Photograph by Douglas Rider
Sharing the Vision: Optometrist Art Low has cared for patients in his Campbell office while volunteering with the Campbell Chamber of Commerce, the West San Jose-Campbell Lions Club, the Santa Clara County Optometric Society and the Chinese Historical and Cultural Project.
Public Citizen
Longtime Campbell optometrist finds volunteering brings a sense of balance
By Moryt Milo
For 27 years, optometrist Art Low has cared for patients in his Campbell office while managing an outside life as a nonstop community volunteer.
Within a five-year period, he became president of the Campbell Chamber of Commerce, the West San Jose-Campbell Lions Club, the Santa Clara County Optometric Society and the Chinese Historical and Cultural Project.
"I have a hard time saying no," Low says. "But volunteering is important to me."
As a member of Los Medicos Voladores, "The Flying Doctors"-an organization that provides free health care and education in rural Mexican villages-Low flew down to Mexico with a dentist and translator, bringing 300 pairs of glasses with various prescription strengths that were donated from a Lions Club signature program inspired by Helen Keller.
"When you are landing, all that's there is a dirt strip with potholes and cattle. It's not easy for the pilot," he says. "We land in a remote location and help the indigenous population."
The team visited a local community that was home to an estimated 200 people. Low checked the villagers' eyesight and tried to match those who had vision problems with a pair of suitable glasses.
"With no facilities to grind the lenses, prescriptions can never be exact," he says,
"But having some improved vision is better than nothing."
Low met one individual whose eyesight was so poor Low took it upon himself to make him a special pair of glasses in his Campbell office. Later one of the Flying Doctors' pilots brought the glasses to the man on a return trip to the village.
A recent fire in the Lions Club Vallejo warehouse, where donated glasses are stored, caused the loss of several thousand pairs and created a significant shortage.
While helping provide the gift of sight is one of Low's many volunteering jobs, he also spends a lot of time volunteering for the Chinese Historical and Cultural Project.
"This is the only area of my adult life devoted to my heritage," he says. "This project gives me a warm and fuzzy feeling."
As part of the cultural project, Low helped raised a half-million dollars to build the cultural center's building in San Jose's Kelley Park. Among other things, the center displays artifacts from Chinese settlers.
"Most new immigrants from Taiwan don't realize their ancestors were here during the gold rush," Low says. "It was important to gather and house this historical information."
Low is also leaving his mark.
In 1994, the Campbell Chamber of Commerce named him "Citizen of the Year" and the Santa Clara County Optometric Society named him "Optometrist of the Year."
Despite all the accolades, he remains modest, viewing volunteer work as a way of achieving balance.
Campbell, California
