Good Teacher

Employee Spotlight on Anne Arella, Director of Development, Southern Region (Raleigh, North Carolina)

If the Foundation Fighting Blindness had a cheerleading squad, Anne Arella would be leading it. Rarely do you see Anne without a smile on her face or joy in her voice. And when it comes to the Foundation’s drive for treatments and cures, there’s no one more hopeful about reaching the goal. “I fully expect to be present when Gordon Gund announces that FFB has fully achieved its mission and that we will be closing our doors!” Anne exclaims. “I do believe that a cure is in sight, and I also believe that if I am doing my job right, and we all are, that announcement will come sooner than later.”

Anne was born with albinism — a lack of melanin pigment in her eyes, skin and hair — and a related condition called nystagmus (involuntary eye movement). The conditions lead to significant loss of detailed vision and tremendous sensitivity to light. She was declared legally blind at age 17, and she faced a number of challenges growing up.

Anne says, “I couldn’t read the blackboards in school and I knew long before age 16 that getting a driver’s license was not in my future. I did my best to handle things with dignity and grace, but there were days when I was angry and frustrated. My mother told me one time that if people did not understand why I couldn’t see or if the kids teased me because of my white hair and roving eyes, that I could “teach” them. Once I became a “teacher,” I handled things much better! I was empowered to make something positive out of something negative.”

As one of the Foundation’s best teachers, Anne does an outstanding job helping people in her community understand the importance of funding retinal research. “It is a wonderful experience both personally and professionally,” she says. “It is a privilege to work in chapter development and major gift fundraising and to be an ambassador for an organization that I firmly believe in and which I love.”