Dr. Shannon Smith-Bodiroga is an Optometrist in Winnipeg providing full scope eye care services for the surrounding communities. She is a native of Winnipeg and grew up in the south part of the city. After graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 2002 from the University of Manitoba, she furthered her studies at the highly regarded Illinois College of Optometry in Chicago.

Dr. Smith-Bodiroga’s optometric clinical internships include Pediatrics, Low Vision and Contact Lens Services at the Illinois Eye Institute, Advanced Care at the Black Hills Regional Eye Institute in South Dakota and Primary Care at both the Walla Walla Veterans Hospital in Washington and Dr. Boyco Image Optometry in Surrey, British Columbia. After 4 years studying in the United States, Dr. Smith-Bodiroga returned to her hometown of Winnipeg to practice optometry.

Dr. Smith-Bodiroga is a current member of the Manitoba Association of Optometrists, the Canadian Association of Optometrists, the Beta Sigma Kappa Honors Society and the Tomb and Key Honor Society. She currently serves on the Children’s Vision Committee for the Manitoba Association of Optometrists. She is board certified with both the American Optometric Association and the Canadian Associations of Optometrists. Dr. Smith-Bodiroga was the recipient of the Exceptional Tutor Award at the Illinois College of Optometry in 2008. Dr. Smith-Bodiroga values community involvement and has volunteered performing eye exams for athletes at the Special Olympics and she currently volunteers at the Siloam Mission optometric clinic in Winnipeg.

Dr. Natasha Sookermany, O.D., graduated from the University of Waterloo School of Optometry in 2006 achieving status on the Dean's Honour List. She is also an alumnus of the University of Manitoba with a Bachelor of Arts Degree and a Bachelor of Science Degree. During completion of her doctorate degree, Dr. Sookermany completed two externships; one here in Winnipeg with 4 local ophthalmologists and the second in Prince Rupert, British Columbia.

She has served her profession by being a member of the Executive Council for the Manitoba Association of Optometrists (MAO) since 2010, currently sitting as Past President. Dr. Sookermany contributes further to the MAO as a member of the Government Relations committee and is also a member of the Canadian Association of Optometrists. In early 2018, she served as the most recent Chair of the Canadian Council of Provincial Presidents.

Dr. Sookermany was born and raised in Transcona, here in Winnipeg and was eager to return to her hometown to pursue her optometric practice. She spends much of her spare time at her cottage property boating and fishing with her family and is a talented musician with years of practice playing many instruments including piano, steeldrums, and bagpipes. Her love of travelling has taken her to many countries including Trinidad and Tobago, Thailand, and Japan.

Dr. Karen Deane was born and raised in Winnipeg, Manitoba, where she completed her Bachelor of Science Degree at the University of Manitoba. Upon graduation, she continued her studies at the University of Waterloo School of Vision Science, where she earned her Doctor of Optometry Degree with honours.

As part of her training, Dr. Deane travelled to Lima, Peru to provide optometric services to those who cannot obtain or afford such care. It was an eye opening experience and she hopes to be involved in many more mission trips throughout her career. In her final year of studies, she completed an ocular disease and therapeutics externship in Salt Lake City, Utah. Here, she gained special interest in diagnosing and managing various eye diseases including glaucoma, macular degeneration and dry eye.

In her spare time she enjoys curling, soccer, running and spending time with her wiener dog, Wally. She is excited to join the See Team and looks forward to serving the members of the community.

Dr. Sawatzky is a Winnipeg, Manitoba local. She obtained her Bachelor of Science from the University of Manitoba in 2015. She then attended the University of Waterloo and graduated from the Doctor of Optometry program with honours in 2019.

During her training, Dr. Sawatzky travelled to Tallahassee, Florida and completed an externship in ocular disease at a local veteran's clinic. She cared for many patients with a variety of ocular conditions. She has also trained at a glaucoma specialty clinic in Winnipeg, Manitoba and found she had a particular interest in treating patients with this condition.

In her spare time, Dr. Sawatzky loves to be out in the nature hiking and camping. She does not have a pet of her own but loves spending time with the cats and dogs in her life, and hopes to adopt one some day. When relaxing at home she also loves board games with friends, and finding a good story in a book or a movie. Dr. Sawatzky is looking forward to joining the See Team and caring for the eyes of all her new patients!