Sidney Miller’s Estate-Plan Gift Will Help Ensure Access to Eye Care for Those in Need

Sidney Miller was a member of the Orbis Visionary Club—the elite group of people who have included Orbis in their estate plans. He used to say that he could not have had the interesting career he enjoyed if he hadn’t had his vision.

He worked for a bank security firm, designing alarm systems for automatic teller machines, cash drawers, bank vaults, and night deposit boxes. His territory stretched from Pittsburgh to Philadelphia and included Washington, D.C.

He recounted stories about robbers taking bundles of cash that were wired to explode with dye a few minutes after being handed over, so the robber was marked indelibly. He mentioned a bank that was still in the process of being built under his supervision, and one night the robbers blasted the newly installed—and completely empty—night deposit vault out of the wall.

He needed his good vision to design and read blueprints. He examined videotapes of robberies and collected robbers’ fingerprints off cash drawers—fingerprints never helped catch a bandit, he said, but they helped convict him.

He enjoyed his career and volunteered a lot even while working full time. Then he changed the pace of his life.

“After I retired and had my home paid off, I decided to donate as much as I could to those most in need,” he said. “Orbis is an important charity. Without vision, you don’t have anything—especially in the countries Orbis works in. Here in the States, they’ll let you go to a special school; but most countries don’t have anything like that. In most countries if you’re blind or vision-impaired, you are dependent. I strongly believe in Orbis, and I wish I had more money to give. So I put Orbis in my will because right now I can only donate so much.”

Mr. Miller had cataracts removed from his eyes, a commonplace procedure in the U.S. “In this country if a child is born with cataracts, they get removed very early. Not so in the poorer countries of the world. Orbis trains doctors to remove cataracts for children. That’s why I donate to this cause. I totally support everything Orbis is doing.”

Mr. Miller always did plenty of research before donating. “I totally research each charity I support, usually on Charity Watch. Orbis is a very good charity, and I totally support this cause.”

You, too, can become a Visionary Club member by naming Orbis in your estate plan. You’ll create a legacy of helping others who have no access to the eye care that prevents blindness. Contact us with any questions you may have.