The 7,500 people who have corneal transplants each year just got some additional help, thanks to Kearny Bank donating $10,000 to the global eye bank Eversight. Provided through the KearnyBank Foundation, this funding will help support clinical operations at Michigan-based Eversight’s location in Clark.
A nonprofit with facilities in multiple states — including a research center in Cleveland — Eversight recovers healthy, viable cornea tissue and prepares it for transplant by surgeons. In the U.S., there’s no waiting list of such operations, which seek to prevent blindness and restore vision. Cornea transplant surgeries have a success rate of approximately 97%.
“We have only 150 employees worldwide, and I always say we’re ‘small but mighty,’” Becky Harris, foundations & corporations philanthropy director, Eversight, said. “A large part of this might is based on the direct support we receive from companies like Kearny Bank. We and all the people we help are extremely fortunate for such generosity.”
Eversight’s recovery technicians — including those based in Clark — have 24/7 responsibilities, since tissue must be recovered within 24 hours of the donor’s passing. It may then be used anywhere in the country and sometimes internationally, with most transplants occurring within a week of recovery.
“We’re proud to contribute to an organization like Eversight, which helps people here in New Jersey, across the U.S. and around the world,” Kearny Bank CEO and President Craig Montanaro said. “Vision is essential for accomplishing even the most routine, day-to-day tasks. Happily, the medical technology to protect and restore it is quite effective, provided necessary funding is available. This donation marks the third consecutive year Kearny Bank has donated to Eversight, which is a truly a remarkable organization.”
Eversight works with partner organizations like the New Jersey Sharing Network to procure tissue for transplants. Of those who receive cornea transplants through Eversight’s efforts, about 65% are older than 65.
