Lillian Pravda of New York has a vision. “Vision is not limited to what the eyes can or cannot see. Vision is what the mind can dream and what the heart and soul can feel,” she said. A high school sophomore, Lillian was born with a cataract and underwent two eye surgeries before she was five years old. She vividly recalls how nervous she was waiting in the hospital prior to surgery.
Wanting to help future patients, Lillian began volunteering in a pediatric surgical unit and learned that 19 million children worldwide are visually impaired, many of them unable to access the care they need. Lillian, just eight years old at the time, decided to take action and created “Vision for and From Children” (www.visionforandfromchildren.org), a US-based global 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to providing eye surgeries and vision-related services for children in need across the globe.
“As a young child, I felt very strongly about not letting my vision issues define me, but I have learned how meaningful it is when the issues in one’s vision become both defined and defining,” said Lillian. By garnering pro bono support from world-renowned physicians and inspiring and recruiting teen “diplomats” throughout North America to generate funds and awareness, “Vision for and From Children” sponsors teams of ophthalmologists to deliver ocular care in the United States and developing regions, including bringing children to the United States for sight-saving and sight-restorative surgeries.
“Vision for and From Children” has partnered with individuals; Fortune 500 corporations and local, national and international businesses to fulfill its mission in the United States and abroad. Through Lillian’s leadership as CEO (Chief Eyesight Optimist), “Vision for and From Children” has helped over 26,210 children receive the gift of sight! She recently launched a nationwide mobile clinic program to deliver care in underserved communities.
Lillian, a 2014 national Jefferson Award and Diller Tikkun Olam Award recipient, has been profiled by ABC, CBS, Fox Business, Bloomberg TV, Fast Company, Crain’s 20 Under 20 and The Wall Street Journal. Through her speaking engagements at schools, conferences worldwide, the United Nations and as an invited TEDx speaker, Lillian has impacted over one million lives with her message of public service and humanitarianism.
On Sunday, May 15, Lillian Pravda will receive the Young Leadership Award at Areyvut’s Annual Breakfast at Congregation Bnai Yeshurun in Teaneck, NJ and be acknowledged for her service.
“I am confident that Lillian’s example will inspire others—both students and adults—to action,” Areyvut’s Founder and Director, Daniel Rothner, said. He continued, “Lillian has inspired participants in Areyvut’s teen philanthropy program and at a Bnai Mitzvah Chesed Fair. Through her efforts with ‘Vision for and From Children’ Lillian is just getting started.”
Jay Feinberg, founder and Chief Executive Officer of Gift of Life, will be honored with the Community Leadership Award. For more information, visit www.areyvut.org, e-mail [email protected] or call 201-244-6702.
