Eye care professionals specialize in understanding how the human eye really works, as well as diseases and conditions that affect your vision – many of which do not have obvious symptoms. Eye doctors know how age and risk factors affect vision over time for young and old, and they understand the benefits and features of corrective lenses including eyeglasses and contacts.
Our optometrists take the time to explain the results of your eye exam, describe your options and listen to your eye care needs. Because maintaining good eye health is an ongoing partnership, we encourage you to ask questions and share your health information, which could be vital to monitoring, diagnosing and treating potential vision problems.
Meet our doctors:
After graduating from OSU College of Optometry in 1976, Dr. Dittenber spent three years as an Optometrist/Officer in the US Air Force, stationed at Charleston AFB, S.C. In 1979, Dr. Dittenber opened his first office in Sunbury in a second floor location beside Dr. Anthony's (Sunbury dentist) office on the square. In 2001, the office was moved to its current location, 690 West Cherry Street (Rt 36,37) across from American Showa, inc. In January 2017, Dr. Dittenber and his practice joined with Vision Professionals.
Dr. Dittenber has remained a member of the American Optometrist Association and the Ohio Optometric Association for over 40 years. Besides dedication to family vision care, Dr. Dittenber has a special interest in children's vision and children with vision related learning problems. his background in behavioral optometry has been an asset in solving vision learning problems by lens application and vision therapy.
Dr. Dittenber and his wife, Debbie, have four grown children and four grandchildren. They enjoy outdoor activities like biking, boating, and hiking. They also enjoy traveling to visit their children, activities with friends, and church. In his free time, Dr. Dittenber enjoys reading and woodworking.
Graduating from The Ohio State University-College of Optometry in 1976, Dr. David Niederkohr has devoted the last 42.5 years to private optometric practice in Delaware, Ohio. In addition, his practice has included LifeStyle Optical located in Grady Memorial Hospital (now Ohio Health). He enjoys working with challenging contact lens fits.
He has given service to Delaware city being on the city council for 6.5 years including vice-mayorship, St. Mary's Catholic Church Parish Council, coaching DYAA soccer, Delaware JayCees, Delaware County United Way, and Delaware Rotary Club. Recently joining Vision Professionals-Delaware, Dr. Niederkohr brings his years of expertise to patients new and renewed.
Dr. Niederkohr and his wife, Linda, have two children, Nathan and Caitlin. He loves golfing, reading, and spending time with his close-knit family, including his three grandchildren.
Dr. Christopher Smiley is a native to the Central Ohio area and the second generation owner of Vision Professionals. As an innovative and progressive leader in the Optometric community, his commitment to excellence is evident in all areas.
Dr. Smiley graduated from The Ohio State University College of Optometry in 2001 with top honors in contact lens patient care. Dr. Smiley was honored with the prestigious American Optometric Foundation’s (AOF) Contact Lens Excellence Award. Selected by the faculty, this award is presented to one graduating fourth year optometry student who demonstrates excellence in clinical contact lens patient care during their optometric education. Dr. Smiley was also one of an elite group of students to be granted membership in both Sigma Kappa and Gold Key International Optometric Honor Societies.
Dr. Smiley supports advanced optometric education through his membership in the American Optometric Association (AOA), Ohio Optometric Association (OOA), Columbus Optometric Association (COA), and the Contact Lens & Cornea Section of the AOA (CLCS). Dr. Smiley has served as a clinical investigator for a number of contact lens study programs, which allows him to provide many lens technologies before they are commercially available. Dr. Smiley serves as consultant to many contact lens manufacturers. He frequently lectures to doctors and teaches students contact lens fitting techniques. Dr. Smiley currently serves as the Treasurer of The Ohio State Alumni Association for the College of Optometry.
Dr. Smiley specializes in “difficult fit” contact lenses including those patients with rare eye conditions such as keratoconus, irregular astigmatism, and those patients requiring vision rehabilitation after laser vision correction. Dr. Smiley also specializes in the treatment and management of eye emergencies and glaucoma. He frequently assists patients with vision correcting procedures such as LASIK, corneal refractive therapy, cataracts, and other new technologies. Dr. Smiley provides state-of-the-art eye care to those patients seeking contact lenses, including those that have not been successful elsewhere.
Dr. Smiley’s commitment to continual optometric education and modern technologies allows him to maintain impeccable clinical skills and to practice at the forefront of the optometric profession.
On a personal note, Dr. Smiley enjoys spending time with his kids. His daughter, Kendall is 12, and his son, Morgan is 8. He enjoys watching Ohio State Buckeye football, health and fitness activities, automobiles, fishing, warm weather especially if a beach is involved, and his dog, CoCo (Rhodesian Ridgeback).
Dr. Tawni Cashon is originally from Bryan, Ohio where she attended Bryan High School and graduated with honors. She then attended The Ohio State University for her undergraduate studies and received her Bachelor’s of Science in Nutrition. Dr. Cashon then attended The Ohio State University College of Optometry and received her Doctor of Optometry Degree in May 2018.
During her undergraduate studies at Ohio State, she was an active member and officer in Delta Delta Delta sorority, worked as an optometric technician and optician for a local private practice, and was a research assistant for The Ohio State University College of Optometry. Dr. Cashon also spent 4 summers as the Head Coach of the Bryan Swim Team where she coached over 100 swimmers each season between the ages of 8-19 years old.
During Optometry school, Dr. Cashon served as an officer for the Private Practice Club, Contact Lens Advancement Society, American Optometric Student Association, and Epsilon Psi Epsilon. She was also granted membership into Beta Sigma Kappa and Gold Key, both International Optometric Honor Societies.
Dr. Cashon is a member of the American Optometric Association, the Ohio Optometric Association, and The Ohio State Alumni Association. She is excited to practice full scope optometry, diagnosing and treating a variety of ocular disorders and diseases in patients of all ages, but has a special interest in contact lenses and ocular disease.
On a personal note, Dr. Cashon and her soon to be husband enjoy spending time with their family, friends, and their dog Archie, cheering on The Ohio State Buckeyes, trying new foods, and exploring Columbus breweries.
Dr. Kimberly Rock is originally from Warsaw, Ohio where she attended River View High School. She then attended Hiram College and graduate magna cum laude with a B.A. in Biomedical Humanities. Dr. Rock next attended The Ohio State University College of Optometry. She completed the combined OD/MS program and graduated with her Optometry Degree (cum laude) and a Master’s in Vision Science concurrently in 2017.
During optometry school, Dr. Rock was a member of College of Optometrists in Vision Development (COVD) and the American Optometric Student Association (AOSA). She was a four-year member of Beta Sigma Kappa Optometric Honor Society and was president during her fourth year. She was also a member of Student Volunteer Optometric Services to Humanity (SVOSH), served as secretary for two terms and participated in a service trip to Lima, Peru in 2015.
Dr. Rock’s master’s thesis involved research on the correlation between refractive errors and academic success in students where she got to work with the OneSight Vision Clinic at Oyler School in Cincinnati, OH. As an optometry student, she presented her research twice at the annual American Academy of Optometry meeting. After optometry school, Dr. Rock was able to expand on her research and completed her Fellowship with the American Academy of Optometry in November 2018.
Dr. Rock is currently a member of the American Optometric Association (AOA), the Ohio Optometric Association (OOA), the American Academy of Optometry (AAO), and the College of Optometrists in Vision Development (COVD). She is excited to practice full scope optometry, diagnosing and treating a variety of ocular disorders and diseases in patients of all ages, but has a special interest in pediatrics, binocular vision, brain injury patients and special needs patients. Dr. Rock is an InfantSee provider to those under 1 year of age and she’s an active RealEyes presenter to local elementary schools.
Dr. Rock and her husband. Daeylin, love spending time with their two adorable cats, Lavender and Lilah, traveling, and making crafts. One of Dr. Rock’s greatest achievements is winning first place in a Harry Potter trivia night!
Dr. Abigail G. Menner is originally from Bellbrook, OH. She attended Bellbrook High School and graduated Summa Cum Laude. She then attended The Ohio State University for her undergraduate studies in Medical Sciences and Pre-Optometry. She was accepted to The Ohio State University College of Optometry after her third year of undergraduate studies.
While at The Ohio State University College of Optometry, she was very involved in Inter-Professional Council of which she was Optometry’s Lead Delegate, Fellowship of Christian Optometrists, American Optometry Student Association, and Beta-Sigma Kappa Honor Society. While in Optometry school, she served as a Student Member on The Ohio State University Student Conduct Board. During her third year of schooling, she received the Lawrence Shaefer Scholarship reserved for the Top Clinician of the third year class as well as the Leo Yassenoff Scholarship reserved for outstanding Professional Students. During her fourth year, she received the Excellence in Primary Care Award. Dr. Menner received her Doctor of Optometry Degree in May 2015.
While in Optometry school, she and her classmates involved in the Fellowship of Christian Optometrists partnered with Mission for Sight and organized a Mission Trip to Frome, Jamaica to provide eye care at a local clinic and area schools. She then returned to the same clinic in Frome with Optometry students during her Residency.
Dr. Menner gained experience in the field of Specialty Contact Lens and Ocular Disease during her Residency at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center’s Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences. During her Residency, she worked closely with corneal surgeons where she then designed and fit specialty contact lenses for patients with corneal transplants, Keratoconus, Severe Dry Eye disease, Aphakia, corneal scarring, and other corneal conditions. She also completed rotations in Retina, Neuro-Ophthalmology, and Glaucoma sub-specialties. Dr. Menner also initiated a research study on the Quality of Life measures of Severe Dry Eye patients fit with Scleral lenses.
Dr. Menner is very committed to providing the highest quality eye care as well as managing challenging Contact Lens and Specialty Contact Lens patients. She is also passionate about continuing her Mission work and research efforts. Dr. Menner is on faculty at The Ohio State University College of Optometry conducing research and teaching Optometry Students. Dr. Menner is available at the Mount Airyshire locations on Wednesdays for specialty contact lens care services.
On a personal note, Dr. Menner enjoys running, traveling, cooking, and spending time with friends and family. She attends the Tri-Village campus of Veritas Community Church. She also loves cheering on her Ohio State Buckeyes. Go Bucks!
Dr. Alicia Borer was born and raised in Ottawa, Ohio, where she attended Ottawa-Glandorf High School. She received her bachelor’s degree in Healthcare Administration with a minor in Business Administration from the University of Toledo, graduating with honors. Dr. Borer went on to study
Optometry at The Ohio State University College of Optometry where she graduated Cum Laude in 2019.
While in optometry school, Dr. Borer was a member of many student organizations including; American Optometric Student Organization (AOSA), Contact Lens Advancement Society (CLAS), and National Optometric Student Association (NOSA). Dr. Borer was also a 4 year member of Beta Sigma Kappa
Optometric Honor Society and a member of Student Volunteers for Optometric Services to Humanity (SVOSH). In 2018, Dr. Borer traveled to Ghana, Africa with SVOSH to provide eyecare to rural villages. As a Student Dr. Borer worked at the Havener Eye and Ear Institute in Columbus, Ohio, as an
Ophthalmic Technician, working closely with both ophthalmologists and optometrists who treated a wide variety of ocular diseases and worked with specialty contact lenses.
After graduating Dr. Borer moved to the Indianapolis area where she worked in private practice for two years specializing in ocular disease, and specialty contact lenses. Dr. Borer also has an interest in myopia control and worked towards bringing more myopia control care to that practice.
Dr. Borer, a Buckeye at heart, has returned to Columbus where she feels at home.
Dr. Borer loves to travel, and spending time at the lake boating with friends and family. Dr. Borer is a huge dog lover, enjoys exploring local breweries and restaurants, and of course watching Buckeye football!
Dr. Katherine Merry is a native of northwest Columbus, Ohio, and attended Bishop Watterson High School. She graduated magna cum laude from Walsh University with a B.S. in biology. Dr. Merry then attended the Ohio State University College of Optometry and graduated in 2021.
During optometry school, Dr. Merry was a member of College of Optometrists in Vision Development (COVD) where she served as secretary. She was also an active member of Fellowship of Christian Optometrists where she served as Co-President and as Mission Chair, planning a mission trip to Jamaica in 2019. She hopes to return to the same clinic in Jamaica with optometry students in the future.
Dr. Merry is excited to practice full scope optometry with a focus in pediatrics and vision therapy. Her passion for vision therapy came when she was a vision therapy patient in high school. She hopes to help children live their best lives and succeed in school and sports, with the help of glasses and vision therapy!
On a personal note, Dr. Merry and her husband Drew love spending time with family and friends, hiking, and creating together. Their favorite projects they’ve done together include a 3D printed Settlers of Catan board and their Christmas stockings, any project they can combine their talents on.
