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The sight of Africa
One college student sees the difference volunteers make
during her trip to an eye clinic in Sierra Leone
By MAUREEN SIMPSON
msimpson@islandpacket.com
843-706-8141
Published by Island Packet
In helping residents from a small village in Sierra Leone, West Africa, get their vision back this summer, Skyler Griffin
gained a little clarity herself.
The rising junior at Southern Methodist University, who graduated from Hilton Head Preparatory School in 2006, spent two
weeks of June working at Southern Eye Clinic in Serabu. As a biology and anthropology major with a focus on
pre-medicine, Griffin said she always has had an interest in applying her studies on an international level. She and two
other college friends were able to arrange the trip to Africa through a family connection, ophthalmologist and Memphis,
Tenn., resident Cathy Schanzer.
Schanzer and her husband, Tom Lewis, have been doing medical mission work in Africa since 1988 and established a
permanent eye clinic and surgical center in Serabu at the beginning of 2006. While the free clinic operates year-round with
local employees, the couple travels to Serabu every January and June for Schanzer to treat hundreds of patients with
cataracts, tumors, growths of the cornea and glaucoma. Griffin and her friends, Katrina Patterson and Ross Johnson, were
able to tag along in June as volunteers.
"It was an amazing experience, because I realized just how much is possible when you make an effort. One person can
make a whole country's difference," said Griffin, noting that Schanzer was the first doctor to come to the small West African
village in more than a decade when she first started her work there.
"We were able to help well over 250 people in a matter of two weeks. With surgeries alone, Cathy was able to make 153
people see again," Griffin said. "We saw people being led into the clinic completely blind, and in the same day, they were
able to walk out by themselves being able to see again. That was one of the most gratifying things I have ever witnessed."
In spite of the challenges posed by Sierra Leone's war-torn infrastructure, Schanzer said she has been able to perform
modern surgeries at Southern Eye Clinic, which operates off a generator, well water and basic medical equipment and
supplies. The number one cause of blindness in the country are cataracts, she said, and "the need is phenomenal."
"It's a very underdeveloped country with a lot of civil unrest. Rebels destroyed the infrastructure, so they never can get
past the basic needs of every day," Schanzer said. "They don't get access to health care. They don't get anything. But we
just do what we can."
At the clinic, Griffin said she helped diagnose patients, take their eye pressure, administer medication and read the charts
of post-op patients. She also was able to scrub in on a few eye surgeries.
"I couldn't have gotten that kind of hands-on experience anywhere else," Griffin said. "The surgeries Cathy does are
extremely significant. Her and Tom's clinic is the only eye clinic in all of Sierra Leone, so people travel from all over the
country and neighboring countries to get their eyes treated. Without them, any sort of eye care would be close to nothing.
Simple complications or accidents that can be easily fixed with eye drops or a quick visit to the eye doctor in the states, turn
into blindness or completely losing an eye in Sierra Leone."
When she wasn't assisting Schanzer at the clinic, Griffin said she had the opportunity to work in the local Christian and
Muslim mission schools. She and the other students who traveled with her were asked to teach a lesson. They also
organized a number of games for children in the village to play, including a warmly received water balloon toss.
"These people and kids have been through unimaginable pain and have so little, but they still smile and have so much
hope," Griffin said. "It really puts life into perspective."
When Griffin returns to school in the fall, she and Patterson plan to organize a number of fundraising events for the village
through a campus group they're calling "Saving Serabu." Money that is raised through their efforts will go toward providing
textbooks, establishing a library, getting clean water for drinking and supporting the eye clinic.
"I definitely plan to go back to the village, but this trip also gave me the desire to travel more," Griffin said. "It's one thing to
hear about the needs that are out there, but it's a completely different experience when you see them for yourself."
No. 1 problem: cataracts
According to Cathy Schanzer, an ophthalmologist from Memphis, Tenn., who started Southern Eye Clinic at a small village
in Sierra Leone, cataracts are the number one cause of blindness in third world countries. A cataract is a clouding of the
eye's natural lens due to protein buildup. Every January and June, Schanzer travels to Sierra Leone to perform hundreds
of cataract surgeries. Last month, Hilton Head Island resident Skyler Griffin was able to work as a volunteer with Schanzer
for two weeks.
One college student sees the difference volunteers make
during her trip to an eye clinic in Sierra Leone
By MAUREEN SIMPSON
msimpson@islandpacket.com
843-706-8141
Published by Island Packet
In helping residents from a small village in Sierra Leone, West Africa, get their vision back this summer, Skyler Griffin
gained a little clarity herself.
The rising junior at Southern Methodist University, who graduated from Hilton Head Preparatory School in 2006, spent two
weeks of June working at Southern Eye Clinic in Serabu. As a biology and anthropology major with a focus on
pre-medicine, Griffin said she always has had an interest in applying her studies on an international level. She and two
other college friends were able to arrange the trip to Africa through a family connection, ophthalmologist and Memphis,
Tenn., resident Cathy Schanzer.
Schanzer and her husband, Tom Lewis, have been doing medical mission work in Africa since 1988 and established a
permanent eye clinic and surgical center in Serabu at the beginning of 2006. While the free clinic operates year-round with
local employees, the couple travels to Serabu every January and June for Schanzer to treat hundreds of patients with
cataracts, tumors, growths of the cornea and glaucoma. Griffin and her friends, Katrina Patterson and Ross Johnson, were
able to tag along in June as volunteers.
"It was an amazing experience, because I realized just how much is possible when you make an effort. One person can
make a whole country's difference," said Griffin, noting that Schanzer was the first doctor to come to the small West African
village in more than a decade when she first started her work there.
"We were able to help well over 250 people in a matter of two weeks. With surgeries alone, Cathy was able to make 153
people see again," Griffin said. "We saw people being led into the clinic completely blind, and in the same day, they were
able to walk out by themselves being able to see again. That was one of the most gratifying things I have ever witnessed."
In spite of the challenges posed by Sierra Leone's war-torn infrastructure, Schanzer said she has been able to perform
modern surgeries at Southern Eye Clinic, which operates off a generator, well water and basic medical equipment and
supplies. The number one cause of blindness in the country are cataracts, she said, and "the need is phenomenal."
"It's a very underdeveloped country with a lot of civil unrest. Rebels destroyed the infrastructure, so they never can get
past the basic needs of every day," Schanzer said. "They don't get access to health care. They don't get anything. But we
just do what we can."
At the clinic, Griffin said she helped diagnose patients, take their eye pressure, administer medication and read the charts
of post-op patients. She also was able to scrub in on a few eye surgeries.
"I couldn't have gotten that kind of hands-on experience anywhere else," Griffin said. "The surgeries Cathy does are
extremely significant. Her and Tom's clinic is the only eye clinic in all of Sierra Leone, so people travel from all over the
country and neighboring countries to get their eyes treated. Without them, any sort of eye care would be close to nothing.
Simple complications or accidents that can be easily fixed with eye drops or a quick visit to the eye doctor in the states, turn
into blindness or completely losing an eye in Sierra Leone."
When she wasn't assisting Schanzer at the clinic, Griffin said she had the opportunity to work in the local Christian and
Muslim mission schools. She and the other students who traveled with her were asked to teach a lesson. They also
organized a number of games for children in the village to play, including a warmly received water balloon toss.
"These people and kids have been through unimaginable pain and have so little, but they still smile and have so much
hope," Griffin said. "It really puts life into perspective."
When Griffin returns to school in the fall, she and Patterson plan to organize a number of fundraising events for the village
through a campus group they're calling "Saving Serabu." Money that is raised through their efforts will go toward providing
textbooks, establishing a library, getting clean water for drinking and supporting the eye clinic.
"I definitely plan to go back to the village, but this trip also gave me the desire to travel more," Griffin said. "It's one thing to
hear about the needs that are out there, but it's a completely different experience when you see them for yourself."
No. 1 problem: cataracts
According to Cathy Schanzer, an ophthalmologist from Memphis, Tenn., who started Southern Eye Clinic at a small village
in Sierra Leone, cataracts are the number one cause of blindness in third world countries. A cataract is a clouding of the
eye's natural lens due to protein buildup. Every January and June, Schanzer travels to Sierra Leone to perform hundreds
of cataract surgeries. Last month, Hilton Head Island resident Skyler Griffin was able to work as a volunteer with Schanzer
for two weeks.
| Serving Africa... One Eye at a Time |
Copyright 2012 Southern Eye Institute Directors & Company Information
2011 Outstanding Humanitarian Service Award - Press Release
October 22, 2011
Mary Cathleen Schanzer, MD, was nominated by the Baylor Ophthalmology Alumni Association to receive this year's
Outstanding Humanitarian Service Award.
Dr. Schanzer is a medical director and chief surgeon at Southern Eye Associates in Memphis, Tenn., and mother to seven
adopted children. It was in the third grade, after listening to a missionary priest talk about his work and adventures, that a
powerful revelation grabbed her and she decided that her life's work would include being a medical missionary. Her
missionary work began 27 years later in 1988 in a small Nigerian village named Abak. She was determined to make her first
self-service mission opportunity the best it could be.
Dr. Schanzer's greatest missionary challenge came in 2004 when Sierra Leone's Archbishop asked her to establish a
medical/surgical eye clinic in his home village of Serabu. Serabu is located in a remote area of Sierra Leone, a country
recovering from a long and brutal civil war. Sierra Leone presented an enormous challenge because the entire
infrastructure of the country had been destroyed, including most of the nation's medical facilities. For the first time in her
missionary career, she would not be using an established facility with power, water and electricity reasonably available. In
2006 all of the challenges were met for the opening of Southern Eye Clinic of Serabu. Water wells were dug, generators
were purchased and modern surgical equipment was installed. Her prayers were fulfilled but because she did not have
financial aid to support her work, her life savings had been depleted. Fortunately, last year more than 400 people donated
over 50 percent of the clinic's operating budget. Each year the resources for Southern Eye Institute continue to grow.
The reputation of the Southern Eye Clinic of Serabu also continues to grow. Patients travel on foot for days from the
neighboring six countries in West Africa to have eye surgery by Dr. Schanzer. The surgical load has been so great that, for
the last five years, Dr. Schanzer has been traveling to Serabu twice a year to perform more than 200 surgeries per trip.
These surgeries are in addition to the more than 1,000 clinic patients also treated. The clinic, with its full-time staff of 17
employees, has expanded its operations to eight different villages. Southern Eye Clinic of Serabu is open year round,
providing eye care, medicine and glasses. All services, medicine, glasses and surgeries are provided for free.
Dr. Schanzer is described as a humble and private person. Her efforts with the poor and the needy are part of her spiritual
nutrition. She represents the very highest elements of quality character with the exceptional training and the compassion to
share with those less fortunate, not only in America but abroad. The Academy is proud to honor Dr. Mary Cathleen
Schanzer with this year's Outstanding Humanitarian Service Award.
October 22, 2011
Mary Cathleen Schanzer, MD, was nominated by the Baylor Ophthalmology Alumni Association to receive this year's
Outstanding Humanitarian Service Award.
Dr. Schanzer is a medical director and chief surgeon at Southern Eye Associates in Memphis, Tenn., and mother to seven
adopted children. It was in the third grade, after listening to a missionary priest talk about his work and adventures, that a
powerful revelation grabbed her and she decided that her life's work would include being a medical missionary. Her
missionary work began 27 years later in 1988 in a small Nigerian village named Abak. She was determined to make her first
self-service mission opportunity the best it could be.
Dr. Schanzer's greatest missionary challenge came in 2004 when Sierra Leone's Archbishop asked her to establish a
medical/surgical eye clinic in his home village of Serabu. Serabu is located in a remote area of Sierra Leone, a country
recovering from a long and brutal civil war. Sierra Leone presented an enormous challenge because the entire
infrastructure of the country had been destroyed, including most of the nation's medical facilities. For the first time in her
missionary career, she would not be using an established facility with power, water and electricity reasonably available. In
2006 all of the challenges were met for the opening of Southern Eye Clinic of Serabu. Water wells were dug, generators
were purchased and modern surgical equipment was installed. Her prayers were fulfilled but because she did not have
financial aid to support her work, her life savings had been depleted. Fortunately, last year more than 400 people donated
over 50 percent of the clinic's operating budget. Each year the resources for Southern Eye Institute continue to grow.
The reputation of the Southern Eye Clinic of Serabu also continues to grow. Patients travel on foot for days from the
neighboring six countries in West Africa to have eye surgery by Dr. Schanzer. The surgical load has been so great that, for
the last five years, Dr. Schanzer has been traveling to Serabu twice a year to perform more than 200 surgeries per trip.
These surgeries are in addition to the more than 1,000 clinic patients also treated. The clinic, with its full-time staff of 17
employees, has expanded its operations to eight different villages. Southern Eye Clinic of Serabu is open year round,
providing eye care, medicine and glasses. All services, medicine, glasses and surgeries are provided for free.
Dr. Schanzer is described as a humble and private person. Her efforts with the poor and the needy are part of her spiritual
nutrition. She represents the very highest elements of quality character with the exceptional training and the compassion to
share with those less fortunate, not only in America but abroad. The Academy is proud to honor Dr. Mary Cathleen
Schanzer with this year's Outstanding Humanitarian Service Award.