David Paton, M.D. passed away on April 3, 2025, at the age of 94. The son of R. Townley Paton, M.D., The Eye-Bank for Sight Restoration’s founder, Dr. Paton was an innovative and prolific ophthalmologist as well as a strong supporter and advocate of The Eye-Bank throughout his lifetime. He contributed to the organization in a variety of ways, serving on the Medical Advisory Board from 1987-1992 and on the Board of Directors from 1995-2003. Dr. Paton remained an honorary member of The Eye-Bank’s Board of Directors until 2024.
L-R: Former Eye-Bank Board President Anne Cote Taylor and David Paton, M.D.
In 2016, Dr. Paton authored a book chronicling the unique circumstances that led his father to establish a revolutionary new way to cure blindness: eye banking. The book, Insight: R. Townley Paton and the World’s First Eye Bank, An Annotated Bibliography by His Son, painted a vivid portrait of the early years of The Eye-Bank and the world in which a young David Paton grew up.
At age 41, Dr. Paton was named chairman of the Department of Ophthalmology at the Bayor College of Medicine in Houston, TX, where he was instrumental in founding the Cullen Eye Institute. He was a strong advocate of healthcare access and equity and brought eye care services to underserved populations using a mobile eye clinic. Dr. Paton later expanded on this concept when he founded Project Orbis, which transformed a DC-8 aircraft into a flying eye hospital that provided both patient care and professional training abroad.
In his memoir, Second Sight: Views from an Eye Doctor’s Odyssey, Dr. Paton recounts the events of his extraordinary career. The book begins, “In case you might think that the life of an ophthalmologist lacks adventure and drama…” and goes on the describe a series of adventures often punctuated by exclamation marks.
Dr. Paton’s son, Townley, described his father’s life as “rich with impact, purpose and compassion,” adding, “[he] lives on in the millions of lives transformed by his vision and dedication to restoring sight across the globe.”
The family requests that gifts in Dr. Paton’s memory to be made to The Eye-Bank for Sight Restoration.