Meet Ben Conti

Ben is a senior at Cranbrook School and busy with all the activities that the last year of school includes, especially tennis and hockey.

But Ben has had vision problems all of his life, including multiple eye surgeries and patching for stabilization. Now he wears both contact lenses and glasses all day, every day, and is comfortable doing everything using these tools to help him see well.

Ben was aware that his family was able to afford the treatments for his sight and wanted to help other children with the expenses of vision problems. He organized three tennis tournaments as fundraisers for VRRF. The biggest challenge was figuring out how to organize the tournaments, but once he decided that they should be fun and inclusive, the rest fell into place. About 80 kids participated and these three tournaments raised $18,000.

Ben has plans to major in business, international relations, or chemistry when he goes to college next year, but in the meantime, he has majored in heart. His empathy for other children with vision problems meant that many others benefitted from his drive and caring.

Thanks, Ben!

~ Kay White