For the past 20 years our founder, Richard Petrie himself, has been pivotal to the evolution of our practice, and has documented the journey as a key contributor in the Littleover Littlebook. As one of our favourite local publications, it’s always a pleasure to read Richard’s contribution. In his latest, final article, which is currently in circulation, Richard discusses the practice’s evolution and hands over the column to our owner Davina.

We are incredibly proud of our roots, and to have Richard’s support as he hands the baton over to Davina in his poignant 200th article.

Read the article below…

“I’ve been writing these articles for nearly twenty years. Some of them have been informative about eyes and eyesight and others have been of a more general interest. I hope that they have all been of interest and that you have enjoyed reading them.

Since I first turned a closed café into my own Ophthalmic Optician’s practice in 1978 the practice has developed through a whole series of landmarks. At the time the equipment I had available was incredibly basic to modern eyes: an ancient tray of lenses and a trial frame to mount them in perched on my patient’s nose; an old hairdresser’s chair for the patient to sit on; a second hand test chart and mirror; several hastily made shelves to display my small stock of frames; some basic frame adjusting tools, screwdrivers and a heater made up my starting kit. My first full time receptionist started as soon as her O-levels were completed and stayed with me for 16 years.
Receptionists came and some went, others stayed a long time. We got a computer, and then we moved across the road. We had a Dispensing Optician join us and over the years several secondary school pupils and some University optics students came for work experience. One of those, over twenty five years ago, was Davina. I don’t think I ever made a better decision than to say “Yes” when she asked for holiday work. She finished her studies and went to work somewhere else but then came back to stay. Since she took over the practice ten years ago this summer she has developed it beyond my greatest hopes and I am sure that she and her team will continue to do so well into the future.

This is the 200th article in the series and it is time to hand over writing this to Davina as well. Thank you for reading my scribblings over the years and good luck for the future.”

If you’d like to read another of Richard’s articles, click the link to read about the potential impact of a stroke on vision.