News & Stories

Changing Lives Every Day

News & Stories

2023 Impact Map

General News

A total of 1,015 Iowa donors provided corneal transplant tissue for 732 recipients in 2023. Additional gifted corneas were used for research and educational purposes to advance knowledge of blindness-causing diseases and transplantation techniques. See the full image.

Man who's seen the world can see once again

Gift of Sight

When Allen Tiesman enlisted in the Air Force in 1961, he wanted to get as far away from his hometown of Fulton, Illinois, as possible.

“I wanted to see as much of the world as I could,” Tiesman says.

Veteran mechanic always wanted to help others

Every Life Has a Story

LeMars native Brian Majeres was known for helping others in his community.

“He would have given anyone the shirt off his back,” says his wife, Pat Majeres. “He was one of the kindest, most loving people.”

"Big John" was a dreamer with a big heart

Every Life Has a Story

If you live in Cedar Rapids, you might have seen John Cooper.

Some people knew him as “the pizza guy” or the guy who traveled all over town in his wheelchair, waving as passersby honked hello.

Iowa woman had the 'greatest smile'

Every Life Has a Story

George Rickey says his wife, Sally, had the “greatest smile you ever would see.”

In fact, smiles are what brought them together.

They met in Columbus, Ohio, after appearing on a radio show called “Desperate & Dateless,” that was like “The Dating Game.”

2022 Impact Map

General News

A total of 927 Iowa donors provided corneal transplant tissue for 687 recipients in 2022. Additional gifted corneas were used for research and educational purposes to advance knowledge of blindness-causing diseases and transplantation techniques. See the full image.