This book would not be possible without the dedicated efforts of David Dunham, the Dunham Group, and especially Heather Ebert, who dedicated countless hours to this project, laboring hard and guiding me patiently through the process. Their professionalism, artistry, and counsel were invaluable. Thank you, David and Heather!
I am grateful to David Fischer, who contributed many valuable ideas, and thoroughly read and assisted in revising the manuscript. I hope to work with David again soon to turn this autobiography into a feature film.
I appreciate Senator Bill Frist, MD, for contributing the foreword for this book, and for the advice and mentoring he has provided me through the years.
A very sincere thanks goes to those who endorsed this book, including Dolly Parton; Charlie Daniels; Senator Lamar Alexander; Senator Bill Frist, MD; Mayor Karl Dean; Governor Bill Haslam; Governor Winfield Dunn; and many other friends and colleagues.
I would like to express earnest gratitude for my friends who spent many hours reading and offering suggestions for this book: Dr. Richard Nelson, Dr. James Hiatt, Charles Grummon, Larry Tomczak, David and Megan McCullough, Jerry Moll, Tony Roberts, Tony Ashley, Tim Skow, Dave and Jan Dalton, Suzanne Gentry, Kip Dodson, Steve Ludwig, John Bransford, Kane Harrison, Shirley Zeitlin, Lynda and David Evjen, Rudy Kalis and Robert Swope.
I am thankful to all the teachers, mentors, and colleagues that I have had through my career, including James McNesby, PhD; John Weiner, PhD; George Church, PhD; Larry Donoso, MD, PhD; Scheffer Tseng, MD, PhD; Richard Forster, MD,; William Culbertson, MD; Don Gass, MD; Spencer Thornton, MD; Arun Gulani, MD; Ilan Cohen, MD; David Chang, MD; Aleksandar Stonjavic, MD; Francis Muier, MD; Guy Guzerin, MD; Li Li; Bang Chen; Bao-sung Liu, MD; Michael Zhou, MD; Xiao-bing Wang, MD, Tracy Swartz, OD; Helen Boerman, OD; Amy Waymire, OD; Shanna Hill, OD; Dora Mathe, OD; Ara Sudtelgte, OD; Megan Blemker, OD and Gretchen Blemker, OD. If they had not challenged me constantly to pursue knowledge and make new discoveries, I might not have fulfilled my dream of becoming a doctor.
I would like to acknowledge the entire team at Wang Vision 3D Cataract & LASIK Center: Dr. Sarah Connolly, OD; Dr. Nathan Rock, OD; Dr. David Zimmerman, OD; Heather Brown; Leona Walthorn; Tammy Cardwell; Ana Martinez; Suzanne Gentry; Cameron Daniels; Scott Haugen; Eric Nesler; Crystal Micillo; Ashley Patty; Beth Riley, COA; Skyler Nelson; Kayla Sinyard, COT; Clare Stolberg, RN; Haley Wilson; James Wright; Chloe Jenkins; Amanda Knight; Shannon McClung, COA; Anle Ji; Dr. Li Jiang, MD, Dr. Hui Zhao, MD and Dr. Benyamin Ebrahim, MD. Each of you holds a special place in my life and work. We are changing lives together, and I am so thankful for all of you.
I am so appreciative of the Wang Foundation for Sight Restoration board of directors, and of all the foundation’s medical council doctors who have donated their time and resources to help rescue so many of the foundation’s patients from darkness.
I am deeply thankful for the foundation’s patients and their families, who have entrusted their eyesight to me and traveled on the journey with me from darkness to sight: Francisco; Carole Klein; Clementina; Brad and Jackie Barnes; Kajal and Grace; Bobby Joel Case; Margarette, Dave, and Melody Snodgrass; Anna, Lisa, and Jeff Post; Anna and Beth Ann; Matthew and Mrs. Higgins; Wade and Mrs. Cook; Chris Dixon; Thomas Brewington; Randy Mathenia; and finally Maria, Steve, and Lynn Hendrich. With God’s grace, together we have achieved the impossible!
I want to extend my most heartfelt thanks to my family, whose love and support made all of this possible: my father Dr. Zhen-sheng Wang, my mother Dr. A-lian Xu, my brother Dr. Ming-yu Wang, his wife Peggy and his daughter Yong Yong, my son Dennis and his sweetheart Alisa, my god parents Misha Bartnovsky and June Rudolph, and my wife Anle Ji, without whose thoughtfulness, care, and love I might never have been able to accomplish what I have done and to write this story. Anle also spent countless hours helping to organize the photos for this book. Family and friends are an important lifeline in one’s journey, and I have continued to think about and remember each one of you fondly as I have encountered my triumphs and failures in life. We have stuck together and supported one another through it all, and I love each one of you dearly.
Finally, and most importantly, I want to thank God for delivering me from darkness and surrounding me with such glorious light!
Ming Wang, MD, PhD
Nashville, Tennessee, USA, 2016