22 March 2022
As part of my ongoing commitment to service I have mentored two Year 10 boys, James Gasparin and Dhruv Joshi from Da Costa House to support me in delivering information sessions to the Years 7 and 8 Da Costa House boys during mentor. The charity I chose was Sight For All. In our session we discussed what empathy is and the difference between empathy and sympathy. Building empathy and awareness of challenges that other people face is important for us to consider. We linked this discussion to our School values of truth, respect and service and how we should look to be part of something bigger than ourselves.
Did you know that 285 million people are vision impaired due to eye disease or lack of glasses and that 39 million are blind? The majority of visual impairment is actually avoidable or curable.
“Sight For All delivers eye health care projects free of charge to their partner countries and communities, with the ultimate aim of reducing vision impairment and blindness.” Dr James Muecke, Sight For All (Australian of the Year 2020).
In the second session, the younger boys completed some activities blindfolded to feel what it is like to be blind. They had to write and draw a picture followed by attempting an assault course on the Caterer Oval. The Years 7 and 8 boys enjoyed the challenges and they will talk to their Mentor Groups about what they have learned.
For more information or to get involved go to https://sightforall.org
Daniel Spiby
Year 11 student