Why Tour de Sight?

One word. Gavin!

Gavin Robert Stevens was born on October 2, 2008, to proud parents, Troy and Jennifer. It was also on this day, Landon (age 6), became a big brother. Gavin was born healthy and with no complications. But it was shortly after his birth, Jennifer had a mother’s intuition something was not right. Routine pediatrician appointments did not show any concern with his vision. It was still very unsettling and as the days went by our worry grew. We finally saw a pediatric ophthalmologist four months later after asking for a request to a specialist.It was on that day, our suspicions were confirmed. Within moments of looking into Gavin’s dilated eyes, the doctor slumped back into his chair. He looked at us, and very honestly informed us that Gavin’s condition was “devastating to his vision”, and that we would have to see a pediatric retina specialist in the weeks to follow.

It was at this moment our lives were turned upside down. We walked out of the doctors office, with our little 4 month old baby feeling brokenhearted and overwhelmed with sadness and confusion. We still didn’t have all the answers, and certainly even more unanswered questions. Months later, he was diagnosed with LCA by Dr. Lee at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. A disease so unfamiliar, we have never heard of it. The words “there is no cure” rang loud in our ears. The grieving process started. We mourned for his vision, but we didn’t lose focus of the big picture.

Gavin's Groupies

We found the Foundation Fighting Blindness (FFB), just days after receiving Gavin’s diagnosis. VisionWalk was coming up in the months to come, in a city near us. Very soon on, we realized we wanted to be an active participant in making a difference. Days later, we formed a team “Gavin’s Groupies”, and we have proudly walked in VisionWalk for FFB in 2009 and 2010 and will continue each year. In total we raised over $22,000 for FFB and had the largest participating team. We have such great support and those who want to help us and our mission. “Gavin’s Groupies” has become our team name for events that we do. From VisionWalk, to mud runs, to chili cook offs, and now Tour de Sight, the list is endless.

Gavin R. Stevens Foundation

It is through our research, and knowing that a cure is in fact a possible reality, that we came to creating the Gavin R Stevens Foundation. We are driven to raise awareness, and increase funding in the area of LCA and gene therapy research. We are not just doing this for our son, Gavin. We are touched by all the faces of LCA, and all the individuals who are left in darkness due to blindness. It is our hope and mission that we can help with the financial aspect of research, and be able to help fund much needed clinical trials. We want treatment to be an option, and not just a dream!