Pictured is Louis Corbett and father Tim at home today in Auckland. Feature on Give A Little fundraising. Photo / Doug Sherring
For one young man from Auckland, time is a particularly precious commodity. Soon he will lose his sight, and his family is racing against the clock to ensure he sees a lifetime of images before his world goes dark.
Thirteen-year-old Louis Corbett has retinitis pigmentosa, a condition that is slowly
eroding his sight.
Sports mad Louis was given the opportunity to "fill his visual database" on a trip to the United States this year. Funded primarily by donations to a Givealittle page named Louis' Big Trip, he was joined on the trip by his dad, Tim, and older brother Jerome, 15.
More than $20,000 was raised on the site, enabling Louis to enjoy a visit to Google, front row seats at a Boston Celtics game, and a private helicopter ride over the Niagara Falls. "There's been so much generosity," says Tim. "It's been mind-blowing."
Louis' journey made headlines around the world - he appeared on television in New Zealand and the US - and has since been approached to speak at a climbing conference in the Dolomites later this year about the power of remaining positive.
