Issn Print: 0277-3740
Publication Date: 2002/10/01
A. Howard Snyder (1922–2002)
H. Dwight Cavanagh; Ellen Heck
Excerpt
A gentle man and a quiet giant in the development of modern eye banking died in Dallas on July 9, 2002. Over the past three decades he devoted patient and persistent efforts to see that the goals of sight restoration were accomplished locally, nationally and internationally. With service dating from the era of the 1970s, Howard was a leader whose quiet counsel avoided harsh rhetoric and was always persistent and decisive in pursuing the search for common ground. During his watch, long waiting lists were eliminated, standards were introduced, and eye banking seamlessly made the transition to modern professional status. Past chairperson of the Eye Bank Association of America and active member of Lions International District 2X-1 in Dallas, Howard was also instrumental in the development of the Dallas Eye Bank, and its affiliation with Transplant Services Center at University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. The bank now services the corneal needs of most of North Texas and provides other services, which extend beyond the boundaries of the state. He was active in eye banking programs in Mexico and South America, where he promoted eye banking development and intercultural exchange through the Association of Pan-American Eye Banks. Howard was the recipient of the Eye Bank Association of America's Heise Award, and numerous awards in Lionism and community service in Dallas. He worked diligently with the children's eyeglass clinics and donated both his time and money to many vision-related and other community causes. Even in death he continued to give through the donation of his corneas, which were transplanted in Mexico. He was a devoted husband and father. Howard Snyder's leadership and friendship will be missed throughout the eye banking and corneal transplant community. We have all lost a mentor and friend.
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