Esther Baker
Iowa Lions Eye Bank
Candidate Bio
Esther Baker joined Iowa Lions Eye Bank as executive director in January 2019. For the past two years, she has served on the Donor, Partner and Community Relations Committee and on the subcommittee that developed a hospital development toolkit to be shared with all eye banks. Esther also was appointed to the Lions Club International Lions Eye Bank Core Group which was formed in early 2020 to help set direction for all Lions eye banks and provide leadership to a larger global Lions eye bank working group, of which she is also a member. Esther earned her master’s degree in Communication and her BA in telecommunications from Michigan State University and her MBA from the University of Iowa. Previous roles include special projects research associate at Strength in Numbers Consulting Group and deputy director of the Iowa Tobacco Research Center in the University of Iowa College of Public Health.
Candidate Statement
Being a relative newcomer to eye banking is one of the greatest strengths I bring to the Board of Directors. I offer a fresh perspective and creative solutions as an agent of change, tapping into my 30+ years of diverse professional and leadership experience in the non-profit, health-services, and higher-education arenas. As leader of a mid-sized eye bank with a robust eye bank-driven, cornea-focused research program, located in a largely rural state, I speak for several less-represented segments of the eye bank community with unique needs and challenges and will be their advocate on the Board of Directors. I understand the challenges of sustaining the eye bank as a viable, not-for-profit business in an ever-changing environment while upholding the moral imperative of honoring the anatomical gift. I hope to continue Iowa Lions Eye Bank’s long and proud history of innovation and collaboration with eye bankers, research partners, the medical community, and other transplant professionals. I am passionate about eye banking and a strong believer in service. It would be a privilege to use the depth and breadth of my experience to advance the eye banking industry and the EBAA mission.
Prior Service
- 2020 – Present – EBAA Donor, Partner and Community Relations Committee
- Served on Hospital Development Toolkit Subcommittee of the Donor, Partner and Community Relations