An eye doctor with Chester Town-ship ties is asking local residents to help support a fund that honors a well-known West Geauga couple.
Gary Roth, a West Geauga High School graduate, said last Monday the community should support the Carl and Joan Roth Fund, which helps fund the importation of special eyeglass lenses for a charitable eye clinic in Jerusalem.
The practice, the Bliss Eye Clinic, was established in 1983 in memory of South African optometrist Samuel Bliss. It began as a free clinic in a Jerusalem neighborhood and later expanded to a larger neighborhood. The clinic contains volunteer ophthalmologists and optometrists, who administer to patients at little or no cost.
Roth is the son of Joan Marcs Roth and her husband, Carl Roth. The Roth couple lived in Chesterland for 40 years before they both passed away in 2011. Gary said his parents were activists in the community – even serving on the West Geauga Recreation Council – and supported the eye clinic at a high level by helping fund the importation of the eyeglass lenses.
“The number of needy people requesting eyewear has increased significantly as of late, and supply is not keeping up with demand,” Gary Roth said. “Recipients are always very grateful,” he said.
He said his mother was an inspiring teacher who taught at Westwood Elementary for over two decades, adding she later served as a supervisor of student teachers at Kent State University upon her retirement. Gary also said Joan was recognized by the state of Ohio for her efforts.
Carol Marcs, Joan Roth’s sister-in-law, said Joan was remembered as someone who always saw the positives in others.
“Joan looked at people, but she looked for the good in them, not the bad,” said Marcs, a Pepper Pike resident. “She was a positive person, a people person.”
Marcs said Joan mentored Robyn Marcs, Carol’s daughter and Joan’s niece. Joan and Robyn would dress up and go to the theater together at Playhouse Square.
“She was all about family,” Marcs added.
Carl Roth, a Cleveland Heights High School alum, was a long-time educator at several area institutions, including Mayfield High School, Hebrew Academy and Lakeland Community College, among others. Carl was also involved in the nationally recognized Shoes for Kids program.
His experience as a history teacher also benefited Robyn, a history major at Miami University of Ohio in Oxford.
“She’d call him and ask questions, and he’d always help my daughter,” Marcs said.
Larry Marcs, Joan’s brother and Carol’s husband, said the pair were the kind of people who were quickly admired because of “their engaging humility and wonderful attitude toward everyone who were blessed to have met them.”
“It was a tragic loss of two bright stars who devoted their lives to teaching,” he added. “Joan was more than a sister, she was the catalyst who strongly contributed to keeping our family together.”
At the end, Carol Marcs said the Roths’ loving attitude toward family members carried over into their passion for charitable work, such as helping the eye clinic and other local causes.
Gary Roth said contributions would go toward maintaining and upgrading the eye clinic, as well as for enabling indigent Jerusalem residents to obtain eyewear.
“The need over there is greater than the need over here,” he said. “The demand is greater than the funding.”
U.S. tax-deductible donations can be made via P.E.F. Israel Endowment Funds.
Checks are processed within two months.
For more information, contact Gary Roth at garyrothod@gmail.com.
