Married with children, Allen Blume enrolled at North Iowa Area Community
College seven years out of high school. He earned his Associate Degree from
NIACC in 1970, continued his education at Buena Vista University in Storm Lake,
and earned his Doctor of Optometry Degree from Southern College of Optometry in
Memphis, TN. He has practiced optometry in Iowa for nearly 30 years. He started
in private practice with Dr. Keith Pierce in Storm Lake in 1975. Allen then
practiced in Mason City from 1979 to 1992. Along with stints as a faculty member
at the University of Alabama School of Optometry in Birmingham, AL, and clinic
director at the Jackson Eye Institute in Jackson, MS, he has served as a medical
malpractice and practice evaluation consultant since 1982. For the past 11
years, he has been practicing in Fort Dodge with Dr. Wes Seaver and his daughter
Dr. Regina Blume Cygan. Allen’s wife, Andi, is the office manager at Central
Iowa EyeCare P.C. Regina and her brother, Michael, who is a counselor at Prairie
Ridge Treatment Center in Mason City, are also graduates of NIACC. The rest of
his family includes stepchildren Daniel, Debra and Dodi. Dr. Blume’s
professional memberships are extensive including serving as president of the
Iowa Optometric Association in 92-93. He has contributed several chapters in
medical textbooks and authored a number of articles in professional journals as
well as provided numerous lectures and clinical workshops in continuing medical
education courses in the U.S. and Canada. He is a member of Sacred Heart
Catholic Church in Fort Dodge and his community involvements have included
Knights of Columbus, Elks Club and Rotary Club. While attending NIACC, he played
on the golf team, was a member of the Young Republicans, earned the Angus
MacNider Memorial Scholarship, and worked 35 hours per week as a licensed barber
at the Federal Barbershop. For recreation and relaxation he enjoys golf,
computers and pocket billiards. The Blumes continue to be strong advocates for
NIACC and the Community Colleges of Iowa.
“I contend that, for the tax dollars spent, Community Colleges are one of our
very best investments and provide one of the biggest ‘bangs for the buck’ that
our tax dollars produce. I am extremely fond of Mason City in general and NIACC
in particular, and I am indebted to the community and the College in many ways
for what I have accomplished and enjoyed in my life. The heart-felt appreciation
and thanks that I hold toward NIACC is one of my deepest and most sincere
emotions.”
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