Foundation Fighting Blindness Hosts Dining in the Dark to Open Guests’ Eyes to the Challenges of the Visually Impaired, Benefit Sight-Saving Research

Orbital President and CEO & the DOD/VA Vision Center of Excellence To Be Honored

McLean, VA (December  4, 2012) — The Foundation Fighting Blindness, a national nonprofit focused on sight-saving research, will present its Visionary Award to David W. Thompson, President and  CEO of Orbital Science Corporation, as well as the Department of Defense / Department of Veterans Affairs Vision Center of Excellence (VCE), at the 4th Annual Northern Virginia Dining in the Dark. The event, happening at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 7, at the Ritz-Carlton, Tysons Corner, will give guests a unique glimpse into the lives of the visually impaired. It will also benefit the Foundation’s research into preventions, treatments and cures for blinding retinal degenerative diseases like macular degeneration and retinitis pigmentosa that affect more than 10 million Americans, young and old.

Dining in the Dark is a distinctive sensory awareness experience in which guests participate in an unforgettable dining adventure, in complete darkness. To get first-hand insight into the challenges of the blind community, diners will wear special light-blocking masks and eat their entrée using only their heightened senses of smell, sound, taste and touch. 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.

“Reactions to Dining in the Dark are truly powerful because people often don’t realize the daily obstacles of living with low to no vision,” said Reston, Va., resident Davida Luehrs, who is chairing the event with her husband James. She is legally blind due to retinitis pigmentosa (RP), a genetic disease that also affects her college-aged daughter and is characterized by night blindness and a progressive loss of peripheral vision. “As cutting-edge gene therapy and stem cell research progresses in clinical trials that are already restoring some vision in patients, we’re so hopeful that treatments and cures are in sight.”

Visionary Award Honoree David Thompson co-founded Orbital in 1982, and the Dulles-based company has since grown into one of America’s leading space-related design and manufacturing powerhouses. Among the many awards Thompson has received during his esteemed career are the National Medal of Technology, Virginia’s Industrialist of the Year, and High-Technology Entrepreneur of the Year.  A Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), the American Astronautical Society, and the Royal Aeronautical Society, Thompson is also a member of the U.S. National Academy of Engineering and the International Academy of Astronautics. With the presentation of its Visionary Award, the Foundation is recognizing his leadership in the space sector and support of the fight against blindness.

Also receiving the Visionary Award is the Bethesda, Md.-based Department of Defense/Department of Veterans Affairs Vision Center of Excellence (VCE). With eye damage and vision impairment being a common injury of war, many times it is not reported and overshadowed by more life-threatening wounds. The VCE works to better track eye-related injuries and rehabilitation to continuously improve the health and quality of life for members of the Armed Forces and Veterans through advocacy and leadership in the development of initiatives focused on the prevention, diagnosis, mitigation, treatment and rehabilitation of visual disorders.

Individual tickets for Dining in the Dark are $500 and sponsorships begin at $5,000. For ticket and sponsorship information, contact Dina Beaumont at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or (202) 530-4672, or visit www.FightBlindness.org/DiningInTheDark. To request media credentials for Dining in the Dark, or to 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

The Foundation Fighting Blindness is a national non-profit organization driving research that will lead to preventions, treatments and cures for retinitis pigmentosa, macular degeneration, Usher syndrome and the entire spectrum of retinal degenerative diseases that affect more than 10 million Americans. Since 1971, the Foundation has raised over $500 million as the leading non-governmental funder of retinal research. Breakthrough Foundation-funded studies using gene therapy have restored significant vision in children and young adults who were previously blind, paving the way for using this method to treat a variety of retinal degenerative diseases, and proving a cure is in sight. With a network of nearly 50 chapters, the Foundation also provides support, information and resources to affected individuals and their families in communities across the country.