OKLAHOMA CITY, Oct. 17 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Oklahoma Academy of Ophthalmology (OAO) hosts the second annual "Eye Ball," benefiting the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) Central Oklahoma Chapter.
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Actor, singer, author and producer Tom Sullivan will headline the event. Lorena and Gary Story of Oklahoma City are the honorary chairs.
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The black-tie-optional gala will be held Friday, October 24 at Gaillardia Country Club in Oklahoma City. The event will feature drinks, a seated dinner, great conversation, and -- thanks to the generous support of Allergan, Inc. -- a keynote address by Mr. Sullivan.
"We are extremely excited about this year's Eye Ball," said OAO president Amalia Miranda, an ophthalmologist in Oklahoma City. "The inaugural event last year was terrific and it is an inspiration to hear Tom Sullivan speak."
The event is open to members of the general public who RSVP in advance. Tickets and sponsorship levels are $150 and up.
Juvenile (Type 1) diabetes is a disease which strikes children suddenly and requires multiple injections of insulin daily or a continuous infusion of insulin through a pump. Insulin, however, is not a cure for diabetes, nor does it prevent its eventual and devastating complications which may include kidney failure, blindness, heart disease, stroke, and amputation.
For more information on the event or to RSVP, please visit the Eye Ball website at www.OklahomaEyeBall.com.
About Tom Sullivan
Tom Sullivan, known to many as an actor, singer, entertainer, author, and producer, lives and works by "Sullivan's Rules." As a young boy he found himself fenced in his back yard, but he refused to be fenced in by his blindness. "Sullivan's Rules" were invented by Tom and his father, Porky Sullivan, so he could play baseball with the neighborhood boys without the benefit of seeing the ball. It became the most popular game on the block. And "Sullivan's Rules" became the rules to play by in the sighted world and that meant playing almost anything.
One of Sullivan's first rules is that "Any negative can be turned into positive." Born prematurely in 1947, Tom was given too much oxygen while in an incubator. Though it saved his life, it cost him his eyesight. The "inconvenience" of being blind has never kept Tom Sullivan from competing in a world where he realized that to be equal, for him, meant that he must be better. Even as he may have had to change the rules slightly, he has proven that one need not be limited by a handicap whether it is playing backyard baseball as a youngster, or in any activity he's pursued. He's an avid snow skier and a marathon runner, and has recently been inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in Stillwater, Oklahoma.
In his latest title Adventures in Darkness, Tom takes readers through his monumental eleventh summer. Blind since birth, Tom lived in a challenging world of isolation and special treatment. But he was driven to break out and live as sighted people do. This book is a hair-raising, heart-warming experience that culminates in Tom's determination to realize his dreams of a "normal" life.
About the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation
JDRF is the leading charitable funder and advocate of type 1 (juvenile) diabetes research worldwide. The mission of JDRF is to find a cure for diabetes and its complications through the support of research.
Since its founding in 1970 by parents of children with type 1 diabetes, JDRF has awarded more than $1.16 billion to diabetes research, including more than $137 million in FY2007. In FY2007, the Foundation funded 700 centers, grants and fellowships in 20 countries.
About the Oklahoma Academy of Ophthalmology
The OAO is a member organization of nearly 100 Oklahoma ophthalmologists which was founded to promote the science and art of medical eye care. Eye healthcare is provided by three sources -- opticians, optometrists and ophthalmologists. It is the ophthalmologist, or Eye M.D., who can treat all eye diseases and injuries, and perform eye surgery. To find an Eye M.D. in your area, visit the OAO's Web site at www.OklahomaEyes.org.
SOURCE Oklahoma Academy of Ophthalmology
