Written by Mary Ashley Canevaro
Each year in April, National Volunteer Week encourages individuals and groups to harness a spirit of service and outreach in their local communities. By participating in civic engagement, disenfranchised groups are helped, and volunteers experience joy and fulfillment from giving back.
At Heersink School of Medicine, our faculty, staff, trainees, and students volunteer in varying roles. From jumping into action when natural disaster strikes to collecting coats during the severe cold and rebuilding the lives of men experiencing homeless, Heersink prides itself on the ways our people make a difference every day.
One group within the school is making a significant difference to children with vision impairment and their families. Organized and hosted by the UAB Center for Low Vision Rehabilitation in the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, the Songs for Sight Youth Low Vision Support Group brings together children with low vision or vision impairment with an opportunity to connect with other children like them. The Songs for Sight Youth Low Vision Support Group meets several times a year, but the weekend retreat is an annual gathering that offers relaxation, support, and encouragement to children with permanent vision impairment (VI) and their families.
