|
Press Releases
"EYE-55" CELEBRATES THE EYE-BANK'S 55 YEARS OF SERVICE
September 17,2007 BLOOMINGTON – The Illinois Eye-Bank, Watson Gailey will celebrate its 55 years of service to central Illinois during a cocktail and hors d’oeuvres celebration, September 27, 2007 at 5:30pm at the NV UltraLounge in Normal. The 55th Anniversary event, dubbed Eye-55, is open to all who support the Eye-Bank’s mission to restore sight. “We are grateful for the decades of support we’ve received from the community,” says Robert Albrecht, Manager of the Eye-Bank’s facility in Bloomington. “We have a network of excellent surgeons, medical directors and healthcare workers who make it possible for us to recover and provide healthy eye tissue for transplantation. Founded in 1952 by ophthalmologist Watson Gailey, M.D., the Eye-Bank has grown to become affiliated with the Illinois Eye-Bank in Chicago, and is itself a division of Midwest Eye-Banks. It is fully accredited by the Eye Bank Association of America (EBAA) and, in conjunction with the Chicago facility, helped to provide 1,517 corneas for transplantation during 2006 alone. None of this would be possible without the generosity of our donor families, as well as those who have supported us through charitable contributions,” Albrecht continues. “Thanks to them, we are able to support research and education initiatives while continuing to provide eye tissue to those in need.The 55th Anniversary event will also mark the creation of the Dr. John E. Randolph Memorial Fund, established in memory of John E. Randolph, M.D., a dedicated corneal surgeon in the Bloomington-Normal area. Contributions to the fund will help to enable the Eye-Bank to provide its services free of charge for patients who cannot afford sight-restoring cornea transplant surgery. Cost to attend the event is $55 per person, and space is still available. The NV UltraLounge is located at 107 E. Beaufort Street in Normal. RSVP to the Illinois Eye-Bank, Watson Gailey at (800) 548-4703 ext. 770.The Illinois Eye-Bank, Watson Gailey is a division of Midwest Eye-Banks, and is a 501(c)(3), independent, not-for-profit organization dedicated to the restoration of sight. It recovers, evaluates and distributes human eye tissue for transplantation. It also supports research into the causes and cures of blinding eye conditions, promotes donation awareness through public and professional education, and provides humanitarian aid to people in need of corneal transplantation throughout the world. For more information, visit the Eye-Bank online at http://www.illinoiseyebank.org/ or call (800) 548-4703. Download PDF Version
Return to Press Release Listing
DAVID MONTROSS NAMED 2007 MAN OF VISION
January 9, 2007 CHICAGO – David Montross, CEO of Equis Corporation, has been named the 2007 Man of Vision by Midwest Eye-Banks, Chicago. Montross, who is also a double cornea transplant recipient, will be honored at the annual Gift of Sight Gala on Friday, March 23. This popular black-tie event will be held at The Ritz Carlton Hotel and will include an elegant dinner, dancing to the music of Stanley Paul and his orchestra and a silent auction. The Gala benefits the Eye-Bank’s Eye and Vision Research Program and donor awareness public education programs. For decades, Montross has dedicated his leadership to important causes benefiting Chicago citizens. With 25 years in commercial real estate, David helped to create a corporate citizenship program that enables Equis to make charitable contributions to such Chicago institutions as the Illinois Eye-Bank, Adler Planetarium, Howard Brown Health Center, Lincoln Park Zoo, Chicago Architecture Foundation, Fairygodmother Foundation, and Greater Chicago Food Depository. Montross has also been involved in the Annual Fund for the Ravina Festival. The theme of the Eye-Bank’s event – vision – has a deeper personal meaning for Montross. Under the care of the Illinois Eye-Bank’s Medical Director, Dr. Joel Sugar, David received double cornea transplants in 1988 and 1989. “We feel that David is a tremendously worthy recipient of this award,” adds Charles Pivoney, the Eye-Bank’s Vice President, Illinois Operations. “We are proud to have played a role in the transplants that have assisted him in serving the community for so many years.” Former recipients of the Man and Woman of Vision award include Marilyn Miglin of Miglin Cosmetics, Bill Zwecker of the Chicago Sun-Times and CBS 2 Chicago, Michael Christ of Tiffany & Co., Donna LaPietra of Kurtis Productions, Ltd., Richard Driehaus of Driehaus Capital Management, Chicago restaurateurs Steve and Peggy Lombardo, Joe Ahern of CBS 2 Chicago, as well as Myra and John Reilly. All were honored for their dedication to causes that help others and their belief in Midwest Eye-Banks’ mission. The Illinois Eye-Bank, a division of Midwest Eye-Banks, is a 501(c)(3), independent, not-for-profit organization dedicated to the restoration of sight. It recovers, evaluates and distributes human eye tissue for transplantation. It also supports research into the causes and cures of blinding eye conditions, promotes donation awareness through public and professional education, and provides humanitarian aid to people in need of corneal transplantation throughout the world. For more information, visit the Illinois Eye-Bank online at http://www.illinoiseyebank.org/ or call (800) 548-4703. To reserve seats at this year’s Gift of Sight Gala, call 312/706-9650 by March 1. Tickets are $350. Download PDF Version
Return to Press Release Listing
Illinois Eye-Bank, Watson Gailey celebrates National Eye Donor Month in March
June 13, 2006
Bloomington, IL - To be given a second chance at sight is truly an incredible gift. “People who see well think it’s always going to be that way,” says two-time cornea transplant recipient Rosemary Komar of Bloomington, Illinois. “Once you’ve had eye problems, you really recognize the importance of good vision. I got to the point where I couldn’t see the paper I was writing on, and lost the ability to assist on the heart team as a nurse at OSF St. Joseph Medical Center in Bloomington,” she adds. Komar’s first transplant made an immediate improvement and, following a transplant on her other eye, she now has 20/20 vision with corrective lenses and she’s once again working full-time assisting the heart team surgeons.
Receiving the Gift of Sight has given people like Mrs. Komar the ability to reclaim their lives and participate in activities that many of us take for granted. Since 1983, March has been designated by an act of Congress as national Eye Donor Month in order to increase public awareness of the need for eye donations. During 2005 alone, the Illinois Eye-Bank offered nearly 1,700 people a second chance for sight through corneal transplantation. When it isn’t possible to give the gift of sight through corneal transplantation, the Eye-Bank offers hope by supporting preliminary research into the causes of blinding eye diseases.
Under Illinois’ new first-person consent law, effective January 1, 2006, additional witnesses or consent from a prospective donor family will no longer be required in order to carry out donor wishes. Chuck Pivoney, Midwest Eye-Banks’ Vice President, Illinois Operations, believes the new legislation is a major accomplishment, not just for organ and tissue procurement organizations, but also for donor families. “Someone can now make a decision to donate, and that decision relieves the next-of-kin of responsibility,” he explains. “It’s one less burden for the family at a difficult time. However, a timely family discussion about eye, organ and tissue donation is as important as ever. If a donor’s wishes are understood in life, it greatly increases the likelihood that these wishes will be carried out when the time comes.”
Illinois residents who previously registered their donation wishes by joining the Illinois Organ and Tissue Donor Registry, or by signing their driver’s licenses, need to contact the Secretary of State’s office this year to be moved to the first person consent list. There is no longer a provision for signing the back of a driver’s license at time of renewal. New driver’s licenses will carry a “donor” imprint for those who have registered on the first person consent list.
The Illinois Eye-Bank, Watson Gailey is a division of Midwest Eye-Banks, a 501(c)(3), independent not-for-profit organization dedicated to the restoration of sight. Through its offices in Chicago and Bloomington, the Illinois Eye-Bank recovers, evaluates and distributes human eye tissue for transplantation. It also supports research into the causes and cures of blinding eye conditions, promotes donation awareness through public and professional education, and provides humanitarian aid to people in need of corneal transplantation throughout the world. For more information, visit the Illinois Eye-Bank online at www.illinoiseyebank.org or call (800) 548-4703.
Download PDF Version
Return to Press Release Listing
Midwest Eye-Banks appoints Chicago attorney to Board of Directors
November 10, 2005 ANN ARBOR – Susan Mozena, President and Chief Executive Officer of Midwest Eye-Banks, has announced the appointment of Chicago attorney Peter J. Latz to Midwest’s Board of Directors.
Latz has an extensive history with the Illinois Eye-Bank, a division of Midwest Eye-Banks located in downtown Chicago. He currently serves on the Illinois Eye-Bank’s Advisory Council and, in the 1980s, he served as an Eye-Bank volunteer.
“Peter can appreciate how far we’ve come,” says Charles Pivoney, Midwest’s Vice President, Illinois Operations. “Back when there was a long waiting list for corneal tissue, he was on call several nights per week and performed eye tissue recoveries.
“He’s well-informed about what our needs are. From clinical operations to development, he knows the business.”
Latz has been in private law practice since 1989. He is currently the sole owner and principal of a five-attorney firm, specializing in estate planning and planned giving. He also serves on the Board of Directors for the Illinois Society for the Prevention of Blindness, and is a member of the Fenwick Estate Planning Council. He resides in River Forest, Illinois.
The Illinois Eye-Bank has been helping to restore sight for nearly 60 years. It was the fourth organization of its kind, founded in 1947 at Cook County Hospital. In 1985, the Illinois and Michigan Eye-Banks joined to form the Midwest Eye-Banks and Transplantation Center, now known as Midwest Eye-Banks. The organization also covers central Illinois through its Watson Gailey division in Bloomington.
Midwest Eye-Banks, based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, is a 501(c)(3) independent not-for-profit organization dedicated to the restoration of sight. It recovers, evaluates and distributes human eye tissue for transplantation. It also supports research into the causes and cures of blinding eye conditions, promotes donation awareness through public and professional education, and provides humanitarian aid to people in need of corneal transplantation throughout the world. For more information, visit the Midwest Eye-Banks online at www.midwesteyebanks.org or call (800) 548-4703. Download PDF Version
Return to Press Release Listing
Joel Sugar, M.D. receives Illinois Eye-Bank’s Founder’s Award
August 26, 2005
CHICAGO – The Illinois Eye-Bank has announced Joel Sugar, M.D., a Medical Director for the organization for over 20 years, is the recipient of its prestigious Founder’s Award. The Award is the Eye-Bank’s highest award and is given to an employee or volunteer based on the individual’s contribution to the success of the organization. Dr. Sugar was recognized for his devotion to the mission of the Illinois Eye-Bank in a ceremony that took place on July 20th at the Drake Hotel in Chicago. Susan d’Olive Mozena, President and Chief Executive Officer of Midwest Eye-Banks, and Charles Pivoney, Vice President of Illinois Operations, presented Dr. Sugar with the award. Also present were members of the Eye-Bank’s Illinois Advisory Council and staff.
“We’re extremely pleased to honor Dr. Sugar,” says Pivoney. “He’s a champion of the Eye-Bank’s mission and, as our Medical Director, he has served alongside us every day for more than two decades in a volunteer position.”
Dr. Sugar was appointed Medical Director of the Illinois Eye-Bank in 1983. He was instrumental in Illinois Eye-Bank’s affiliation with Midwest Eye-Banks in 1985. Recently, was appointed Interim Head of the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of Illinois, Chicago, and has been a professor at the University since 1987. Dr. Sugar serves as an associate examiner for the American Board of Ophthalmology, and is a consultant serving the FDA’s Ophthalmic Device Panel. He has been recognized by the FDA with a Distinguished Service Award and has been listed among the “Best Doctors in the U.S.” since the 1980s. He graduated cum laude from the University of Michigan Medical School in 1969 and is a resident of Wilmette.
The Illinois Eye-Bank is a division of Midwest Eye-Banks, a 501(c)(3), independent not-for-profit organization dedicated to the restoration of sight. Through its offices in Chicago and Bloomington, it recovers, evaluates and distributes human eye tissue for transplantation. It also supports research into the causes and cures of blinding eye conditions, promotes donation awareness through public and professional education, and provides humanitarian aid to people in need of corneal transplantation throughout the world. For more information, visit the Illinois Eye-Bank online at www.illinoiseyebank.org or call (800) 548-4703.
Download PDF Version
Return to Press Release Listing
Catharine Crockett, M.D. Named to Illinois Eye-Bank’s Board of Directors
November 2, 2005
BLOOMINGTON – The Illinois Eye-Bank, Watson Gailey, a division of Midwest Eye-Banks, has announced that Catharine Crockett, M.D., a Medical Director for the organization, has been named to its Board of Directors. As a member of the Board, Dr. Crockett will help to determine the future of all Midwest Eye-Banks divisions and subsidiaries in Illinois, Michigan and New Jersey.
“We are extremely pleased to name Dr. Crockett to our Board of Directors,” says Charles Pivoney, Vice President, Illinois Operations. “Her experience with the organization and commitment to its mission makes Dr. Crockett a natural choice for the position, and she will undoubtedly prove to be very effective in this new leadership role.”
Dr. Crockett has been a medical director for the Illinois Eye-Bank, Watson Gailey since 1994. She specializes in cornea and external disease, as well as small-incision cataract surgery and refractive surgical procedures of LASIK, CustomVue and corneal transplantation. Dr. Crockett is a member of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, American Medical Association, Illinois State Medical Society, Illinois Society of Ophthalmology & Otolaryngology, and the McLean County Medical Society. She maintains a busy general ophthalmology practice for both pediatric and adult patients. Dr. Crockett shares Medical Director responsibilities for the Illinois Eye-Bank, Watson Gailey with Gregory Halperin, M.D., of Bloomington.
The Illinois Eye-Bank, Watson Gailey is a division of Midwest Eye-Banks, a 501(c)(3), independent not-for-profit organization dedicated to the restoration of sight. Through its offices in Chicago and Bloomington, it recovers, evaluates and distributes human eye tissue for transplantation. It also supports research into the causes and cures of blinding eye conditions, promotes donation awareness through public and professional education, and provides humanitarian aid to people in need of corneal transplantation throughout the world. For more information, visit the Illinois Eye-Bank online at www.illinoiseyebank.org or call (800) 548-4703.
Download PDF Version
Return to Press Release Listing
Watson Gailey Award Presented to Elizabeth Hager Illinois Eye-Bank Recognizes Commitment to Eye Donor Program
March 29, 2005
Bloomington, IL -- The Illinois Eye-Bank, Watson Gailey proudly recognizes Taylorville resident Elizabeth (Liz) Hager, Manager of Outreach and Education of the Illinois Secretary of State’s office, with the Watson Gailey Award. Annually, the Eye-Bank honors a key individual or organization that has made enormous efforts on its behalf.
“The award is presented to individuals or organizations within the Illinois Eye-Bank, Watson Gailey service area who have shown unselfish dedication and commitment to the eye donor program in efforts to save and restore sight,” noted Robert Albrecht, Manager of Illinois Eye-Bank, Watson Gailey. “Ms. aHager has demonstrated through her work and dedication to promoting organ and tissue donation to be very worthy of this award,” he added.
Elizabeth Hager has worked for the Illinois Secretary of State office since February of 1985. In 1990, she was named Manager of the Program Implementation Division, where she designed a program to promote organ and tissue donation. She was instrumental in the development of the Donor Registry, which was implemented October 1, 1992, with equal access by all recovery agencies. As the registry grew, so did the amount of work needed to maintain it. The program became its own section of the Secretary of State’s office, which Liz managed until 1996.
Ms. Hager then developed and implemented the Life Goes On city events, outreach, public speaking and new initiatives for the organ/tissue donor program. Her involvement spurred a grassroots effort to educate Illinois citizens on a community level. She still serves in this capacity today and has been effective in bringing all procurement agencies in Illinois together as a single voice to educate the public about the great need for donated organs and tissue. Ms. Hager currently holds the position of Vice Chair for the Illinois Coalition on Donation, where she collaborates with interested organizations to enhance efforts of public education for organ, tissue and eye donation. The Illinois Eye-Bank, Watson Gailey recognizes her efforts and is thankful for her commitment to public awareness of organ/tissue and eye donation.
This award is presented annually in honor of the late Dr. Watson Gailey, founder of the Illinois Eye-Bank, Watson Gailey, which was established in 1952. In Illinois, over 50% of all citizens applying for a driver’s license or state identification join the donor registry. The state now has the largest donor registry in the United States, with over six million people registered to become eye, organ and tissue donors.
The Illinois Eye-Bank, Watson Gailey is a division of Midwest Eye-Banks, a 501(c)(3), independent not-for-profit organization dedicated to the restoration of sight. Through its divisions in Illinois and Michigan, the organization recovers, evaluates and distributes human eye tissue for transplantation. It also supports research into the causes and cures of blinding eye conditions, promotes donation awareness through public and professional education, and provides humanitarian aid to people in need of corneal transplantation throughout the world. For more information, visit the Illinois Eye-Bank online at www.illinoiseyebank.org or call (800) 548-4703.
Download PDF Version
Return to Press Release Listing
Illinois Eye-Bank Recognizes Commitment to Donor Program
March 2, 2003
Bloomington, IL -- The Illinois Eye-Bank, Watson Gailey proudly recognizes OSF Saint Francis Medical Center in Peoria with the Watson Gailey Award. The award, which is given annually to honor a key individual or organization that has made enormous efforts on behalf of the Illinois Eye-Bank, Watson Gailey, will be presented at the Illinois Eye-Bank, Watson Gailey’s community outreach program, “Night for Sight,” on April 13, at the Lakeview Museum in Peoria.
“The award is presented to individuals or organizations within the Illinois Eye-Bank, Watson Gailey service area who have shown unselfish dedication and commitment to the eye donor program in efforts to save and restore sight,” noted Robert Albrecht, Manager of Illinois Eye-Bank, Watson Gailey. “Through its work and dedication to promoting organ and tissue donation, Saint Francis Medical Center has proven itself to be very worthy of this award,” he added.
OSF Saint Francis Medical Center is near the center of downtown Peoria, a city of 120,000. With more than 5,000 employees and more than 750 physicians, it is the largest downstate Illinois hospital and also houses Children’s Hospital of Illinois. . The Illinois Eye-Bank, Watson Gailey recognizes Saint Francis’ efforts and is thankful for its commitment to public awareness of organ/tissue and eye donation.
This award is presented in honor of the late Dr. Watson Gailey, founder of the Illinois Eye-Bank, Watson Gailey, which was established in 1952. In Illinois, more than 50 percent of all citizens applying for a driver’s license or state identification join the donor registry. The state now has the largest donor registry in the United States, with over six million people registered to become donors.
The Illinois Eye-Bank, Watson Gailey in Bloomington is a division of Midwest Eye-Banks, a not-for-profit, 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to the restoration of sight. Through its locations in Illinois, Michigan and New Jersey, Midwest Eye-Banks recovers, evaluates and distributes human eye tissue for transplantation. It also supports eye and vision research, and provides public and professional education about eye donation. For additional information about the Illinois Eye-Bank, Watson Gailey, call 800-548-4703 or visit www.illinoiseyebank.org.
Download PDF Version
Return to Press Release Listing
|
