YOUNGSTOWN — Amir Ali has a sharp vision of his short- and long-term future goals, though for now, he’s happy to help others see their way more clearly.

“On Monday, I was trained on how to give eye screenings,” Ali, a 2025 Canfield High School graduate, said.

That was the first major step for the recent high school grad in his volunteerism on behalf of Sight for All United, a Struthers-based nonprofit organization established in 2016 to help people receive critical eye surgery, injections and medications to preserve their vision. Sight for All also works to make it easier for clients to receive needed care.

In the same week as his training, Ali also learned more about the importance of community outreach, then performed his first eye screening, he said.

For his efforts, Ali and several other volunteers were honored and given certifications of appreciation during the organization’s first volunteer recognition luncheon Friday afternoon at First Presbyterian Church of Youngstown, 201 Wick Ave., downtown.

This fall, Ali plans to see his way to Amherst College in Massachusetts, where he intends to study neuroscience and economics on a pre-med track. While there, he also hopes to start an entity similar to Sight for All United, he said.

“I retired in July of 2024 and by the end of fall, I was feeling a little antsy – like I should give back,” Linda Ireland of Niles said, referring to her introduction to the nonprofit.

Before her retirement, Ireland had worked 30 years as a paralegal for the 11th District Court of Appeals in Warren.

To satisfy her quest to give something back, Ireland conducted a bit of online research and found a volunteer-based website that led her to Sight for All United. That has resulted in a greater sense of making an impact in others’ lives, especially senior citizens and those with low income, she said.

Ireland, who has volunteered for several months, recently helped perform screenings and conducted outreach efforts for an event at the Organizacion Civica y Cultural Hispana Americana (OCCHA) organization in Youngstown, which serves largely the area’s Hispanic and multicultural populations.

Sight for All’s Vision Volunteer program began in January and quickly became a critical alignment to its mission to “help every person reach his or her visual potential while lifting barriers for access to care,” the organization’s website states.

The program has more than 20 volunteers, many of whom are retired nurses, community members and pre-med students who attend Youngstown State University or Northeast Ohio Medical University in Ravenna, Diana Palaroy, volunteer manager, noted.

Vision screenings include testing depth perception and for glaucoma, and they can “help us prioritize who needs the help more quickly than others,” Palaroy said.

Sight for All United’s staff reach out to people who may have failed a screening or “have alarming red flags” and may need to be referred to an eye doctor close to where they live, she explained. Palaroy added that Sight for All also provides vouchers to those who qualify to receive free exams, pairs of glasses and surgeries.

“It’s wonderful to see how responsive they are. I’m endlessly impressed with how many of them follow through,” Palaroy said about the volunteers.

Between March and May, the organization acquired 18 volunteers who served 109 clients and performed 116 hours of service, all of which saved Sight for All an estimated $4,035, she continued.

More importantly, however, the volunteers make it easier for clients to perform activities that many others take for granted, such as driving, paying bills and enjoying a high level of independence, Palaroy said, adding that they also reach out to some who are homeless, as well as others who are in poverty and have transportation challenges.

“You guys give with your hearts,” she added.

Sight for All United continues to search for volunteers. Those interested are asked to email Palaroy at dianap@sfau.org, or call 330-301-7436.