Westbury, NY (April 7, 2010) - Dr. Gerard D’Aversa, a partner in Ophthalmic Consultants of Long Island (OCLI) and a resident of Garden City, will travel to Accra Ghana with Unite for Sight, a not-for-profit organization that provides high quality eye care to citizens of impoverished nations. In January 2011, Dr D’Aversa will leave for Ghana with his daughter Jaclyn D’Aversa, a sophomore at Barnard College. Dr. D’Aversa and Jaclyn will work with an eye clinic in Ghana to screen for eye disease, implement education programs, and coordinate sight-restoring surgery for children and adults. Unite for Sight has sponsored over 30,000 sight restoring surgeries since its inception in 2000.

If you would like to donate to Dr. Gerard D’Aversa’s Unite for Sight effort, please visit www.maestropay.com 100% of your tax-deductible contribution to Unite for Sight will provide sight-restoring eye care to people living in extreme poverty. If you are not in a position to make a monetary donation, OCLI offices in Rockville Centre, Lynbrook, Valley Stream, Stony Brook, Manhasset, East Meadow and Port Jefferson will also be collecting sunglasses and reading glasses for Dr. D’Aversa and Jaclyn to bring to Ghana. For more information, please visit www.ocli.net.

About Ophthalmic Consultants of Long Island
OCLI, one of the largest ophthalmology practices in the nation, consists of 23 eye specialists representing each subspecialty of ophthalmology in 7 locations throughout Long Island; in Rockville Centre, Lynbrook, Valley Stream, Stony Brook, Manhasset, East Meadow and Port Jefferson. OCLI also has a research department that is involved in FDA studies to improve the treatment and diagnosing of ophthalmic diseases. For more information, please call 1-866-SEE-OCLI (1-866-733-6254) or visit www.ocli.net.

Advisory Council Formed to Provide Feedback to Board

Alexandria, VA (March 18, 2010) – The Foundation for Eye Health Awareness officially elected a board of directors at its recent meeting. This board will replace the interim board of directors who have been serving since October 2009. Also as a result of this meeting, an Advisory Council has been formed to provide feedback on programs and activities of the Foundation.

The officers elected to the Foundation board of directors include Barry Barresi, OD, PhD, executive director of the American Optometric Association, who will serve as chairman of the organization; Wally Lovejoy, senior vice president of eye care development for Luxottica Retail, who will serve as vice-chairman and Ed Greene, CEO of The Vision Council, who will serve as secretary/treasurer.

The following members of the vision community will also serve on the Foundation’s board of directors:

• Joe Boorady, OD, vice president, clinical education and strategic accounts, Carl Zeiss Meditec
• Dori Carlson, OD, founder and partner, Heartland Eye Care and vice president, American Optometric Association
• Bart Foster, CEO and founder, SoloHealth
• Tom Hicks, immediate past president, Opticians Association of America
• Steve Ingram, executive director, National Association of Vision Care Plans (NAVCP)
• Greg Marko, director of marketing, Transitions Optical
• Marguerite McDonald, MD, cornea, cataract and refractive surgeon, Ophthalmic Consultants of Long Island
• Paul E. Michelson, MD, FACS, assistant clinical professor, University of California at San Diego School of Medicine
• Daniel Monaco, vice president, market innovations and retail markets, Essilor of America
• Stan Rogaski, executive director, Contact Lens Institute
• Dave Sattler, director of professional relations, Alcon
• Ken Stellmacher, director, consumer marketing, VSP Vision Care
• Jeff Todd, COO, Prevent Blindness America
• Mike Daley, president and executive director, The Foundation for Eye Health Awareness

“We’re happy to have a board of directors that’s diverse in its backgrounds, yet united in its dedication to this cause,” said Barry Barresi, OD, PhD, chairman of The Foundation for Eye Health Awareness. “With our new leadership in place, the Foundation is well poised to encourage the millions of Americans who are not currently getting the eye care they need to seek proper care.

The Foundation also implemented the following changes to the leadership of its governing committees:

• Jeff Todd, COO, Prevent Blindness America, will replace Dr. Barresi as chairman of the Nominating Committee
• Steve Ingram, executive director, NAVCP, will serve as chairman of the newly formed Eye Health Summit Planning Committee

Greg Marko, director of marketing, Transitions Optical, will continue as chairman of the Communications Committee and Dave Sattler, director of professional relations, Alcon, as chairman of the Development Committee.

“Through the work of the board of directors and governing committees, the Foundation will spend the next few months continuing to develop a public eye health message that fulfills our mission of directing people to take better care of their eyes,” said Mike Daley, president, The Foundation for Eye Health Awareness. “As we progress, we will solicit feedback and advice from a newly created Advisory Council.”

The Advisory Council will be asked to provide feedback on the activities and programs of the Foundation quarterly via e-mails or surveys. Initial invitations to join the group have been extended to the 2009 Eye Health Summit attendees; however, all members of the vision community are encouraged to get involved. The first opportunity for the Advisory Council to provide feedback will come in the next few weeks as the Foundation prepares for the 2010 Eye Health Summit. After considering the Advisory Council’s input, The Foundation will share its recommendations for an expanded Eye Health Summit this summer.

For more information about the Eye Health Summit or to join the Advisory Council, please contact Stephanie Campbell at scampbell@ehafoundation.org

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The Foundation for Eye Health Awareness, formed as a result of the Eye Health Summit, is a 501c3 non-profit organization created to increase the public’s awareness about the importance of eye health through a nationwide messaging campaign that directs people to take better care of their eyes.