SUNY College of Optometry president, Dr. David Heath (l), is presented with the 2022 Eyes on Leadership Award from OCNY president Dr. Richard Soden.
 
NEW YORK—SUNY College of Optometry celebrated 50 years of accomplishment earlier this month here at a special  event which combined the Optometric Center of New  York's Eyes on New York Gala alongside the annual Student Eye Ball at Edison Ballroom. SUNY College president Dr. David Heath was awarded the 2022 Eyes on Leadership Award, recognizing his service to the College and his leadership in the field of optometry. The lively event was filled with SUNY students, professors, alumni, Board members, supporters from all sectors of the profession and the eyecare field.

This year's Gala raised a record $300,000 to expand opportunities for optometry students. New York State Representatives Amy Paulin and Richard Gottfried, joined the nation’s leading optometry researchers and providers to celebrate 50 years of leadership in optometric education, advancement of vision research, and world-class patient care. Since 1971, SUNY Optometry, which holds one of the largest optometric outpatient facilities in the nation, has been committed to the discovery and advancement of vision care.
 
The event, held by the Optometric Center of New York (OCNY), was hosted by actress and disability advocate Marilee Talkington. VMAIL reported on the Gala last week and some of the images and highlights are posted here.
 



The 50th Gala turned into a lively party at the SUNY College of Optometry's annual Eye Ball.
Silver Sponsors of the SUNY Gala included Essilor Luxottica and CooperVision. Bronze sponsors included National Vision and VSP Vision Care. Titanium Sponsors included Designs for Vision, Jobson Optical Group, Bill Moran, Richard Soden, OD, and Warby Parker. Aqua Sponsors included Allergan, ClearVision Optical, Eye to Eye Careers, Mark Feder, OD, Dennis and Lesley Gehr, Haag-Streit USA, Ronald Millman, OD and Luxottica Retail. White Sponsors included Bryant Park Grill, Thomas and Nancy Farrell, Dennis and Lesley Gehr, David Heath OD, EdM, Heidelberg Engineering, Viola Kanevsky, OD, RBC Wealth Management and Gretchen and Lewis Stone.

The SUNY Optometry honorary committee for the 50th anniversary evening, included: Daniel A and Susan Duke Biederman, Christine Chang, Marc Ferrara (president of the Jobson Optical Group), Dr. Michael H. Heiberger, Dr. Siret Jaanus, Dr. Edward R. Johnston, Neera Kapoor, OD, MS, Viola Kanevsky, OD, Millicent Knight, OD, FAAO, FAARM, Margaret Lewis, Dr. Richard J. Madonna, Dr. Jerry Rapp, Dr. Jerome Sherman, Aravella Simotas, Dr. Libby Sukoff, Danne Ventura and Michael Weinstein.





The evening's host was actress Marilee Talkington, flanked by Dr. Soden (l) and Dr. Heath (r).
 Dr. Heath and his wife, Jeannine (l), listened to the program's opening. Members of the OCNY board of trustees, the fundraising foundation for the college, took a moment together.










Fabrizio Uguzzoni (l), president, EssilorLuxottica N.A. and Jerry Warner, president, CooperVision represented their companies as the evening's two Silver Sponsors.
Uguzzoni, second from right, was joined by a large contingent of colleagues from EssilorLuxottica at the SUNY Gala, including Dr. Millicent Knight, Ludo Ladreyt, Sydney Stinson Ferguson and others.
Dr. Christopher Quinn and his wife, Susan, with Dr. Frank Pirazzolo and his wife, Eileen, enjoyed the evening.










Designs for Vision's Richard Feinbloom and his wife, Toni.
ClearVision's David Friedfeld (l), presented a $25,000 gift on behalf of him and his wife, Vicki, to support future diversity scholarships for SUNY Optometry students.
OCNY board member, Dr. Mark Feder, was joined by his daugher Dr. Danielle Feder.