News

Changing Lives Every Day

Grateful Farmer Thanks Donor's Family for Restored Sight

Gift of Sight

The heartfelt letter below is just one example of how corneal transplants greatly improve a recipient’s quality of life. Scott Bowman from Maquoketa, IA received his cornea transplant in June 2018 at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics:

Honoring an Angler

Every Life Has a Story
Robert D. Greiner was a beloved old crank. He loved the parts of his family and his life that mattered most to him. Robert will be remembered always as a loving father and grandfather; an intellectual and an artist; and a wonderful teacher, whether he meant to be or not.

A Mother and Daughter's Love is Never Separated

Every Life Has a Story
When Candy Barnes, age 56, died at University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics on June 15, 2017, surrounded by her loving family, this quote rang true with her only daughter, Andrea Barnes. Candy and Andrea shared a strong and adoring mother-daughter bond. Just six weeks following Candy's death, tragedy brought the Barnes family back to the University of Iowa Hospital; Andrea, only 27 years old, died unexpectedly as the result of a pulmonary embolism.

Gift of Sight donor - Richard Murphy

Every Life Has a Story

Richard Murphy of Iowa lived most of his life with physical disabilities resulting from severe injuries sustained in a car accident that almost ended his life at only nine months of age. To this day, his loving mother credits the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics for saving her infant son’s life.

Lions Legacy Project

General News

The Iowa Lions Foundation recently voted to award $30,000 of the $65,000 they are raising for the Iowa Lions Legacy Project to support the Iowa Lions Eye Bank research team. This funding allowed ILEB to purchase a much-needed piece of research equipment, the Chemidoc MP Imaging System.

Donor Family Visits ILEB

Every Life Has a Story

Family Services Coordinator, Deb Schuett, welcomed special guests to the eye bank—Geri Ryan and her daughter, Patti, from the Dubuque area. Geri is the wife of Paul F. Ryan who died in 2002 at Finley Hospital in Dubuque. Paul donated his corneas to the Iowa Lions Eye Bank for transplant to 2 grateful recipients, one from Illinois and the other from Iowa.

Over 40 Years Later, A Gift of Sight is Still Remembered

Every Life Has a Story

Our family services coordinator received a call from Elaine Assad asking about her late husband’s eye donation which occurred in 1971. Elaine shared that after all of these years, she still thinks about her late husband around the anniversary of his death, and she called the eye bank because she was unsure about some details of his donation.