Supporting the LCA community
We see a cure for blindness
What is Leber Congenital Amaurosis (LCA)?
LCA is a rare inherited retinal disease characterized by severe vision loss at birth. While some children are born with little or no vision, others may have significant vision loss in the first few years of life, stable vision for a period of time, and then eventually complete vision loss as the retina deteriorates into total blindness.
What We Do
Founded in 2014 as Sofia Sees Hope, Hope in Focus is a nonprofit 501(c)3 patient advocacy organization dedicated to generating awareness, raising funds for research, and providing support, education and outreach to the LCA and rare inherited retinal disease community.
Thank you to these organizations
for their ongoing commitment to Hope in Focus.
Let’s Get Social!
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Join Ben Shaberman with Jeanyne Gembarski, Region Puppy Instructor in the Puppy Raising Program, and Annemarie Seifert, volunteer Puppy Raiser, both from Guiding Eyes for the Blind, as they take you behind the scenes of raising and training guide dogs.![]()
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They walk through the two-year journey from puppy raising to guide dog graduation, sharing what it takes to care for, bond with, and build trust with these extraordinary animals. Jeanyne and Annemarie discuss daily responsibilities, challenges, and surprises and share memorable stories from their experiences. Discover how anyone, even without prior dog experience, can become a puppy raiser and support the development of future guide dogs.![]()
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This is Part 1 of our two-part guide dog series—stay tuned for Part 2!![]()
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Listen to it here: loom.ly/nsZM6bM![]()
Image description in the comments.![]()
#hopeinfocuspodcast #hifpodcast #LCA #lebercongenitalamaurosis #HopeInFocus #blindcommunity #lowvision #visuallyimpaired #inclusion
We are so grateful to everyone who joined us for Dinner in the Dark 2025, as well as those who supported the event from afar. With your support, raised over $190k! ![]()
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A special, thank you to our generous sponsors, the Dinner in the Dark committee, and are amazing volunteers to make this event possible.![]()
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Checkout our blog discussing more of this year's event!: hopeinfocus.org/dinner-in-the-dark-2025/ ![]()
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#LCA #DinnerInTheDark #dinnerinthedark2025 #awareness #blindness #lowvision #irds