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Oregon Elks Endowment Supports Fellowship Program in Pediatric Ophthalmology
April 17, 2009
PORTLAND, Ore. – On a sunny Friday in early March, twelve-year old Christopher Lemus rides the elevator to the fifth floor of Casey Eye Institute. Although he has an appointment elsewhere in the building, he and his mother make a point of stopping by to say hello to Kevin Merrill, M.D. at the Elks Children Eye Clinic. Several months earlier, Merrill—who is completing a fellowship in pediatric ophthalmology—replaced a dense cataract in Christopher’s left eye with a replacement lens, improving his vision from near blindness to nearly 20/20.
 “He’s amazing,” says Christopher’s mother Olga Lemus, referring to Merrill. Not only did the young doctor restore sight in her son’s eye, she says, “but from day one, he has done nothing but express interest and concern about Christopher, always taking the time to explain what’s going on and reassuring him when he became frightened about his surgery.”
Physicians like Merrill who choose to specialize in pediatric ophthalmology are indeed remarkable and critically vital to a child’s lifetime of sight. Thanks to a generous endowment of $500,000 last summer from the Visual Committee of the Oregon Elks last summer, Casey’s ability to train future pediatric ophthalmologists is now much brighter.
The endowment, made possible by an estate gift to the Oregon Elks, supports a yearly fellowship in pediatric ophthalmology. The funds will boost Casey’s efforts to recruit outstanding candidates like Merrill. “More than any other subspecialty, recruitment of fellows in pediatric ophthalmology is highly competitive,” says Daniel Karr, director of the Elks Childrens Eye Clinic. “There are more programs than candidates,” he says, adding that many good programs go without fellows because they are unable to offer support or a stipend.
Merrill, who arrived in July after completing a residency at the University of California, Davis, is more than pleased with his training so far. “This is the best fellowship on the West Coast, if not in the nation. The people are fantastic, the faculty is approachable and it’s a comfortable place to learn,” he says.
“Our fellowship program has a lot going for us,” agrees Karr. “Every aspect of pediatric ophthalmology is covered, supported by a full component of subspecialties and strong research. Our fellows work with one of the largest faculties in the United States with full-time, university backed pediatric ophthalmologists.
“Our clinic would not exist without the support of the Elks,” Karr continues. “We are indebted to and sustained by them.”
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