By VANESSA VALENZUELA
ZION Thillalem is navigating his way through everyday life.
Born with underdeveloped eyes, Zion is completely blind but it hasn’t stopped the bubbly five-year-old from acting like a normal kid.
His mother Tania Osorio said she was initially told her son might need glasses when he was older but was stunned when he was diagnosed with septo optic dysplasia at just three months old.
“It was a bit of a shock for me when I found out because I was ignorant and didn’t know a baby could be born blind,” she said.
Tania said life hadn’t been easy for the kindergarten student who was slowly learning to break out of his shell.
“Zion is starting to enjoy and explore the world around him and he is the best thing that has happened to us, it has been a hard journey but he is a very charming boy that puts a smile to a lot of people’s faces,” she said.
The Brooklyn mum said she was lucky to have a supportive family and believes she would not have come this far without the help of Vision Australia.
“I don’t think Zion would be as comfortable and as happy as he is now if it wasn’t for their service,” Tania said.
“They have educated me on how I can help him live an independent and fulfilling life.”
This Christmas season Vision Australia is asking the community to light a virtual candle and raise money for children’s services that support kids like Zion who are blind or vision-impaired.
“I would like to ask everyone to please donate to Vision Australia so that Vision Australia can continue to provide for children like Zion to become happy and confident individuals,” Tania said.
To make a donation visit www.visionaustralia.org
