Precision Ocular Network Dedicates
Dr. Lawrence B. Holt Lobby and Museum Honoring Philanthropist John W. Googe

Clemmons, NC — Precision Ocular Network proudly announces the dedication of the Dr. Lawrence B. Holt MD Lobby and Museum, honoring the leadership, philanthropy, and legacy of John W. Googe, one of the organization’s original board members and a lifelong champion of restoring sight.

The dedication ceremony recognizes both the pioneering work of Dr. Lawrence Byerly Holt, the ophthalmologist who founded the Eye-Bank for Restoring Sight in 1951—one of the first eye banks in the South—and the extraordinary philanthropy and service of Mr. Googe, who recently celebrated his 101st birthday.

Mr. Googe’s journey with eye banking began in the early 1950s after hearing Dr. Holt speak at a Winston-Salem Jaycees meeting about the transformative potential of eye donation. Inspired by Dr. Holt’s vision, Mr. Googe joined the Eye-Bank for Restoring Sight’s Board of Directors and later served multiple terms as president. His leadership extended nationally when he became President of the Eye Bank Association of America (EBAA) and helped lead the relocation of the organization’s headquarters to Winston-Salem in the 1960s—a move that contributed to the region’s emergence as a center for eye banking and innovation.

A lifelong philanthropist, Mr. Googe has long followed in the footsteps of his mother, who taught him to “give where help is needed.” Over the decades, he has generously supported numerous community organizations, including Goodwill Industries and IFB Solutions, while devoting extraordinary time, talent, and resources to advancing the mission of sight restoration.

The Dr. Lawrence B. Holt Lobby and Museum was made possible through a foundational gift from Mr. Googe and serves as both a tribute and educational resource. The museum preserves and shares the history of eye banking in North Carolina and beyond, highlighting Dr. Holt’s groundbreaking work and the community leaders who helped turn his vision into reality. The museum will be open to the public by appointment and is designed to be accessible to individuals with low vision through audio description.

Supporters of Miracles In Sight’s (today Precision Ocular Network) capital campaign for its new laboratory and headquarters, Forsyth County commissioners, and representatives of local and regional foundations, will attend the ribbon-cutting and dedication ceremony. “Together, Dr. Holt and John Googe helped build not only an organization, but a movement,” said representatives of Precision Ocular Network. “Their shared commitment to innovation, service, and compassion continues to shape the future of sight restoration.” Precision Ocular Network’s mission is to advance the future of sight restoration through collaboration, compassion, and innovation—values exemplified by both Dr. Holt and Mr. Googe and now permanently honored within the Dr. Lawrence B. Holt Lobby and Museum.

ABOUT PRECISION OCULAR NETWORK
Precision Ocular Network (formerly Miracles In Sight) is a nonprofit organization advancing eye banking, ocular research, and sight restoration through donor-supported innovation, education, and clinical excellence.

MEDIA CONTACT
Kym Mitchell
Director of Marketing and Communications
Precision Ocular Network
205.527.7357
kmitchell@advancingsight.org
www.precisionocular.org