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  • Honor a Mentor: How It Works

  • Make a donation and write your message:

    1. Visit our donate page and choose the Academy program you wish to support.
    2. Choose your gift amount. (See below for the benefits of each giving level.)
    3. Check “Yes” for your donation to be made in honor of someone.
    4. Write a 35- to 50-word statement or story about your mentor.
    5. Submit your gift.

    Special recognition for gifts of $5,000 and more:

    1. Find a digital photo of you with your mentor (at least 400 x 300 pixels), or two separate photos of each of you (at least 160 x 200 pixels).
    2. Email your photo(s) to Todd Lyckberg.

    Your mentor will receive notification from the Foundation that a gift has been made in their honor, with the message from you. All gifts of $1,000 and up will be listed on the Honor a Mentor page. All gifts of $5,000 and up will additionally be listed on the Special Recognition page, along with photos and statements.

    Yes, I want to honor my mentor!

    Recognition Levels

    All mentors will receive notification from the Foundation that a gift has been made in their honor, with a message from the donor. In addition, donors receive the following additional recognition for each giving level:

    $1,000 - $2,499

    • Become a Partners for Sight member ($1,000 - $2,499 annual giving) and receive listing recognition on the Foundation's annual giving webpage and the Honor a Mentor page.
    • Recognition in the Foundation's Annual Report tribute listing.

    $2,500 - $4,999

    • Become a Leadership Council member ($2,500+ annual giving) and receive listing recognition on the Foundation's annual giving webpage and the Honor a Mentor page.
    • Recognition in the Foundation's Annual Report tribute listing.
    • Pledges accepted (at this level and up)

    $5,000 - $9,999

    $10,000 - $24,999

    • Photo and brief story (35-50 words or less) written by donor and listing on the Honor a Mentor Special Recognition page and the Honor a Mentor page.
    • Recognition in a rolling spotlight on the Foundation webpage for you and your mentor for a year.

    $25,000 - $99,999

    • Recognize 5 mentors at $5,000 level each (5-year pledges accepted).  
    • Photo and brief story (35-50 words or less) written by donor and posted on the Honor a Mentor Special Recognition page and the Honor a Mentor page.
    • Recognition for a year on the Foundation webpage and at the 2021 Orbital Gala.

    $100,000 - $249,999

    • Everything at the $25,000 level, plus recognition in an EyeNet Magazine acknowledgment (full-page ad).

    $250,000 +

    • Everything at the $100,000 level, plus up to 50-100 word story and recognition at AAO 2022 in Chicago.

    Recognition benefits expire one year from the time of submission.

    Mentor Eligibility

    Mentors for this purpose will be a member in good standing of the ophthalmic community. A mentor can be living or deceased. Those who wish to honor a mentor outside of the ophthalmic community are asked to submit by e-mail the name to the Foundation’s Executive Director for consideration by the Review Committee.

    The Review Committee

    The Committee members are the Foundation team and a member designated by the Academy’s Ethics Committee Chair. The Academy Foundation reserves the right to accept and approve the mentor to be honored based on ethics and integrity considerations.

    Yes, I want to honor my mentor!