The 111th Annual AOA Congress & 38th Annual AOSA Conference

Optometry's Meeting™ 2007 Wrap-Up

The 2007 Optometry’s Meeting™ in Boston concluded one of the most successful meetings to date with more than 6,700 attendees.

Professional attendees, including doctors, paraoptometrics, and students, numbered 3,626.

The meeting in Boston drew preeminent entertainment, starting with keynote speaker Ben Stein, sponsored by Essilor, at the Opening General Session and concluding with the Boston Pops, sponsored by Signet Armorlite both Friday and Saturday nights.

Optometry’s Meeting™ attendees were greeted at the Welcome Reception, sponsored by Bausch & Lomb on Wednesday evening, followed by the Vision Awareness Texas Hold’em Tournament later that night.

A wealth of continuing education included exclusive and specialty education courses and the Education Theater.

Students and alumni cheered their schools and colleges of optometry to victory at the Varilux Optometry Super Bowl sponsored by Essilor Thursday evening.

After attending the TLC Laser Eye Centers course, “A Day in the Life of a Clinical Director—Refractive Surgery Cases,” on Friday afternoon, students were invited to attend the Saturday night party Get Connected with TLC at Felt Boston.

The sold-out Exhibit Hall had 198 exhibitors and supplied winners with money to burn, American Express gift cards, 42” HD-ready televisions sponsored by HOYA, and luggage.

Exhibit Hall winners included: Samuel Jarvis, O.D., Marilyn Wallace, Elizabeth D. Jones, Jeff Gonnason, O.D., Constance Nelson, O.D., Jack Zarybnisky, O.D., Christian Kelly Olson, O.D., Elana Einhorn, Tara Guyette, Elizabeth Cheung, O.D., Warren Zimmerman, O.D., Wilson Movic, O.D., and Cindy Chhedi, O.D.

AOSA student giveaways included American Express gift cards and iPods sponsored by Alcon.

Student winners included: Eli Hendrix IV, Michael Johnson, Mam Duong, Ellen Change, Melissa Valdellon, Melissa Patrilia, Rachel Turcotte, David Ernst, and Mike McFarland.

Vistakon® announced the winners of its $500 travel grants. Jarren Ray was the grand prize winner and received an additional check for $1,000.

Travel grant winners were: Andrea Andrud, Joe Borden, Lonnie Brooks, Vincente Calderon, Michelle L. Calder-Cardwell, Westley Carr, Jill Chen, Sally Chetrit, Ame Cline, Jeffrey Cohen, Rebecca Fleming, Dennis Garcia, Jacqueline Haro, Joan Harpenau, Veronica Harrington, Tina Hueftlein, Kit Tung Ip, Amy Kohen, Elizabeth Lane, Susan Lye, Laura Ann McMullin, Michael Menconi, Michelle Munn, Esther Nakagawara, Dorothy Nguyen, Candace Oto, Dimple Sawhney, Melissa Kaye Schroeder, Jody Simmons, Rina Singh, Amber Switzer, Christina Tanouye, and Anne Marie Vollmar.

Signet Armorlite awarded $1,000 scholarships to Kurt Hofeldt and Joanna M. Lizzi.

Optometry's Meeting™ is the official annual meeting of the American Optometric Association and the American Optometric Student Association.