ROPARD honored Dr. Mark Humayun with the 2008 Children’s Vision Award for his

work in restoring vision to those who have lost their sight.

Dr. Humayun M.D. is Professor of Ophthalmology at

the Keck School of Medicine and Associate Director of

Research at the Doheny Eye Institute at the University of

Southern California. He also holds a Ph.D. in Biomedical

Engineering. His clinical interests include macular

degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, retinal detachment and

retinal vascular occlusive disease. His research covers

electrical stimulation of the retina, retinal prostheses,

retinal disease, retinal transplantation and instrumentation

for vitreoretinal surgery. Dr. Humayun has implanted

an intraocular retinal prosthesis which takes the place

of retinal cells damaged by disease. With his team of

researchers, his current work is to refine materials and

techniques to move toward a clinical application that can be made more widely available.

In this way, he has worked to develop a system for artificial vision.

The 5th Children’s Vision Award ceremony was held in the Great Hall of the Detroit

Institute of Arts. It was preceded by cocktails in the Rivera Court where a short history

of the DIA and the Rivera Court was provided by Nettie Seabooks, the COO of the

DIA. The evening’s Master of Ceremonies was Peter Carey, who added panache and

humor to the evening.

Dinner was followed by a presentation by futurist and scientist extraordinaire Ray

Kurzweil, who discussed his vision of the future with the topic: The Future of Blindness

in an Age of Accelerating Technology. Mr. Kurzweil appeared as an interactive hologram

from his home in Massachusetts. Tracing the development of today’s technologies by

starting with the telephone in 1890, then moving to the

radio, television, personal computers, mobile phones,

and the internet, he discussed how technologies were

advancing exponentially, as opposed to linearly. He

talked about these modern inventions and the period of

time that it took for them to be used by the majority of

humans. With the coming epoch he predicted that there

would be a merger of technology and human intelligence

(the Singularity). The audience learned that information

technologies were doubling their power every year.

He also touched on the future of artificial vision and

whether he felt it was possible.

Rozen has been the poster pup for ROPARD’s Fifth

Children’s Vision Award. She is an eight year old

graduate of The Seeing Eye program and she has loyally

been serving Kathy since September 2001. Roz is the

latest and the most social of Kathy’s four guide dogs.

But, alas as you see, she and others like her see a future

which doesn’t include the need for their services.

Emerging biomedical technologies will, we believe,

progress to a point where blind people will see. As we

praise Dr. Humayun, there are currently 174 different

organizations

in nineteen

countries

working on

neuroprosthetic

implants to

ultimately

provide vision to

the sightless. It

is the success of

this effort which

will allow the

future “Rozens”

to maintain the

less demanding

schedule of

barking at

squirrels and

sleeping.

The presentation was followed by a short discussion

between Dr. Humayun and Ray Kurzweil and with

questions from the audience. More than 250 people

attended this remarkable event including Mr. Kurzweil’s

Mother-in-Law. As Mr. Kurzweil pointed out, he was

able to have a visit without spending money on air fare.

This was an exciting and successful evening for

ROPARD and participants. It is hoped that with

increased exposure of Dr. Humayun’s work, interest and

awareness of ROPARD and eye research can be made

to a larger audience.

On May 30, 2008, Dr. Mark Humayun gave the Sixth

ROPARD lecture at the Dearborn Inn, Michigan. The

In Manila, Philippines, Willie and Julie Chingcuanco plan

to open the Timothy Habilitation Center. The Center

will provide Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy,

and Speech Therapy for visually

impaired children who are multihandicapped.

Although there

are several therapy centers in

Manila, not one caters to visually

impaired children. The Center

will open by the end of 2008.

ROPARD’s popular Holiday Card is for sale again this

year. Our card, designed five years ago by 15 year old

Annabelle in Iowa, is also available in Braille. We are

looking for a new design, with a new artist, so please

submit designs to ROPARD, PO Box 250425, Franklin

MI 48025. Please include a short biography of the artist

and a photograph.

Cards may be ordered on-line at our website: www.

ropard.org or by mail. The cost is $15 for a box of

twelve or $26 for a box of Braille cards. If inscription is

desired, please order early.

People ask who provides ROPARD’s imaginative artwork. The programs, brochures, posters, and

invitations are all designed by Dr. Edward O’Malley, our resident artist and member of our Board

of Directors. Dr. O’Malley is a pediatric ophthalmologist in Grosse Pointe, Michigan. Many of you

Save the Date Cards, invitations, and programs. All of these publications originated with Ed.

Ed is basically a self-taught artist. He began his career at age four copying cells from The Lone

Ranger comics. From there he scoured the encyclopedia for good photographs to draw. Beginning

in the sixth grade, he illustrated his school newspaper and continued to do so through his school

years. His first earnings from art came in grade nine when he designed a crypt (he was paid $25

which he thought was stealing). Ed’s formal training totaled one studio art course in college,

where he was introduced to circles and boxes which he had already mastered. The intricacies

of oils, watercolor, and acrylics along with some sculpture, he learned on his own. In college,

he started to do commercial art work. In medical school, he began illustrating for medical

publications and brochures, which has continued to the present. Other commercial work included

designing collectible pins and producing coloring books of real NHL and NFL players.

In 1997, Ed got his first Mac and went digital for the illustrations in Dr. Lylas Mogk’s Macular

Degeneration book and he hasn’t looked back, digitally speaking that is.

In addition to ROPARD, Ed designs pieces for AAPOS (the Pediatric Ophthalmology Group) and

for many other organizations where he is an active member. He loves to paint pictures of “kids

doing their thing” (sports, drama etc.) for donations to silent auctions in organizations in which he

has a personal interest.

What is Ed’s favorite painting? He says usually it’s his next one. ROPARD is lucky to have Ed on

Board.

John Baker, M.D.

Margaret Cooney Casey

Patrick J. Droste, M.D.

Philip Hessburg, M.D.

David S. Hooker

Leslie Hooker

Jeffrey Maisels, M.D.

Raymond Margherio, M.D.

Rita Margherio

Kay White Meyer

Edward O’Malley, M.D.

Venkat Reddy, Ph.D.

Caron Trese

Lori Webb

George A. Williams, M.D.

Kimberly Williams

Paul R. Ziegler

Michael Trese, M.D.

Antonio Capone, Jr., M.D.

Susan Campbell

Paula Korelitz

By Appointment Only

Paula Korelitz

Rosemary Blaszkiewicz

4064C W. 13 Mile Road

Royal Oak, Michigan 48073

1-800-788-2020

Show your concern for this cause by donating to:

ROPARD, P.O. Box 250425, Franklin, Michigan 48025

Name

Address

City State Zip

Your tax-deductible contribution will be used to support the

highest levels of clinically relevant research.

Should you have any

questions regarding

this issue, please

contact ROPARD at

1-800-788-2020

or visit our website at

http://www.ropard.org

or e-mail us at

ropard@yahoo.com

Management of Retinopathy of Prematurity

(VHS or PAL format) $30

Retinopathy of Prematurity, Current Issues

(VHS or PAL format) $30

Videos l and ll $55

“Looking Ahead: A Parent’s Guide to the

Development of their Child with Retinopathy

of Prematurity” $10

“A Parent’s Guide to Their Premature

Infant’s Eyes” Pkg of 100--$25.

(available in English or Spanish)

Order at www.ROPARD.org; or call 1-800-788-2020.

Package of 12 for $15.

They are also available in Braille for $26.

Custom imprinting upon request.