By Roosevelt Leftwich
You know something big is about to happen when the hype man shows up.
It’s even more special when the
Cavs‘ Moondog comes in.
There’s no game and no score to keep, but it’s always a special day when your world suddenly comes into focus.
Shelton Goosby Jr. is 4.
Shelton Goosby Sr. is older and said his little dude is continuing a family tradition of sorts.
“We all wear glasses — me, his mom, his grandmother, his sister. So, you know, it was about time. Yeah, it’s a family thing,” Shelton Sr. said.
New glasses are always something to celebrate. And thanks to a team-up of the Cavs and Kaulig Giving, dozens of children at Cleveland’s Whitney M. Young PreK-8 school got to party with their new specs.
“We can certainly bring it and have kids get engaged and interested in something that they really need and make something that might seem a little scary — like an eye exam — more fun.” Cavs Foundation Executive Director Pam Frasco said.
Back in February, the nonprofit Vision to Learn provided free eye exams to children all across the
Cleveland Metropolitan School District, to identify young folks with vision issues and provide extra glasses to children who already had them.
For school-age children, good vision mean they can do better in class and get better grades. It can open up a new world of learning and make going to school a lot easier.
“It’s important for us to focus on all children in our area and [provide] what they need to be important and successful,” Stacey Langal with Kaulig Giving said.
Some got their first pair of glasses, while others got updated prescriptions and a little tougher frames that will be perfect for young folks — like 6-year-old Allyiah, who doesn’t like to stand still.
“She loves trampolines, jump-roping outside and inside. She’s a kid, so I love that she’s still a kid,” Elexis Wells, Allyiah’s mom, said.
But whether it was the first pair or a spare, getting new glasses any time is pretty cool. It really is a party, in fact.
In all, more than 300 CMSD students will get a new pair of glasses.