The gift of eSight for Jamey Dougall

My name is Jamey Dougall and my journey began 36 years ago in Omaha Nebraska when, as a toddler, it was discovered that I had detached retinas in both eyes. Soon after came the diagnosis of a connective tissue disorder that had damaged the retinas. It was determined that, left untreated, I would be blind by the age of eight. The treatment options were very experimental and only available in hospitals in other states. After painful deliberation, my family made the decision to battle to save my sight by any means available to them.

What followed over the next several years were more than twenty-six surgeries in multiple hospitals and states attempting to reattach my retinas and save what vision was possible. The work began on my left eye as it was the most damaged. The surgeons were successful in reattaching a very, very small portion of the retina but only created a small degree of “sight”. With the limited success of my left eye there was another agonizing decision to continue with the same procedure for the right eye. Unfortunately, the surgery to reattach the retina in my right eye was unsuccessful leaving me completely blind in that eye. We had reached the end of our treatment options and after 5 years felt we had done everything we could. Knowing the left eye was physically healthy and would sustain the limited vision for years to come, we trusted there would always be hope for the future. Who knew what the twenty first century might bring.

Once the surgeries and travel had ended I lived a very normal life with supportive family, friends and teachers. I learned Braille and used other adaptive tools for school, but I also played sports, attended Space Camp and did pretty much what every other kid does, or at least gave it a try to see for myself whether I could do it or not. After high school and some college, I worked a variety of jobs until 2005 when I started my career in the technology industry. I have worked with telephony, cable, and internet for most of my adult life and through hard work, dedication and a little help from the wonders of technology, I have proven myself to be a valued member of the team while I continue to grow and advance.


I have a successful marriage with a very loving wife and am raising two beautiful daughters. I would love to see my family, my wife, and my daughter’s faces and more fully enjoy their achievements and activities. I want to see the Nebraska Huskers play football. I want to see mountains, lakes, sunsets and on and on and on. These eSight glasses will allow me to experience things I have never before been able to. The gift of sight was never offered until now, these eSight glasses will allow me to experience things I never thought possible.

The eSight glasses provide a small LED screen which displays what I am looking at. I can zoom in close to items and see details of objects that are far away or in the shade. I was able to read 20/20 from an eye chart and see someone 100 feet away in full detail. The remote connects to the glasses and allows me to zoom, change contrast, focus or take a picture. The eSight glasses will take some time to adjust to because of the need to retrain my brain, neck, and eye to view things from a sighted perspective. This technology will open up so many more opportunities for me that did not exist until now. I plan to use your donation for the cost of the glasses and future technology upgrades which give me life experiences that I never, ever thought I would have an opportunity to ”see”.

Your generosity means more than the world to me and I cannot wait to see all of your pretty faces.