Our Organization and History • Our Mission Statement • Careers • Board of Directors
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Gary Babcock, PDG, Chairman
Gary Babcock has been a Lion for more than 30 years. He has served multiple officer positions, including District Governor, Vice District Governor, Cabinet Treasurer and Zone Chairman. Gary is Treasurer for the Lions of Michigan Foundation.

Gary is also a trustee and Board Member for the Napoleon United Methodist Church. Gary was awarded the Lions Clubs International Distinguished Leadership Medal, LCIF Melvin Jones Fellow, LMSF John S. and Noel Benefactor Awards, LMSF Ken Lautzenheiser Service Award, two international President’s Appreciation Awards and two District Governor’s Appreciation Awards. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Ferris State University.

John Johnson, Vice Chairman
John joined the St. Joseph Township Lions Club in 1982 and has since held every club office position. He received several awards for his contributions to Lionism, including a Melvin Jones Fellowship, Lion of the Year, the LOMSF Ken Lautzenheiser Award and the International President’s Certificate of Appreciation. John earned a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from Central Michigan University and completed his Juris Doctorate at Wayne State University Law School.

Elspeth Moore, Treasurer
Elspeth was a high school teacher for more than 30 years and is an active member of the West Milford Lions Club in West Milford, New Jersey. She is a Past District Governor and is a Campaign Sightfirst II District Coordinator. She has been awarded several Lions Club awards, including the International President’s Leadership Award, International President’s Certificate and International Melvin Jones Fellowship. She earned a Bachelor of Science in Home Economics from the College of St. Elisabeth and completed her Masters of Library and Information Science at Rutgers State University.

Lawrence Klaus, PDG, Secretary
Since 1973, Larry Klaus has been an active member of the Chocolay Township Lions Club, serving as its Secretary for more than 25 years.He and his wife, Margaret, have lived in the Marquette, Michigan area for many years. Larry has worked as a police officer, newspaper circulation manager and independent business owner.

DIRECTORS

Busharat Ahmad, M.D., FACS
Dr. Ahmad practiced ophthalmology for more than 30 years. He was President of the Eye Bank Association of America from 1984-85, and is currently a representative of the American Academy of Ophthalmology to the American Council on Transplantation and the Crescent Charitable Medical Clinic. Dr. Ahmad has received several awards for his contributions to medicine, including the George Tarjan Memorial Award from the American Psychiatric Association, the Presidential Citation from Michigan State Medical Society, the Exemplary Service Award from the American Medical Association and the Man of the Year Award from Kiwanis International.

Rashid L. Bashshur, Ph.D.
Rashid Bashshur is Director of Telemedicine at the University of Michigan Health System and Emeritus Professor of Health Management and Policy at the University of Michigan School of Public Health. Since the early 1970's, he has been a catalyst for the development and evaluation of telemedicine systems in the U.S. While at the National Academy of Sciences (Institute of Medicine), he was consultant to the Office of Economic Opportunity on the use of telecommunications to support rural applications at the RANN Program (Resarch Applied to National Need) of the National Science Foundation. The NSF awarded him a grant to evaluate a telemedicine program in rural Maine and to access the status of telemedicine nationwide. He organized the first two national conferences on telemedicine, whose proceeds were published as Telemedicine: Exploration in the Use of Telecommunications in Health Care. Over the past two and a half decades, Dr. Bashshur has served as senior consultant to numerous telemedicine projects, agencies and governments. He is the founder of the National Consortium for Telemedicine Evaluation, based at the University of Michigan School of Public Health.

The Honorable Timothy P. Connors
Judge Timothy Connors attended Columbia University and the University of Michigan, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts. He received his J.D. from the Wayne State University Law School, where he has served as an adjunct professor since 1993. He also serves as faculty for the Michigan Judicial Institute and the Institute for Continuing Legal Education, and has been a guest lecturer for Cooley Law School and Eastern Michigan University. Before he became a Trial Court Judge, Connors was a judge with the 15th District Court and the Washtenaw County Circuit Court.

Connors has also been inducted into the Ann Arbor Huron High School Hall of Fame as a Distinguished Graduate. He has served as Washtenaw County Chair of the Irish Perennial Rose Society since 1996.

William Constad, M.D.
In addition to his faculty appointment as a Clinical professor of Ophthalmology at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey-New Jersey Medical School, Dr. Constad has been in private practice with Hudson Eye Physicians and Surgeons since 1985. He has served on multiple committees for the Eye Bank Association of America (EBAA) and Jersey City Medical Center, and has been named among the New York Metro Area's Top Doctors by Castle Connolly Medical, LTD. Dr. Constad has been directly involved with the Lions Eye Bank of New Jersey since 1988, and has served as its Medical Director from 1992-95 and from 1997-present. He also serves on the Board of Directors for both the Lions Eye Bank of New Jersey and Midwest Eye-Banks. Dr. Constad resides in Martinsville, New Jersey.

Maureen Ann Tuffy-Haga
Maureen has more than 20 years of experience in sales, sales management and new business development. She earned a Bachelor of Science in Education at Illinois State University and a Master of Science in Adult Corporate Instruction Management and Organizational Development at Loyola University of Chicago. Maureen is active in numerous civic organizations, including Boy Scouts of America, Special Needs Students Parent Support Group, and is a youth minister leader.

John Krienke, Ph.D.
John Krienke is a licensed psychologist with the State of Michigan and a member of the American Psychological Association. In 1995, John retired from Eastern Michigan University, where he was a Counseling Psychologist. Prior to his work at EMU, he spent 13 years at the University of Michigan’s Counseling Center. John is a veteran of the U.S. Navy Reserves, has played a leadership role in the Wolverine Council of the Boy Scouts of America and has been a member of the Ann Arbor (Host) Lions Club since 1978. He and his wife, Carolyn, have a daughter, a son and three granddaughters.

Peter J. Latz, Chairman
Peter Latz is a Chicago attorney whose specialties include estate planning, trust administration, estate administration, taxation and real estate. He represents individuals and institutions in handling all aspects of trust and estate administration.

Before forming his own law firm in 1989, Peter worked in the fiduciary tax department and estate settlement division of the First National Bank of Chicago. He served as a trust officer for First United Trust Company, and has been an instructor at the American Institute of Banking. Peter currently serves on the Illinois Eye-Bank's Advisory Council, and is a Board member for the Illinois Society for the Prevention of Blindness.

Marilyn R. Lindenauer
Marilyn Lindenauer served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Midwest Eye-Banks from 1989 until her retirement in 1998. During her tenure as CEO, she served on the Board of the Eye Bank Association of America (EBAA) from 1994 through 1998, and was a member or chair of multiple EBAA committees. She received the Leonard Heise Award – the highest award presented to non-physicians by EBAA – in 1999. Prior to her time at the Eye-Bank, Marilyn held various administrative healthcare positions at the University of Michigan Medical Center and School of Public Health, from which she received her Master’s Degree in the Department of Health Management and Policy. Marilyn is a member of the Ann Arbor (Host) Lions Club. Since her retirement, she spends her time traveling with her husband, visiting their 10 grandchildren, reading and enjoying life in Ann Arbor and at their up-north cottage.

Shahzad Mian, M.D.
In addition to serving as a Board member for Midwest Eye-Banks, Dr. Mian also volunteers his time and expertise as a Medical Director for the Michigan Eye-Bank. Dr. Mian's ophthalmological specialties include corneal transplantation, cataract and refractive surgery (LASIK, IntraLASIK, LASEK, PRK, CK), treatment of diseases and infections of the cornea, amniotic membrane grafts and limbal stem cell transplantation. His research interests include clinical studies in refractive surgery techniques and outcomes, corneal infections and dry eye disease. A 1996 graduate of Emory University, Dr. Mian completed his residency in Ophthalmology at the Wills Eye Hospital, Thomas Jefferson University, in 2000. He completed a fellowship in Cornea and Refractive Surgery at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, Harvard University, in 2002.

Robert Sturgis, PDG
After more than 40 years of service as a tool and die maker for General Motors, Bob Sturgis is retired and living in Lennon, Michigan. Bob has been an active Lions Club member for more than 30 years, serving on numerous District and State Committees, and was Lions District 11 D-1 Governor during 1999-2000. In Lionism, Bob is a Melvin Jones Fellow who has received two International Presidents Leadership Medals and five International Presidents Certificates of Appreciation.

Alan Sugar, M.D.
In addition to serving as a Board member for Midwest Eye-Banks, Dr. Sugar also volunteers his time and expertise as a Medical Director for the Michigan Eye-Bank. Dr. Sugar's areas of specialization include corneal transplantation, cataract and refractive surgery (LASIK, PRK, Intacs, conductive keratoplasty), and management of diseases of the cornea and conjunctiva. He graduated from the University of Michigan Medical School in 1969; then, in 1974, he completed his residency in Ophthalmology at Washington University in St. Louis. He completed his fellowship in Cornea and External Diseases at the University of Florida in 1975.

A. Charles Weir, PID
Chuck Weir is a retired educator, having spent 34 years as a teacher and administrator for visually impaired children at the Michigan School for the Blind, where he held a variety of administrative positions. He also served as coordinator of the Midwest Regional Center for Deaf-Blind Children, serving a five-state region. A lifelong resident of Michigan, Chuck holds a Master's Degree from Michigan State University and has received numerous awards in recognition of his service to the community through the Lions of Michigan and Lions Clubs International. Chuck is also a Past Lions Council Chairman and served as a Director on the Lions International Board of Directors from 1995 until 1997.

Celeste Thomas Williams, M.D., FACC
Dr. Williams is a cardiac specialist with more than ten years of experience in the medical field. She has an extensive background in clinical research and has published numerous articles on transplantation. Dr. Williams received several awards for her work in cardiology including the American Heart Association Women in Cardiology Award and the Francis N. Fernandes Cardiology Fellowship Award. She earned her a Masters of Pathology and Medical Doctorate from Finch University of Health Sciences.

Kevin W. Ross, President/CEO
Kevin Ross has worked with the Eye-Bank since 1990. He developed software to track donors and recipients of corneal tissue, and to support all Eye-Bank staff responsibilities. As Vice President, Finance and Information Systems, Kevin led the implementation of a $2.5 million tax-exempt bond issue to finance the Eye-Bank’s Ann Arbor headquarters and Michigan Eye-Bank lab facility. In November, 2007, Kevin was named Midwest Eye-Banks’ President and Chief Executive Officer. He holds Master’s degrees in Computer Science and Public Health from the University of Michigan, and serves as a member of the Ann Arbor (Host) Lions Club and the Michigan Alumni Pep Band. Kevin and his wife, Suzanne, live in Ann Arbor.

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