For years, he was one of only three to make custom eye prostheses in northern Ontario
Sault Ste. Marie is known for many things, mainly the steel and hockey city, but in the early 80’s Sault Ste. Marie had another unique eye prosthesis or artificial eye market. Gary Keeley began working in the early 1960s as an assistant to optometrist Gordon Cunningham.
He was later encouraged by ophthalmic surgeon Dr. Robert Stevenson to create his own practice. To learn his craft, he studied at the then Ryerson University in Toronto.
In 1982, Gary Keeley was one of only three artificial eye opticians in Northern Ontario, the other two were based in Sudbury. He worked for the Group Health Center and started his practice there in the late 70’s.
Since most people in need of a prosthesis suffer a traumatic injury, Keely believes that building a level of trust is necessary for his work. Kylie will spend at least 20 minutes from her appointment to get to know her patient.
His first step was to create an eye shape of the eye cavity itself. The iris button was then colored and made to fit the patient’s existing eye as closely as possible. The next step was to decorate the eye by stringing red cloth on the white part of the prosthesis to give the veins a look.
Once everything was in place, Keeley poured liquid methacrylate over the eye to fix it all together. Finally, clear acrylic resin was applied to create a “perfect shine”.
The whole process took up to three weeks to complete, and Keeley created the whole eye in the house, except for some of the coloring work that had to be done in Toronto. The total cost of the artificial eye was approximately $ 325 by 1982, and each restoration work cost $ 110.
Realizing that not everyone who needs an eye can afford it, Keeley said organizations such as Algoma District Family and Social Services, Workman’s Compensation Board and Welfare Canada can provide funding for those who are unable to afford it.
According to Kylie, personal care for artificial eyes was quite easy because the constant flow of tears cleansed them. The only reason needed to clean the eye was if someone was exposed to a dusty or smoky environment, even so, a little warm water and a little soap would do the trick.
For many people, this process would cause great uncertainty about the use of an artificial eye, but the calm and personal approach of Gary Keeley, as well as the realistic appearance of prosthetic eyes allowed them to have more freedom.
By 1982, Keely created 75 artificial eyes and his love of his work and helping people would push him forward.
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