In celebration of Women’s Month, LottoStar will be giving the gift of sight to a resilient young woman, living with severe vision impairment.

As part of our Fortune Frenzy competition with Jacaranda FM, we will be donating R47,000 through Good Morning Angels to Lerato Dibe, a 37-year-old single mother to an 8-year-old daughter who’s been living with severe visual impairment from early childhood.

Growing up in an environment where exposure to dust and fire ash was unavoidable, she developed chronic eye problems that caused her to rub them repeatedly as a child, without having an idea that it would cause long-term damage to her vision.

Today, Lerato sees just 5% through her right eye and about 50% through her left eye, and with age, her vision is expected to decline.

Every day, Lerato shows up to her work with a warm smile and a steady hand, serving coffees and kindness as a barista at a canteen in Gauteng. However, behind her gentle presence is a story that stopped one of her regular customers in their tracks.

The concerned customer noticed her struggling to see while working and decided to refer Lerato to their personal optometrist, who generously offered her a free assessment. After assessing Lerato, she recommended that she sees an ophthalmic surgeon, who also kindly did not charge for the assessment.

After the thorough examination, Lerato was advised on an urgent surgery to lift her dropping eyelid. This would later be followed by a specialised intraocular lens implant that could assist Lerato to regain up to 90% of her vision in that eye.

Even though Lerato received free consultations, there are still hospital, anaesthetic and lens bills that need to be covered.

LottoStar will contribute R47,000 to help cover Lerato’s medical costs. The contribution forms part of the money raised in our Fortune Frenzy competition.

Thanks to our players. This is something Lerato can look forward to - a brighter future where she’s able to move safely, work confidently and fully experience every smile, sunrise and the look of love from her daughter.

We wish Lerato a speedy recovery and a brighter and clearer future.

LottoStar, charity is our privilege, not an obligation.