"We are more fulfilled when we are involved in something bigger than ourselves." – John Glenn, Former US Senator, first and oldest American to orbit the earth.
As a former senator, pilot, and astronaut
the late John Glenn was no stranger to daunting challenges. The struggle to combat blinding eye diseases is such a challenge. One million people in the United States are irreversibly blind (a number expected to double by 2030 and quadruple by 2050) and glaucoma, AMD, and diabetic eye disease are among the most devastating causes of blindness.
Created in honor of the late John Glenn and his wife Annie, the John and Annie Glenn Research Fund supports research toward curing and treating glaucoma, diabetic eye disease, and age-related macular degeneration. It also supports collaborations between researchers and physicians to foster unprecedented treatments and advancements by providing resources for advanced technology and ground breaking research in ophthalmology. By providing resources for advanced technology and ground breaking research, it will create collaboration between talented scientists and physicians to foster unprecedented treatments and advancements. In March 2018, donors and department staff gathered to celebrate the creation of the John & Annie Glenn Fund with guest speaker Terry Virts, retired US Air Force Colonel and former NASA astronaut. Together with the generous support of the Glenn Fund and the determined research by scientists and clinicians, the challenge to end blindness is being accepted and a new frontier in sight restoration is being forged in ophthalmology.