Eye Care 4 Kids

What Eye Care 4 Kids does

EyeCare4Kids is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2001 by optician Joseph Carbone in Midvale, Utah, that delivers free professional eye care to children in low-income, rural, and otherwise underserved communities across the United States and parts of Africa. Its core service set comprises comprehensive eye examinations, vision screenings, prescription eyeglasses fitted with shatterproof polycarbonate lenses, and corrective contact lenses, all provided at no cost to qualifying families. The organization differentiates itself operationally through in-house lens manufacturing and frame assembly — yielding hundreds of style choices and short turnaround — and through a mobile-vision-clinic model (branded See-More) of four vehicles that travel to schools, Native American reservations, refugee centers, homeless shelters, WIC clinics, and community events across Arizona, Nevada, Utah, and Idaho. Fixed brick-and-mortar clinics operate in Midvale and Ogden (Utah), Las Vegas and Henderson (Nevada), and Glendale (Arizona), with affiliated school-based clinics in Clark County and a Newark, New Jersey site launched with Shaquille O'Neal as spokesperson. The international arm, EyeCare4Kids Africa, runs six clinics across Kenya and South Africa with a stated goal of delivering 1 million vision services to African children by 2030.

The go-to-market motion is community-led and event-driven: patient referrals originate from school nurses, district administrators, refugee resettlement agencies, Special Olympics Utah, WIC clinics, and word-of-mouth among qualifying families, while patient acquisition is reinforced through community health fairs, Giving Machines holiday campaigns, media appearances, and radio interviews. Distribution of services therefore depends less on paid marketing than on a deeply embedded network of educational, governmental, faith-based, and nonprofit partners.

Revenue is donation- and grant-funded exclusively, as EyeCare4Kids charges patients nothing for services. Income streams include individual donations (the organization advertises 100% pass-through of website donations), recurring giving, corporate contributions, foundation grants (e.g., Why Not You Foundation, Cox Charities, Gene Haas Foundation, Engelstad Foundation, Elaine P. Wynn and Family Foundation, MGM Resorts Foundation, Wynn Resorts Employee Foundation, Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust, OneSight, Latter-Day Saint Charities, Intermountain Community Care Foundation), and LDS-sponsored Light the World Giving Machines. Since inception the organization has delivered more than 500,000 vision care services, including more than 60,000 in 2024 alone, and celebrated its 400,000th unique child served. In June 2025, founder Joseph Carbone transitioned to an international development role and was succeeded as CEO by Maggie Cline, previously Executive Director of Utah operations.

Name

Eye Care 4 Kids

Legal name

Eye Care 4 Kids

Website

https://eyecare4kids.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

EyeCare4Kids is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2001 that provides free eye exams, vision screenings, and prescription glasses to underserved children across Utah, Nevada, Arizona, Idaho, New Jersey, and Africa, operating fixed clinics, school-based clinics, and four mobile vision units.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Pediatric Vision Care Services

NAICS

Offices of Optometrists (62132), Optical Goods Retailers (45613)

SIC

Services-Health Services (8000), Ophthalmic Goods (3851)

akta.pro primary industry

Optometry Clinics (Primary Eye Care) (HLAKAKAB)

Keywords

• Pediatric vision care
• Children's eye exams
• Prescription glasses dispensing
• Mobile vision clinic
• Nonprofit charity services

Headquarters

HQ city

Midvale

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices9 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and charitable contributions: As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, EyeCare4Kids relies primarily on donations from individuals, corporations, and foundations. The organization advertises that 100% of website donations go directly to serving children. Revenue is generated through one-time and recurring donations, grant awards, and corporate contributions.
2. Grant funding: EyeCare4Kids receives structured grant awards from foundations (e.g., Why Not You Foundation, Cox Charities, Gene Haas Foundation, United Way of Southern Nevada) and healthcare partners (e.g., CommonSpirit Health) to fund specific service delivery programs.
3. Services at no cost to families: All eye care services — exams, glasses, and contact lenses — are provided free of charge to children and families in need. No revenue is collected from patients; the model is entirely donation-funded.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

EyeCare4Kids is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit charity that provides free professional eye examinations, vision screenings, prescription eyeglasses, and contact lenses to low-income and underserved children and families. Services are delivered at no cost through fixed clinics and mobile vision clinic vehicles (See-More) deployed to schools, reservations, refugee centers, and community partners across Utah, Nevada, Arizona, New Jersey, and Africa.

Product overview

EyeCare4Kids is a nonprofit children's charity that provides a unified set of eye care services centered on professional eye exams and corrective eyewear. The core offering combines eye examinations with prescription glasses featuring shatterproof polycarbonate lenses, supplemented by contact lenses for active children. Services are delivered through fixed clinic locations in Utah, Arizona, and Nevada, as well as mobile vision clinics branded as 'See-More' that travel to schools and underserved communities. The organization also runs the #GlassesOn awareness campaign to promote children's vision care. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, all services are provided at no cost or low cost to families in need.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Eye Exams and Vision Screenings Comprehensive pediatric eye examinations and vision screenings to identify vision problems and determine corrective lens needs for children in low-income communities, provided free of charge.
• Prescription Glasses (Frames and Lenses) Prescription eyeglasses manufactured in-house with shatterproof polycarbonate lenses and hundreds of frame styles, fitted to children at no cost across the organization's clinics.
• Contact Lenses Corrective contact lenses provided free of charge to children who are active or participate in sports where glasses may break during high-contact activities.
• Mobile Vision Clinic (See-More) A mobile vision clinic that travels to schools in the Clark County School District and underserved communities to provide on-site eye exams and glasses to children who cannot access a fixed clinic.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 500,000 vision care services provided since founding in 2001
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature3 records

Partnerships

18 partnerships are on record, tiered core, significant, major and minor.

• Yashika Bhana / Eye C U (Benoni, South Africa)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 September 2025EyeCare4Kids Africa partnered with Yashika Bhana from Eye C U in Benoni to bring essential vision care to high school students. Yashika provided free eye exams and EyeCare4Kids Africa provided free prescription glasses.
• Special Olympics UtahsignificantStrategic or Co-development Partner · 25 March 2025EyeCare4Kids participated in the 2025 Special Olympics Utah Health & Wellness Fair, providing free vision and eye health screenings and free prescription glasses to athletes with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
• CommonSpirit HealthcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 November 2023CommonSpirit Health partnered with the Why Not You Foundation to co-fund a $100,000 grant to EyeCare4Kids for eye care services in Utah, as part of a community health initiative.
• Rocky Mountain University School of OptometrycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Rocky Mountain University School of Optometry for mobile vision clinics in school districts, providing professional eye exams. In December 2024, the partnership delivered 127 eye exams and 101 pairs of prescription eyeglasses in the Davis School District.
• Charity VisioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEyeCare4Kids partnered with Charity Vision Sight Buddies to conduct mobile clinics, including the third mobile clinic in Sanpete County. Partnership extended services to those with unique needs.
• Light the World (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)majorGTM or Marketing PartnerEyeCare4Kids participated in the Light the World Giving Machines initiative, a charitable vending machine program sponsored by the LDS Church. The church covers all operational costs so 100% of donations go to selected charities. EyeCare4Kids received $129,755 from the 2024 Orem Giving Machine alone.
• Shaquille O'Neal / Shaquille O'Neal FoundationsignificantGTM or Marketing PartnerShaquille O'Neal serves as spokesperson for the EyeCare4Kids Newark Clinic and participated in the launch of a collaborative facility with The Shaquille O'Neal Foundation, Boys & Girls Club of Southern Nevada, and Communities in Schools Nevada.
• WIC Clinics in Utah CountysignificantChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorStrategic partnership with WIC clinics in Utah County to provide vision screenings and eye care referrals to hundreds of families served by WIC programs.
• LDS Humanitarian CentersignificantStrategic or Co-development PartnerEyeCare4Kids screened 43 refugees at the LDS Humanitarian Center and hosted those needing vision care at the Midvale clinic, providing eye exams and eyeglasses.
• Utah Refugee ConnectionsignificantStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Utah Refugee Connection for refugee back-to-school night events, screening 138 people in a single evening and making appointments for those needing further care.
• South African Optometric Association (SAOA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEyeCare4Kids Africa partnered with SAOA and the University of the Western Cape's Faculty of Community and Health Sciences for a school outreach in the Western Cape, providing vision screenings, eye exams, and spectacles to children in need.
• University of the Western Cape, Faculty of Community and Health SciencescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint school outreach initiative with SAOA and EyeCare4Kids Africa in the Western Cape, South Africa, providing vision screenings and spectacles to children.
• Future SmilesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEyeCare4Kids Nevada partners with Future Smiles, a fellow nonprofit serving populations with high needs in Southern Nevada.
• Communities In Schools NevadasignificantStrategic or Co-development PartnerEyeCare4Kids Nevada partners with Communities In Schools Nevada, a nonprofit focused on student support; joint participation in events and facility launches with The Shaquille O'Neal Foundation.
• Golden RainbowminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEyeCare4Kids Nevada partners with Golden Rainbow, a nonprofit serving populations with high needs in Southern Nevada.
• The Just One ProjectminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEyeCare4Kids Nevada partnered with The Just One Project, a nonprofit organization in Southern Nevada.
• A-B-See Vision (Idaho Falls)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEyeCare4Kids partnered with A-B-See Vision in Idaho Falls to provide a free eye care clinic to individuals in need.
• Special OlympicscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEyeCare4Kids partnered with Special Olympics for the 2025 Healthy Athlete Event in Monument Valley and ongoing vision care support for Special Olympics athletes.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• OneSight: Global nonprofit operating vision clinics and school-based programs that provide free eye exams and glasses to underserved communities worldwide. Directly comparable as a charitable vision care provider with similar mission, mobile/school delivery model, and donor-funded economics.
• RestoringVision: Global nonprofit that distributes reading glasses and sunglasses to people in low-income communities through NGO and mission-trip partners. Comparable as a charitable vision organization, though focused on distribution rather than running clinics.
• VOSH International: Volunteer optometric organization running international mission trips that provide free eye care and glasses in underserved regions. Comparable mission and use of donated clinical capacity, though delivery relies on volunteer optometrists rather than employed staff.
• Essilor Vision Foundation: US nonprofit backed by EssilorLuxottica that provides free vision exams and glasses to underserved children, particularly through school-based programs. Closely comparable mission and delivery model, with the added backing of a global optical manufacturer.
• New Eyes for the Needy: US nonprofit that provides free eyeglasses to children and adults in financial need through a voucher-based program run by social workers and schools. Comparable mission and target population to EyeCare4Kids, though delivered via vouchers rather than owned clinics.
• Charity Vision: US and international nonprofit that organizes volunteer-led vision clinics and provides free eyewear to those in need. Already a partner of EyeCare4Kids, indicating direct mission and operating overlap in mobile vision clinic delivery.

Broad incumbents

• Warby Parker (Buy a Pair, Give a Pair): Public optical retailer that funds free vision care and glasses distribution through its Buy a Pair Give a Pair program and foundation. Adjacent comparison as a commercial player with a large charitable vision arm, though primary business is retail rather than free service delivery.
• National Vision (Vision To Learn partnership model): Large US optical retailer with an extensive charitable arm that funds mobile vision clinics in schools, operating a school-based delivery model highly comparable to EyeCare4Kids' See-More mobile units.
• Lions Clubs International (LCIF vision programs): Large international service organization running vision screening, eyeglass recycling, and sight-restoration grants through local clubs. Comparable in providing free pediatric and adult vision services, but as part of a much broader civic mission and volunteer network.

Emerging players

• VisionSpring: Social enterprise that delivers affordable reading glasses and vision screening through partnerships in developing countries, primarily via a BoP distribution model. Comparable end beneficiary (underserved populations needing vision correction) but uses a market-based lens rather than free-clinic model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/eyecare4kids
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCexample
• Facebookfacebook.com/eyecare4kids
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/eyecare4kids
• Instagraminstagram.com/eyecare_4kids

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors3 records

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Eye Care 4 Kids