The Honor of Having 9 Photos Chosen

Marty CohenPhotography, San Francisco29 Comments

I’m very happy to share with you the honor I received of having nine of my photographs chosen to decorate the walls of San Francisco General Hospital’s (SFGH) brand new Pediatric Opthalmology Clinic. Much of the funding for this new clinic was raised by That Man May See, a non-profit organization that supports, by raising funds, the goals of UCSF Ophthalmology (including SFGH): to save and restore sight for present and future generations. There are two photo galleries below, and beneath them is the story of how this all came about.

Click on the first thumbnail image to enlarge it and see the whole image. You can then click the forward arrow to scroll through all of this first set. When you finish, click on the last image to return to the article.

This first set is from the Clinic’s opening celebration:

The opening celebration photos were taken by photographer Trish Tunney.

The second set below is of my actual chosen photographs.

Click on the first thumbnail image to enlarge it and see the whole image.

How my photographs were chosen was interesting. We met the organization’s President, Kathleen Rydar after my wife Cathleen and I made a donation to That Man May See in the memory of a longtime friend of Cathleen’s family, Pearl Kimura. Pearl was the wife of Samuel Kimura, MD, also deceased. He was the person who taught me Opthalmology in medical school at UCSF. So we had a number of different ways in which we were all connected.

In speaking with Kathleen Rydar, we mentioned our various connections and that I was now retired and pursuing photography. Now that she knew of my connections to pediatrics, UCSF and SFGH (where I had done part of my residency) she told us about the clinic which would be opening in a few months and she asked to see my photography website. I offered to donate some photographs for the new clinic if she and the lead Pediatric Ophthalmologist were interested. They were very excited about it and chose nine images to be displayed on the clinic’s walls.

They’ve described the clinic as a “cheery space, with its colorful nature photos, …designed to reduce stress for overwhelmed families. Children play and learn in the pediatric waiting room.”

You can read more about the clinic in the organization’s Fall 2012 newsletter, Visions. Click or right-click here to see or download the PDF file.

29 Comments on “The Honor of Having 9 Photos Chosen”

  1. Congratulations! What an honor and no doubt your awesome photos will bring smiles and joy to many little faces!

  2. What a wonderful connection and your beautiful gifts. They’re all fun and wonderful… but I’m partial to the Ford hub cover.

  3. I love all the photos they chose, and they look great on the walls. The subject matter and colors are sure to catch the attention of kids. The connections we had individually with Sam and Pearl make this very special. . . I’m so happy we could do this. Thank you for making it happen!

  4. In addition to the great photographs, it’s a wonderful story! Thank for sharing. Congratulations to you both!

  5. So many years ago when I first heard the phrase,
    “No man is an island,” I fully bought in to that concept – but as I grow older and see how important and meaningful the connections we make in our lifetimes are – I am astounded. Congratulations on this honor and on the lovely connections of your lifetime.

  6. What a honor! All your photos are great. Can see why children would love the ones chosen. Am sure the photos are brightening the children and parents days. “Congratulations” from Larry and me.

  7. That’s a great honor, Marty, and personally so meaningful as well. Congratulations. It is interesting to me that they selected pictures, all with different themes; in other words, a broad representation of your work!

  8. Nice to see the pictures we’d heard about. But weren’t you chief resident 1974-75 at the General?

  9. Congratulations, Marty and Cathleen! The images are wonderful in this setting. The connections make this gift an even more meaningful one. Great to see photos exhibited!

  10. What a beautiful gift that you and Cathleen gave. The photos really make the place look beautiful! Thank you for being such generous and talented people! So glad you shared them up on the walls. That is my favorite part.

    1. Thank you. It was really special for us to be able to do this and they tell me that the kids and parents have made a lot of nice comments about them.

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