A local customer of a high street opticians in South West London transformed her regular treks to the South East Asian island of Sri Lanka when she offered to take hundreds of used glasses and distribute them among rural communities.

Retired assistant principal at Capital City College Group, and a resident of East Molesey, Marcia Summers has been visiting Sri Lanka since 2013, when she first went on holiday there with her family.

After falling in love with the country, many more trips have taken place over the last 12 years, and many miles of trekking around the island have been clocked up.

Over the course of the years, Marcia has built up partnerships with local charities, NGOs and community elders.

Resident of the Elder Home – Central Highlands, Sri Lanka (Image supplied)

It was a chance conversation with the retail director of Specsavers Kingston upon Thames, Guy Loveday, who was fitting a pair of new glasses for her, that first led to Marcia enquiring about spare pairs of glasses.

Summers said: "I happened to be chatting with Guy about my forthcoming visit to Sri Lanka, when I asked if he ever had any unwanted glasses. I was delighted when he offered to donate around 300 pairs complete with prescription lenses.

"During my recent visit, I volunteered in an Elder home in a remote part of the Central Highlands district. The home is resident to retired tea plantation estate workers.

"During the short time I was there, I noticed that no one was wearing glasses, However, during the afternoon when we played board games, I could see some of the residents squinting because they couldn't see properly."

She continued: "I discussed setting up an optical project at the Elder home and organising for a local optician to assess the lenses and match them to the elders' needs. In total around 30 residents will benefit from this project.

 "It's really uplifting to have stayed with the elders who will really value the glasses which will enhance their day to day lives, particularly because of failing sight and the fact that they cannot afford a sight test or to buy glasses."

 Summers revealed that an amazing outcome of this initiative is that the senior manager of the tea plantation, who oversees the Elder home, has said he would like to extend the optical project to support villagers living in the local rural community.

He is now in discussion with the plantation's senior management team to formalise the donation of glasses, with shipping costs from the UK to Sri Lanka being explored for the future.

During her recent visit, Summers also visited a Women's Development Centre in Kandy who offer support to women and girls who have suffered from domestic violence.

Over 200 pairs of glasses were donated there, which will benefit the communities around Kandy.

During her trek around the island, further donations were made to a monk who oversees a small Buddhist village in Kurunagula. The monk has distributed the glasses to the local communities he works with.

Summers added: "It's wonderful that these unwanted glasses are being given a new lease of life for people who really value them, as they will make a huge difference to their day to day living."

Guy Loveday said: "We're delighted to be helping those people who are less fortunate and cannot afford access to eye care and to buy glasses.

"I'm very grateful to Marcia for her laudable work and the connections she has made across the Sri Lankan community. We will continue to support further projects in the future, and we wish Marcia well."

Specsavers recommends that adults and children should have an eye test at least every two years, or more often if advised by their optician.

The NHS will cover the full cost of an eye test for anyone who qualifies. All children under 16, as well as those under 19 in full-time education, are entitled to an NHS funded eye test.

To book in for an eye test or hearing check, contact Specsavers Kingston upon Thames on 020 8974 6677 or book online here.