Dr. Philip C. Hessburg

Sadly missing from this year's EyesOn Design car show is the genial presence of Dr. Philip C. Hessburg, MD, who died in October at the age of 94.

Hessburg and others had the idea in 1988 that a car show, perhaps in a Grosse Pointe parking lot, might be a great way to raise funds for the Detroit Institute of Ophthalmology (DIO), which he headed.

With the help of hundreds of dedicated volunteers over the years (including the design chiefs of Chrysler, Ford and General Motors), that germ of an idea grew into today's EyesOn Design automotive exhibition, featuring 250 unique vehicles spread across the meadow in front of the lakefront Eleanor and Edsel Ford House in Grosse Pointe Shores.

While he appreciated automotive design, Phil freely admitted he wasn't a "car guy." But he knew a good idea when he saw one and with his enthusiastic demeanor, he was able to attract and keep the volunteers and staff who made the annual Father's Day show an outstanding success.

Born in Minneapolis, Hessburg began his career in the department of ophthalmology at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit.

In 1970, he founded the DIO, the charitable organization to help the visually impaired, whom he continued to aid even after retiring from the active practice of medicine in 2005.

As the DIO's medical director, he created two international research congresses: "The Eye and the Chip," to use the most recent advances in nanoelectronics and neurobiology to provide artificial vision to the blind and "The Eye, The Brain and the Auto," to improve the relationship between vision and the safe use of vehicles.

In addition to being a first-rate ophthalmologist and surgeon, Hessburg was a researcher and inventor, authoring over 100 peer-reviewed papers on a range of ophthalmic topics plus several inventions and advances designed to improve surgical outcomes and efficiencies.

"Whether it was creating a device used for corneal transplantation that is still, to this day, used in every operating room in the country performing this procedure or when surgically repairing detached retinas, Dr. Hessburg's wisdom, fortitude and brilliance were undeniable," said Dr. David Goldman, who assumed his position as medical director at the DIO.

For 68 years, Hessburg was married to Elizabeth "Betsy" Hessburg, who passed away in April of this year. Dr. and Mrs. Hessburg lived in Grosse Pointe Park and were the proud parents of five children, 17 grandchildren and five great grandchildren.

As O'Malley recalled Hessburg's gentleness and good humor: "He was a people magnet … the world is a far better place because Phil Hessburg was in it."