Heidi's parents had no idea she couldn't see well out of one eye. A subsequent visit by the Swensons to Carla Wendler, O.D., confirmed the results of the screening. Heidi has a condition called amblyopia.

Amblyopia, also known as lazy eye, is a vision problem that occurs when the central vision does not develop properly - usually in one eye. It affects about three percent of the population and develops at a young age.

Untreated amblyopia may lead to functional blindness in the affected eye. Although the amblyopic eye has the capability to see, the brain "turns off" this eye because vision is very blurred. The brain elects to see only with the stronger eye.

As for most children with amblyopia, Heidi now wears glasses and will eventually wear a patch over her strong eye - to force the weaker eye to work - for a few hours a day. Heidi had a difficult time adjusting to the glasses, so her doctor wanted to wait to introduce the patch until a later date.

Jen Swenson, Heidi's mom, is grateful for the screening that identified her daughter's condition. "I had no indication that she wasn't seeing well - she never squinted or anything." And Heidi's dad added, "It is truly a blessing for us to know that she needs glasses so it will not hinder her learning."

Screening
Stories like these illustrate just how critical vision and hearing screening is to those we help. During the 2006 screening year, SHA screened 15,383 children in the 11-county metro area at preschools, day care centers, nursery schools, Head Start programs and charter schools. Of the 12,111 preschoolers screened, 13 percent were referred for vision and 15 percent for hearing. Eighteen percent of the 3,272 school-age children screened were referred for vision and 2 percent for hearing. More than 75 percent of the children SHA screens come from economically disadvantaged homes.

To help those children who are referred for vision problems but can't afford glasses, SHA offers the Vision Voucher Project for Kids. Through this program, now in its sixth year, SHA grants uninsured or under-insured low-income children vouchers for a free eye exam and glasses. Last year, we issued 859 vouchers, of which 124 were redeemed, totaling $13,018.

In addition to children, SHA provided health screenings and educational materials to more than 5,000 adults. We participated at corporate wellness fairs, local city community events (City of Roseville, Folwell Neighborhood Association, West 7th Community Center, McDonough), senior citizen community center gatherings (Merriam Park, River Gables, Elders Lodge), health fairs for school districts (Osseo Public Schools and Eden Prairie), and at the Minneapolis Convention Center for the Speaking of Women's Health Conference. Of the adults we screened in 2006, one in seven had a vision and/or hearing issue that needed further medical attention.

Education and Research

	Since 1998, the Sight & Hearing Association has studied the noise levels of toys in an effort to help prevent hearing loss in children. Every November, we publish our annual Noisy Toys List, which has become highly popular with media outlets across the country and in Canada. The May 2006 issue of Parents magazine, a national parenting magazine, included the Sight & Hearing Association in a feature about noisy toys, as well as other daily newspapers, such as the Louisville Courier-Journal (Ky.) and Spokesman-Review (Wash.) In 2006, the Sight & Hearing Association wrote articles about our research on noisy toys for hearing industry publications and presented at the first-ever Noise-Induced Hearing Loss in Children conference in Cincinnati.
	For the past 11 years, SHA has partnered with Minnesota audiologists to offer free hearing screenings for International Noise Awareness Day in April. Last year, more than 400 people had their hearing checked on this day.
	The Sight & Hearing Association partnered with Reader's Digest for a special section focused on vision and hearing in the June 2006 Large-Print edition. The section provided readers with information about aging eyes and hearing loss.
	SHA receives hundreds of requests for information and products each year. SHA offers educational fact sheets on topics such as glaucoma, tinnitus and noise-induced hearing loss, and products such as our popular Noise Thermometer™, Ear Infection Tracking Card, and Know Noise® hearing conservation curriculum. In addition, our Web site at www.sightandhearing.org continues to generate requests for information from people worldwide. According to our statistical log, more than three million people have visited our site.

Future Plans
Some of the projects we are working on during 2007:

	Acquisition of otoacoustic emissions equipment will allow expansion of hearing screening program to newborn to 3-year-olds.
	County-wide expansion in northern and southern Minnesota will increase outreach to school-age children in charter schools.
	Investigating the startling vision referral statistics among school-age children will encourage research in the medical community.

Some of you know us as the organization that focuses on hearing conservation -sponsoring International Noise Awareness Day in April or Noisy Toys during the holiday season. Maybe we screened your child and we detected a vision or hearing issue in your preschooler. Perhaps you are a parent who received a vision voucher from us because you didn't have insurance for an eye exam or glasses for your child. Maybe you met us at a company-sponsored wellness event and we helped you understand the importance of good vision and hearing health for you and your family. Perhaps you're a senior citizen who visited our health booth at a community outing and we screened you for glaucoma. Maybe you're a health care professional or an educator who comes to us as a resource for educational products, such as our Unfair Hearing Test, Noise Thermometer poster, or Adult Home Eye Screening.

In whatever manner we have touched you, we continue to educate and provide screening health services to millions of people as we have over the past six decades. Our rebirth in 2007 will include an expansion into areas where we have the most influence and can make the greatest impact. We will enhance our mission statement to include enabling lifetime learning by identifying preventable loss of vision and hearing in children. We witnessed an alarming statistic in 2006 - over 40 percent of the school-age kids we screened had a vision issue. Sadly, our youngest generations are suffering academically, in part, because they cannot see properly. We are determined to ensure all children have access to vision and hearing resources and we can accomplish this with your continued support. Please keep us in your thoughts as we tackle the health issues our children face. Be assured that while we are expanding our focus, we will continue to provide all Minnesotans outstanding screening and educational services - since that is what we've been known for since 1939.

Best regards,
Kathy Webb, Executive Director

Judy was born in St. Paul, Minn., the second of three children of Frank and Jean Hanner. She married Scott Lull and had one son, Kevin. What mattered most to Judy were her relationships with her family and friends, God and her church congregation.

At SHA, Judy is remembered most for her cheerful smile, gift of organization and giving spirit- she was always willing to step in and do whatever it took to get the job done.

During her tenure at SHA, Judy wore many hats: receptionist, accountant, bookkeeper, historian, computer guru and office manager. The ongoing joke at the office was if someone needed help, all they had to do was yell "Juuuuuudyyyyy!" and she would know the answer or be able to fix the problem.

For the seven years after she left SHA, Judy volunteered to sort and bulk-mail our newsletters. (There's only a select few who can master the United States Postal Service's bulk mailing system, and for us, it was Judy!) She continued to volunteer until she was diagnosed with cancer in late 2005.

"Judy was one of those people you have the fortune and blessing of meeting once in a lifetime," recalls Bernice Burgy, program assistant for Sight & Hearing Association. "She was so kind and giving and considerate. And she had such a love for Sight & Hearing, you could just feel it."

In fact, Judy never missed an opportunity to say how special SHA was to her. She often said, "SHA is like family to me."

Thanks, Judy, for being a special part of our family. We miss you.

Dr. Fink: ophthalmologist, volunteer, leader
For 30-plus years, Robert J. Fink, M.D., was an active board member and volunteer of the Minnesota Society for the Prevention of Blindness and Preservation of Hearing (MSPB/PH), SHA's predecessor. He died April 15, 2006, at the age of 80 at his home in Edina.

Dr. Fink followed his father, Walter, into the field of ophthalmology, earning his medical degree from the University of Minnesota and completing his residency at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary in Boston. He worked with his father in private practice for many years, and after his father retired, co-founded the Edina Eye Clinic. He was married to Peggy and had six children and seven grandchildren.

Dr. Fink served in many capacities for our organization during the 1960s to 1990s - including board president, vice president, secretary, chair of numerous fund-raising committees and trainer for the preschool vision and hearing screening program.

In a 1983 nomination letter for a volunteer award, then-executive director Bonnie Hammill wrote, "His unflagging enthusiasm and dedication to prevention of blindness and hearing loss have been an inspiration to all who have worked with him."

In the late 70s, MSPB/PH experienced administrative difficulties and was without an executive director. Dr. Fink volunteered to serve as interim director, in addition to juggling his medical practice and family. "Without his selfless dedication during that time," Hammill wrote, "the Society might not have survived."

Dr. Fink was well known for his humor, friendliness and dedication. He loved to hunt, create mirrors and lamps out of agates and shells, and plant trees and flowers.

The goal of the day, proclaimed International Noise Awareness Day, is to educate the public about the dangers of noise to hearing and health.

"We're not just talking about noise in a factory or at a construction site," said Julee Sylvester, Sight & Hearing Association spokesperson. "We're talking about noise in our own homes and in the activities we do for fun. This everyday noise is a huge contributor to serious hearing damage. Yet, it's completely preventable."

For International Noise Awareness Day, the Sight & Hearing Association is sponsoring the following activities:

	Free hearing screenings - In the Twin Cities metro area and greater Minnesota, audiologists will provide free hearing screenings to the public on April 25. Call the Sight & Hearing Association at 1-800-992-0424 or click here to find a location near you.
	Dissemination of free ear plugs and information - Ear plugs, donated by 3M, and fact sheets on noise-induced hearing loss will be distributed at all screening sites.
	60-Seconds of Silence - From 2:15-2:16 p.m., the public is encouraged to experience a minute of silence.

International Noise Awareness Day, which began in 1996, is spearheaded by the League for the Hard of Hearing in New York and is a joint effort of numerous hearing-related organizations worldwide.