Oct 31, 2011
EyeBall 2011, the 7th annual ballroom dance show fundraiser of the 501c(3) non-profit charity, Wang Foundation for Sight Restoration, was a sell-out success, with over 400 attendees in tuxedos and ball gowns enjoying the exquisite gala on Saturday, October 1st at the Renaissance Hotel in Nashville, TN.
The Wang Foundation was established in 2004 by Ming Wang, MD, PhD. It currently consists of a 33-member board of directors and a 23-member medical council. To date, the foundation has helped patients from over 40 states in the U.S. and 55 countries worldwide, with all sight restoration surgeries performed free-of-charge. The foundation doctors have published 5 textbooks, and a paper in the world-renowned journal “Nature”, they hold several U.S. patents for inventions of new biotechnologies to restore sight, and they performed the world’s first laser-assisted artificial cornea implantation.
The EyeBall 2011 chair was Mayor Karl Dean, Congresswoman Marsha Blackburn was the guest of honor, and Rudy Kalis was the Master of Ceremony. The 7th annual EyeBall featured a violin performance by Nashville’s Suzuki Players (musicians ranging in age from 7-14 years old), a dance show by Kelsey Bourge and Edward Morales, and a piano performance by Graciella Kowalczyk, winner of the All-Poland Piano Competition. This delightful event was organized by JJ Wang and Ashley Marlow.
Dr. Ming Wang also spoke about the foundation’s mission, which is to bridge the gap between the high cost of the latest advances in medicine and the low affordability of these treatments by the sickest patients, for whom they are precisely intended. In an effort help to reduce this gap, all foundation doctors donate their surgical services. Mayor Karl Dean discussed the impact that a grass-roots, civilian-organized charity effort like the Wang Foundation can have in caring for the poor; and guest of honor, Congresswoman Marsha Blackburn, talked about the role such medical charities are playing in reducing the financial burden our nation has in caring for the poor.
EyeBall 2011 attendees viewed the videos of innovative sight restoration surgeries, including one about a man whose sight was restored after 13 years of blindness, and he was able to see his wife for the very first time. Foundation patient, Ms. Linda Williams, gave a moving testimonial about her sad experience with being blind, and then the joy of being able to see again, and finally being on her feet again with the help of the foundation.
Among the EyeBall 2011 guests were foundation board members Shirley Zeitlin, McClin Davis, Tom Lawless, Lynda Evjen, AJ McCall, Charles Grummon, Brian Sconyers, James Looper, and Mark Hilliard; and foundation medical council members Drs. Amy Waymire, Craig McCabe, John Downing, David Shen, Helen Boerman, Jeffrey Carter, Matt Drew, Roy Ferguson, Rob Szeliga and Bob Simon. Other honored guests included Joshua Smith, Brad Morley, Jakie Cook, Carol Waugh, Richard Nelson, Marieta Velikova, Howard Cochran, Phillip Castilo and Dan Zimmerlie.
EyeBall 2011 would not have been so memorable had it not been for the impromptu ballroom dance lesson taught by the owners of Danceworld Studio Danny and Charlene Baye, who were able to get nearly everyone on the floor and learn to “put their best foot forward” with their dancing! Dr. Wang also taught several attendees a few creative dance moves, and everyone had a wonderful time learning from the foundation leader himself!
“The EyeBall is a very unique event, merging music and medicine. The breathtaking beauty of classical ballroom dancing reminds us how precious God’s given gift of sight is, and how much we need to help those who have lost that gift,” said the founder, Dr. Ming Wang.
