A Message From Gabi Hollows

Fred and I started this Foundation around our kitchen table in 1992 with a group of friends and supporters. By that stage we knew he didn't have much longer to live; cancer was making it more and more difficult to do the sight saving work he loved.

Fred died less than one year later. It was a terribly sad time, but brightened by the knowledge that through The Fred Hollows Foundation his work would carry on.

Fred was many things to many people - a husband, a father, a friend a skilled ophthalmologist and for a few politicians and bureaucrats, an irritating thorn in their side. But above all else he was a humanitarian, which made him a terrific doctor. He truly believed it was the role of a doctor to serve, to help those in need.

That is why he was so passionate about helping to improve health in Indigenous Australia. And unlike many, he didn't just talk - he set about helping local communities do something about it.

It is also why he worked so hard to restore sight in the developing world. Being blind in a developing country means that poor people become caught in a devastating cycle of disability and extreme poverty. And in many cases the blindness is unnecessary, it can either be avoided - through early detection and maintaining basic levels of hygiene and nutrition, or it can be overcome - through a simple operation.

Seventy-five percent of all cases of blindness are unnecessary. It is a shocking figure. But like Fred we have to do more than be angry. We must do something about it. And we are.

Since Fred died, The Fred Hollows Foundation has restored sight to well over one million people in the developing world. By forcing down the price of equipment and introducing modern surgical techniques, The Foundation has reduced the cost of cataract surgery to as little as $25 in some developing countries.

We lost Fred while there was still work to do - now it is up to us carry on. With your support, we can continue Fred's legacy and offer independence, dignity and hope to those in need. Thank you for your support and for helping Fred's dream live on.

- Gabi Hollows

In 1992, Fred checked himself out of hospital to fly to Vietnam to fulfill a promise to help the country set up an eye health program.

On examining patients, Fred came across a little boy - Tran Van Giap as seen in the top banner of this page. Giap was seven years old at the time and had injured his right eye. He was in pain and suffering vision loss. Fred examined Giap and organised an operation.

In 2006, I had the pleasure of meeting Giap for the first time. Today, Tran Van Giap is a confident and able young man. He is the first of his farming family to attend university and hopes to become a teacher. His goal is to use his skills to help others - Fred would be so proud!

> Read Giap's wonderful letter to Gabi.