Jennifer & Ashley Zuckerman have lived lives of overcoming impossible circumstances. Now seniors in High School, these fraternal twins were born 28 weeks premature with less than a 25% chance of survival. This was the first of many challenges that Jennifer, Ashly, and their family would face together.  

Due to Jennifer's premature birth, she developed retinopathy of prematurity (ROP), yet her sister Ashley had relatively normal eyesight. And that's how their story starts - one sighted sister and one blind sister. Despite this challenge, a beautiful relationship emerged that is a shining example for all siblings from all walks of life. 

This interview between the Zuckerman sisters and the PRRF will have you laughing, crying, and perhaps rethinking your perspective on interacting with the visually impaired and anyone with a disability. 

In this special edition of the Through Our Eyes podcast, we are honoring the life of Dr. Michael Trese, one of the all-time greatest contributors to the field of pediatric retinal research and disease.  He, along with his partner Dr. Antonio Capone share with us many of their experiences of working together over the past ten years to develop research that has effectively impacted the lives of countless children and will continue for generations to come.  

This interview was recorded shortly before Dr. Trese's passing on 10/21/22 and we are very excited to have the privilege of sharing this intimate conversation with our listeners in this very special episode.  

The “Through Our Eyes” podcast is brought to you by the Pediatric Retinal Research Foundation. We are a community of visually impaired young adults talking about what it’s like to navigate high school, college, career, and beyond. We share our experiences and cover a wide range of topics providing you with actionable tips and strategies that you can implement in your own life.

In this episode, Dr. Droste and Bre talk about the complexities of navigating higher education. Bre grew up as a sighted child, yet throughout her high school career, her sight deteriorated. Bre faced many obstacles in the transition from a sighted to an unsighted world, and as a legally blind college student, Bre discovered a wealth of resources that unsighted college students across the globe can access. Bre's insights and experiences outlined in this episode can help equip students and parents to face these challenges.

The “Through Our Eyes” podcast is brought to you by the Pediatric Retinal Research Foundation. We are a community of visually impaired young adults talking about what it’s like to navigate high school, college, career, and beyond. We share our experiences and cover a wide range of topics providing you with actionable tips and strategies that you can implement in your own life.

In this episode Dr. Droste and Shelby talk about the complexities of navigating the education system as a blind student. Starting from a very young age Shelby recounts her experiences and gives insights and options of how to respond to specific challenges. Topics include navigating the dynamics of IEP meetings, the importance of learning braille, how to relate with sighted classmates and much more.  

The “Through Our Eyes” podcast brought to you by the Pediatric Retinal Research Foundation. We are a community of visually impaired young adults talking about what it’s like to navigate high school, college, career, and beyond. We share our experiences and cover a wide range of topics providing you with actionable tips and strategies that you can implement into your own life.

Breyanna is 27 and was born sighted but was diagnosed with FEVR at age 9. She navigated high school with limited vision and had her driver's license. By the time she was 21, she lost most of her vision and ultimately her license. Listen to this episode to hear more about her story and what she’s got planned for her future.

Welcome to the “Through Our Eyes” podcast by the Pediatric Retinal Research Foundation. We are a community of visually impaired young adults talking about what it’s like to navigate through high school, college, career, and beyond. We tap into our experiences and cover a wide range of topics providing you with actionable tips and strategies you can implement in your own life.