Roy Helm knew he had a problem when he had to turn his whole head to see whether any traffic was coming from his left, rather than just glancing that direction.

And the problem was that Helm, a 61-year-old Wichitan who has been self-employed since 1992 and unable to afford health insurance, knew he didn't have $3,200 to have the cataract removed.

Helm is seeing clearly today because of a program called A Gift of Sight Day, and its organizers are looking for people who could benefit from free cataract surgery this year.

On Nov. 18, four Wichita physicians from Team Vision Surgery Center will spend the day removing cataracts from the eyes of people who otherwise couldn't afford the procedure. Last year, they did 52 procedures in addition to Helm's.

Helm happened onto the program by chance. An eye doctor's office had called him about doing a singing telegram -- he also does Elvis impersonations -- and he joked that he'd do it for free if they'd do cataract surgery for free. They laughed but told him about the Gift of Sight program.

People can be referred to the program by their optometrists or physicians or can call Team Vision at 316-681-2020. They will be scheduled for a screening appointment and will fill out a financial hardship form. If the evaluation shows they qualify, they'll be scheduled for surgery. Free follow-up care and glasses are part of the program.

Helm said his surgery went well: "Everybody was very, very friendly, very nice." The procedure took about 45 minutes, and his wife, Evelyn, was able to watch it on a television screen.

Helm asked that his new lens be made "a little bit nearsighted" to compensate for the farsightedness in his left eye. He can read and drive without glasses, but he got glasses "because my vision is not 100 percent, and I'm starting to get a cataract in the other one. But I can read my Bible or anything with that left eye."

The cataract surgery "cost us not one penny," so the entertainment was his way of saying thanks. "I've worked since I was 12," he said. "I paid for all of my own stuff from the time I was 12 on, so I've never been a something-for-nothing guy."

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