Doctor & Staff
Meet our experienced and friendly staff, who make Insight Optometry the leading provider of vision care products and services in Suttons Bay.
Randy S. U’Ren, O.D.
Dr. Randy U’Ren has been practicing optometry since graduating from the Michigan College of Optometry at Ferris State University in 2003. He received his Bachelor of Science from Alma College with honors in 1999. He is a graduate of Waverly High School of Lansing.
Dr. U’Ren is a member of the American and Michigan Optometric Associations, as well as a participant in the Northwest Lower Michigan Optometric Society. He specializes in eye health examinations for patients of all ages, including pediatrics, macular degeneration, glaucoma, diabetes, dry eye disease, and pre/post-operative surgical care. Dr. U’Ren also participates in the American Optometric Association’s InfantSEE public health program that provides a no-cost comprehensive eye and vision assessment for infants 6-12 months old regardless of a family’s income or access to insurance coverage.
He is an Alma Scots soccer alumni, the current NorthBay Girls Varsity soccer coach, and a former coach for the Suttons Bay High School Boys Varsity soccer team from 2006-2011. Dr. U’Ren has been involved in the Leelanau Youth Soccer League bringing the love of the sport to the community. Dr. U’Ren enjoys spending time with his wife, two daughters and living in beautiful Leelanau County.
OUR STAFF
Our upbeat and friendly staff are here to help you throughout your entire visit. We will assist you in scheduling appointments, visual field testing, OCT scans, Optomap photos and MiBO procedures. We will be happy to help you in ordering contact lenses, or often the case, help you select your new eyewear, selecting lenses and frames that are personalized to you.
Debra Blodgett
Debra joined the Insight Optometry team in August of 2015. She moved to the area in 2011 from southern Michigan, achieving her dream to move to the Leelanau Peninsula, which has been home to her family for several generations. Debra is a registered Medical Assistant (ARMA) with an emphasis in healthcare administration and is also a former adjunct instructor for Baker College.
Debra’s role in the office is within several different areas, including Office Administrator, Ophthalmic Technician, Optician, Patient Service Coordinator, and Billing Specialist. She is responsible for overseeing and managing the clinic’s daily schedule and operations, as well as being a liaison between patients and insurance companies. Other duties include ensuring that patients have an excellent patient experience and helping answer any questions they may have by listening, educating, and problem-solving in a professional manner. She can also be found in our optical boutique, assisting patients with eyewear selection and repairs and providing them with a personalized eyewear shopping experience.
Debra is also the Vision Source Representative for our office! A VSR helps to implement Vision Source programs for better patient care and practice success. She enjoys working with a great staff, and in addition to all of her other duties, she provides staff training and cheers them on, encouraging them to excel to the best of their ability and to always keep learning. Debra participates in continuing education courses each year to broaden her knowledge of optometry.
In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her husband Richard, daughters Amanda and Samantha, and her nine grandchildren, Collin, Lucas, John, Nora, Nathan, Mia, Charlie, Jace, and Isabella Grace. She also loves boating, gardening, interior design, volunteering, and enjoying everything that Leelanau County has to offer. Debra looks forward to assisting the patients of Insight Optometry with all of their optical needs and is proud to call Leelanau home.
Elizabeth Priest
Elizabeth Priest joined the Insight Optometry team in August of 2019. Her role in the office is in office administration and is also an optometry technician. A few of her duties include office and optical inventory control, computer software programs, patient pre-exam testing (including lensometry, retinal imaging and optical coherence tomography) as well as optical dispensing and repairs.
Elizabeth is a born and raised fifth generation Leelanau county resident. She has lived on Mackinaw Island, as well as in Petoskey, Charlevoix and Traverse City, but her heart always brings her back home to Leelanau. Elizabeth has extensive experience and knowledge in customer service, inventory control and an Associate’s degree in Business and is thinking about pursuing an entrepreneurial degree.
When not at work, Elizabeth enjoys spending time playing Mario video games with her nieces and nephews, taking her dog Allee on trail walks, cooking for her family, gardening, singing with the radio and taking nature photography. She is about honesty, kindness and making at least one person per day laugh.
Renee Gradowski
Renee joined the Insight Optometry team in 2022. She moved from the mid-Michigan area to her summer home in Cedar, full-time in July 2022. Renee had a 40+ year career in banking, beginning as a teller and completing her career as a Bank Manager.
Her role within our office is greeting patients and customers at the front desk with a welcoming voice and smile. She helps patients with registering for their appointments and explaining insurance billing at the completion of the visit. Renee’s other roles within the office are answering phones, assisting with contact lens orders, and accounting.
Renee is married to her husband Allen of 40 years. Together they have four grown adult children, two boys and two girls. They enjoy spending time with their family and two grandchildren. The other member of their family is Murphy, a golden doodle whose name truly fits his personality.
Outside of work, she enjoys reading, jigsaw puzzles, virtual bike riding to different places in the world, as well as cooking and baking. Her favorite thing to bake is apple and pumpkin pie.
Renee looks forward to greeting you at your next visit and assisting you in any way she can!