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Giving back and expanding access to vision care have been part of the National Vision Inc (NVI). business philosophy for many years now. The company operates America’s Best, Eyeglass World, certain Walmart Vision Centers, Vista Opticals in select Fred Meyer stores and Vista on military bases. In this particular year, NVI’s CEO Reade Fahs told VM, “Undaunted by the many challenges of the pandemic, National Vision continued ahead with our philanthropic and social mission efforts. In fact, we broadened and expanded them.”

In August of this year, the company in fact issued its first ever Philanthropic Impact Report tracing its 2019 activities in a range of programs and initiatives. The entire report can be downloaded as a PDF here: https://www.nationalvision.com/media/1503/nvi_impactreport_2019_singlepages_small.pdf

Among NVI’s 2020 Philanthropic efforts, here are some highlights:





• In April 2020, in response to the COVID-19 crisis, National Vision donated 40,000 units of PPE to assist first responders and hospitals.

• Since March 2020, more than $720,000 has been granted to National Vision associates and doctors through the National Vision Crisis Relief Fund (which was launched in 2019.) Of this, more than $230,000 was donated by National Vision associates and doctors themselves.

• The company launched National Vision Cares, a program to provide each of the ocmpany’s 1,200 stores with two pairs of glasses and two eye exams every month to give away as the store chooses—a combined total of 57,600 pairs of glasses and exams each year to give back to our communities.

• America’s Best Contacts & Eyeglasses became the sole sponsor of the Summer Enrichment Program of the Pennsylvania College of Optometry at Salus University, which works to increase the number of Black Indigenous People of Color (BIPOC) in the optometric profession (a $300,000 through a five-year commitment).

• National Vision was one of the three lead sponsors of Black EyeCare Perspective’s HBCU Impact project to promote Optometry on the campuses of HBCUs.

• Through the “Made Locally, Given Globally” program, the Eyeglass World in-store labs manufactures eyeglasses for those in need in developing countries. Since its inception in 2020, the program had produced more than 79,000 pairs of glasses and distributed more than 18,000 pairs to people in 25 countries around the world.

• In honor of National Vision’s 30th anniversary, National Vision donated 30,000 eyeglasses to VisionSpring, a nonprofit social enterprise that strives to improve social and economic development around the world by increasing access to affordable eyecare.

• National Vision continued to support the Clear Vision Collective in Bangladesh as one of its 10 founding organizations. Now in its second year, the Collective managed to screen over 58,000 people and provide glasses to 10,000 people despite the pandemic.

• This year, National Vision funded 17,000 pairs of glasses to RestoringVision in honor of the organization’s milestone of having helped 17 million people. RestoringVision is the largest provider of new reading glasses to people living in impoverished communities around the world.

• Kevin Hassey became board chair of Restoring Vision this year and Reade Fahs continued on in his chairmanship of VisionSpring.

• Overall, National Vision’s businesses have sponsored glasses philanthropically for a quarter of a million people in 2020.