A 10-year-old Manitoba boy can now see what his mother looks like, after an online fundraiser helped his family buy a high-tech pair of glasses.
Benjamyn 'Benny' Francey has a rare condition called Leber's congenital amaurosis, a degenerative eye disease that results in a severe loss of vision at birth.
It typically affects two to three newborns out of 100,000, according to the U.S. National Library of Medicine.
The condition has left Benny with 20/400 vision. He can see colours and silhouettes, but can't see details like words written on a page or facial features. As a result of the condition, Benny is legally blind.
A GoFundMe page started by Benny's aunt, Amanda Vitt, raised $25,000 to cover the US$15,000 eSight glasses.
"He looked at Jenna and myself and said, 'Wow.' He giggled and had the biggest smile on this face," said Vitt. "He just stared at us."
The glasses use a high-resolution camera to capture what the wearer is looking at, and then project that image real-time onto two LED screens in front of the eyes.
Benny went to Toronto last week to test out the device, and get fitted for his own pair.
"Within minutes of having them on our prayers were answered. He could see! Something we all take for granted on a daily basis … he was experiencing for the first time in ten years," Vitt later wrote on the GoFundMe page.
Benny is expected to receive the glasses next week.
The remaining money from the fundraiser will go towards therapeutic horseback riding lessons for Benny's brother Ashton, who suffers from a more severe case of the condition, as well as autism and OCD.
With a report from CTV Winnipeg's Beth Macdonell
