Foundation Fighting Blindness to Host San Francisco Dining in the Dark in Support of Research
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23andMe CEO and Genentech Global Head of Ophthalmology to Be Honored with Visionary Awards San Francisco, CA (March 8, 2012) — The Foundation Fighting Blindness, a national nonprofit focused on driving sight-saving research, will honor Anne Wojcicki, CEO and co-founder, 23andMe, and Anthony P. Adamis, M.D., vice president, global head of ophthalmology, Genentech, Inc., at the San Francisco Dining in the Dark Visionary Awards Dinner. The event, happening Thursday, April 5, at the historic Palace Hotel, will raise critical research funds toward preventions, treatments and cures for vision-robbing retinal degenerative diseases like macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa (RP), Usher syndrome, and related conditions. Dining in the Dark is a distinctive sensory awareness experience in which guests participate in an unforgettable dining adventure, in complete darkness. For 30 minutes or more, attendees enjoy their entrée using only their senses of smell, sound, taste, and touch, to get a glimpse into the lives of the blind. Visually impaired servers, who are trained specifically for the dinner to use a system of ropes and stanchions, will share their stories and help guests navigate through this new culinary journey. Created in Germany, Dining in the Dark is a one-of-a kind concept that has been enjoyed by many people across Europe before moving to America in 2005. Visionary Award Honoree Anne Wojcicki co-founded Mountain View, Ca.-based 23andMe in 2006 to empower consumers with access to their own genetic information, allowing people to better understand their ancestry and health. She posits the combined potential of genetics and the Internet to have a significant, positive impact in accelerating research and developing new drugs and diagnostics. Also being awarded is Dr. Anthony P. Adamis, who heads South San Francisco, Ca.-based Genentech’s ophthalmology work and focuses on the advancement of new treatments for vision-related conditions. Adamis played a significant role in developing Lucentis® to treat wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD), an option that has helped save and restore vision for many patients since it was approved in 2006. Now, among other cutting-edge therapies, Dr. Adamis’ team is advancing a new delivery system for Lucentis that will allow for fewer injections for patients. “The Foundation Fighting Blindness, Genentech and 23andMe each play a unique role in serving consumers’ health-related needs, and we’re thrilled to come together with two biomedical industry leaders at Dining in the Dark to help advance treatments and cures,” said William T. Schmidt, CEO, Foundation Fighting Blindness. “The support of these visionaries in raising awareness and critical research funds in the fight against blindness gives hope to the more than 10 million Americans living with retinal diseases.” As part of a new Foundation Fighting Blindness program called Students for Science, local high-school students will have the opportunity to attend the San Francisco Dining in the Dark to learn about the work being done to further the understanding of retinal diseases and the development of treatments and cures. The Foundation hopes the program and experience of Dining in the Dark will give teenagers a better understanding of the impact of vision impairment. Chairing the San Francisco Dining in the Dark is Warren Thaler, a Foundation Fighting Blindness board director and president of Gund Investment Corporation. Also in attendance will be Gordon Gund, Foundation Fighting Blindness co-founder and chairman, and CEO and chairman of Gund Investment Corporation; and Janni Lehrer-Stein, a Foundation Fighting Blindness national trustee, and presidential appointed member of the National Council on Disability. Gund and Lehrer-Stein are both blind due to retinitis pigmentosa, a genetic retinal disease that progressively robs vision.
Individual tickets are available for $500 each and sponsorship packages begin at $10,000. For ticket and sponsorship information, contact Events Manager Cheyanne Sauter at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or (310) 450-2910. To request media credentials or coordinate an interview with an event spokesperson, contact Allie Gebhardt at 410-423-0643 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . About Foundation Fighting Blindness
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