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| fEBRUARY 23-25, 2024The Island Resort at Ft. Walton Beach , Fort Walton Beach, FL |
Speaker Biographies
Carole Bratteig, LDO, A.B.O.C., N.C.L.E.C: 35+ years in the optical industry, she has been the recipient of numerous awards including but not limited to: 50 Most Influential Women of the Year, Vision Monday; Advancement of Professional Education Award. Ms. Bratteig is a Florida licensed optician earning her A.S. in Opticianry at Hillsborough Community College (HCC) in Tampa Florida and is certified by both the ABO and the NCLE. She has previously served as a board member for the National Academy of Opticianry and currently serves on the Advisory Board for HCC. Jackie O'Keefe, LDO: licensed in Virginia and has been practicing Opticianry since 1981. She is a contributing writer for Vision Care Product News, a Senior EDGE® Consultant for Gateway Provider Network™, on Essilor of America and Transitions Speakers Bureaus and consults in the Virginia Beach, VA area. Jackie has written, published and presented numerous CPC/ABO courses and lectures on a variety of optical topics.
Bill Markham, Essilor of America: 35 years in the optical industry, 30 year at Essilor of America. General lab manager for the Omega lab for 10 years, producing up to 6500 jobs per day. Selected to be the US manager for the installation, launch and roll out of Crizal. Involved is creating standard operating procedures for the production of Crizal that are still in place today. Responsible for the build out, staffing, training for the first 5 Crizal coating centers. Joined the Technical Marketing team to train on all technical aspects of the optical industry to sales and marketing personnel. Currently fully support Crizal, Xperio UV and polarized lenses as a technical expert in the Essilor Marketing department. Responsible for independent studies at Colt, NSL and the University of Arkansas
Jonathan Smith, ABO, COPE, LuxAcademy: Mr. Smith is the Senior Training Manager at Luxottica Wholesale North America. Jonathan is an MBA graduate who began his career at Luxottica in brand management overseeing the marketing strategy of several major premium fashion eyewear brands spanning kids and optical categories. With over 12 years of experience in branding and marketing in the luxury, fashion, and beauty industries, Jonathan brings a wealth of business and product knowledge and is known for dynamic and compelling presentations which have impacted thousands of sales and marketing teams to date. Jonathan is an ABO and COPE certified speaker who has created and presented content across US and Canada and leads the US training department at Luxottica in building a strong education vision and strategy for the company. Buddy Russell, COMT, FCLSA, FSLS: With over thirty five years experience fitting contact lenses, Buddy Russell has joined Thomas Eye Group after more than 22 years as an associate of the specialty contact lens service at Emory University Eye Center in Atlanta. He has been certified by J.C.A.H.P.O. since 1986 and is a Certified Ophthalmic Medical Technologist. Buddy is also a Fellow of the Scleral Lens Society. He lectures at national and international meetings on contact lens related topics. Buddy has authored articles in a number of publications, two chapters for CLSA’s advanced training manual and is a peer reviewer for the Cornea, Eye and Contact Lens and Contact Lens Science and Research publications. He is also a contributing editor for CLSA’s Eyewitness journal. Buddy also served as the National Contact Lens coordinator for the Infant Aphakia Treatment Study. In addition, he is the recipient of the Joseph W. Soper Award for Excellence in Education and the Oakley Waite Achievement award. |
Join your friends and the exhibitors that will be featuring the latest in eyewear & services on Saturday during lunch and happy hour. Exhibits Open Saturday11:45 am - 1:30 pm Lunch Trade Show & Happy Hour Exhibitors:
If you are interested in meeting new clients by exhibiting your company's products at this event click here to register online, or download and complete the |
