An Ongoing Vision

On any given game day, Raymond James Stadium is a festival for the eyes.

The home of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Raymond James Stadium is a majestic sight on its own, with its gracefully curving glass walls on each side and the prominent Buccaneer battle flags flying at the top of the structure. There is the unique Pirate Ship located in Buccaneers Cove, endless entertaining content on the stadium’s massive videoboards, and of course fans milling about and decked out in all manner of Bucs-themed garb.

One of the more intriguing sights at a Buccaneers home game, however, is parked just outside the south end of the stadium, drawing attention for both its form and function. It is the Glazer Family Foundation’s Vision Mobile, and it certainly stands out in a crowd.

Since it was introduced in 2009, the Vision Mobile has taken one of the Foundation’s primary quests to another level. It is the goal of the Foundation’s vision program, one that is near and dear to the heart of Buccaneers Owner/President Malcolm Glazer, to provide vision screening and correction to every grade school student in the eight surrounding county school systems.

The creation of the Vision Mobile was an enormous step in the Foundation’s program, which is one of its most important and beloved initiatives. The Glazer Family Foundation chose vision screening as one of its core programs because Mr. Glazer benefited greatly from vision screening during his own youth. Since 2006, the vision program has made sure that the schools in eight counties – Hillsborough, Pinellas, Pasco, Sarasota, Orange, Osceola, Manatee and Polk – had the proper equipment to test students’ visual acuity and detect potential problems that can hinder the learning experience. The Vision Mobile goes further, providing the corrective glasses necessary to students at Title I schools who had no other means to get them.

In a stop by the Vision Mobile at Tampa’s Just Elementary during the 2010 school year, for instance, 22 children who might not have otherwise had the means to get corrective measures for their vision problems to be examined on the vision bus. Twenty of the students who boarded the Vision Mobile on Friday left with new glasses, to the absolute delight of the school’s principal, Carolyn Hill.

“I’m so excited because my kids come from homes where they may not be able to afford the glasses, and I know if they can see better they’ll do better in school,” said Hill, who greeted GFF Co-President Darcie Glazer Kassewitz warmly upon the arrival of the brightly-painted vehicle. “I can see long-term results from the action we’re taking today. We had kids in our school who did not pass the eye exam but who do not have eyeglasses. Their parents are unable to afford them. When I heard that the Vision Mobile was coming I got really excited because I know this is going to be good for our kids. It’s going to help them academically. Academic success will lead to them staying in school long-term, and I think that’s going to result in more productive citizens.”

One third-grader at Just Elementary, for example, had originally been screened and received glasses when he was in the first grade. However, those glasses were later lost and the student spent parts of the next two school years without them. He got a new pair from the Vision Mobile.

“If you can’t see, you can’t learn,” said Glazer Kassewitz. “He’s had a hard time for a few years and now hopefully we can correct that. We’re just so thrilled with this program. Some of these kids can’t see the board and they’re just so thrilled to get their glasses. They’ll have more success in school and life will be better because of it.”

In addition to providing the aid that is needed, the Vision Mobile provides a non-intimidating environment that makes it easier for young children to get an eye exam. The inside of the Vision Mobile is extensively decorated in a Buccaneer theme and it includes items to put its visitors at ease, such as a helmet that can be tried on and pom pons for would-be cheerleaders.

“We have put a lot of fun stuff in the Vision Mobile,” said Glazer Kassewitz. “We’ve got footballs in there and cheerleader stuff. They can try on the outfits, and the doctor in there is a great guy. The kids are having a blast. I don’t think they look at it as an eye doctor visit.”

The Vision Mobile has once again embarked on a lengthy tour of Central West Florida schools in 2011. It is once again the program’s goal to provide vision correction for at least 1,500 children who otherwise might have never had such assistance.