Adam Lawrence, a 47-year-old retinitis pigmentosa patient, said he sees “pepper and a big haze of fog” every day.
Lawrence is one of the many people who were in Dickson Plaza on Sunday morning participating in Vision Walk, sponsored by UCLA’s Jules Stein Eye Institute and the Foundation Fighting Blindness, to raise money and to teach the general public about eye diseases.
Vision Walk raised a total of $103,419.01 as of Sunday afternoon, surpassing its goal of $100,000.
Jennifer Hecker, the events manager of the Southern California region of Foundation for Fighting Blindness, was excited to have the event in Los Angeles for the first time. She said it exceeded expectations.
“I think UCLA is a perfect location for people to attend. This is the home of the Jules Stein Eye Institute,” she said.
The UCLA venue “really added to the prestige and attractiveness,” said Grace Leone, the vice president of media and public awareness of Foundation Fighting Blindness. “Everyone knows that UCLA is a tremendous educational institution.”
From “tunnel vision” to seeing “fuzzy” to “totally blind,” many of the walkers had a variety of eye diseases of different severity.
Thirty walking teams were formed by about 400 people, including physicians. Some of the blind brought their guide dogs.
The money raised is strictly for researching 63 retinal diseases, such as retinitis pigmentosa, age-related macular degeneration and Usher syndrome, according to Leone.
Retinitis pigmentosa is an inherited disease caused by mutations in one gene. Patients undergo a loss of peripheral vision, which slowly condenses to tunnel vision, meaning that the peripheral vision is blocked.
The disease may cause total blindness, according to Dean Bok, the honorary chairman of Vision Walk and a professor of neurobiology and ophthalmology at UCLA.
Age-related macular degeneration starts when the retina, the center of the eye, is obstructed. Patients of age-related macular degeneration cannot read print.
Usher syndrome patients have to use their sense of touch because of hearing and vision loss, Bok said.
“If you’ve ever met a person who is both deaf and blind … and try to communicate with them, it is an experience you’ll never forget,” Bok said.
Because of retinitis pigmentosa, Lawrence said he was forced to quit his job. However, he does chores around the house such as cooking and taking care of his American Eskimo dog, Tia.
Many of the walkers had retinitis pigmentosa, including Colette Kramer, a UCLA alumna, and her two children, a 16-year-old daughter Samantha Kramer and a 14-year-old son Charlie Kramer.
Charlie, who is still capable of doing normal activities his peers do but is fully blind in the dark, said the disease has not stopped him from living a normal life.
“I think it made me have to take things a little slower. Luckily, most of the time it’s not that bad,” he said.
Michael Kramer, Colette Kramer’s husband, came to support his family.
“Colette tries to function so well in situations,” he said. He also said that she tries to see things on her own.
The Kramer family receives generous help from family and friends, who drive Charlie and Samantha Kramer to activities and events.
The teenagers try to participate in activities that other teenagers enjoy: Samantha Kramer recently got her driver’s license, while Charlie enjoys playing baseball. He will continue to play as long as his vision holds up, Michael Kramer said.
The Kramers have a positive outlook for the possible cures of eye diseases, Colette Kramer said.
The Guide Dogs of America were also a big center of attention, Leone said. They were invited by Vision Walk sponsors, bringing nine of their dogs in training. After training, the dogs are matched with a blind student, said Glyn Judson, who raises a 15-week-old golden retriever guide dog.
According to Judson, these dogs are not only the eyes for the blind but also represent independence and freedom, as they make visually impaired people approachable for normal people.
Judson said that the guide dogs connect the nonhandicapped people to the handicapped, making handicapped people more approachable to others who are not used to seeing handicaps.
“(It) breaks the social barrier,” he said.
Preceding the event, the Kramer family spoke in front of a crowd of walkers.
“This is a dream come true. … I truly believe that we can stop this,” Colette Kramer said. “We’re one big L.A. Vision Walk family.”