Willy Neumann was a founding member of the ECVO and a pioneer in veterinary ophthalmology in Germany. After studying psychology and medicine he studied Veterinary Medicine at the University of Giessen, Germany, and became a lecturer at the same University in 1992. He practiced advanced veterinary ophthalmology and demonstrated his inventive talent by developing the Neumann Silicone IOL. He was instrumental in the registration of the newly created ECVO in 1992 and served as secretary on the executive committee (1992-1999), headed the genetics committee (1995-2000) and was EBVS representative of the ECVO during its early years. In 1996-98 he co-authored the successful textbook “Ophthalmology for the Veterinary Practitioner” and translated it into German “Praktische Augenheilkunde für den Tierarzt”. Willy was the first Veterinary Specialist in Ophthalmology in Germany to establish a specialty clinic in 2000 and he remained in private practice until the end of his career. All through his career he was involved in teaching veterinary ophthalmology in and outside of Germany and was respected for his contribution to veterinary ophthalmology and well known for his excellent photography of the various ophthalmic conditions. He sadly passed away in 2023.
Dr. Lloyd Helper
https://emails.illinois.edu/newsletter/1496553969.html
Gil Ben-Shlomo graduated with a DVM, followed by a PhD (mentored by Ron Ofri), from the Koret School of Veterinary Medicine, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel. He went on to complete a residency in comparative ophthalmology at the University of Florida, and became a Diplomate of both the American and European Colleges of Veterinary Ophthalmologists. Gil worked all of his professional life in the USA, mostly in Iowa State University, and briefly in Cornell before his sudden death in 2020. Nonetheless, he was a very active member of the ECVO, and at the time of his death served as Chair of the Planning Committee. Gil will be remembered as a co-editor of the 6th edition of Gelatt's Veterinary Ophthalmology, a reflection of a dedicated teacher, an accomplished researcher and a talented clinician.
The Globe - Special Issue Dedicated to Gil Ben-Shlomo
Link for Gil's memorial service on Saturday 14 November 2020
Link for message from ECVO
Keith Barnett was one of the first Diplomates of ECVO when the College was founded in 1992 and was well known throughout Europe and the rest of the world. He started the Comparative Ophthalmology Unit at the Animal Health Trust in Newmarket, England, where he worked until the end of his career. His professional career spanned more than fifty years, earning him an outstanding reputation both at home and abroad. Keith became the first ECVO Honorary Diplomate in 2008 and was also made an Honorary Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Ophthalmologists (ACVO) in the same year. Keith sadly passed away in 2009.
The Globe - Special Issue Dedicated to Keith C. Barnett
Bernard Clerc was a founding member of ECVO and served as ECVO President from 2001 to 2003. Bernard began the Ophthalmology Unit at the Veterinary College of Alfort and became the first professor in veterinary ophthalmology in France. Bernard was passionate about teaching throughout his career and started the first ECVO residency in France. His reputation was outstanding on a national and international level. Bernard sadly passed away in 2016.
Antonio Solarino was a founding member of ECVO and a leading veterinary ophthalmologist in Italy. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s he was an external member of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Sassari, Italy, and in that first decade established the Italian Society of Veterinary Ophthalmology (SOVI). He was a regular speaker at many national and international meetings, the author of several scientific articles and a co-author of “Atlante di oftalmologia veterinaria” with Claudio Peruccio. Antonio sadly passed away in 2008.