80-90% of blindness is preventable with education and access to medical care (Prevent Blindness America). For over 30 years, LifeSight has been dedicated to making that prevention a reality.
Our origins began in 1982, when Dr. Paul Wright, Dr. Daniel Hafner, and Dr. John Herlihy established Black Hills Regional Eye Institute, a nonprofit clinic in Rapid City, SD. Its vision was to bring world-class, comprehensive eye care to a region where patients once had to travel to Denver or Minneapolis for treatment.
Built on the cornerstones of clinical care, education, and research, the Eye Institute quickly grew to become a regional leader.
To support its growth, a separate nonprofit organization was established in 1987, Black Hills Regional Eye Institute Foundation (the predecessor to Northern Plains Eye Foundation, now LifeSight). Through its fundraising, research, and education efforts, Black Hills Regional Eye Institute Foundation contributed over $1.6 million to the Eye Institute for outreach and innovation.
After nearly two decades, the Eye Institute transitioned to private ownership in 2002. This opened the door for the Foundation to take on a new role and identity. Northern Plains Eye Foundation was selected for the organization’s name. Alongside research and education, the mission was expanded to include community service, launching the creation of innovative signature impact initiatives targeted to promote overall vision health and improve access to quality eye care in our communities.
Today, as LifeSight, we lead sight-saving outreach programs, champion education to protect and preserve vision, and collaborate with eye care professionals across the region to help people see well.
Our advocacy efforts focus on providing for the unmet vision needs of children and medically underserved adults, particularly people of low socioeconomic status, who lack access to routine eye care.
Helping people see well throughout their lifetime begins with protecting little eyes. Eye care for children is critical beginning in infancy, as children’s eyesight changes rapidly. Vision plays a huge role in a child’s development, education, and overall quality of life. If a child has an undetected vision problem, it is important that it is identified early.
Low-income and vulnerable populations lack access to basic eye care – putting them at greater risk than the general population for undiagnosed vision disorders and eye diseases.
Gift of Sight, launched in 2008, provides sight-restoring surgeries to underserved individuals suffering from severe vision loss, primarily due to cataracts, who would not otherwise receive care.
Since 2014, LifeSight has partnered with students at the University of South Dakota Sanford School of Medicine to study children’s vision and rural eye care needs across our state.
Despite the proven benefits of routine eye care, many face barriers due to cost, geography, or lack of awareness. You can help.
We invite you to support this vital work to help sustain the reach of our programs and deepen their impact – to improve lives – for all, for decades to come.