Pasadena Magazine is the bi-monthly magazine of Pasadena and its surrounding areas – the diverse, historically rich and culturally vibrant region that includes Glendale, the Eastside of Los Angeles and the San Gabriel Valley all the way to Claremont.
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Sight for Sore Eyes Ophthalmologist Dr. Scott Beeve refl ects on his family's philanthropic legacy through the Beeve Foundation. STORY BY // SARA SMOLA ∫ MOST PEOPLE WOULDN'T THINK ABOUT STARTING A NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION WHILE ON THEIR CELEBRATORY WEDDING ANNIVERSARY VACATION IN FIJI, BUT THEN AGAIN, THE BEEVE FAMILY ISN'T LIKE MOST PEOPLE. FIJI, DESPITE BEING A GO-TO TRAVEL DESTINATION KNOWN FOR ITS BREATHTAKING BEACHES AND VACATION HOTSPOTS, IS AN IMPOVERISHED REGION LACKING IN QUALITY healthcare. After discovering how many people in Fiji were struggling with vision-related problems, Dr. Jerold Beeve, an ophthalmologist, and his wife Dorothy, a nurse, wanted to help. The husband-wife team created a foundation with the purpose of providing medical supplies and vision care for the Fijian locals. Thus, the Beeve Foundation for World Eye and Health was born. The Foundation works with a skilled team of medical professionals consisting of doctors, nurses and staff, who volunteer their time to provide medical attention to the destitute communities of Fiji—all pro bono. As the Foundation's website emphasizes, "From the dispensing of sunglasses and prescription glass- es, to major sight saving surgical procedures, all services are provided absolutely free of charge." In addition to the annual trips to Fiji made by the founding Beeves and their team of vol- unteers, sons Dr. Scott Beeve and Dr. Gregory Beeve tag along as well. Dr. Scott Beeve, also an ophthalmologist, has participated in over 15 medical mission trips and has plans to carry on his parents' legacy with the Beeve Foundation. "I always knew I wanted to be a doctor," explains Dr. Scott Beeve of the Beeve Vision Care Center in Glendale where he provides state-of-the-art medical and surgical eye care to the greater Los Angeles area. "I started go- ing [to Fiji] in medical school, providing some preoperative work for cataract surgery and then for my residency, I was able to start providing cataract surgery and actual eye care services." A true mark of the Foundation's ac- complishments, those services have grown exponentially over the past 25 years. The Beeve Foundation has bettered the lives of tens of thousands Fijians. Without the Foundation, many Fijians' eye issues would continue to go untreated—leaving them in a state of dependency due to the vision impairment. "It's a third world country," says Dr. Beeve. "They don't have adequate care or resources to provide cataract surgery for the majority of the population. My dad discovered this need and has been going down there to provide these services. Over the past 25 years, other teams have gone down so the need is being met more and more—the need is being fulfi lled. [The Foundation's] mission and goal has really become [a reality] over the past few years." Currently, the Foundation has provided: 28,603 eye exams, 27,714 eye glasses, 1,756 cataract extractions, 55 corneal transplants and over 1,000 other procedures—and these numbers continue to climb year after year. A past September trip broke records for the Foundation, resulting in 489 eye exams, 832 pairs of glasses being dispensed, 159 cataract extractions with lens implants and 6 corneal transplants and other procedures. With such a high impact being made (roughly 3 percent of Fiji's population has been aided by the Foundation), the Beeves' work caught the attention of the Fijian president who invited the couple to a special ceremony at his mansion in February. In recognition of their service and contributions to the com- munity, President George Konrote presented them with the award of "Honorary Offi cers of the Order of Fiji." The founding Beeves have plans to step down, but not before ensuring a transition plan is in place to enable the Foundation's life-changing work to continue. Dr. Scott Beeve also plans to continue to carry on his family's philanthropic legacy and continuing to fulfi ll its mission. He says, "To be able to take the cataract out of their eyes and restore their vision so they can see their family, be able to walk on their own, to provide the indepen- dence that they once had and restore that, is an amazing experience." [COMMUNITY] 42 SEPTEMBER 2017 T A L K A B O U T T O W N PULSE the