Foundation Fighting Blindness dinner March 17 in Newport Beach

The Foundation Fighting Blindness (www.FightBlindness.org) will honor J. Andy Corley, co-founder of Eyeonics, and Baruch D. Kuppermann, M.D., Ph.D., professor of ophthalmology and biomedical engineering and chief of retina service at the Gavin Herbert Eye Institute at the University of California, Irvine, with the organization’s Visionary Awards. Presentations will take place at the Foundation’s Orange County Dining in the Dark event on March 17 at the Fairmont Newport Beach. Serving as emcee will be Jon Wellner from CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, who is affected with retinitis pigmentosa, a retinal disease that progressively robs vision.

Dining in the Dark will benefit the Foundation Fighting Blindness, whose urgent mission is to drive the research that will lead to preventions, treatments and cures for the more than 10 million Americans affected with retinitis pigmentosa, macular degeneration, Usher syndrome and the entire spectrum of retinal degenerative diseases. Co-chairing the event are William J. Link, Ph.D., and Jim Mazzo.

The dinner will follow the 4th Annual Retinal Innovation Symposium, a one-day event that unites leaders in translational academic research and retinal disease drug and device developers to advance treatments for blinding diseases.

Dining in the Dark is a distinctive sensory awareness experience in which guests participate in an unforgettable dining adventure, in complete darkness. For about 30 minutes, attendees will enjoy their entrée using only their senses of smell, sound and touch, to get a glimpse into the lives of the blind. Visually impaired servers, who are trained specifically for the dinner to use a system of ropes and stanchions, will help guests navigate through this new experience.

What: Orange County Dining in the Dark

Where: Fairmont Newport Beach
4500 Macarthur Blvd.
Newport Beach, CA 92660

When: Thursday, March 17, 2011
6-7 p.m. Reception
7-9:30 p.m. Dinner and program

Cost: $300 per ticket

For more information, sponsorship opportunities, or to buy tickets, visit www.FightBlindness.org or contact event manager Donna Cohen at 310-207-2089 or Dcohen@FightBlindness.org.