About Us

EyeCare for You is a third generation Barcelow family practice and has spanned four generations of Royalton residents.

Sometime in the 1920’s, Dr. Laurence P. Folsom started a storefront optometry practice in South Royalton. He had graduated from South Royalton High School in 1913 and his father ran the town hardware store. The story goes that his secret method for building his practice was to attend any and all local church fundraising dinners. EyeCare for You still has an article that he published in the April 1923 edition of the Archives of Optometry, titled “The Effects of Age on Visual Acuity and Pupillary Size.”

The first Barcelow to work at EyeCare for You, Dr. Albert Barcelow, returned from serving in a medical unit in the South Pacific at the end of World War II and then attended Pennsylvania College of Optometry. He graduated three years later and worked for several years in the Pennsylvania area. Following Dr. Folsom’s unexpected death in 1956, Dr. Albert moved to Vermont and resumed the practice. He had come to Vermont expecting the Optometry practice to be a half-time venture and planned on being a “farmer” to supplement his income. The practice took off and although Dr. Albert enjoyed his gardens and tractors, farming always remained a non-profit venture for him.

In 1981, Dr. Albert’s son, Dr. Jerry Barcelow, joined his father in serving the eye care needs of the community and took over the business in 1983 upon Dr. Albert’s retirement. Since that time, Dr. Jerry has built one of the region’s leading eye care and eyewear centers, drawing customers from throughout the surrounding communities. In 1990, Dr. Jerry purchased the optical unit of Gifford Medical Center in Randolph and added full optometry services to the optical store. In 1998, he combined both practices into a spacious new building conveniently located on VT Route 107, just off I-89.

Dr. Dean Barcelow (Dr. Jerry’s son) joined EyeCare for You in 2010 following his ocular disease residency. In 2016 Dr. Jerry and Dr. Dean formed a professional corporation in order to better manage the intricacies of being a business and providing quality care.

In 2011 EyeCare for You started renting a tent site at the Tunbridge World’s Fair, and in addition to handing out fun blinking eyeball rings and cleaning cloths, we also spend time meeting with our patients and other members of the community.

Dr. Rebecca Barcelow (Dr. Jerry’s daughter) joined the practice in 2013, bringing with her a love of pediatrics. Dr. Becky’s addition to EyeCare for You has allowed us to improve our comprehensive care for our youngest patients.

Since 2014, in conjunction with the non-governmental organization Fondation Enfant Jesus, we have been going to Lamardelle, Haiti to perform eye exams. We typically spend a week in the community treating eye disease, supplying spectacle corrections, and providing eye care education in the local health clinic. It has become one of our most rewarding weeks of the year.