Eyespiring Reflections: Impact, Innovation, and the Future of Vision Care at Prevent Blindness Texas
Hey, it's your eye health experts, Prevent Blindness Texas, and welcome to Eyespiring, a conversation about all things vision and life. Hi, and welcome to this episode of Eyespiring. I'm Heather Patrick, the CEO and your host for today. This episode is a little bit different in the sense that Monica and I are gonna spend some time talking about our year and what's ahead for PBT as we move into 2026. So with that, all of you probably know Monica Guerrero.
Heather Patrick:She's my VP of Programs, But if you haven't met her on the previous episode, Monica, how about if you introduce yourself?
Monica Guerrero:Hi, everyone. I'm Monica Guerrero. I'm the VP of programs and community outreach for PBT and happy to be here.
Heather Patrick:All right. So if you've been listening along, you know that PBT is agency focused on vision and delivering vision care and eye health across the state. And so we're going to talk about what the years look like and some of the great wins we've had, some of the challenges, and then how we're moving forward. So with that, Monica, why don't you share some of our success stories from our clients that we've worked with over this past year?
Monica Guerrero:Great. And I just want to start off by saying we receive hundreds of success stories, we just pulled out a couple. But we do want to share a few from our adult clients and also from one of our students that received services from our PBT programs this past year. So I'll start off by sharing the story of Elizabeth. And she wrote us and she said, Prevent Blindness program was a blessing for me.
Monica Guerrero:Being able to get assistance for my eye exam and glasses without vision insurance is wonderful. I am a student at the moment and my last eye exam was two years ago, which I knew was time for an eye exam. Even wearing my glasses, you know when your vision has changed. Thank you for assisting people in need with their vision care. We're happy Elizabeth was able to get her glasses and also continue with her studies.
Monica Guerrero:And then we also received another story from a client whose name is Melissa, and she says, Thank you so much for providing me with prescription glasses. I have been working to get my life in order and getting you glasses was a huge help. I can now do so much more since I can see up close and at a distance. Thank you so much. So Melissa was another grateful client that whose story we were able to just share.
Monica Guerrero:And then we also received a success story for a child client and this was from one of our partners. And she was really excited to share with Marivelle, who's our program coordinator. And she says, Good morning, Marivelle. Thank you so much. With a ton of exclamation points.
Monica Guerrero:Madison got her glasses as of today. She declared, I can see. She is skipping everywhere. And she shared that she even got a free spray to keep her purple glasses clean. Thank you for helping this wonderful student.
Monica Guerrero:This was the missing link for her to do better in class. Thank you so much. So this is a great example of how we not only help our adult clients, but also children to be able to see more clearly and not just be able to see, but also do better in school. And of course, for our adult clients who always rave about being able to just do better in life. So that's just a little bit about what PBT does for our clients every day.
Heather Patrick:And it really comes to our why. When we get those stories, it anchors us in our why. Why this work matters so much, how important it really is, and that we talk about changing lives every day, but we really are the team that's out there delivering services that makes a difference to thousands of people every day. All right, so let's talk a little bit about what that has looked like over the last nine months for us and going into Q4. So for us, our fiscal year runs April 1 to March 31.
Heather Patrick:So we're about a quarter off from the regular calendar year. But talk about what this last year has really looked like in terms of, for your team, both big successes and then looking ahead, the work that lies ahead.
Monica Guerrero:Yeah, well, I just want to start off by sharing that last year we screened over 61,000 individuals and that includes both adults and children. We also increased the number of individuals that we educated and we educated almost 130,000 individuals on eye health and safety messaging. This includes both for children and adult eye health and safety topics. We also train and certify more than nine thirty community volunteers to help us conduct certified screenings in the community. That could include children and or adult screenings, and also to deliver eye health education.
Monica Guerrero:So that's also a huge part about what we do. It's not just about screening, but also educating the community about, keeping their vision healthy and also helping to deliver the message of the connection between vision and overall health. And then we also provided financial resources for over 9,200 individuals, and this includes resources for comprehensive eye exams and or eyeglasses. And these are some of the stories that we just read is a result of some of those resources that we gave out, and the demand continues to increase every year. We do this with a small team of nine and a ton of volunteers who help us to deliver our messaging and really help us to move our mission forward.
Monica Guerrero:And that's, we're just hitting a little bit of what we know we can do and every year we're just doing more. So our goal is always to help increase the number of volunteers that we have in the community who can help us increase these messaging and the screens that we do and the resources that we give out, And then also to ensure that our clients are receiving the follow-up care. So for us, it's not just about giving the resources, but also ensuring that the clients that we're delivering these resources and messaging to are actually following up with the care that they need. And that's a huge part of what we do, it's care coordination. Our staff spends a lot of time ensuring that our clients are provided the necessary steps to be able to make sure they understand what they have to do.
Monica Guerrero:And then also be able to see. I mean, ultimately that's our goal is for them to be able to see clearly.
Heather Patrick:And when you hear that number, 61,000 people, what resonates with What is that like, what in your mind, I mean, what does it mean to you?
Monica Guerrero:That we still have room to do more. Texas is such a huge state and I know we're just, we're hitting a tiny particle of what I know we have the capacity to be able to deliver. And so that we have a lot of work to do.
Heather Patrick:I mean, I think about, even right before COVID, we were hovering right around that number between twelve and fifteen thousand. And now we're serving 60,000 people. It is, when you take a step back and I just, it is amazing. It truly is incredible to be able to increase the amount of people we serve. But you're right, we know that there's so much more work to be done.
Heather Patrick:And so that's our first call to action. So for our audience, we are always looking for volunteers to serve in so many capacities for us, to go be a screener, to be a health ambassador, to go out into the community and talk about the education component of vision health, to serve on our event committees, to be on our board and board committees. So if you're interested at all to get involved in our organization, now is a great time to reach out because we are always looking for volunteers. Talk a little bit about financial resources. That has grown significantly to the number of individuals we've provided financial resources to.
Heather Patrick:When you hear that number, do a quick calculation for me, just say 9,000 at $100 We know that it's more than that, but if you take 9,000 times 100, That is the amount of, that's the value of what's being reinvested, right? Basically into the community on our behalf, right? To serve clients. What does that mean to you?
Monica Guerrero:It gets me excited. I mean, I know kind of going back to the conversation of screening and I know you just mentioned before COVID how we were doing so much less, but I've seen us grow every year. And so it's so exciting to see, especially how we're going into strategic planning in the next three years, how much more we're going to be able to do in the next three years. And, you know, with more screenings comes more resources that we deliver because we find more people, you know, that need more help. I think that's something that we're finding, especially in kids.
Monica Guerrero:We're getting a huge increase in, you know, the number of kids who are applying, whether it's a parent, whether it's a school nurse, whether it's the school partner who's applying on behalf of a student, know, we're seeing an increase in kids, you know, needing resources. So it does get me excited. I, I think about next year and I'm like, is it going to be 11,000? Is it going to be 12,000? Because even last year, when you think about us doing or the year before us giving out 7,500 resources and then jumping to 9,200, For me, it makes me happy to see that 9,200 people are getting the services that maybe they would not have received if it wasn't for services like Prevent Blindness or programs like Prevent Blindness.
Heather Patrick:I think that to me is one of the key takeaways. We know 9,200 people would not have gotten the care they needed without us. They wouldn't be able to see without the care they received from us. I think that is a testament to the work that we are doing and our commitment to serving the community. So when you think about upcoming, even the last quarter for us, but then moving into 2026, what excites you the most?
Monica Guerrero:I would say the education piece. There's a huge thirst for education, especially the last couple of months. We've had a lot of great conversations with some of our partners who have really requested education on diabetes and vision. And diabetes is always a topic for me that I think it's so weird that they talk about nutrition, they talk about diet, they talk about exercise, they talk about checking your levels, but they don't talk about vision. And so I think a lot of partners are starting to realize that.
Monica Guerrero:Whenever we're out in the community and then we're talking about it, it's like a light bulb goes off and they're like, wait a minute, we're not talking about vision and we should be talking about vision because that's something that's severely affected when a person has diabetes. So the amount of educational presentations that we're being asked to do for 2026, I mean, year hasn't even ended yet and I'm already excited about going into January and February.
Monica Guerrero:But as we continue to plan out, especially with our fiscal year coming up in April 1, it's exciting to know that we already have so many requests and we haven't even started the fiscal year. And so it's exciting and I know our national office is also doing some updates to our programs, which I think are going to be really exciting, interactive. There are some great videos that we'll be able to share to really hit home to the community that we're delivering the message to about the importance of vision and diabetes and just taking care of their health.
Heather Patrick:And talk a little bit about World Sight Day. So we did a number of events leading up to World Sight Day. So talk a little bit about how your team approached that.
Monica Guerrero:Yeah, so the last several years we've participated in World Sight Day and what we do is we schedule events around promoting this event. So we schedule events all the time, but it's specifically promoting the message of World Sight Day. This past year, we screened almost 1,600 individuals, and that includes both children and adults. And we did this at various different community settings. A lot of it really was focused on kids, because a lot of our focus in September and October is on children's screenings.
Monica Guerrero:But we also did screening events at community colleges. We did screening events at local health fairs, local community events, community clinics, community health centers, anywhere where we knew we could spread the message about that we're not just promoting the message of the vision and the importance of vision just here in Texas, but it really is an international messaging and we're a part larger collaborative. And so that was exciting for us to be able to promote that.
Heather Patrick:Part of the global community that is trying to deliver innovative solutions so people can keep their vision. So World Sight Day was October 9, right?
Heather Patrick:And it's usually the second Thursday, right, awesome. All right, so let's talk a little bit about how we get to do these things, right? And no money, no mission. And so we've had a couple of great events and these events really are the lifeline for us to be able to deliver our services. So in May, we had Tee Off to Prevent Blindness, which is our annual golf event.
Heather Patrick:It takes place in the DFW area. And for the second year in a row, we had a hole in one. So that was really cool. Nate Rump got his hole in one this year. It was John McMahon last year.
Heather Patrick:So that was super exciting. And then we also had the TED patient and caregiver forum, which we were a part of, in partnership with Vision Health Advocacy Coalition. That event was sponsored by Amgen. And shared our very own Dr. Layla Lohmann, and her story about thyroid eye disease and having that conversation.
Heather Patrick:And so that was a great event too, and something that we would like to do more of. I think to your point moving forward, that education component all the way around for providers, for patients, for the general public, I think is key to really help people understand. And we talk about it all the time. It's not just about glasses. That is a large majority of what people need, but there's just so much more.
Heather Patrick:It's just so complex. Your eyes really are the windows to your soul and to your health. So really events like this, I think give especially patients the opportunity to really come in and ask questions and learn more. So it was exciting to be a part of that. And then, we launched our podcast.
Heather Patrick:That was super exciting. And so it has been amazing to be a part of this journey. And really a big thank you to Wendy Ballard who does all the technical components of making this podcast go and we wouldn't be able to do it without her. But I think just for the team, it's been really exciting to get the feedback and know people are listening and learning. So we're excited to keep doing it and we have some really great people lined up for 2026.
Heather Patrick:So if you've enjoyed the podcast, get ready because we've got even more people coming and really talking about what the future of health looks like in leadership and even the sector, because certainly this past year has provided some opportunities and challenges in this sector, but super excited about the continuation of this podcast and all the conversations we've had so far.
Heather Patrick:We also had a pretty exciting year. So talk a little bit about Celine's award. And of course we had Mike Vitale and he actually had two awards. Mike is on our board and he was recognized twice this past year. So that was exciting. So talk a little bit about Celine too.
Monica Guerrero:Yeah, so Celine is a volunteer who's been volunteering with us for about two and a half years. And she started off as a vision screener. And then we started working with her to provide screenings at a homeless clinic. And then now we're we're also working with her group who is who's also become certified to do vision screenings at one of the community clinics in the DFW area. But she is a medical student at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center.
Monica Guerrero:She's class of 2027, but we had the opportunity to nominate her for the American Public Health Association 2025 Vision Care Section Distinguished Student Service Award and she won. And so that was really exciting. It was exciting for Celine, but it was also exciting for us for her to be able to represent Provident Blindness Texas as a volunteer. She went in November to receive her award and then also was able to meet some of our national staff while she was there who also attended the presentation. She was super excited and some really great photos that we were able to repost and you know, it's nice to see, you know, a volunteer who, you know, came to us with this vision of just providing vision screenings and resources and how her role as a volunteer has expanded over the last couple of years.
Monica Guerrero:But for her to be so invested in our mission, I think it really speaks volumes of how we've been working with her as a staff. And hopefully after she graduates medical school, she continues to help prevent blindness, but ultimately that's our goal is for once our volunteers finish school that they continue to be engaged because that's something that we would like for them to do in whatever capacity they can give. But we're hoping that, you know, prevent blindness always gives a, you know, a long lasting impression of the services that we were able to provide how we were able to work together to make that happen. And I think for us, that's always the goal is to work together with our volunteers to move our mission forward.
Heather Patrick:Collaboration, it's one of our key values. And of course, was fun to be recognized as one of the most admired CEOs. I'm not going to lie, that was pretty cool. And I had the opportunity to have Maka and Craig there, and that was amazing. It was just so cool to sit in that room with just all the different leaders of this city and just hear some really amazing stories and some great advice, right, about spirit animals and what you tell your younger self.
Heather Patrick:So I thought that was great, but overall it was a fun day. It was a great day and a really cool moment. And then we moved into Eye Stroll, which was our fifteenth Eye Stroll for Vision. It's been at the zoo all fifteen years. And so that has it's a great partnership.
Heather Patrick:There were lots of people there this year. It was a gorgeous day. And we have a lot of individual fundraising for that event. So that's exciting to see that people are embracing that element, the peer to peer fundraising component, which is really important for us. So your team was there, you were there, your family was there. So it was a great day.
Monica Guerrero:Yeah, told Heather, the weather was really nice, but the thing about the Eye Stroll going on for fifteen years is that it's happened every year, rain or shine. We've had years where it's rained really bad. We've had years where it's really cold. And then I would say a large majority of our years have been really nice weather. But just to know that regardless, whether it's raining, whether it's cold, whether it's hot,
Heather Patrick:whether it's COVID, People still show up.
Monica Guerrero:We're here to show up and support our mission.
Heather Patrick:Yeah, yeah, agreed. And then we also launched our first DIY4Sight event, and that was the Delta Gammas at the University of Texas did a pickleball event for us, so thank you to them. But a great example of, you don't have to wait for one of our events. If you want to fundraise on our behalf, we have a platform to be able to do that. And reach out to us.
Heather Patrick:We can help you get it started. But a great example of what a group can do, they raise a couple thousand dollars for us. And so that's super exciting. So thank you to DG. And then of course we have Q4 coming up for us, and that is when dark dining happens.
Heather Patrick:And so this is an event we've been doing, I don't know, this is what our seventh one, eighth one. They all go by so fast. This year we have Christine as our keynote speaker, so we are super excited about that. But it's just our signature event that one highlights those individuals that are trailblazers in the space and also key people for the organization in terms of the Volunteer of the Year, Corporate Partner of the Year, the philanthropist of the year for PBT. So it really is our time to recognize and thank those that are in this space that are helping PBT and all of the industry really move forward.
Heather Patrick:And it's such a great event. It's super exciting, lots of fun. This year, it's a Mardi Gras theme. And so we really look forward to that event and recognizing those individuals that are a part of that event. Monica, you've been there every year too.
Heather Patrick:So it's just a really nice, it's just a really good, like that night you'd be feeling like this is really awesome.
Monica Guerrero:Yeah. And I think also being able to share not just the stories of some of our clients, but the perspective of our partners who are involved with prevent blindness and you know, just seeing how excited they are to just show up and tell the story about, you know, how they got involved with PBT and, you know, some of the stuff that they've done. And then to see them want to get others involved is also really exciting.
Heather Patrick:Yeah, agreed, agreed. So again, there is plenty of time to get tickets. Get yours now. You can obviously buy a table, you can be a sponsor, but you don't want to miss this night and particularly for this upcoming year. And I know it's going to be a fantastic evening.
Heather Patrick:And then we close out the year March 31. And so we are working on a new strategic plan. And so we'll end on that note what the future looks like. So you've been a part of this process, Monica. As you think about the next three years, what stands out to you of where we're going?
Monica Guerrero:Yeah, I think for us, a huge focus on children. I know there's a lot of, there's been a lot of research about the increase of myopia in children and a lot of our school partners are really starting to see that a little bit more as everybody pretty much has returned back to their normal post COVID, but they're also starting to see the increase in children who are failing a vision screening, who are needing resources, but also the need for parents to be able to better understand why is it important to take your child to an eye exam if they've been identified as having a potential vision problem. I see the, there's just such a big push and such a craving to want to partner with PBT about helping make that message happen. And then also a lot of conversations on how vision loss can affect mental health. That's another topic that we've had a lot of our partners reach out to us about.
Monica Guerrero:And then, know, just there's so much demand for adults who always need resources. But I think for us, it's not just about increasing the number of people that we serve or the number of people that we screen, but it's really about increasing the number of people who are actually accessing the follow-up care that we are recommending and making sure that they're following the next steps, you know, receiving a vision screening and actually getting the eye exam, actually getting the eyeglasses and adopting new behaviors of what does it mean to take care of your vision? And do they understand? How can we help you better understand? And so I think as we move into our, or almost moving into our new fiscal year, those are some things that are really important to us.
Monica Guerrero:And just really having the topic of vision stand out. We think about everything else that's involved with medical, but we never think about vision. Vision and dental are always pushed to the side. And we wanna make sure that vision is a part of that overall conversation. We wanna be a part of the medical conversation and we wanna make sure that anybody who's in the medical field understands that vision is just as important as diabetes, as blood pressure, as heart, as anything else that's involved with your health.
Monica Guerrero:So for us, you know, that's our goal. Our goal is to make sure that vision stands out just as much as everything else does.
Heather Patrick:Yeah, I agree. That's a great way to put it. So for us, like Monica said, we are wrapping up our strategic plan. We will move into the new one April 1. Again, different ways to get involved and help us move that plan forward, move our mission forward.
Heather Patrick:One more exciting thing that's happening for us is we are doing a large scale campaign for our year end. We haven't really done this before, but if you live in the greater Houston area, you will see billboards in all different places across the area promoting Prevent Blindness Texas, and that's super cool. And then of course, we'll have social media and email. But the whole idea is to be the difference, that your support will be the difference for someone being able to see. So we hope this year you will be the difference for PBT.
Heather Patrick:Get involved with us, support us, and help us make a difference for those we serve. Thank you so much for the year we've had and for all the exciting things that are continuing to happen for Prevent Blindness Texas. Always, if you want to get involved, please reach out. We are always happy to have people come to the organization and help us move our mission forward. Have a great year, happy holidays, and thank you for supporting Prevent Blindness Texas.
Heather Patrick:And we will see you after the new year on a new podcast. Thanks and take care.
