Blind 12-Year-Old Puts On Electronic Glasses And Looks At Mom. What He Says? She Can’t Stop Crying!

When doctors told one Virginia mom there was nothing they could do to help her blind son – she vowed to prove them wrong.

Now, with the help of brand-new technology, Marquita Hackley’s 12-year-old son Christopher Ward Jr., may finally be able to see.

Marquita and her fifth grade son recently traveled to Washington, D.C. from their home in Forest, Virginia.

They went to try eSight, a new wearable technology that allows people with vision loss to see. 

 

Marquita’s son was born with optic nerve hypoplasia, which means that before birth, his optic nerve never fully developed. 

Marquita, 32, told ABC News that her son ‘only has little light perception in his left eye and very, very low vision in his right eye.’ 

‘Something has to be up in his face, almost touching for him to see it,’ she told ABC News.

‘And even though Chris wears glasses on a daily basis, they’re more for protection than vision, because there is a strong possibility he could lose the little sight he does have if were to get hurt or hit on the face,’ Marquita added. 

After her son tried the eSight device, like any mother would, Marquita became emotional when her son began to see. 

 ‘He really hasn’t seen anything for the first 12 years his life,’ she said tearfully.

‘The very first thing he did was turn to me and say, ‘Oh, Mommy! There you are!’ Hackley told ABC News. 

‘And then to hear him say, ‘I saw my mom, and she was very pretty,’ was so heartwarming.’

‘And aside from pretty, just the fact he could even see me meant the whole world to me.’

According to the company’s website, the eSight device is a hands-free headset.

It has a small, high-speed camera that captures live video. This is then sent to a LED screen in front of the person’s eyes who are wearing them. 

It allows them to see with ‘unprecedented visual clarity,’ the website says. 

By using the innovative device, Chris has had the opportunity to watch his favorite show SpongeBob Squarepants. 

Marquita told ABC News that before he wore the device he had to be ‘directly up on the TV’ to see anything.

Despite being so close to the screen, Marquita claims that ‘even then, he still couldn’t see all that clearly.’

Marquita’s insurance does not cover the $15,000 cost for the glasses, so she started a YouCaring.com campaign to raise the money. 

So far, more than $25,000 has been donated since the fundraiser was launched April 27. 

Marquita hopes that the device will help her son learn how to read and write print, as he currently uses a braille.  

‘Christopher is just a very loving kid, always happy and never complains about anything,’ Marquita told ABC News. ‘I’ll do anything to help get him what he deserves.’