Fareeda Salman hails from Gujjar Khan. In Pakistan’s Punjab, her hometown is known as the ‘land of martyrs.’ It is little wonder then, that its women are so strong.
At age 59, Fareeda Salman ought to be settling into a comfortable old-age, with her family and grandchildren around her. Instead, she’s grateful that she can continue working for a living. Fareeda and her husband raised seven children. After they all moved out and set up homes of their own, the two were left to fend for themselves. With her husband retired and all but disabled from old age, Fareeda was forced to take up work as a domestic servant.
The work is labour intensive and humbling. But while many women in her position would be troubled by the indignity and difficulty of such a job, Fareeda’s troubles lay elsewhere. She was losing her eyesight, which was beginning to hinder her work. She knew that she’d eventually lose her job without medical intervention. But with her meagre salary barely sufficient to feed herself and her husband, she couldn’t consult an optometrist. It was a catch 22 situation. Had it not been for AMWT’s eye-care camp in her hometown, Fareeda and her husband would be destitute today.
Our medical staff diagnosed Fareeda with cataract in both eyes. With a simple, inexpensive surgery that cost her nothing, her eyesight was restored to her. By the grace of Allah (swt) and through the ongoing generosity of AMWT donors, Fareeda was saved from suffering pointlessly with preventable blindness.
“Allah has made the world beautiful but I couldn’t see it properly,” Fareeda says. Recalling the impending darkness she faced two months ago, Fareeda points out that all her other troubles were secondary. The inability to see the beauty of the world Allah (swt) created would have been the hardest to bear. “But Alhamdullah,” she smiles “Now I can. I can also do my work properly.”
A mere £35 can give one woman like Fareeda Salman dignity and independence through the ability to see again. It can save a family from destitution. Please support our efforts. Give the gift of sight today.