ANS as president, signed “RR,” penned in black ink at the bottom of a White House memorandum sheet dated February 24, 1981, one page, 8.5 x 11, sent to White House secretary Lindy St. Cyr by White House staffer John D. Fitzsimmons, with the subject: “President Reagan’s Eye-Bank Pledge.” Reagan’s handwritten note reads: “It is appropriate to keep the pledge & yes they may use that in their publicity — that goes for Nancy too — we both made the pledge.” Reagan apparently also circles a section of the Fitzsimmons memorandum, which reads: “Attached please find the correspondence to Mr. William Wilson from the Eye-Bank for Sight Restoration, Inc. Mr. Wilson confirms that the President made an eye-donor pledge some years ago, either towards the end of, or just after, his term of office as Governor. In order to respond to the letter from The Eye-Bank, we must ascertain (i) whether the President in fact made an eye-donor pledge, (11) whether in light of his new office it is appropriate for the President to keep that pledge, (iii) if the pledge is to be kept, whether The Eye-Bank should be authorized to make the pledge public or otherwise utilize it in their publicity activities and (iv) irrespective of the pledge, whether the President wishes to publicly endorse The Eye-Bank's activities. I would be most appreciate of your assistance in this matter.”
Stapled to a photocopy of a letter dated January 30, 1981, sent by Mary Jane O'Neill, executive director of The Eye-Bank for Sight Restoration, Inc., to William A. Wilson (1914-2009), Reagan's close friend, which reads, in part: “This little note, I hope, will serve to remind you of our conversation regarding President Reagan and his eye-donor pledge made some years ago. Since March is National Eye-Donor Month, it would be a tremendous boost to the drive for eye donors if we could use the President's endorsement of the program in our publicity.” In fine condition.
President Reagan's endorsement confirmed that both he and First Lady Nancy Reagan had pledged to become eye donors. The Reagan administration had been contacted by The Eye-Bank for Sight Restoration, Inc., the first eye bank in the world established in New York City in 1944. The non-profit organization — still operating today through a national network of eye banks — is committed to collecting, storing, and distributing donated eyes and eye parts to patients with damaged or diseased eyes; and conducting important ophthalmological research. Over the organization's 80-year-long history, it's estimated that over 70,000 people have had their vision restored through the donation of transplanted ocular tissue.
Reagan would do much to promote awareness of eye donation in the early 1980s. In this way, he continued a legacy of presidential involvement with The Eye-Bank for Sight Restoration; Herbert Hoover, as well as five former First Ladies, had either served on the organization council or personally signed the pledge. On February 25, 1982, President Reagan signed Proclamation 4902, ‘Save Your Vision Week,’ in which he stressed the importance of eye donation. This was followed by two other important presidential proclamations, dated March 21, 1983, and March 31, 198,4 respectively, which declared March ‘National Eye Donor Month.’ In these back-to-back proclamations, Reagan stated: ‘One of the most magnificent presents that one human being can bestow upon another is the gift of sight.’ Many modern-day eye banks cite Reagan's proclamation of National Eye Donor Month in the early 1980s as a watershed moment in raising awareness about postmortem eye donation.
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