Stories
Rob: 'The Graft is a Gift Every Second of Every Day'
In his early 20s, Robert learned he had keratoconus, a degenerative condition that causes corneas to change shape and distort vision. For the next decade, he awoke each morning wondering whether he'd be able to see clearly throughout the day. He couldn't achieve usable vision at all with eyeglasses and had trouble wearing contact lenses. "It became a game," he says, "trying not to blink for 5 to 10 seconds at a time so my contacts wouldn't become uncomfortable and force me to take them out."
The cornea in his right eye worsened and he taught himself to function with one eye. Despite what he calls "a circus act in reading," he finished law school two years ago.
In August 2007, a cornea transplant became the best option for that eye. He's enjoyed a trouble-free recovery and experienced an "unbelievable" improvement in his vision. "When I read now, I just. . . read," he says. "I don't have to think about it." It's a nice change for a newlywed clerking in a judge's office. And thanks to the return of his depth perception, Rob has resumed playing basketball, a sport he'd given up.
"It's a humbling experience to know that so many people-the surgical team, the eye bank staff, Lions Club members-have done so much for me to be able to see everyday," he says, adding that "most remarkable of all, of course, is the donor."
Rob spoke recently at one of the twice-annual donor recognition services sponsored by the eye bank: "It was great to tell the families of the people who start the process how there is someone on the receiving end. The graft is not only a gift I get every day; it's a gift I get every second of every day."
“The graft is not only a gift I get every day; it’s a gift I get every second of every day.”