One Big Seeing Eye Family
When The Seeing Eye celebrated its 80th anniversary in 2009, it held a graduate reunion. It was a big hit so we decided to do it again! In honor of its 90th anniversary, The Seeing Eye recently welcomed more than 200 graduates and guests to Morristown, N.J. for a weekend dedicated to the Seeing Eye family. This included a Morristown walking tour hosted by Seeing Eye staff and volunteers; tours of the campus and downtown training center for the graduates and their guests; seminars with historical presentations, demonstrations and discussion panels. The weekend concluded with a banquet where the attendees celebrated their connection to The Seeing Eye and two special people were honored.
Retired Seeing Eye Instructor Drew Gibbon is shown with Director of Instruction and Training David Johnson. Gibbon was presented with the Juno Award, an honor that has only been presented twelve other times in our 90-year history. The honor is reserved only for Seeing Eye Instructors, and the honorees are selected by Seeing Eye Instructors. The award is a hand-carved wooden box with a list containing the names of every student that Gibbon has ever taught in class. The box is topped with a 6-inch replica of a Seeing Eye dog.
Ginger Kutsch is shown with Dave Johnson, holding a tiny replica of a Seeing Eye harness on an engraved plaque. Kutsch is a longtime Seeing Eye volunteer, and was honored with the Morris Frank Award, which has only been presented eight previous times. The award is reserved for a graduate of The Seeing Eye who personifies, through personal and professional accomplishment, the vigor, ideals and commitment of Morris Frank, and whose efforts and achievements help to open the doors to independence and opportunity for people who are blind.
A rare photo opportunity, three Seeing Eye Presidents were in attendance for the banquet: pictured above, left to right, are retired Seeing Eye President Ken Rosenthal, current Seeing Eye President Jim Kutsch, and incoming Seeing Eye President Glenn Hoagland.
