Legacy Devers Eye Institute

About The Partnership

Since the 1940s, part of Good Samaritan Hospital’s (now Legacy Good Samaritan Medical Center) mission has been to serve indigent people in need of vital medical care. In 1959, the Lions Clubs of Oregon initiated their first program ever, the Patient Care Program, in partnership with Good Samaritan. This partnership provided access to vital medical care of Oregonians in need throughout the state, not just in the Portland area. The partnership was made possible by virtue of the close relationship of members of the Downtown Portland Lions Club and the leadership team at Good Samaritan.

The partnership continues today, in fact, the Lions Foundation offices are located in the Legacy Good Samaritan Hospital campus. Our office space is rent free in perpetuity by virtue of the generous contribution of Legacy Good Samaritan Medical Center.

The Legacy Devers Eye Institute Namesake

The Devers Eye Institute opened nearly 55 years ago. It was funded by Arthur Devers, a successful Portland coffee merchant who developed an eye condition called retinitis pigmentosa, which eventually caused him to become blind. Upon his death, Devers bequeathed $1 million to Good Samaritan Hospital to develop an eye clinic for the underemployed and uninsured. Soon after the Arthur Devers Memorial Eye Clinic opened in 1959, it established an ophthalmic residency training program and it has been growing in scale and prominence ever since.

About Legacy Devers

From routine eye exams to the most sophisticated surgeries, Legacy Devers Eye Institute offers comprehensive eye care supported by a world-renowned research institute. We’re located on the Legacy Good Samaritan Medical Center campus and our eye care ranges from comprehensive ophthalmology to vision rehabilitation. Our providers include board-certified ophthalmologists, nurses, social workers and technicians with special training in the management and prevention of eye disease.

World-renowned for research
Legacy Devers is a private, nonprofit clinical and research eye institute – one of only a handful in the United States.

• Discoveries in Sight Research Laboratories performs world-renowned research aimed at reducing and eliminating eye disease.
• Devers Eye Institute has been around for more than 50 years. In 1959, a successful Portland businessman named Arthur H. Devers bequeathed more than $1 million for an eye clinic to serve the low-income population. His generous gift was the wellspring of the Devers Eye Institute, which today offers comprehensive clinical eye services; conducts world-renowned research; and pursues an ambitious educational agenda.

Our services

• Comprehensive ophthalmology
• Cornea and cataract
• Eye plastic and reconstructive surgery
• Glaucoma
• Neuro-ophthalmology
• Retinal care and surgery
• Vision Rehabilitation