ESSILOR AND SAFILO SPONSER SPECIAL OLYMPICS 'OPENING EYES' PROGRAM
Organizations Give Back Through Opening Eyes Program

DALLAS -- (February 23, 2005) – For the third year in a row, Essilor International and the Safilo Group joined forces with Special Olympics’ “Opening Eyes,” a program dedicated to improving vision care for people with intellectual disabilities around the world.

As the official supplier of ophthalmic lenses for Opening Eyes, Essilor supports the program by donating Polycarbonate hard-coated lenses and organizing lab services for edging and mounting. Essilor will be on hand for a number of events in 2005, starting with the Special Olympics World Winter Games in Nagano, Japan later this month.

“Essilor strives to give back to organizations that need ophthalmic support,” said Hubert Sagnieres, president of Essilor of America. “We have been honored to work with Special Olympics for a few years and hope that our donations and eye screenings bring needed vision correction to as many people as possible. In fact, we are so dedicated to this cause that we have renewed our partnership for another three years, beginning in 2006.”
Last year, Essilor and Safilo contributed to improved vision for Special Olympic athletes at nearly 100 Opening Eyes events in 40 countries. Over 17,000 polycarbonate lenses were donated, which serve the athletes well as they are tough, durable, scratch and impact resistant – perfect for all the active sports in which they participate. Approximately 20,500 athletes received visual screenings as well as almost 8,500 athletes received ophthalmic frames and ophthalmic lenses to improve their sight.
The Safilo Group, based in Padova, Italy, is one of the largest manufacturers of frames in the world. As the Opening Eyes official supplier of ophthalmic frames and non-prescription sunglasses, Safilio contributed nearly 8,500 pair of ophthalmic frames and approximately 8,900 sunglasses last year. Every athlete who did not receive a prescription pair of glasses received non-prescription sunglasses. These athletes not only looked stylish, but also received important protection against the sun and harmful UV rays.

“Safilo, which has always given particular attention to social initiatives, is honored to contribute towards the well-being of the Special Olympics athletes and, in particular, to improving their visual abilities,” said, Vittorio Tabacchi, Chairman of Safilo Group. “It is a deeply gratifying experience. The upcoming World Winter Games in Nagano, Japan will reach a new important objective and we are honored to be a part of it.”

The relationship began in 2003 when Essilor International and Safilo Group entered into a three-year partnership (2003-2005) with the Opening Eyes program as the exclusive supplier of ophthalmic lenses (Essilor), frames and sunglasses (Safilo). Both companies also support the events in other ways such as event organization, communication activities and promotional materials.
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