Waikato-based optometrist Kamaldeep Kaur is passionate about breaking down barriers to eye care.
Kamaldeep Kaur, centre front, on the Fiji outreach with fellow optometrist Elliott Lee, rear, nursing students and their lecturer.
Last year she travelled to Fiji with The Fred Hollows Foundation NZ, where she worked alongside nurses training in eye health.
For Kaur – who practices at Specsavers at The Base in Hamilton – the experience was deeply rewarding, an opportunity to share her expertise, support local health workers, and witness firsthand the life-changing impact of restored vision.
Kamaldeep Kaur.
She speaks passionately about the importance of the foundation’s work, noting how donations directly empower communities by funding training and sight-saving operations.
Every contribution helps reduce preventable blindness in the Pacific.
Nine out of 10 people who are blind in the region don’t need to be – their conditions are treatable.
Specsavers has reinforced this mission by releasing a new limited-edition range of frames designed in collaboration with renowned Māori artist Kura Te Waru Rewiri. For every pair sold, $25 will be donated to The Fred Hollows Foundation NZ, supporting initiatives like the Pacific Eye Institute in Fiji where Kamaldeep herself contributed.
The frames, inspired by Te Waru Rewiri’s celebrated work Puhoro Meets the Stripes III, weave cultural symbolism into modern design. While the artistry is striking, Kamaldeep sees the collaboration as more than aesthetics – it’s a tangible way to fund sight-saving programs and train the next generation of eye health professionals.
Since Specsavers began its partnership with The Fred Hollows Foundation NZ in 2009, over $1.4 million has been donated. Last year alone contributions supported 25,000 consultations and 3000 operations in Fiji. This year, the goal is to raise $75,000 – funds that will continue the work Kamaldeep experienced firsthand.
For Kaur, the message is clear: eyesight is precious, and improving eye health doesn’t just change individual lives – it strengthens entire communities.
The limited edition spectacles.
Kura Te Waru Rewiri
