Low-Cost Computers Available

For a $100 donation, the Texas Center for the Physically Impaired (TCPI) provides blind and visually impaired people in the US and Canada with a refurbished computer (a Windows XP desktop model) including mouse, keyboard, sound card, monitor, speakers, and demo versions of Window-Eyes (screen reader) and the screen magnifier ZoomText, whose users are eligible for a free licensed version from TCPI, courtesy of Ai Squared. The package includes a seven-tape computer tutorial. Call 214.340.6328 for Information.

Windows Screen Magnifiers

Clarity’s WinZoom is a plug-and-play screen magnifier and reader whose proprietary features include ClearPoint Font Smoothing, which keeps text crystal clear regardless of zoom level, and SmartAlign, which, with one mouse click, realign paragraphs to fit the screen. WinZoom ($399) magnifies screens from 1.5x to 36 times original size, installs in seconds (on any Windows-compatible computer) and requires neither software installation nor administrative privileges. Call 925.449.2000 for information.

ZoomText Express offers a slight boost of screen magnification (up to 2x) for computer users with low vision or who wish to avoid eyestrain. The software has adjustable mouse pointer and text cursor as well as a variety of screen tints to reduce glare and sharpen contrast. It works on all Windows XP and Vista laptop and desktop computers and costs $49.99 (download) or $59.99 (plus shipping) for a boxed product. Contact Ai Squared (800.859.0270) for more information.

Lexmark’s Accessibility Solution

Web-based software enables disabled users to set up and complete copy, fax, email, ftp, and scan jobs directly from a PC, rather than from an MFP touchscreen display. The software is compatible with popular accessibility programs, such as Window-Eyes, Voice Sense and Braille Sense, JAWS, MAGic and ZoomText.

Audio Labeler

The PenFriend audio labeler is a pocket-sized device that records information using self-adhesive labels as audio tags. When the pen is held over the label, the recorded message plays. You can use it to label food items, film and music collections, household objects, letters, and other paperwork. It can also be used as a digital notetaker to record shopping lists or leave audio messages. The pen has up to 70 hours of recording time (1 GB of memory) and the ability to download MP3 files, including books and music. The standard kit includes 127 labels in various shapes and sizes, a built-in speaker, USB cable, lanyard, and two AAA batteries. The PenFriend is available from RNIB and Independent Living Aids.

I loved that. Most comic uses of blindness are mishaps and conceptual slapstick that exploit perceived limitations. In the Simpsons’ episode, the ridicule targets that cloying compassion and lavish praise often heaped upon those with visual impairments. When Kevin, on Nelson’s cue, delivers a reticent “Ha ha!” aimed at Bart, Nelson beams, “That was great! That was really great!”

It was great to see a blind person portrayed as ordinary, with the processing of people’s misconceptions and lowered expectations the main stumbling block in an otherwise normal life. The episode is available on Hulu.

I applaud the effort, though when I see that one of its intended uses is “personnel preparation programs in special education,” I have this sinking feeling that its information is drawn more from ideologies in the blindness and education systems than the actual experiences of blind people.

I wish more books (or university studies) would explore the exact nature, i.e. experience of low vision. “I still don’t understand what you can and cannot see,” is a statement I still address, a quaking isthmus connecting the visual world with the blind. “It’s all about the fine detail,” I say, unsure if 20/20 vision would make a beautiful face more beautiful, or illuminate a thousand tiny flaws.

An effective, if cumbersome, way to map the world of low vision would be to have a fully sighted person spend a day with one who is visually impaired, make inquiries on what he or she can or cannot see in a variety of settings, and record enough results to establish some metrics more realistic than eye charts.

I know my vision is weaker than that of the woman who read me my road race time off a printout taped to a wall eight feet away; my eyes would had to have been inches from it. I then biked home along a highway with no doubts, never a thought about any potential vision-related mishap. Makes me wonder if there’s a vanishing point, a kinetic intersection at which visual acuity and adequate physical function start to diverge.

We should investigate low vision rather than label all visual impairments as “blindness” and insist shifting reliance from eyes to blindness tools. I think imperfect vision may yet yield keen insights on how we perceive disability.

The New Hampshire Association for the Blind today announced the appointment of a Seacoast Advisory Board to expand its statewide mission of providing training, rehabilitation, and services to those experiencing vision loss, or who are blind or visually impaired.

According to Association president George Theriault, forming an advisory committee to raise the organization’s profile on the Seacoast will help expand services to a growing market, despite limited resources.

“People are living longer, so vision loss is rapidly becoming a challenge many seniors (and their families) will face,” Theriault said. “By reaching out to and involving members of the Seacoast community, the Association hopes to develop creative, long-range approaches to raising awareness of this reality and the range of solutions we offer.”

The Association offers clients such services as: individual and family counseling; daily living strategies for cooking, reading, and recreation; training on low-vision devices; orientation and mobility instruction; and providing in-home visitors and/or drivers through its extensive network of volunteers.

Theriault and Association colleague Denise Caruso, a Low-Vision Rehabilitation Therapist, will offer guidance to Seacoast Advisory Board, whose members include: Louise Benotti (Clipper Harbor of Portsmouth Care & Rehabilitation Center); Beth Forgione (Liberty Mutual); Dr. Gordan Hand (Ophthalmologist, New Castle), Kathy Hayes (Ocean Bank); Stephanie Hurd (Association Volunteer Coordinator); Andrew Leibs (disability writer); and Carol Sherwin (Association volunteer).

About the New Hampshire Association for the Blind

The New Hampshire Association for the Blind provides support and advocates for accessibility to services, information, and adaptive technologies that augment independent living for those with vision loss. NHAB provides assistance through in-home visits and the McGreal Sight Center in Concord. Association news and program information is available at www.sightcenter.org.

Most of Denise Caruso’s clients are seniors (average age is 75 +) with low vision, many of whom live in retirement communities and independent living facilities.  She has about 50 or more clients from the Seacoast up through North Conway and out to Concord where NHAB is headquartered.  (Many clients are also still in their homes. A primary reason for our service is to allow individuals to remain independent.

Much of Caruso’s training in low-vision rehabilitation has been hands on.  She grew up outside Pittsburgh, studied marketing in college, and worked in fashion merchandising.  She changed careers after moving to New England in the mid-1980s, becoming first an optician, then earning certification as an ophthalmic technician, receiving training at the Lighthouse in New York City. She joined NHAB in 2001.

What’s the most common cause of vision loss among your clients?

Most of my clients have lost vision due to one of four conditions: macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, or cataracts—and sometimes a combination of those conditions.  These are the four diagnoses that I usually see. This is not to say that there are not other eye diseases that can result in low vision.

How do you help your clients?

Direct services include: Social Work, low-vision services, rehabilitation therapy, orientation & mobility training, assistive technology service, educational services, volunteer services, public education. Braille and audio transcription services are also available.  Mostly, though, I help clients with low vision daily living skills.  Initially, I talk with them and find out what their needs and goals are; what they are still doing and what do they want to work on.  I focus on the positive and create ways to enhance or reinvent essential tasks.

How do clients find their way to you?

Clients come to me from a variety of sources, including recommendations from physicians, family members, friends, and the clients themselves.

What do you enjoy most about your work?

My job is so satisfying: I love meeting with my clients.  Oftentimes, I learn more from them than they do from me-a lot of life lessons.  It’s really a give and take relationship.  Older folks are so interesting and I think we should all spend more time with them.  They’ve lived through so much and I always take time to be personal with them.  I have one client who worked for Raytheon who worked on the Apollo project.

How do you help clients the most?

I don’t think its one specific thing.  If I can go in and enable a client to succeed in a certain task that makes them feel more positive, that’s the most important thing I offer.  An example might be getting them special lighting or magnification devices than enable them to read the newspaper. Initially it takes practice to use the magnification aids but I find that most individuals grasp the concept quickly.

Is reading the most pressing need?

It’s a large part of it, yes. We have illuminated magnification the often helps to read mail, the newspaper etc.  If you’ve been a reader and now can’t even read large print, that’s frustrating.  I also make clients aware of New Hampshire’s Talking Book program and will sometimes leave an application or fill it out with them.

What constitutes a successful client relationship?

If I can leave them feeling optimistic and have assisted them in accomplishing a task, and I have a good feeling, then I think I’ve been successful.

New Hampshire Association for the Blind (NHAB)
Seacoast Office
127 Parrott Avenue
Portsmouth, NH 03801
603.431.9401

There are solid reasons why Special Education and organizations such as the National Federation of the Blind seek to eliminate distinctions among levels of vision loss.  Praise for accomplishing tasks visually stigmatizes blindness, encourages reliance on a diminished sense, and discourages the development of skills that might afford students greater confidence and independence.

Still, there are legally blind people who ride bikes, drive cars (using a bioptic lens), and who find reading regular print using large print, screen readers, and audiobooks more flexible and efficient than braille.

Quantifying visual acuity and defining skills and deficiencies compared with the totally blind and the fully sighted is an ongoing challenge.  Using the word “blind” confuses most sighted people and political pressure to use an inaccurate term fosters as much isolation as it does unity.

In the absence of scientific studies of low-vision life experiences, I’ll offer this profile of my vision.

My visual acuity is 20/200 due to ocular albinism, a genetic condition that skews optic nerve tracking and reduces the number of cones (photoreceptors responsible for perceiving fine detail) in the retina.

In my experience, strategizing solutions for perceiving fine detail, e.g. street signs or restaurant menus, presents challenges, but is far from being a daily struggle.

Here are a few observations:

• I play catch with a baseball; my partner is shocked to learn I am legally blind.  I hold the sports page up to face my face to read a box score and he wonders how I get around at all
• I run a 5K, enjoying the scenery, but when the resulted are taped to a wall, I am shocked at how far away people can read them from
• Watching “The Simpsons,” I have unfaltering visual orientation, but can’t read the blackboard or church sign messages
• In all my years of cycling, I’ve never missed a sign or streetlight; hit a pothole, pedestrian, or barricade, or failed to know where I was at all times.  Seeing dashboard instruments or other drivers’ gestures is a concern that has kept me from driving
• I read print using glasses and a magnifying glass, but were I to rely on these alone, I’d read 2-3 books a year rather than 50.

I hope others with low vision will share their experiences so we can move towards a more realistic perception of our abilities and a more efficient use of tools and technologies.

New England Disabled Sports also aims to educate, train, and certify all volunteer coaches and instructors to the highest skill level to ensure that the activity environment is safe and of the highest quality.

New England Disabled Sports Adaptive Snowsports Programs

NEDS Snowsports programs include:

• Skiing
• Snowboarding
• Snowshoeing
• Cross-Country Skiing

NEDS customizes snow sports sessions to meet the needs and goals of individuals and groups, regardless of skill level. The organization’s coaches – trained in the latest teaching techniques – provide a fun and safe environment in which participants experience the excitement of adaptive snow sports. Loon Mountain offers many types of terrain for skiing and snowboarding. Students can also enjoy the peaceful pleasures of snowshoeing or cross-country skiing on nearby woodland trails.

NEDS Group Programs

NEDS welcomes schools and activity groups to come out for a day, weekend or weeklong adventure at Loon Mountain Resort. NEDS will develop a wonderful winter experience to meet the needs of any group. Contact NEDS for information on group rates, registration, and local accommodations.
Wounded Warriors Project

NEDS is a proud, active supporter of the Wounded Warrior Project whose instructors participate annually in the Hartford Ski Spectacular in Breckenridge, Colorado. In addition, NEDS collaborates with Disabled Sports USA and the Wounded Warrior Project to host dozens of injured US military service personnel and their families in New Hampshire for a classic New England skiing and adaptive instruction.
Registering for a New England Disabled Sports Event

NEDS Snowsports lessons are taught in two-hour sessions ($40) every day during the winter season at 9:30 AM and 1:00 PM. Full-day sessions ($75) are also available.

Rates include equipment, lift ticket and are subject to change. Scholarships are available for participants who demonstrate a financial need. All students are required to join Disabled Sports USA. Call 603.745.6281 ex 5663 to make a reservation (recommended).

Before your first session, NEDS will ask you to fill out a registration packet. To save time, the forms are available online to download and fax back (603.745.9333). They can also be mailed to the NEDS ski office at:

New England Disabled Sports
PO Box 26
Lincoln, NH, 03251

New England Disabled Sports is one of a growing number of accessible recreation providers that enables persons with disabilities to both reclaim a passion for winter sports and embark on adaptive adventures that build confidence, self-esteem, and often encourage broader participation in life.

The copyright of the article Profile of New England Disabled Sports in Accessible Recreation is owned by Andrew Leibs. Permission to republish Profile of New England Disabled Sports in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

The Vision 5K is a unique event where blind and sighted participants run or walk side by side. World-class blind runners, weekend walkers, and a partnership of four top blindness organizations come together to honor and promote the efforts of visually disabled people and those who serve them.

The 2009 Vision 5K takes place Sunday, June 7 at 9:30 AM at Boston College (140 Commonwealth Avenue, Main Gate) in Newton, Massachusetts. Runners can register online.
Vision 5K Awards Blind Runners Prize Money, US Championship

Few road races have a separate division for blind and visually impaired runners; fewer still award prize money. The Vision 5K puts blind athletes on a par with wheelchair and able-bodied participants in other races by enabling them to compete for recognition and a prize.

The United States Association of Blind Athletes (USABA) designates the Vision 5K as the US road race championship for the blind and visually impaired. The race awards $7,600 in prize money to the top five blind or visually impaired male and female finishers. Guides to top blind runners receive an honorarium.

Visually Impaired Division Prize Money Breakdown (Men & Women)

• 1st: $1,500
• 2nd: $1,000
• 3rd: $600
• 4th: $400
• 5th: $300

Guides to top finishers receive:

• 1st. ($250)
• 2nd. ($200)
• 3rd. ($150)
• 4th. ($100)
• 5th. ($50).

Eligibility for Vision 5K Visually Impaired Division

Entrants must be legally blind (i.e. impairment ranging from total blindness to visual acuity of 20/200 in the better eye with best correction, or a field of vision less than 20 degrees) to participate in the Visually Impaired Division. Certification may be required.
The Vision 5K Blindfold Challenge

One of the Vision 5K’s most popular attractions is the Blindfold Challenge, in which sighted runners don blindfolds and team up with sighted guides to experience the race as a blind person.

For many participants, accepting the Blindfold Challenge takes competition to a new level. Covering ones eyes uncovers how much guts and determination a person has: it frees runners to do things in a new way, and provides a glimpse of what’s possible.

As the Vision 5K website puts it, “You’ll understand what anyone with a vision impairment already knows: that being blind won’t hold you back, that you don’t need your eyes to see what’s inside you—that, in the end, fear is the only disability.”

In addition to the Visually Impaired Division and the Blindfold Challenge, the Vision 5K welcomes walkers, has a kids fun run, and is well known for its post-race amenities, including live music and a wide variety of food from local companies, including Legal Sea Foods and Cabot’s Ice Cream.

The race’s Visually Impaired Division is sponsored by the Carroll Center for the Blind, MAB (Massachusetts Association for the Blind) Community Services, the National Braille Press, and the Perkins School for the Blind.

Though originally designed as a race for elite blind runners, the Vision 5K has evolved into a major fundraiser and community event that unites hundreds of individuals, nonprofits, and corporations to celebrate and promote the accomplishments of the visually impaired. Call 617.732.0264 for more information.

The copyright of the article Vision 5K Road Race for the Blind in Accessible Recreation is owned by Andrew Leibs. Permission to republish Vision 5K Road Race for the Blind in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

This site will profile resources, offer a variety of e-publications, and, above all, share stories—not merely “success stories,” but simple tales of how we with low vision learn, work, and play: how we perceive our abilities and what we do them.

Internet resources are infinite; the blindness system offers more programs and initiatives through agencies and nonprofits than most will ever discover; special education and vocational rehabilitation have experts to teach, track, and equip visually impaired students.  Harder to find are role models: adults whose experiences offer practical approaches to challenges where accommodating low vision leads to a fuller life.

This site strives to provide such information and in so doing, hopes to enlarge the image of what it means to have a visual disability.

Tell us what’s on your mind, what challenges you face; have you discovered vision-related insights that enabled you to accomplished things?  What do you hope to do?  As poet Muriel Rukeyser said, “The universe is made up of stories, not of atoms.”

We hope the stories on this site open up your world.

Thank you,
Andrew Leibs

For low-vision students, cultivating their own relationships with classroom teachers and organizations that provide reading resources is what drives academic success.

Reading is the most difficult and time-consuming school task, yet is also how we discover and explore interests, develop our identity, and connect with the world. So it’s vital for students to know how to accomplish any reading task, regardless of deadline.

From long experience, I can tell you that when you’re legally blind (i.e. too much vision for braille, but still in need of help), literacy isn’t acquired, it’s built: you read using an internal triage system of cultivated resources that include: audio- and large-print books; e-texts, screen readers, magnification devices, personal readers, and other strategies that develop through awareness of one’s skills and needs.

Such a system could take one years to develop, as it did me, or could be outlined for a student in an hour or two.

Unfortunately special education doesn’t work this way. It shepherds rather than liberates. It’s hard to imagine a special education teacher saying, “Let’s take a morning and get you everything you need so you can get back to being a student.” Such independence might unloop that student from the cat’s cradle of coercion and compliance known as the I.E.P.

Fortunately, there is nothing special education provides that low vision students and parents can’t get on their own, usually for free, always more quickly and efficiently.

And it’s this getting, this surveying and connecting, that far beyond leveling the playing field, enables students to storm the heights: to develop a system that facilitates any reading task and fosters an identity-building spirit of exploration, confidence, and independence. Resource-conscious students get what they need immediately, are open to reading and learning opportunities beyond the I.E.P., and can easily increase academic performance while making the day-to-day management of classroom participation more efficient for teachers.

I remember the futility of my special education—peeking under a blindfold to distinguish braille dots. Braille and typing classes addressed none of my needs, but at my I.E.P meeting, the teachers told me quitting would mean no more books on tape. Five years of special education eroded my self-esteem, consumed precious time, diminished my enthusiasm for learning, and delayed for years the full development of my literacy.

The school’s justification (not without merit) was staying in a program would insure access to services and materials. The harm was not learning that I could access taped books, the most crucial component of my education, on my own.

At 17, almost by accident, I learned how to join Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic. I went on to earn a Master’s degree, read thousands of books in a variety of formats, and devoted my first book, numerous articles, and an upcoming e-book to expanding low-vision literacy.

Despite my experience, I’m not against special education and know many adults (though none with low vision) who would never have become educated without it.

In the end, it’s not about me, or about debating the efficacy of special education, but simply asking, “What does my child need to succeed in school?”

If parents knew just how accessible the essential resources are, their child’s success, with or without special education, is all but guaranteed.