Gift of Sight Gala March 24, 2006

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 as well as a fabulous silent auction. Beverly Blettner, Gregory Hyder and Mary Ann Rose are co-chairs of this year?s Gala that benefits the Eye-Bank?s innovative Eye and Vision Research Program and invaluable Donor Awareness Public Education Program.

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.