Former staff reunite at old Hauser-Ross building before demolition in Sycamore

SYCAMORE – Dr. Steven Tichy said that when he considers the time he spent in the former Hauser-Ross Eye Institute building, he thinks of the high level of medical care that was provided there, even for patients who could not afford it.

“The staff was 100 percent engaged in the process,” he said. “Everybody put the patient first and themselves second.”

Tichy, a retina specialist who worked at Hauser-Ross Eye Institute from 1987 to 2006, was one of about 30 former staffers who visited the old Hauser-Ross building at 2240 Gateway Drive on Wednesday afternoon to catch up with one another and see the building one last time before its demolition.

Hauser-Ross Eye Institute occupied the 2240 Gateway Drive building until September 2015, when it moved into its new 36,500-square-foot building at
1630 Gateway Drive.

The new location houses a surgical center and equipment to provide advanced eye surgeries.

Northwestern Medicine has a permit to demolish the 2240 Gateway Drive building, which has been vacant since Hauser-Ross moved out. The company has not indicated plans for the site, but it is expected to begin demolition within the month.

“I heard the building was being knocked down, and I couldn’t believe it,” Tichy said. “I couldn’t believe there wasn’t some other use for it.”

Angie Byers of Sycamore said she started working at Hauser-Ross when she was 18 and stayed for about
13 years. With the education the doctors helped to provide, Byers was able to advance in her medical career, she said.

“When I started, I was the girl who typed the name and date on an exam sheet,” Byers said. “I actually typed it on a typewriter.”

Hope Devries said she drove about an hour from her home in Byron for the reunion with her former co-workers. She said she began working there in 1991 and was there for about 15 years.

“You always remember the day that Dr. Hauser or Dr. Ross hired you, or your first day on the job,” Devries said. “I remember Dr. Ross took me to his office and said, ‘You’re part of our family. I will take care of you, your family and educate you.’ ”

Sally Bruch of Kirkland said she began working for Dr. Lynn Hauser and Dr. Neil Ross in 1985 and was there when the first shovel of dirt was moved to break ground for the building in 1987. She said she still sees her former bosses, a married couple who now live in downtown Chicago, a few times a year.

“A lot of us [staff] haven’t seen each other for umpteen years, but there are a lot of us that still get together and play cards,” Bruch said.

Bruch said that what sticks out the most in her memory is how Hauser and Ross built their team and made people successful, starting from a tiny office of five people and growing to a staff of 120.

“They can take down the building, but they’ll never take away the memories,” Bruch said.