Meet the team
Ambassadors
The DKF Advisory Board
MARC SILVER
Co-founder and Head of Creative at Square Rock Group. His team provides media solutions for some of the world’s legendary icons and leading artists. Marc organised a sparkling gala, with the family of Audrey Hepburn, to celebrate her wonderful life as an actress and humanitarian. All profits from the ‘Remembering Audrey Hepburn’ event were donated to Lymphoma Action UK and EURORDIS-European Organisation for Rare Diseases.
DANIEL WYNNE
MICHAEL KATZ
CHRIS MORGAN
My name is Chris Morgan; I am 53 years old, married to Joanne and we have two children, Harry is 21 and is studying at Chichester University. Molly 16 and is home schooled.
Having been ordained in 2012, I am a late vocation and the church refers to me as a Self-Supporting Minister. This means that in 2012 I became a member of a group going back to the 1960’s called ‘Worker Priests.’ I have a have been a self-employed embalmer for 37 years. It has been my privileged to have served the client families of many of this country’s leading funeral homes. I feel blessed to have a ministry within the Church of England and also in my full-time employment.
David and I have been close friends from the age of 11 when we met on our first day at secondary school. So much of our lives have been connected and we have guided each other through trials and tribulations. Having seen the obstacles David has swept aside and all he has achieved it fills me immense pride and is an honour and privilege to be part of the David Katz Foundation. I truly believe that we stand at the genesis of what will be a benefit for those young people and their families as they begin to walk the journey David has himself navigated.
The DKF will, I trust, be a beacon of hope for those who may have thought there was nowhere for them to go.
DAVID KATZ
The David Katz Foundation has a mission: to improve the lives of people with visual impairment.
David became an internationally acclaimed photographer, despite the fact that he is legally blind. Now, he wants to pave the way for others to succeed, despite their disabilities.
Here at the DKF, we aim to empower the visually impaired, at the same time raising awareness throughout the world.
MAAYAN SHAISH
Maayan has been teaching GYROTONIC, movement and dance for 8 years.
A multi-disciplinary qualified dancer Maayan was intrigued from childhood by the impacts that movement and music had on the function of the body in creating physical as well as health and emotional balance. This lead her to continue her research and she acquired a B.Sc in Chemistry and Biochemistry specifying in the mechanisms of interaction within the human body in its environment.
Since than Maayan has been working in combination of several methods, continuing her education in rehabilitation programs in different fields and training with a wide variety of trainees and colleagues, a big believer in the combination of methods as a way to improve and create balance and development to the human skills and abilities.
Her unique understanding and insight of the structures and mechanisms of the body enable her to use and create new approaches to achieve the fullest potential of the training she is giving.
ERIC EVANS
Eric and David Katz became friends in 2017 and share the understanding of a long term medical issue and resulting consequences. “David’s energy, enthusiasm and commitment is contagious and we share a purpose to find and develop ways to help the visually impaired. I feel privileged and delighted to be invited by David and alongside my fellow trustees to build this foundation and enjoy the journey together”.
Eric’s business career began in the Oil Industry in the late 1960’s in Great Yarmouth with an oil service company and progressed to Aberdeen in the 70’s where he worked for Hamilton Brothers Oil Company. Since starting his own company in 1973 he has been involved in many business sectors, in the UK, America and Africa. His autobiography, Diamonds For Rice details his many adventures in his incredible life and this experience and wide knowledge places him well as a trustee of the foundation.
Mr JAY EDWARD SELF BM, FRCOphth, PhD
Jay completed his higher specialist training in Paediatric Ophthalmology in Southampton and Manchester and his research training through an MRC Clinical Research Training Fellowship/PhD in Ophthalmic Molecular Genetics.
Jay’s research interests cover a range of disorders affecting vision in children including nystagmus, albinism, genetic disorders of the eye, amblyopia and paediatric cataract. His team combines expertise in genetics, bioinformatics, eye-tracking and clinical trials.
Jay is an advisor to 4 vision charities, board for one charity, Div B representative for the UHS hospital charity, and ambassador for one foundation. He works closely with the Royal College of Ophthalmologists (RCOphth) in a number of roles including member of the genomics working group, chair of various national masterclass training courses and has represented the college for media communications. He is an advocate of public engagement in science and has delivered many public address lectures and open floor sessions for over 10 years.
Jay and his team are passionate about translating research findings into clinical practice and improving the care for children with visual disorders by improving diagnostics, developing new treatments and disseminating best practice.
MENNA FITZPATRICK MBE & JENNIFER KEHOE MBE
Menna Fitzpatrick has only 5% vision, and skis with guide Jennifer Kehoe. Menna learned to ski from the age of five, with her father acting as guide. At the 2018 Winter Paralympics in South Korea, Menna won four medals, including a gold in the slalom. Menna is now 2019 World Champion, and Team GB’s most decorated Paralympian.
Jennifer was rejected by the Royal Navy for being too short-sighted. That was never going to hold her back, and she became a serving officer with the Royal Engineers. As Menna Fitzpatrick’s guide, she shares the incredible medal tally from the 2018 Winter Olympics. Jennifer, also an author, is fully supported by the Army to continue Menna’s career on skis. And of course, she shares Menna’s 2019 World Champion credentials.
Menna Fitzpatrick, MBE
PAM ALBERT
Pam Albert is the National Development Executive of the Canadian Friends of the Jaffa Institute. She works as an independent consultant and Executive Coach in the charity world. She is involved in leadership and advisory roles for numerous charities, bringing her considerable experience to both newly developing and long-standing charitable organizations. Canadian Friends of The Jaffa Institute is a more recent and key focus for her. In the not-for-profit field, Pam’s many consulting engagements have included work in Development and Community Engagement at JNF and she has also served as VP of Community Engagement at the Mt. Sinai Hospital Foundation. She is currently on the board of ARZA Canada. Before forming her consulting practice, Pam was the Founding Director of One Family Fund Canada, where she spent 15 years successfully building an organization to support victims of terror in Israel. Through her extensive involvement in this and other organizations, she has engaged thousands of individuals from Canada and around the world with Israel. To help foster this engagement, she has honed her skills at planning and delivering out-of-the-box travel/experiences in Israel.
VIPUL JYOTI
Born in New Delhi, India, VJ moved to the UK in 2010. Having worked at NASA’s Kennedy Space Centre in Florida, he’s always had the gene for innovation and exploration of new ideas. VJ eventually qualified in the UK and now practices as a Specialist Ophthalmic Optometrist with special interest in Glaucoma and Visual Neuroscience. VJ hopes to play a key role in the management and awareness of Nystagmus, not just as a medical condition, but as a life changing factor through DKF. He is currently exploring future research possibilities in nystagmus with a major upcoming project based in the Middle East.
YUVAL EISENBERG
Over 15 years of experience as Senior Director for capital management and investments in the largest investment companies in Israel as well as in the private sector in a position of trust and responsibility advising on managing finances and assets for wealthy client and companies.
As a strong believer that any business is based on a relationship of trust, expertise and excellence and with strong professional business skills of strategic planning, I have build my career working with many types of wealth owners, companies, banks and financial establishments, allowing me to use my knowledge in a wide range of products and financial solutions such as real estate investment trusts (REITs), venture capital funds and alternative products (hedge funds, consumer credit, etc.) in Israel and overseas.
Founder of Mntor Value Consulting Services –
Accompanying small and medium business in strategic support for foundations, companies from their early stage and senior individuals in Israel and abroad. Providing consulting and building strategy, planning and guidance for business, management business collaborations, foundations and technology.
Among my activities: lectures on economics and finance management, fundraising and credit, building business plans, strategy and business development, business management ,building sales strategy, marketing and service plans and more.
MEREDITH HOLBROOK
Meredith Holbrook is a freelance photojournalist based out of Toronto, Canada. Over the past decade, Meredith has primarily spent her time photographing Israel and the Palestinian Territories for humanitarian aid organizations and NGOs.
Meredith’s main passion is learning, understanding, and photographing people’s stories and efforts, particularly when battling health. Her work can be seen on CNN, National Geographic, the Jerusalem Post, Haaretz and Ynet.
Through her travels, stories and years learning the ins and outs of not-for-profits, Meredith brings a great deal of experience to The David Katz Foundation.
DR HELENA LEE
Dr Helena Lee is an Associate Professor in Ophthalmology at the University of Southampton and Southampton General Hospital.
The Lee group investigates retinal development in albinism and other retinal developmental disorders. The group’s focus is on developing disease specific therapies which target neuroplasticity to modulate abnormal retinal development in albinism and other retinal developmental disorders, in order to improve vision. Dr Lee has summarised her research in a powerful and widely accessible 10 minute AMSlive talk.
She specialises in neuro-ophthalmology, paediatrics and strabismus and has an international research reputation in the area of infantile nystagmus, pediatric retinal development and optical coherence tomography (OCT).
She has researched the effects of idiopathic infantile nystagmus, achromatopsia and albinism on retinal development and was awarded the Fight for Sight Award in 2015 for her work on normal retinal development. More recently, she was awarded a £1.4 million Medical Research Council (MRC) Clinician Scientist Fellowship grant to investigate: The role of Oral Levodopa in improving Visual development in Infants and young children with Albinism (the OLIVIA study).
Qualifications
- MB, BCh, BAO, Medicine, University College Dublin, 2004
- MSc, Physiology, University College Dublin, 2006
- FRCOphth, Royal College of Ophthalmologists, 2011
- PhD, University of Leicester, 2014
Appointments
- Senior Postgraduate Demonstrator in Physiology, University College Dublin, Ireland, July 2005 – June 2006
- Senior House Officer in Ophthalmology, Dublin North Rotation, Ireland, July 2006 – April 2009
- LAT Specialist Registrar in Ophthalmology, Royal Hallamshire Hospital, Sheffield, UK, April 2009 – August 2009
- Speciality Trainee in Ophthalmology (ST3-5), East Midlands South Deanery, UK, August 2009 – January 2012
- Clinical Research Fellow in Ophthalmology, University of Leicester, UK, February 2012 – January 2015
- Speciality Trainee in Ophthalmology (ST6), East Midlands South Deanery, UK, February 2015 – March 2015
- NIHR Academic Clinical Lecturer in Ophthalmology, University of Southampton, UK, March 2015 – March 2018
- Neuro-Ophthalmology Honorary Fellow, Moorfields Eye Hospital, UK, August 2017 – March 2018
- MRC Clinician Scientist Fellow & Clinical Lecturer in Ophthalmology, University of Southampton, UK, April 2018 – December 2018
- MRC Clinician Scientist Fellow & Associate Professor Lecturer in Ophthalmology, University of Southampton, UK, Jan 2019 – Present
HELENA LEE
Dr Helena Lee is an Associate Professor in Ophthalmology at the University of Southampton and Southampton General Hospital.
The Lee group investigates retinal development in albinism and other retinal developmental disorders. The group’s focus is on developing disease specific therapies which target neuroplasticity to modulate abnormal retinal development in albinism and other retinal developmental disorders, in order to improve vision. Dr Lee has summarised her research in a powerful and widely accessible 10 minute AMSlive talk.
She specialises in neuro-ophthalmology, paediatrics and strabismus and has an international research reputation in the area of infantile nystagmus, pediatric retinal development and optical coherence tomography (OCT).
She has researched the effects of idiopathic infantile nystagmus, achromatopsia and albinism on retinal development and was awarded the Fight for Sight Award in 2015 for her work on normal retinal development. More recently, she was awarded a £1.4 million Medical Research Council (MRC) Clinician Scientist Fellowship grant to investigate: The role of Oral Levodopa in improving Visual development in Infants and young children with Albinism (the OLIVIA study).
Qualifications
- MB, BCh, BAO, Medicine, University College Dublin, 2004
- MSc, Physiology, University College Dublin, 2006
- FRCOphth, Royal College of Ophthalmologists, 2011
- PhD, University of Leicester, 2014
Appointments
- Senior Postgraduate Demonstrator in Physiology, University College Dublin, Ireland, July 2005 – June 2006
- Senior House Officer in Ophthalmology, Dublin North Rotation, Ireland, July 2006 – April 2009
- LAT Specialist Registrar in Ophthalmology, Royal Hallamshire Hospital, Sheffield, UK, April 2009 – August 2009
- Speciality Trainee in Ophthalmology (ST3-5), East Midlands South Deanery, UK, August 2009 – January 2012
- Clinical Research Fellow in Ophthalmology, University of Leicester, UK, February 2012 – January 2015
- Speciality Trainee in Ophthalmology (ST6), East Midlands South Deanery, UK, February 2015 – March 2015
- NIHR Academic Clinical Lecturer in Ophthalmology, University of Southampton, UK, March 2015 – March 2018
- Neuro-Ophthalmology Honorary Fellow, Moorfields Eye Hospital, UK, August 2017 – March 2018
- MRC Clinician Scientist Fellow & Clinical Lecturer in Ophthalmology, University of Southampton, UK, April 2018 – December 2018
- MRC Clinician Scientist Fellow & Associate Professor Lecturer in Ophthalmology, University of Southampton, UK, Jan 2019 – Present
DOUG MENUEZ
Documentary photographer and director Doug Menuez once stood at the North Pole, crossed the Sahara, had tea with Stalin’s daughter and held a chunk of Einstein’s brain. Quitting his blues band in 1981, he began his career freelancing for Time, LIFE, Newsweek, Fortune, USA Today, the New York Times Magazine and many other publications. He covered the AIDS crisis, homelessness in America, politics, five Super Bowls and the Olympics.
His portrait assignments include Presidents Bush, Sr. and Clinton, Cate Blanchett, Robert Redford, Lenny Kravitz, Mother Teresa, Jane Goodall and Hugh Jackman. His award-winning advertising campaigns and corporate projects for global brands include Chevrolet, FedEx, Leica, GE, Chevron, HP, Coca Cola, Emirates Airlines, Charles Schwab and Microsoft. Menuez’ work has been honored by many organizations, including the Kelly Awards, The AOP London, The Cannes Festival, The One Show, The Art Director’s Club of NY, Photo District News, The Epson Creativity Award, American Photography, the International Photography Awards, NY Photo Festival, Graphis, and Communication Arts.
His fourth book, “Fearless Genius: The Digital Revolution in Silicon Valley 1985-2000,” by Simon & Schuster’s Atria Books, became a #1 bestseller on Amazon’s photo book list and was published in the US, Japan, the UK, South Korea, Taiwan and China and translated into 17 languages. Over 100 million people worldwide have seen the project through the book, exhibits, viral press and talks. A fine art exhibition of rare images of Silicon Valley’s greatest innovators, including Steve Jobs, as they changed our world continues to travel.
His extensive archive of over one million images was acquired by Stanford University Libraries in 2004. Doug divides his time between the Hudson Valley and NYC.
DANIEL WYNNE
David Katz Foundation
Every donation, large or small, helps us to improve the lives of the visually impaired. They need a beacon of hope, compassion and trust. Help us to be that guiding light.
