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One of the most popular people on YouTube, MrBeast, is helping 1,000 people see the world more clearly.
In his latest video, MrBeast pays for eye surgery for 1,000 people who were blind or almost blind but did not have money for the surgery.
Jimmy Donaldson, MrBeast’s real name, released the video this past Saturday. On Sunday afternoon, the video had more than 32 million views.
The video has before-and-after interviews with some of the people who received the eye surgery. The YouTube content creator also gave cash donations to some of the people who were blind.
Ophthalmologist Jeff Levenson worked with the YouTuber to complete the first cataract eye surgeries in Florida. Levenson has his own charity program called “Gift of Sight”. The program provides free cataract surgery for people who don’t have health insurance.
Levenson says that half of all blindness in the world can be fixed with a 10-minute surgery.
Levenson says that he was inspired to help people get cataract surgery after he got the surgery himself. He was amazed at how much clearer and more colorful the world looked after his surgery.
He also says that there are probably around 200 million people in the world who can’t see because of cataracts and can’t afford the surgery.
Levenson and MrBeast first helped 40 people in Florida. After, the YouTuber worked with SEE International to help people get cataract surgery in Jamaica, Honduras, Namibia, Mexico, Indonesia, Brazil, Vietnam and Kenya.
You can view the video on YouTube here.
Vocabulary
- Latest – newest; most recent;
- Surgery – a medical operation/action to repair or remove part of the body
- Blind – unable to see; visually impaired; eyes don’t work; no vision
- Release – make available to everyone; launch; put on the market
- This past (Saturday) – the ‘Saturday’ that most recently took place; the last ‘Saturday’ that happened on the calendar.
- View – the measure/count of someone watching or seeing something on social media
- Interview – a conversation or meeting where someone is asked questions to learn about them, often for jobs or news
- Receive – get; encounter; experience;
- Content creator – a person who makes information, images, video, etc. a website or social media account
- Donation – something that is given to a charity, especially money, food or clothes
- Ophthalmologist – eye doctor
- Cataract – a cloudy area in your eye that blocks your vision
- Charity – an organization/group that gives money, food, or help to people who need it
- Program – project; initiative; a group of activities or things to be achieved
- Provide – to give or supply something that is needed or requested
- Health insurance – insurance for the cost of medical treatment if you are ill or injured; a service that helps you pay for doctors, medicine and hospital visits
- Inspire – to give someone the desire, confidence, energy to do something; to motivate; influence; encourage
- Afford – have enough money to pay for something; able to pay without too much cost or effort
Quiz
Discussion Questions
- In your opinion, why did MrBeast pay for the eye surgery of 1,000 people?
- Other than helping people see again, can you think of any other benefits or positive points from MrBeast’s actions? Any negative?
- What are some different ways we can help blind people? Is your town or city safe for blind people to navigate?
Original Story
- English teachers looking for teaching ideas, check out my post on using easy news articles for lessons.
- English learners looking for study ideas, check out my post on using news stories for English practice.
