Reston Woman Honored by Foundation Fighting Blindness

Reston's Davida Luehrs has been named Volunteer of the Year for the Mid-Atlantic Region by the Foundation Fighting Blindness, a national non-profit organization dedicated to finding treatments and cures for eye diseases.

The annual honor acknowledges her excellent service in support of the Foundation’s mission to save and restore sight lost to retinal diseases such as retinitis pigmentosa, macular degeneration, Stargardt disease and Usher syndrome, the foundation said in a news release.

The award was presented at the Foundation’s VISIONS 2013 national conference Awards Dinner June 29 in Baltimore.

Luehrs is the Foundation’s Northern Virginia Chapter president. Also a national trustee affected with retinitis pigmentosa, Luehrs was instrumental in bringing VisionWalk to Northern Virginia, which passed the $1 million mark in its eighth year this past spring. She’s twice chaired the Northern Virginia Dining in the Dark, an event that gives guests a first-hand glimpse into the lives of the visually impaired. Despite the challenges associated with sight loss, Luehrs’ efforts have led to nearly $2 million raised to support retinal disease research, the foundation says.

 “Without inspiring community leaders like Davida Luehrs, the Foundation Fighting Blindness would not be in the position we are today—actually restoring vision in human clinical trials,” Bill Schmidt, CEO, Foundation Fighting Blindness, said in a statement. “We are truly grateful for her ongoing drive to make a difference for the more than 10 million Americans living with retinal diseases.”

Read more about Luehrs here.