Board Spotlight: Cira Collins, GVUSA Board Member

Cira Collins brings nearly 20 years of optical experience and a lifelong passion for vision care to GoodVision USA’s board of directors. An ABOM Master in Ophthalmic Optics and Continuing Education speaker, she has worked across every facet of opticianry and previously built a career in international public health. Her global perspective and dedication to learning continue to drive her mission to make quality eyecare accessible to all. 

We caught up with her for a quick Q&A: 

Q: What excites and inspires you most about GoodVision’s mission?

A: “With a history of working in rural West Africa as a Peace Corps Volunteer, I understand what it takes to build capacity in the poorest corners of the world. GoodVision boldly seeks to serve the neediest with the most potent public health intervention ever.”

Q: What’s been a highlight of your time on the board so far?

A: “Winning the NOW Award for Optical Achievement was a course-changing moment and a joy to be part of! It was really exciting to be acknowledged as a game changer among other great organizations doing all sorts of work. This pointed to the future of eyecare being invested in solving the unmet vision need crisis together.”

Q: What keeps you inspired to support this work?

A: “My colleagues at GoodVision, both in the US and Internationally, share some very key values: 1) We support country programs in doing the work they need in their communities. We don’t tell them what to do or how to do it. 2) We don’t provide free glasses. Research demonstrates free does not create value. 3) We do things the right way, not necessarily the easy way. 4) Partnership with GoodVision is not just about being able to point and say you’re a part of something, it’s about actually BEING a part of a movement.”

Q: What are the strengths, skills, and experiences that you bring to GVUSA to advance our mission?

A: “With a master’s degree and a career in the field of International Public Health and Development, a career in nonprofit health management and now a third career in the optical industry, I marry all three of my careers in this work.”

Q: What’s a fun fact people might not know about you?

A: “While it’s nothing like living in a mud hut in Africa, my family likes to free camp (also called dry camping). The Pacific Northwest that I call home has a lot of forest roads where we can tuck in and find a magical little piece of nature for a weekend.”

Q: What’s a favorite book, podcast, or quote that inspires you?

A: “I love the Marianne Williamson poem:

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is our light, not our darkness
That most frightens us.

We ask ourselves
Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?
Actually, who are you not to be? (Stop here if needed to be a quote rather than a poem)
You are a child of God.

Your playing small
Does not serve the world.
There’s nothing enlightened about shrinking
So that other people won’t feel insecure around you.

We are all meant to shine,
As children do.
We were born to make manifest
The glory of God that is within us.

It’s not just in some of us;
It’s in everyone.

And as we let our own light shine,
We unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.
As we’re liberated from our own fear,
Our presence automatically liberates others.”