Phillip Hester earns Crystal Cornea Award for using his artistic talents to raise the profile of cornea donation and transplantation.
Washington, DC—The Eye Bank Association of America (EBAA), the world’s oldest transplantation association and nationally-recognized accrediting and standards setting body for eye banks, today announced Phillip Hester, professional comic book artist, as the recipient of 2026 Crystal Cornea Award. The Crystal Cornea is presented to individuals or organizations from outside eye banking who, through their words and actions, elevate public awareness of corneal donation and transplantation.
“Phillip Hester’s professional artistic talents make him a unique ambassador for cornea donation and transplantation,” said EBAA President & CEO, Kevin Corcoran. “As a bilateral cornea recipient, he knows firsthand the transformative impact of the gift of sight. We are so fortunate that he donates his time and abilities to spreading the message of cornea donation and contributing to EBAA’s mission to restore sight worldwide.”
Known for his work on Marvel, DC, and Dark Horse Comics, during EBAA’s 2025 “Everyday Heroes” Eye Donation Month campaign, Hester interpreted images of real-life “heroes” whose efforts often go unheralded into comic book superheroes. His artwork was shared amongst EBAA members during the annual campaign, helping to raise awareness, honor donors, celebrate recipients, and encourage donor registrations. There are an estimated 12 million individuals around the world suffering from corneal blindness that could be corrected with a corneal transplant. There is no artificial cornea—the transplantation process depends on the priceless gift of donation from one human to another. Nearly anyone can be a cornea donor, as blood-type, eye color, vision quality, and age are not relevant to donation.
EBAA will present the 2026 Crystal Cornea Award to Phillip Hester, at the 2026 EBAA Annual Meeting in Indianapolis during an awards luncheon on Friday, June 5.
