Little Eyes, Big Impact

Some might consider Steve Schafebook, the KidSight screener and social services case manager in VisionCorps’ Lebanon office, to be “a big kid.”

“I love doing KidSight screenings,” said Steve, who visits day care and preschool centers to screen the eyes of children aged 6 months to 6-years-old using a SPOT refractor camera. “I really like talking with kids as part of the education we include with each screening.

“When I introduce C. Well Bunny (a puppet) we talk about having pets,” said Steve, “and they talk about their pets, they sing and say funny things. It’s a time when they’re allowed to be goofy!”

It’s also informative, said Steve, who’s been doing KidSight screening for about seven years. He said the children learn about good food to eat to keep their eyes healthy and how to protect their eyes from injuries.

He is one of three KidSight screeners. Two others are in the VisionCorps’ Lancaster and York / Adams Counties offices. Together, they screen a lot of children. In 2024, the KidSight screeners saw more than 11,000 children in the five-county region served by VisionCorps.

It’s an important service to help kids and families get ready for future learning. Children don’t know what they can’t see – and often don’t have the words to be able to tell anyone. “I tell them to look at the goofy camera,” he said. “Some love it and want to be first, others are a bit nervous until they see how easy it is.

“If they ask, I’ll show them the picture – then they get excited, and say, “woah, is that my eye?”

“Others are unsure about it because the eye photo looks generic, and they will say, ‘that’s not my eye, my eyes are brown.”

Vision screenings can identify concerns with the eye early so that children can have the problems corrected. “I noted an astigmatism in one child and the teacher said, oh that makes sense. That’s why he was not paying attention, he could have been struggling to see what we were doing.”

Steve appreciates that this technology can be used to help children and families.

“Children may present having had behavioral issues or learning problems when it could just be an undiagnosed eye condition.

“It’s cool we can be a part of helping and hopefully have a little fun in the process.”