The Boys & Girls Club eye care location opened in Newark Wednesday.
NEWARK -- Believe it -- more Newark kids will be seeing clearly, thanks to a new city eye care center that will be free for low-income kids.
Eye Care 4 Kids, a nonprofit started by a Utah optician, has partnered with the Boys & Girls Club of Newark to open a new eye care facility that will be available to low-income Newark children at no cost.
The center, which is in a newly-renovated section of the Boys & Girls Club facility in the city's Central Ward, held a grand opening celebration Wednesday.
"This is beyond glasses," EC4K Founder Joseph Carbone said in a phone interview about the new office in Newark. "This is about seeing, and reading, and literacy...we want to help give every child in Newark the ability to get a good education. If you can't see the board, you can't do that."
According to Boys & Girls Club officials, this is the only free eye clinic in all of their New Jersey locations. It joins several other similar initiatives in the 33,000 square foot Newark building, including a free pediatric dental office and a free wellness center for mental health.
The pediatric eye care center is equipped, they said, with state-of-the-art technology, and will offer full exams and new glasses to underprivileged Newark kids.
"We have a philosophy of serving the whole child," Newark B&GC CEO Paul Scire said.
"We want to remove as many barriers as possible (so kids can) have a great chance to succeed in school and in life."
Carbone said he anticipates the center serving thousands of city kids in its first few years of operation. Now, the Boys & Girls Club sees about 1,000 kids in its after school programs each day. The eye care initiative will be co-funded by the two nonprofits and their partner organizations.
"That's the miracle of this, collaboration," Carbone said. "You have to find organizations that can work together to do good things."
Jessica Mazzola may be reached at jmazzola@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @JessMazzola. Find NJ.com on Facebook.