When Dr. Jeffrey Levenson, chief medical officer for Surgical Eye Expeditions (SEE) International, got a call from someone named MrBeast asking for his help conducting 1,000 cataract surgeries — which he agreed to pay for — in three weeks, the doctor nearly hung up, thinking his proposal was a hoax.

He had never heard of MrBeast, and the idea sounded preposterous.

Instead, Levenson said he’d get back in touch and entered “MrBeast” into his Google search.

It turns out that not only is MrBeast legit, he’s widely considered the most influential YouTube creator, with a following of 136 million subscribers and media properties valued at $1.5 billion.

“So, I called him back,” Levenson said.

MrBeast, also known as Jimmy Donaldson, had seen Levenson’s 2017 TED Talk presented in Santa Barbara, discussing his humanitarian work as an ophthalmologist donating his time to restore sight around the world.

The message resonated with MrBeast, who had been interested in the problem of blindness for years and wanted to do something that would make an impact.

The two agreed to collaborate. They set up a plan for treating 40 patients in Jacksonville, Florida, where Levenson is based, and then SEE International, headquartered in Goleta, arranged for 960 more patients in India, Mexico, Namibia, Honduras and Jamaica.

It’s the work that SEE International has been doing for nearly 50 years. Founded in response to the overwhelming need of individuals around the world living with preventable blindness, the organization conducts about 150 trips per year to 40 countries, completing 40,000 surgeries last year alone.

With SEE International and Levenson’s assistance, MrBeast succeeded in his efforts, capturing and posting the surgeries on his YouTube channel in a video titled “1,000 Blind People See for the First Time.”

The video went live Jan. 28, and within one day, 40 million people had viewed it. That number has grown to 119 million as of last count (more than the reach of a Super Bowl ad).

It’s an astounding number, even for MrBeast, and an unforeseen opportunity for SEE International.

“This is perhaps the single most successful public education campaign on cataract surgery in the history of the world,” Levenson said. “People now know that cataracts are curable and that surgeries can be performed inexpensively in great numbers in underserved countries.”

In fact, cataract surgery costs about $50 and often takes just 10 minutes, when performed with modified techniques in underserved countries. The results are dramatic and life-changing.

“It’s widely recognized that cataract surgery in resource-poor countries is the most impactful surgery there is,” said Donald Bell, CEO of SEE International. “Successful cataract surgery pays for itself. Productivity and income gains are significant post-surgery, and the results are long-lasting and permanent.” 

“It’s one of the most extraordinary phenomena, to see someone go from blinded to sighted in 10 minutes,” Levenson said. “It’s a modern miracle that we’ve learned to take for granted, but the moment you witness it, it’s stunning.”

In addition to shedding a light on cataract surgery, this campaign substantially increased awareness of SEE International and the nonprofit organization’s sight-restoring work.

“This has been a pretty insane, once-in-a-lifetime experience,” said Rachel Tennant, SEE International’s chief development officer. “We received calls from all over the world, nearly every one to three minutes the day the video posted.

“The volume of calls was substantial, and so were the gifts — over $50,000 in less than one month, from new donors across the globe. In addition, MrBeast paid for the surgeries and donated an additional $100,000 for ongoing work at the nonprofit.

“It’s no easy feat acquiring new donors, and getting them in such an organic, authentic way has been especially meaningful.”

In fact, MrBeast never even mentions SEE International’s name in the video, but posts a link on how to continue the work at the end, directing viewers to the organization’s website. 

Yet, all that goodwill didn’t come without a little backlash.

“The shift in conversation was one of moral outrage,” Bell said. “Many people can’t understand how people go blind when we have the ability to restore sight caused from cataracts so quickly.” 

Bell said his organization has been encouraged by this discussion, as it brings additional attention to the problem and the need for more government agencies and large organizations to lend their support.

“There are 200 million people in the world in need of cataract surgery,” Levenson said. “Thanks to MrBeast asserting his celebrity, there is now hope in making a dent in that number.”

Levenson admitted that he often felt that the organization needed a celebrity spokesman.

“If only we could get Plácido Domingo or someone with a heart for blindness,” he said. “I never imagined that person would be a 24-year-old guy named MrBeast.”

For more information, visit https://www.seeintl.org.