The LASIK Blog

One Year after Gold Medal: Curt Tomasevicz Still Enjoying His New Vision!

 

Curt Tomasevicz, a member of Team USA's gold medal winning 4-man bobsled, Night Train, dropped us a note last week, thanking us for his LASIK results:

"Life is so much easier without the discomfort and annoyance of contacts and glasses. I love being able to train without vision impairment as a distraction. I can focus on simply improving my strength and speed to push the sled. This hassle-free training allowed me to reach my best at the 2010 Olympics and win the Gold medal. Thanks Dr. Silverman and staff for playing a key role in my success!"

He also sent along some awesome memorabilia including a signed copy of the Sports Illustrated cover featuring the Night Train.  I can't wait to have them framed and hanging on the office walls!  Thanks Curt!

What We Do With Your Glasses After LASIK

I have posted in the past about what we at EyeCare 20/20 do with old glasses following LASIK and Refractive Cataract Surgery.  Basically, we set up collection boxes in our reception area for our patient to donate their old glasses.  We must collect over 10 large boxes of glasses annually.  We then donate these glassses to those in need. 

Our last supply was given to Mike Kambourakis and the Rotary Club of the Caldwells, who arranged to help the people of the Dominican Republic and Haiti.  His story was told in a local paper, and reprinted below, along with a letter from Mike.

If you have glasses that you no longer use and would like to donate them, drop them in the mail to:

EyeCare 20/20
Glasses Donation
46 Eagle Rock Ave.
East Hanover, NJ  07936

We will be happy to make sure that they get to someone in need!

 

 

 

   

Harvest Vision Once Again: The Music Video

I introduced Warren Barootajan back in August of this year.  Warren is a 63 year cabinet maker from upstate NY. His poor vision from cataracts have contributed to his inability to work. Without insurance he is unable to seek treatment. He has become frustrated with trying to receive treatment thru a broken system.

Warren was able to participate in this year's Vision Harvest free cataract program last month.  Besides being a carpenter, I also discovered he is a songwriter!  he was kind enough to write a song, "Harvest Vision", and produce a music video for our Vision Harvest Program!

He wrote:

It was almost 2 years ago I was declared legally blind in the state of New York and I was without work or health insurance. Now I have 20/20 vision in my right eye thanks to Dr Silverman and so many others. As a songwriter I thought it was my responsibility to thank everyone who volunteered their time,talents and supp...lies on that special day , Oct 28th-2010, hence "Harvest Vision Once Again"
It is all I can do at the moment. please accept this token of gratitude

-Warren E Barootjian

Well, here is the music video, "Harvest Vision Once Again."  I think he did a great job!~  Hope you all enjoy it!

 

LASIK for the Gold Athlete Updates: Less then 2 Years Till London!!

With the 2010 Winter Olympics but a recent memory, our LASIK for the Gold program has been very quiet of late.  Just to recap, this program provides free LASIK surgery to our Olympic athletes in an effort to afford them the best oportunity for Gold.  The 2010 Games proved to be a success with our athletes taking home seven medals!

I thought I would share what some of our 2012 summer athletes have recently been up to or said about their experience:

Table Tennis sensation, Samson Dubina dropped us an e-mail last week:

Dear Dr. Silverman and the staff at eyecare 20/20,
 
I wanted to update you on my life and training.  My last tournament was the North American Championship.  I finished #6 in the continent which boosted my world ranking 80 positions and raised my national ranking.  Right now I'm training for the US National Championships (last year I finished 2nd in the country.)  In preparation, I'll be having one of the best Japanese players living out my house and training me 6 hours/day.
 
Thanks for you support!  I'll keep you posted when I have a competition in NJ sometime!
 

Samson Dubina

On Sunday, pole vaulter, Melinda Owen, wrote to her FaceBook Fans:

When I head to bed, and then again when I wake up. . . I am constantly reminded of how grateful I am to Cary Silverman for doing Lasik on me. His generosity really has made a huge impact on my life!!!o

BMXer, Arielle Martin responded to her with:

I'm with you buddy, nothing like waking up in the morning seeing clear and perfect! Dr. Silverman rocks! Hope your killing it over there...

Less than 2 years till the Summer Games in London.  Things will begin picking up here.  We are all looking forward to more Olympic glory!!

Nora Kirk Loves Her New Vision Following ICL

Dr. Sapna Parikh interviewing Nora Kirk for Fox 5 News.

As I mentioned yesterday, Fox 5 was at EyeCare 20/20 this week for an upcoming story.  Nora Kirk was one of our patients who was interviewed.  Nora sent us an e-mail today about her experience:

Hi Kerrie.

How are you . I just wanted to say thank you for thinking of me for the fox 5 news interview.  It was very exciting. I really have not given Dr. Silverman, you & your staff the proper thank you for all you have done.  I've been pretty busy with my family & work all of this time,  I have never forgotten the gift of sight that was made possible through Dr, Silverman and your staff.  I have very high regards for all of you and I always try to encourage those I come into contact with about the services you provide. I have and always will have the upmost respect and confidence in Dr. Silverman and his associates. Again if I may be of any service in the near future, please do not hesitate to contact me.
 
 
Yours truly,
 
Nora Kirk
 

Professional Hockey Ref Scott Cherrey Loving His LASIK 1 Year Later!

I received a very nice letter from Professional Hockey Referee, Scott Cherrey.  Its been 1 year since Scott took advantage of our LASIK the Refs program.  I was lucky enough to see Scott during the season, after he reffed a Devils game.  He was loving his new vision!

Here is a copy of Scott's letter:

To Dr. Cary Silverman, Keri McAuliffe, and & all the staff at Eyecare 20/20:
 
It has been 1 year (exactly today) since my lasik eye surgery at Dr. Silverman's office.  It is unbelievable how having the procedure has changed my life!  Not just for my job as an on ice official, but how it has effected my day to day life.  It has been unreal how easily accustomed I have become to life without glasses, and not having to fuss with contact lenses.  I was especially thankful during allergy season this past spring, not having to deal with itchy, scratchy contact lenses bugging my eyes.  Also, for my job I travel alot by airplane, it is so nice to not have to worry about dry contact lenses while in flight.  These little things are all issues that I no longer have to worry about.  Gone are the days of waking up in the morning and seeing a blurry alarm clock, or poking around trying to find my glasses to watch tv from bed.
 
I recently completed my one year 'post-op' check up with my local optometrist.  I am proud to inform you that my eye sight is better then 20/20!!  My optometrist commented that I read lines further down the eye chart then I ever had done in all my years getting check ups with him.  He was very impressed, and I was equally as gratified knowing I done the right thing by getting lasik surgery done at Eyecare 20/20!
 
Forever grateful!
Scott Cherrey
Professional Hockey Official - #50

US Hockey's Molly Engstrom Talks about Her Olympic Experience & LASIK

In response to our recent press release, we received an e-mail from Molly Engstrom, defenseman for the Silver Medal US Women's Hockey Team and a LASIK for the Gold Member.  I thought I would share it with you all:

Hi Kerry and Dr. Silverman,
 
What a great article!  So cool to read up on the other athletes (of which I spent a good amount of time with Chad and Katherine through the dining hall and in the village) and reflect on my experience with you guys and your staff at eye care 20/20.  My eyes are awesome and like Katherine said in the article, it was so great to be at the Olympics not only with great vision but without having to worry about contacts and glasses and messing with solution.  It was a long journey and a wonderful journey for the Women's hockey team.   We had such a great group in Vancouver, and although heartbreaking in the end it was one of the most wonderful experiences of my life and I know it was very special for all of us.  I just wanted to let you know that you were with me on my journey.   I always think about how I can see perfectly without glasses or contacts and most often times I find it unbelievable.  It has taken a great amount of  time, energy and effort of so many people in my life to help me get to the Olympics and you are part of that family for me.  Thank you so very much!
 
My very best,
 
Molly

LASIK for the Gold's Molly Engstrom and US Women's Hockey Waiting for Olympic Games to Begin!

The Winter Olympics in Vancouver are now less than 3 weeks away.  US Hockey Women's team is primed and ready to go.  They have recently finished their 10 game exhibition series against Team Canada, who are the Gold Medal favorites.  According to the USA Hockey web site:

The results aren’t to Team USA’s liking so far, but there is still the big prize at stake.

The U.S. women’s hockey team is heading into the 2010 Vancouver Olympics carrying a losing streak against its primary foe Canada.

The teams faced off 10 times in the year leading up to the Olympics, with Canada taking seven wins. The most recent four games, all won by Canada, were staged as pre-Olympic exhibitions across North America.

But, Team USA is relishing the role of underdog and looking forward to a strong olympic performance.

Last year, Team USA defenseman, Molly Engstrom joined our LASIK for the Gold team, flying out to New Jersey to EyeCare 20/20 to get her LASIK surgery.  Molly is a 2006 Bronze Medalist who always dreamed of making the US team since she was a kid. Engstrom was also a member of the 2009 and 2005 World Championship teams.

 

Molly recently sent us the following notes, letting us know she is doing well and ready for the competition to begin.  Along with the photo and notes, Molly was kind enough to send me a hockey stick, autographed by the entire Team USA!!

We are all looking forward for a successful olympics for both Molly and her teammates next month.  GO USA!!

 

Great Response to Vision Harvest "Free Cataract Surgery" Program

SInce Fox New York's coverage last week of our Vision Harvest program we have heard from many in need of cataract surgery.  These patients are without health insurance and have no means to pay for this vision restoring procedure.  Many of their stories are heart breaking.  I am so looking forward to November 25, when these patients will be undergoing their free cataract surgery.

Special thanks to Dr. Sapna Parikh, who covered this story on Fox.  I received and e-mail from Dr. Parikh today.  She forwarded me a message from one of the people we will be treating next week:

Topic: Dr. Sapna
Subject: vision harvest
Comments: I don't know how to thank you for providing me with the
information to restore my sight I was accepted today for free cataract
surgery.  I have been at my wits end for 2 years trying to figure out
how to afford this procedure. Dr. Silverman is a gift from GOD and you
are an angel for delivering his message. Thank you so much Dr.Sapna.

This message has been typical of the response from those we have seen this past week at EyeCare 20/20.  It certainly leaves one with a warm feeling inside.  As they say, "It is better to give than to receive."  I couldn't agree more!

For those interested in participating in this year's Vision Harvest program, there are still spots available for free cataract surgery for those who qualify.  We will continue to be seeing patients Monday and Tuesday this week to determine eligibility for surgery on Wednesday.  Those interested should call:

973-200-8250

Melinda Owen Thrilled With Her New Eyes!

Melinda Owen presents me with a signed pair of track cleats she used in

last year's pole vault competition.  Check out our new LASIK for the Gold hats!

Melinda Owen did wonderfully following her LASIK surgery this week at EyeCare 20/20.  She was kind enough to drop us an e-mail:

So I want you to know that how happy I am with my eye sight!!! I pole vaulted today and wore my goggles so I had zero problems at all and saw as crisp as can be! I have been bragging about how exciting getting lasik has been to my family and told my mom and brother that I would want them to see Dr. Silverman if they were going to get it done. 

So when i was going through my bag Dr. Silverman gave me I found some cards for a free lasik evaluation and so I have convinced my brother to try to get in and see him.  He was an athlete as well, he wrestled for University of Michigan and now coaches wrestling at Harvard. I think after hearing how happy I am about my results it has really made him realize how much he wants to do it too. I hope you know how much I appreciated everything you did for me while I was there this past weekend.  I had a great time getting to know you all. I wrote a little thing up on my blog about it even :)

She also posted on her blog:

While in the training room, here at the Olympic Center, I was complaining about my contacts when a friend Ariel Martin explained to me a program she was apart of.  Lasik for the Gold, is a program Dr. Silverman started to help aspiring olympians get the care they need but may not be able to afford. Ariel is a BMX Biker who had just recently got Lasik done. She said she would email the program director about me, but I didn’t think to much of it until I got a call from them only days later.
. . .YAY!!! I couldn’t believe it.  Only two short weeks after receiving the call I was flown to East Hanover, New Jersey where I met with Dr. Silverman and his team to get Lasik Eye Surgery done It was a huge success!!! Not only am I able to see 20/15 now, but I was also given the opportunity to meet some amazing people.

As most anyone would be, I was very nervous to get the surgery done not to mention the fact that I was to fly across the country and do it all by my self. That is right, every girl wants her mom near by to take care of her :-)  But from the moment I landed, Dr. Silverman’s assistant Keri made sure I was completely taken care of and extremely comfortable.  I hope that they realize how appreciative I am for everything.  I suggest you take a Lasik for the Gold to see the amazing things Dr. Silverman has done.

http://www.lasikforthegold.com/

We are so looking forward to the upcoming pole vault season and rooting for Melinda in her bid to make it to the 2012 Olympics in London.  In the following video, Melinda talks about her experience with the LASIK procedure at EyeCare 20/20.