Baby of the Year is a competition started by Jessica Alba that invites parents from across the world to enter their child for a chance to appear in a national ad campaign and win a $25,000 cash prize. Over the past month or so, I’ve seen many posts on social media featuring babies in the running. One of these posts jumped out at me because it was from a Golden local. I decided that if any of these babies should get my vote, it should be one from Golden.
When I clicked on the page to read little Léopaul’s story, I learned there was more to his story than his sweet face and little glasses. Despite his young age, Léopaul has already had to navigate some tough challenges after being diagnosed with a cataract in one of his eyes.
Krystel Gélinas, Léopaul’s mother, hadn’t initially noticed anything wrong with his vision.
“A friend of mine, Chantal, told me once Léopaul was born that it was vital to bring him to the optometrist at six months, even if everything seemed fine. Honestly, I thought babies were born with perfect vision.”
That advice ended up being an important turning point for the family. It led Krystel to an appointment with Dr. Rebecca Kolbenson at the Golden Optometric Clinic last fall, where she immediately noticed something in Léopaul’s eye. Dr. Kolbenson requested that they come back the following week for further testing. It was during this second appointment that his cataract was confirmed.
Luckily, his condition was caught early enough for treatment. Krystel explained that in cases like these, early intervention is key.
“Unfortunately, Chantal’s son Rémi had eye issues as well, and if she had known to have his eyes checked sooner, he may have had a more successful outcome from his surgeries. In both our situations, if we had waited longer, our sons would likely have lost complete vision in one of their eyes.”
While there was some relief that the issue had been caught early, the news came at an already difficult time for the family.
“I remember that I had mixed feelings, being sad for my little guy but also frustrated that it would be one more thing to worry about.”
With Léopaul being so little when he was diagnosed, his family was already stretched thin.
“It felt unfair and overwhelming, especially that I was dealing with severe postpartum depression at that time,” Krystel shared.
Immediately, Krystel had to start booking appointments and navigating the complicated process of getting specialized care while living in a small town.
The family’s first attempt to get Léopaul the care he needed took them to Kamloops. They had been referred there after the ophthalmology clinic in Kelowna advised Dr. Kolbenson to send the referral to Kamloops.
But when they arrived on Dec. 2, the ophthalmologist told them that children under two who may require surgery are treated through BC Children’s Hospital in Vancouver. The doctor still examined Léopaul, confirmed the cataract and agreed that surgery would most likely be necessary. She then offered to send an urgent referral directly to an ophthalmologist she knew at BC Children’s.
“We drove back home, drained and worried that we wasted precious time and money,” Krystel wrote.
The trip to Kamloops was only the beginning of a long and expensive process of travelling outside Golden for Léopaul’s care.
On Dec. 8, the family received a call asking them to come to Vancouver the following day. With such little notice, Krystel said they could not make the trip immediately, so they arranged an appointment for Dec. 11 and flew out on Dec. 10. Winter road conditions and a detour through Radium made the trip even more complicated.
Once in Vancouver, Léopaul was seen by ophthalmologist Dr. Lyons, who determined that surgery was necessary and scheduled it for Dec. 15. The surgery went well, but the family remained in Vancouver for several days of follow-up appointments before returning home on Dec. 21.
The 11-day trip came with significant costs, including flights, a rental car, parking and meals.
“11 days of stress, meals, car rental, parking,” Krystel wrote. “About $2,500 for the round-trip flights for our little family of 3.”
And the travel has not ended. Léopaul requires follow-up appointments every three to four months, meaning his family continues to travel to Vancouver or other communities for specialized care.
For the family, the Baby of the Year competition could help ease some of the financial burden that has come with Léopaul’s care.
“I decided to register Léopaul for the Baby of the Year campaign after seeing an ad about it. I saw that it was open to Canadians, that it was a nonprofit that was helping families with basic needs such as diapers, clothing, etc., and I figured that I had nothing to lose. I thought I could use the opportunity to raise awareness about eye conditions.”
While winning the prize money is not the ultimate goal, it would certainly help with the future expenses of Léopaul’s care.
“Winning the $25,000 would mean that we wouldn’t have to worry about his future expenses: follow-up trips, glasses, eventually maybe contact lenses, etc. And maybe we can use our money to have a real family vacation.”
Today, Krystel says, “Léopaul is a resilient and happy little guy, and he is doing well.”
After attempting to wear an eye patch and walk around the house herself, Krystel is all the more impressed by her little boy, who seems to have adapted seamlessly.
“I’m impressed that Léopaul, who has no depth perception (3D vision), has found some strategies to adapt and is not letting his vision challenges stop him.”
On top of this, he has become a great traveller who keeps his cool on long drives and flights.
“What I learned from my experience is that every parent should have their kids’ eyes checked at six months. There are no excuses; it’s free! I’m so happy that even though we are living in a small town, we have a wonderful optometry clinic that goes above and beyond.”
For Léopaul’s family, the journey has meant more than appointments, surgery and long trips away from home. It has also introduced them to people who have helped them along the way, from the local optometry clinic to friends and families who understand what they are going through.
Chantal, the friend who originally urged the family to go to the optometrist, has been a source of ongoing support due to her similar experiences with her own son, Rémi.
Chantal also described the comfort that came from meeting another family going through the same situation while getting care at BC Children’s Hospital.
“It helps to text here and there to see how we are all doing and laugh at the silly things we do (wearing a patch ourselves, acting goofy to distract our child, etc.).”
Now, Krystel hopes their experience can help another parent catch an eye condition early and remind them that even in a small town, they are not navigating it alone.
