neighbors
“WHEN MY GRANDFATHER GOT GLASSES FOR THE FIRST TIME, THE WORLD
REALLY OPENED UP FOR HIM. THAT’S WHY HE ALWAYS DONATED OLD FRAMES TO
NEW EYES FOR THE NEEDY. I HOPE TO MAKE MY GRANDPA PROUD.”
JAKE GYLLENHAAL
SHE RELATES TO NEW EYES’
MISSION.
A neighborhood friend, recogniz-
ing Gajano’s organizational and fun-
draising savvy, suggested she apply
for community relations coordinator
at New Eyes for the Needy. Gajano
was hired for the job in 2009, and
in 2013, she became the executive
director overseeing daily operations,
as well as managing grant writing
and fundraising.
“The mission resonated with me.
I myself have very bad eyesight,” she
says of her myopia. “I discovered
this little jewel that I didn’t know
existed.”
Actor Jake Gyllenhaal felt a con-
nection to the organization as well.
He has been its spokesperson since
2007.
“When my grandfather got glasses
for the first time, the world really
opened up for him,” Gyllenhaal is
quoted as saying on the nonprofit’s
website, new-eyes.org. “That’s why
he always donated old frames to
New Eyes for the Needy. I hope to
make my grandpa proud.”
GAJANO BELIEVES THAT PEOPLE
NEED ACCESS AND AFFORDABILITY.
Two billion people worldwide
struggle with poor eyesight, but 30
percent do not have access to medical
professionals to fit them with proper
prescription lenses, according to New
16
MAY 2019 MILLBURN & SHORT HILLS MAGAZINE
from paper to electronic applications,
reducing candidate waiting lists and
providing qualified clients their glass-
es within a week, versus a previous
two-month wait. Meanwhile, New
Eyes’ partnership with manufacturer
FEA Industries has cut bifocal and
single-lens frames from $63 to $23
per pair. FEA provides the glasses to
New Eyes at cost.
New Eyes Glasses for the Needy
provided 14,000 new prescription
glasses this past year, up from 6,000
in 2015, according to the executive
director.
SHE THINKS THAT CLEAR VISION
LEADS TO BETTER QUALITY OF LIFE.
With proper prescriptions, chil-
dren learn and focus better in the
classroom. Adults have better job
opportunities and can drive safely to
work. Senior citizens can read their
prescriptions and walk around their
block without stumbling.
“It’s a hand up, not a hand out,”
Gajano says.
She gives much credit to her staff
and a community committed to vol-
unteerism. In addition to administra-
tive volunteers answering phone calls
and emails, 250 people sort the used
glasses for overseas distribution.
CLEAR-SIGHTED (Top) New Eyes for the
Needy spokesperson Jake Gyllenhaal; (Above)
Gabi from Summit enjoys her new glasses.
Eyes for the Needy.
Eyeglasses can also be price-
prohibitive at an average cost of
$200 per pair. That can be out of
reach for 84 percent of the 14 mil-
lion Americans who need corrective
lenses but live below the federal
poverty level.
Since becoming executive director,
Gajano and her staff have switched
UNDER GAJANO’S LEADERSHIP, NEW
EYES LAUNCHED ITS 20/20 FOR 2020
CAMPAIGN.
In 2016, the organization launched
the project with a goal to distribute
$1 million in new eyeglasses and 1
million pairs of used eyewear by next
year. New Eyes reached $650,000
in new glasses and 625,000 used
glasses, as of March.
“We don’t want to ever again put
anybody on a waiting list,” Gajano
says. ■
GABI:
After Alberto’s recovery, much
of Gajano’s work outside the home
became more charitable in nature.
She was one of the founders of the
Chatham Education Foundation,
raising money for activities that the
school district couldn’t afford, and
she served on the Chatham Board
of Education from 2000 to 2006.