Seasons Greeting from the President
Dear Friends & Volunteers,
Many thanks for your continued support of Eyes4Everest.
We had 2 trips this year, one to Everest Base Camp and one to Annapurna Base camp. Our volunteers were led by Sherpa guides and a Sherpa optometrist – both trips were a huge success. Eyes4Everest was able to service the villages of Ulleri and Phakding for the first time during these trips. Overall, the ABC and EBC team performed a total 409 comprehensive eye examinations and prescribed 110 pairs of spectacles.
My only mountaineering trip in 2018 was a technical one
Abseiling down was much easier
I spent most of 2018 keeping fit on the stair machine and implementing Michael Gerber’s book ‘The E-myth revisited’. The main aim of this year was to make Eyes4Everest as sustainable as can be. This involved reviewing and improving the systems, defining clear roles and writing an operation manual for every role. I quickly learned that the charity required better directions for marketing and finance. On the suggestion of our co-founder Carina Trinh, I read books written by Scott Pape (The Barefoot Investor), Michael Kemp (Australian Value Investor) and Mike Michalowicz (Profit First) and built a strong understanding of personal and business finance. I would highly recommend you to read these books. As a result, our operating expenses have significantly reduced and we are confident about the sustainability of our future.
Eyes4Everest was fortunate to have Robyn Weinberg as a volunteer this year. Robyn was the former director of OneSight (Luxottica’s charity) and has vowed to support Eyes4Everest with her resources and connections. Finally, I love to acknowledge my Aunty, Lady Huang from Taiwan. We were probably 2 years away from raising enough funds to build a clinic before she made a generous donation in October. My Aunty’s sight was taken away by glaucoma but things might have been different if the condition was caught early. She made this donation in the hope that having a permanent clinic will help prevent a similar fate to others. We honour her and have begun the process of building a permanent clinic in Khumjung.
2019 will be an interesting year as a lot goes into building a clinic. The thought of seeing our friends in Nepal, the bubbly volunteers and the mountains puts a smile on my face. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Stay safe during the holidays!