For the first time in 18 years, Jose Rivera didn’t wake up and see the world as a vague blur. He finally saw his girlfriend and two young children clearly without needing to first reach for his glasses.
On the morning of Sept. 4, Dr. Michael Furlong of San Jose’s Furlong Vision Correction performed a LASIK procedure that completely transformed Rivera’s eyes. Once legally blind with 20/200 eyesight, Rivera now has 20/15 vision—better than 20/20 and more fitting of a fighter pilot.
“I know it’s going to make a big difference because I have to worry about my glasses before playing with my kids,” Rivera, 35, said of playtime with 23-month-old Hilda and 10-month-old Jose Jr.
“I don’t know how it feels to wear glasses every day, but I know it was uncomfortable so I’m happy for him,” said Anna Lustre, Rivera’s girlfriend and the mother of his children, after the procedure. “He won’t have to worry about glasses and them getting in the way of things.”
Now that his eyesight has improved, Rivera said he looks forward to doing things he hasn’t done since childhood—like horseback riding.
“I’ve noticed it’s not so much the things you can’t do, but over time, you realize the things you have avoided,” he said, explaining how poor eyesight altered his life. “My dad is a horse trainer and I used to go horseback riding a lot when I was younger. Looking back, that’s around the time I got away from horseback riding—when I started wearing glasses. You don’t want to deal with dropping your glasses and purchasing new ones, so you stay away from activities. Something I did almost daily became a once-in-a-while thing.”
An injury on the job a few years ago, while he was working as an installer of exterior shading, permanently disabled Rivera. He said he already had planned to get LASIK surgery—but the injury affected his finances, his health and his emotional well-being, dragging him down into one of his “worst times.”
“That part of my life kind of has me down, so this is really uplifting for me,” Rivera said. “I can forget about all the other stuff that’s going on and really be happy for what I’m getting and be appreciative.”
Once a valued possession, Rivera’s glasses are of no use to him now. He didn’t even bring them to Furlong Vision Correction Sept. 4 and joked with his family he was giving them away prior to the procedure.
“I’m stoked I’m not going to have to wear them. Never again,” Rivera said, laughing.
After the procedure—which lasted approximately 15 minutes—Rivera’s girlfriend, mother and sister greeted him with open arms. A few hugs later, and Rivera was holding his two young children.
Rivera had a follow-up appointment with Furlong on Sept. 5, and he knew his eyesight improved the moment he woke up. Sitting in the passenger seat as Lustre drove him to San Jose, Rivera was able to read the license plates of the cars in front of them and the signs on the road he said were usually too blurry.
Rivera is one of 10 people who will receive free laser vision correction surgery this year through Furlong’s “Gift of Sight” program. Furlong started the program in 2002, offering free LASIK to people who don’t have the money to pay for a procedure that can change their lives for the better.
“As physicians, we’re in a position to greatly impact peoples’ lives,” Furlong said minutes after Rivera’s procedure. “Although I’m in a private practice and I have a business to run, I find it rewarding to give back some of the blessings and benefits I’ve developed over time to the community. I wasn’t aware of any program that provided laser vision correction to people who would benefit, but can’t afford it.”
Since he was fully trained and credentialed to perform laser vision correction in 1997, Furlong said he’s completed more than 30,000 procedures.
Rivera’s procedure, called custom bladeless LASIK, would have cost him roughly $6,000. Since it’s considered elective surgery and isn’t a medical necessity, insurance doesn’t always pay for it. The reason Furlong gives away the gift of sight is simple—it improves the quality of life.
“It’s like taking them back to when they were 10 years old and had perfect vision,” Furlong said. “For most people who have LASIK, they could continue to wear glasses or contacts but they choose not to, but for those who struggle with that or have issues and cannot afford it, I think it makes a huge difference in their lives.”
About a month ago, Rivera learned about “Gift of Sight” during a meeting with his optometrist in Morgan Hill. His optometrist, Dr. Carolyn Baker, told him about the opportunity and completed a test to see if he qualified. Two years ago, Furlong opened up the program to optometric partners across South County and since the program’s inception he’s involved nonprofits in patient selection.
“There are several eye doctors who refer patients to me in the community and they are the ones who see routinely see patients like Jose,” Furlong explained. “Over the past two years, we’ve opened up the nominees to our optometric partners—eye doctors in the community who know people like Jose who have a compelling story.”
A week after Baker told him about the program, Rivera’s family found out he had been chosen. Rivera’s sister threw a surprise party and invited local kids to line the path leading to their home holding signs that together read: “you are the winner of laser surgery.” When Rivera came home, donning his glasses, he found out his dream had come true.
“It was the best feeling,” Rivera said, recalling the moment he found out. “When you’ve had a couple bad situations and you get news like that—I’d never really won anything—it was just mind-blowing.”
According to Furlong, custom bladeless LASIK provides a 98 percent chance of 20/20 vision or better. Even though Rivera can see clearly now, he said he still has the urge to grab for his glasses. But when he puts them on, it’s a different story.
“I have tried them on and my eyesight through the glasses is blurry,” he said. “That’s another way the world’s telling me I don’t need them; I can’t see with them on anymore.”
