Theo Gumpelmayer, one of the leaders of European and Austrian optometry, has died. He was 72.
ECOO has lost a loyal friend and supporter. He will be greatly missed. He died unexpectedly on 17 October 2007, just a few days after attending the General Assembly of ECOO in Lisbon, where – in his usual spirited and incisive manner – he contributed frequently to the European profession’s debates.
Professor Dr Theo Gumpelmayer had a distinguished national and European career spanning many years. After graduating in optometry from City University in London, he did further research in related physics. He represented his region in the Austrian federal organisation of the profession (the Bundesinnung) from 1975 to 1990, during most of which he was also the president of the Austrian organisation (1975-1995). Among his notable achievements during his period in office were the regulation of contact lens dispensing by the profession and the raising of the profession’s education to the level of the ‘Meisteraugenoptiker’. He was a recipient of the highest civil decoration of the Austrian Republic.
Professor Gumpelmayer was also active in the field of European research and, in particular, was President of ECOO from 1996-1998, as well as serving on ECOO’s Executive Committee for a number of years. As President, he oversaw the expansion of ECOO’s activities, including the establishment of ECOO’s European Diploma of Optometry.
The current President of ECOO, Dr Feike Grit of the Netherlands, said:
‘It is almost impossible to understand that Theo Gumpelmayer is no longer with us. Only last week, we saw the same energetic colleague – whom we had known for so long – involved in our debates with the same passion and dedication that we had grown to expect and respect for many years. Theo was one of the best educated and qualified optometrists of his generation in Europe. The European optometric community thanks him and his family for his many contributions. We express our sincere condolences to his family.’