NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. — After two years of virtual gatherings, the Armenian EyeCare Project (AECP) was thrilled to be able to celebrate its momentous 30th anniversary year with its supporters in person again through the organization’s 30th Anniversary Gala last fall.
On November 19, 2022, hundreds of friends and supporters of the organization gathered at the Balboa Bay Resort in Newport Beach to celebrate three decades of life-changing work and sight-saving service in Armenia. The evening began with a bustling cocktail reception where friends of the AECP were excited to get together again in support of a cause close to everyone’s hearts: eliminating preventable blindness in Armenia and making quality eye care accessible to every child and adult in the country.
As the crowd migrated to the Grand Ballroom, the evening continued with dinner, live music by the Hosharian Brothers Band and the opportunity to support the AECP’s priceless work in Armenia by participating in the organization’s thrilling Live Auction and memorable Fund-a-Need.
A 30-Year Story
One highlight of the night was the 30-year story shared with guests throughout the evening through a documentary produced by Art Simon, a talented videographer who has been working with the AECP for nearly 20 years. Simon co-hosted the Gala alongside ophthalmologist Dr. Tom Lee, who works as director of the Vision Center at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) and has been a volunteer physician with the AECP for more than 10 years.
Through the captivating banter between the unlikely duo of a cinematic storyteller and dedicated eye surgeon, Master of Ceremonies Art Simon and Tom Lee took the crowd on a three-decade-long journey of the AECP and its momentous accomplishments in Armenia.