                       THE BRAILLE MONITOR

                         November, 1995

                     Barbara Pierce, Editor


     Published in inkprint, Braille, on talking-book disc, 
                        and cassette by 


              THE NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND 
                     MARC MAURER, PRESIDENT 
 


                         National Office
                       1800 Johnson Street
                   Baltimore, Maryland 21230 

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        subscription requests, orders for NFB literature,
       articles for the Monitor, and letters to the Editor
             should be sent to the National Office. 

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Monitor subscriptions cost the Federation about twenty-five 
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requested, to cover the subscription cost. Donations should be
made payable to National Federation of the Blind and sent to: 
 

                National Federation of the Blind
                       1800 Johnson Street
                   Baltimore, Maryland 21230 

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THE NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND IS NOT AN ORGANIZATION
SPEAKING FOR THE BLIND--IT IS THE BLIND SPEAKING FOR THEMSELVES



ISSN 0006-8829THE BRAILLE MONITOR
PUBLICATION OF THE NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND

                            CONTENTS
                                                   NOVEMBER, 1995

APPROACHING THE MILLENNIUM 

THE FOUNDATION OF INDEPENDENCE:
EDUCATION OF BLIND CHILDREN 
     by James Gashel

INCLUSION FOR ALL: BUILDING ON
THE TOOLS OF BLINDNESS
     by Alan Gartner and Dorothy Kerzner Lipsky

AN AFFECTIONATE VALIDATION
     by James H. Omvig

PRODUCTIVITY AND INDEPENDENCE:
THE BLIND GET IT DONE                                            
     by Steve Shelton, Debbie Kent Stein, and Noel Nightengale

CHIEF OF BLIND SCHOOL WELCOMES CHALLENGE
     by Susan Roth

OF TOOTHPASTE AND SHAVING CREAM
     by Kenneth Jernigan

LOOKING BACK AT TRAINS AND TRACKS
     by Maureen Pranghofer

THE DECLINE OF BRAILLE 
     by Madeline Drexler

VISUAL IMPAIRMENT AND BLINDNESS
     by Adrienne Asch

TECHNOLOGY IS NOT THE ANSWER
     by Bennett Prows

THE 1996 NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM

THE BLIND BEAK OF BOW STREET
     by John Dashney

WORKING TOGETHER FOR PERSONAL INCOME
AND FUNDING OUR MOVEMENT
     by Sharon Gold

RECIPES 

MINIATURES


       Copyright (c) 1995 National Federation of the Blind
[Lead: The lead photograph this month is of a child reading a Braille book.
Caption: For every child with the physical and mental capacity to learn,
reading and writing are fundamental skills which must be taught as early as
possible and practiced until they become second nature. If the child is blind
and cannot use print efficiently, the means for achieving mastery of these
important skills is Braille. Once again this year the National Association to
Promote the Use of Braille and the National Organization of Parents of Blind
Children are jointly sponsoring the Braille Readers Are Leaders Contest for
school-age students. See the Monitor Miniature section for contest details.
Hailee Linhart of Washington is pictured here reading a Braille book. Like
hundreds of other Braille-reading youngsters, she has discovered that reading
can be fun. Encourage the blind children you know to enter the contest this
year and discover that Braille Readers Are Leaders.]


                   APPROACHING THE MILLENNIUM

     It should be noted that the beginning of the millennium is
just a few years away. It should also be noted that the word
afford can have many meanings--moral, reputational, political,
financial, or otherwise. It should further be noted that
succinctness is a virtue, highly prized and rarely achieved. We
thought Monitor readers might find the following letter of
interest:

                                             Nashville, Tennessee
                                                September 5, 1995

Ms. Ruth Westman, Executive Director
National Accreditation Council for Agencies
 Serving the Blind and Visually Handicapped

Dear Ms. Westman:
     Please be advised that the Tennessee School for the Blind
can no longer afford to be accredited by the National
Accreditation Council for Agencies Serving the Blind and Visually
Handicapped.

                                                       Sincerely,
                                  Ralph A. Brewer, Superintendent
                                   Tennessee School for the Blind


[Caption: James Gashel]
                 THE FOUNDATION OF INDEPENDENCE:
                   EDUCATION OF BLIND CHILDREN
                         by James Gashel

     From the Editor: On Thursday morning, July 6, 1995, the
first topic on the convention agenda was the education of blind
children. The first speaker was James Gashel, NFB Director of
Governmental Affairs. This is what he had to say:

     The Foundation of Independence: Education of Blind Children-
-more than one person at this convention has approached me to
indicate that that was a rather unusual topic for the Director of
Governmental Affairs. I guess you are used to hearing from me
about things like Social Security, Supplemental Security Income
(all these boring regulations), rehabilitation, the Randolph-
Sheppard Act, or civil rights. But "The Foundation of
Independence: Education for Blind Children," I think, indicates a
change in focus, a new direction, and a growing consciousness in
our movement that education (indeed that the foundation for
independence for blind children) is our future. So the Director
of Governmental Affairs is called upon to respond. When Mr.
Maurer asked me to address this topic, I was pleased to do so,
because it causes me to think back on my own life and my own
situation, not only in the work that I do today, but as a
youngster growing up, and my own foundation of independence.
     I was a blind person who first came face to face with the
foundation of independence (or the fact that I didn't have the
foundation of independence) when I was seventeen years old and a
high school graduate. Think of that!--when I was seventeen years
old and a high school graduate. It happened on a Friday
afternoon, and I can remember the particulars of the incident,
when I came face to face with the foundation of independence,
just as vividly as I can remember virtually every other
significant event in my life. You know there are those moments in
our lives that we all think of as destiny-defining moments for
us. We can picture the scene around us and what happened even
years later. Well, that's the case with me.
     The date was June 11, and the year was 1964. I had been a
high school graduate of the Iowa Braille and Sight Saving School
for exactly two weeks, and I was trying to make arrangements so
that I could get on in the world and plan out the rest of my
life. I thought I was a pretty good guy; after all I got decent
grades--first or second in the class. (It wasn't a very big class
at the school for the blind, but still I did all right.) I had an
idea of where I was going in the future, but I had no idea of
what was in store for me. At about 3:30 in the afternoon on
Friday, June 11, 1964, I walked into the administrative offices
of the Iowa Commission for the Blind, and for the first time I
met Dr. Kenneth Jernigan. I remember giving my name to the
secretary (Mrs. Maher was her name), and the next thing I knew,
here was Dr. Jernigan confidently coming to greet me from his
office. Now remember I had been a student at the School for the
Blind, and I was seventeen years old. (By the way, they didn't
really call it the School for the Blind; they called it the
Braille and Sight Saving School. You know, as I think about it, I
don't know whether they saved anybody's sight. If they did, at
least at that point I would have been glad to sign up. I don't
recall that they did save anybody's sight, though.)
     I attended that school from grades K through twelve--
thirteen years. In all of the thirteen years that I was at that
school, I think I may have met and had--let's say--substantial
involvement with four, but definitely not more than five, blind
adults. I would have to say that only one of those was what you
might call just a regular classroom teacher. The others were all
teaching something that was clearly blindness-related. (I even
thought of music as clearly blindness-related, so I include that
teacher on the list.) There was a music teacher who was blind;
then there was a Braille teacher who was blind. There was also a
fifth-grade teacher who was blind. (That was the one that handled
the regular classroom work.) And there may have been others. But
none of those people, not one of them, could have walked toward
me with his hand outstretched in the way that Dr. Jernigan did on
Friday, June 11, 1964. Not one of them had the confidence that
Dr. Jernigan showed me on June 11, 1964, when he came to me from
his office at the Iowa Commission for the Blind.
     Well, that was an awakening. There was something going on
here, but I didn't really understand what it was. I knew that Dr.
Jernigan was awfully proud of himself. That was pretty clear to
me in the confidence of his manner, the way he approached me,
hand outstretched, greeting me just like anyone else. I also knew
something else; in a few minutes he probably wouldn't be very
proud of me.
     We sat down in the office for a talk. Dr. Jernigan probably
remembers it. (I hope he does; I certainly do.) We got a few of
the usual obligatory questions out of the way. What are you going
to do with yourself now that you are out of high school? That was
what you probably ought to ask a seventeen-year-old. Then he
started to quiz me on grammar a little bit. (I didn't add up too
well on that.) They seemed like good questions, but not too
relevant to me at the time. Then came the big question of that
day, and the question that I remember most. It was this: "So you
want to be a teacher. Now if you are going to be a teacher,
sometime you are going to apply for a job. Tell me this: What are
you going to say to the hiring official, the principal or the
superintendent, who sits across the desk from you someday four or
five years from now and says: `Jim, there are fifty or a hundred
other applicants for the job that you are seeking. All of them
are sighted. You are blind. Tell me why I should hire you.'"
     Well, that question stopped me dead cold in my tracks. The
only thing that came to my mind was that, if anyone else had
really wanted to compete for the job that I was applying for, I
would almost always--if not always--come out second best. I
couldn't really imagine how, seeing me as a blind person and
having fifty or a hundred sighted applicants for that job, an
employer could choose me over any one of the others. That was my
unspoken thought. I didn't want to say that in that meeting, but
Dr. Jernigan just wouldn't give it up. He knew exactly what I was
thinking, and worse yet, I knew that he knew, and he knew that I
knew. By the time that I verbalized my uncertainty, there was no
real need to explain the situation. I had been taught throughout
my life that sight was definitely something to be valued over
blindness. Among the blind I had been taught that the person who
has some sight is bound to be better off than the person who has
no sight. I learned that every day as a child. I learned it at
the school for the blind, or rather the Sight Saving School. It
seems to me that the name fits with what I learned there.
     Here I was, seventeen years old, and my foundation of
independence--my restricted philosophy of blindness that I've
just described--was crumbling right in front of me in Dr.
Jernigan's office. In fact, I didn't have a foundation of
independence at all. What I did have was a prescription for
failure, for dependence--not for independence. And that's what I
got from the School for the Blind. It didn't have to be a school
for the blind; it could have been any other school. But that's
what I got.
     So what is the foundation for independence of which we
speak? At the time I graduated from high school, two weeks before
that fateful day when I met with Dr. Jernigan, I had acquired at
least an average education. Dr. Jernigan might not have thought
it was totally average after he got done with the grammar
questions, but nonetheless I thought it was pretty much an
average education. Since the School for the Blind was smaller
than most of the public schools around at that time, there were
probably some things in a larger and more diverse curriculum that
I missed, but even so, I could read. I could write. I could
speak. I could compute. I knew a little about American history
and a dab of world history. I thought I was ready for more
academically challenging pursuits like going on to college, but
when it came to the question, "Whom would you hire first, a blind
person or a sighted person in competition with each other?" I
knew it wouldn't be me. Therefore, I had the skills, but I didn't
have the foundation of independence. I didn't have the confidence
and belief that I was as good as anyone else and that I could
ultimately compete on terms of equality.
     The foundation of independence--that's exactly what I was
lacking. Now the concept of a foundation is of something which is
needed and available to serve as the base. Everything rests on
the foundation: so it is with the superstructure of a building.
But it is also the same when we speak of human qualities such as
independence. The foundation of independence for the blind must
provide the rock of stability for each and every one of us. For
the education of blind children, I say that the foundation of
independence can only be built with three critical building
blocks or elements. (I am assuming here that the basis of
reading, writing, and arithmetic is a given.) Now, knowing the
status of American education today and with all due respect to
the educators who will follow, I'm not always sure that my
assumption is warranted, but we're going to assume that reading,
writing, and arithmetic are already there. Here are my three
critical elements or building blocks for the foundation of
independence for blind children: equality, opportunity, and the
right to achieve excellence.
     Equality. The right to an equal education is stated as a
matter of law but is not, in all too many instances, a reality as
a matter of fact for blind students. Let me offer you just one
example of what I am saying. This came to me recently in a letter
I saw to a member of Congress. We're working to enact Braille
literacy provisions in the reauthorization of the Individuals
with Disabilities Education Act. One of the letters that we got
was particularly on the mark when we talk about equality. It
comes from South Dakota: "My daughter is nine years old. She has
not been taught to read or write."
     Nine years old! She has not been taught to read or write.
Why? Because she is blind, and the school district wants to teach
her the concepts of reading before they actually begin to teach
her to read--whatever that means. I don't think I know the
concepts of reading without reading, but anyway, education has
changed. She goes on to say: "I am very angry that they won't
teach her despite the fact that our state has a Braille bill. It
has not helped our daughter. I have had to fight every step of
the way to get them to teach a nine-year-old child just to read
and write. By having a strong Braille literacy provision in the
Reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education
Act, I hope that other parents will not have to fight for their
kids such as I have had to fight for mine."
     I would say that tells us the real story about the
inequities and inequality that exist in American education today
for blind students. Equality in education does not mean merely
going to school. It does not just mean being placed in the same
classroom along with others and sitting there. Equality of
education means the right to have the tools to compete and the
tools to succeed. We believe in the goal of equal education for
all blind children, and together in the National Federation of
the Blind we will make that happen for all blind
children.[applause]
     Opportunity. When we speak of opportunity, we are talking
about the right of each blind child in the United States to have
a chance to learn to the fullest extent of that individual's
capabilities, without suffering the imposition of arbitrary and
artificial restrictions relating to blindness.[applause] The
chance to learn is the chance to succeed, and no one--I mean no
one--has been given the right or authority to take the chance to
learn or the chance to succeed away from us. When they seek to
take those chances away from us, we will put a stop to it! That's
why we have formed the National Federation of the
Blind.[applause] We believe in the opportunity to learn,
including the opportunity to learn Braille if the child is blind,
and we intend to see that that opportunity happens.[applause]
     The right to achieve excellence. This is the third of the
critical elements in our building blocks. Now when I think of
excellence, I think of high expectations. Unfortunately, I think
that we have all become too well aware of the fact that teachers
and other professionals in the education field have come to think
less of the blind than they do students who can see. This must
stop. Excellence means that we can achieve. We can achieve, and
we will achieve if we are expected to achieve. High expectations,
striving for excellence--that is the standard that we have set in
the National Federation of the Blind, and we intend to make
excellence the standard for blind children to aspire to in every
single classroom in this country.
     Equality, opportunity, and the right to achieve excellence--
these are the critical elements, the building blocks in the
foundation of independence for the blind. They are the standard
that we must insist upon in educational programming for each and
every blind child. This is the message of the National Federation
of the Blind. A foundation of independence means equality,
opportunity, and the right of each child to achieve
excellence.[applause] It also means the belief in ourselves and a
commitment to each other. If we, and I mean if each and every one
of us, will build our lives on this foundation, there is
absolutely no force on earth that can turn us back or stop our
progress.
     Equality, opportunity, and the right to achieve excellence:
not only is this the foundation of independence for blind
children--it is the foundation of independence for us all. It is
the bedrock of Federationism, and on this rock we will stand
together, and together we will be free.[applause]


[Caption: Alan Gartner, Ph.D. and Dorothy Kerzner Lipsky]
                 INCLUSION FOR ALL: BUILDING ON
                     THE TOOLS OF BLINDNESS
           by Alan Gartner and Dorothy Kerzner Lipsky

     From the Editor: The presentation which followed Jim
Gashel's address at the July 6 session of the 1995 convention of
the National Federation of the Blind was a collaborative effort
by Dr. Alan Gartner, Dean for Research, and Dorothy Kerzner
Lipsky, Director, both at the National Center on Educational
Restructuring and Inclusion of the Graduate School and University
Center at the City University of New York.
     Dr. Gartner and Ms. Lipsky are two of the architects of the
full-inclusion movement and distinguished leaders and thinkers in
their field. They are deeply committed to the concept that full
inclusion is a process and not a place. In these days of
increasing attacks on residential schools for the blind and
resource rooms for blind children in public schools--on the
ground that they are segregated settings--Gartner and Lipsky's
recognition of the importance for success of good blindness
skills and their common sense about how to measure the
effectiveness of full inclusion are much needed and greatly to be
commended. Here is Dr. Gartner and Ms. Lipsky's summary of their
remarks to the NFB convention:

     We welcome this opportunity to speak before NFB's 1995
convention. First of all, we want to acknowledge the benefit we
have gained from participating with NFB's Task Force on
Inclusion, and working with Adrienne Asch, Fred Schroeder, and
Barbara Pierce. We have learned much from them. And, second, we
want to endorse Jim Gashel's three points concerning education
for blind students: equality, opportunity, and the right to
achieve excellence.
     While the focus of our presentation this morning is
inclusion as it concerns education, we want to begin by noting
that for us inclusion is centrally a characteristic of a
democratic society. The full inclusion of all--without regard to
race, ethnicity, gender, sexual preference, disability--is not a
matter of tolerance or acceptance; it is a root characteristic of
a democratic society. Indeed it brings strength and richness to
the society.
     We champion inclusion in education for three reasons. First
of all, it is an expression in schools of that essential
democratic characteristic. Second, it is a recognition of the
capacity and strength of blind people, their ability to
contribute to the life of the society. And, finally, it works:
that is, it educates students--all students--in a setting most
appropriate for preparing people--all people--for a productive
and contributing life in a democratic society.
     Inclusion is not a matter of a mindless focus on location.
Yes, of course, inclusive education educates all students
together. It recognizes both the commonality of students--they
are more alike than different--and the uniqueness of each
student. Thus an inclusive education program has at its base
students attending their neighborhood school in age-appropriate
classes with their peers. And at the same time it provides to
students the individual attention necessary for their success.
     In the language of IDEA (The Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act), it is not only a matter of adhering to the "Least
Restrictive Environment" requirement, but more fundamentally to a
student's right to an "appropriate education," one which benefits
the student. It means providing the necessary supplemental aids
and support services to enable the student, every student, to
succeed in the regular classroom. For blind students this means
equipping them with the tools of blindness (specifically with
Braille and mobility training), doing this early on in the
student's education, by a person skilled and trained to do so,
and with the general education teacher trained to reinforce and
enhance these skills. Those who, in the name of inclusion, deny
to blind students effective training in such tools are not only
false prophets; they are engaging in educational malpractice; and
we are prepared, in President Jernigan's words, to join with you
to bring "discomfort" to them.
     The National Center on Education Restructuring and Inclusion
(NCERI) is just concluding its second annual study of inclusion
programs across the country. The key findings of the study are:
    The number of school districts reporting inclusion programs
     has increased significantly since 1994.
    Students with a wider range of disabilities are being
     included in general education programs.
    School restructuring efforts are having significant impact
     on inclusion programs, and vice-versa.
    Outcomes for students in inclusion programs, both general
     and special education, are positive, when necessary supports
     are provided.
    Teachers participating in inclusion programs report positive
     professional outcomes for themselves, when necessary
     supports are provided.

     School districts effectively conducting inclusive education
programs report the following factors as key for success:
    visionary leadership;
    collaboration between general and special educators;
    refocussed use of assessment;
    supports for staff and students;
    parental involvement; and
    adequate funding that follows the child into the general
     education classroom.

     While in many ways IDEA is a success, an area requiring
attention is the inclusion in its implementation of adults with
disabilities. NFB's program in which blind adults share their
expertise with the sighted parents of blind children is a model
to be emulated. It recognizes the expertise of blind people; it
offers training to those who need this expertise; and it benefits
the children. Indeed, as the Congress addresses the renewal of
IDEA, support for such programs should be a high priority.


[Caption: James H. Omvig]
                   AN AFFECTIONATE VALIDATION
                        by James H. Omvig

     From the Editor: Jim Omvig is one of the longtime leaders of
the National Federation of the Blind. He is an attorney who
retired to Arizona several years ago, much to the gratification
of the state affiliate there. Jim recently sent me the following
story. I trust that you will find it as touching and inspiring as
I did. Here it is:

     Those of us who have been seriously involved in work with
the blind for very long, and particularly those who have also
been actively involved in and committed to the organized blind
movement, know certain truths to be self-evident. We know that
blind people are normal people who, given proper training and
real opportunity, can compete successfully with our sighted
peers. We know that we are justified in our unshakable faith that
our philosophy about blindness and our principles are correct,
that our cause is just, and that our objectives (lofty as they
may be) are within our grasp. They are, that is, if we are
willing to work hard enough to achieve them!
     We also know with both our minds and our hearts that we are
absolutely correct in our attitude of love for and loyalty to
many of our colleagues--our blind brothers and sisters who have
made their mark and who have made a difference. In other words,
when we say that a particular well-trained blind person really
can do a job as well as his or her sighted neighbor, our
knowledge that this is absolutely true and our faith in that
person as a role model are both justified and gratifying. We know
our positive philosophy about blindness works, and we are
justified in our pardonable pride in a successful friend.
     Even though all of this is true, it can still create some
pretty warm and wonderful feelings when someone else--someone
completely unconnected with our movement--confirms and validates
what we already know to be true. Recently I had such a validating
experience, which I would like to share with you.
     During the first week of June I traveled from Tucson to
Minneapolis and St. Paul to provide some intensive training for
rehabilitation counselors and job placement specialists from
Minnesota's State Services for the Blind (SSB). In itself this
project was fruitful. In addition to the SSB staff members
present, I was there representing the National Federation of the
Blind. Gil Johnson from the American Foundation for the Blind's
San Francisco office presented after I did on Thursday morning,
and members of the American Council of the Blind were there as
well.
     In his presentation Gil Johnson quoted from one of my papers
(an article on empowerment) which had been distributed at the
conference. Similarly, during his presentation Gil described a
Foundation study from which I told him I intended to quote
favorably that afternoon when I met with the students of the NFB
adult rehabilitation center, BLIND, Inc.
     The entire experience moved me to comment to this effect:
"We all know that at the national level the major organizations
of and for the blind meet and work together on a variety of
topics in peace and harmony. However, at the local level this is
often still not the case."
     I went on to say, "If anybody had told me before this
meeting began that a Foundation executive would quote from one of
my papers to make a point with SSB staff members, that I would be
quoting from that Foundation executive's report to make a point
in teaching blind students, that the American Council would be
part of it all too, and that we would all be learning and
laughing together, I simply would never have believed it. In many
places, just because Mr. Johnson is a Foundation executive,
certain people would not have listened and given credence to him,
no matter how qualified he might be, and the same goes for me,
just because I am connected and identified with the Federation."
     I concluded by suggesting that "Perhaps we truly are making
progress, at least in Minnesota!"
     Then I did indeed wrap up my afternoon with a several-hour
visit to BLIND, Inc., and what an experience that was too. Most
Monitor readers know that the center is now located in St. Paul
in the old Pillsbury mansion. It is stately and gracious, and the
building would be the pride and joy of anyone fortunate enough to
own it. For example, Director Joyce Scanlan's office boasts a
grand, ornately hand-carved stone fireplace, which survived the
great fire of London and was brought to America by Mr. Pillsbury
when the house was built in 1912.
     The most gratifying aspect of my visit to BLIND, Inc.,
however, was that it was clear to me that Joyce and the other
center staff members have not permitted the stateliness and
grandeur of the mansion to overshadow the vitality and spirit of
the program which dwells within and which is giving hope,
confidence, and meaning to the lives of the blind students who
choose to participate in it. The spirit of the program dwarfs the
imposing structure of bricks and mortar, hand-carved stone, and
wood, grand as it may be.
     At 6:30 that evening I boarded my plane for Phoenix with the
ultimate destination of Tucson. I was happy, pumped up by the
activities of the past three days, gratified as a former
orientation center director by the knowledge that the work goes
on, and utterly spent and exhausted. My intention was to sleep
the entire trip.
     Before nodding off, I chatted a little with my seatmates--a
young couple from Minneapolis named Mark and Kim Hewitson. They
were traveling to California for a vacation. Both are working
professionals in the Twin Cities area. We began with the usual:
"Where are you going?" "What have you been doing here," et
cetera. Naturally I told them of the SSB staff training program
and of BLIND, Inc.
     At some point Mark casually said, "I had a blind teacher
once as a young kid in public school. Gosh, she was great!" I
then explained to Mark and Kim about the difficulties we have had
in getting colleges and universities to accept blind people into
their elementary education programs. The argument has been that
the blind elementary school teacher working with sighted kids
wouldn't be able to see the work which the young kids were doing
and wouldn't be able to maintain discipline over them. I told
them that this was all a fiction but that this was a great part
of the fight we had faced.
     Mark said, "Well, my teacher was great! By the way, her
husband was blind too. He was a chiropractor." I was shocked, for
I knew who this competent blind teacher was.
     I exclaimed, "Do you mean to tell me that you had Judy
Saunders as a teacher! I knew Judy and her husband Curtis for
years!"
     Sleep was now out of the question, but it didn't matter
since the adrenalin was pumping, and we talked and reminisced
about Judy and Curtis for most of the three hours from
Minneapolis to Phoenix. Mark had had Judy Saunders as his fourth
grade teacher at Prairie View Elementary School in Devils Lake,
North Dakota.
     I told them of how Judy (she was Judy Young then) was one of
the lucky ones. She had been born at the right time and in the
right place (Iowa). She had had the opportunity to be one of the
orientation students in the early 1960's in the program operated
in Des Moines by then Commission for the Blind Director Kenneth
Jernigan. And Judy's parents, Leroy and Kathryn, had joined the
cause too, through their work in Lionism.
     I told them of Judy's dream of being an elementary school
teacher of sighted children in the public schools and of how the
University of Iowa refused to admit her into its elementary
education program because of her blindness. I told them of a
meeting which Dr. Jernigan attended in Iowa City on a Sunday
evening (just imagine a state agency Director at a Sunday evening
meeting 120 miles from home advocating for the rights of an
agency client) with University officials to persuade them to
admit Judy and of how these officials remained steadfast in their
discriminatory determination to keep her out.
     I told them of the conclusion to the meeting when, faced
with this stubborn resistance, Dr. Jernigan said, "Fine! If
that's the way you want it. You should know, though, that I'm
going to hold a press conference tomorrow morning in Des Moines
to announce to the public that the State University of Iowa
discriminates against its blind students! Frankly, I don't think
you'll like that, and I can guarantee you that the public won't
like it at all, but if that's the way you want to have it, then
so be it!"
     I told Mark and Kim about the University officials' reaction
to Dr. Jernigan's suggestion and of how, miraculously, they
realized then and there that a blind person, particularly the
bright and competent young Judy, really ought to have a chance
and probably could actually make it as a teacher.
     I told them of Judy's proud graduation from the University
of Iowa and then of her employment by the Urbandale School
District as the first blind teacher in Iowa ever to be hired to
teach sighted children in the public elementary schools. I told
them of some irrational Urbandale parents who were so outraged
about the hiring of a blind person to teach their kids that they
actually pulled those children out of school. But I went on to
tell them that, when reason prevailed, the kids came back and
that by the end of that first year there was almost unanimous
agreement among the parents of her students that Judy Young was
the best teacher their children had ever had.
     I told them of Judy's fateful trip to Los Angeles in July of
1967 to attend the annual convention of the National Federation
of the Blind and of how it was at that NFB Los Angeles convention
that she met a young blind North Dakota chiropractor named Curtis
Saunders. I told them of Judy's subsequent marriage and move to
Devils Lake, North Dakota, and of how Judy blazed another trail
by becoming North Dakota's first blind public elementary school
teacher, too.
     We talked at length about the inspiration which Judy
provided to the many blind public school teachers who were to
come after her. And then I told them of the profound sorrow which
had spread throughout the blind community all across this land
when we learned that Judy Saunders--young trailblazer and pioneer
among the blind, successful public school teacher, wife, and
mother of three--had been diagnosed with incurable cancer. It was
shocking and devastating!
     Even though it has been twenty-five years since Judy taught
Mark Hewitson and even though he had been gone from Devils Lake
since he was a child, he was aware that Judy had passed away in
1981 and that, unbelievable as it is, Curtis, too, is gone as a
result of cancer.
     Mark told me: "I don't know exactly what it was. I just felt
that I always needed to do my absolute best the year that Judy
was my teacher, so I really worked hard. Everybody loved her and
felt the same way I did about her ability! I can even remember
when her first baby was born. We all went to her house to see the
baby and to take presents. I still remember what a wonderful and
well-kept home it was."
     As we talked about the myth that blind teachers wouldn't be
able to maintain discipline, Mark said, "I can tell you for a
fact that Judy didn't have a problem with that. We had a lot of
fun with her, but if anybody began to act up, she immediately
took control and maintained firm discipline." He summed it all up
by saying, "I am glad to have had Mrs. Saunders as one of my
teachers. Without a doubt she was the best teacher I ever had! I
just loved her!"
     What more can I say after that? Except this: Judy, wherever
you are, those of us who knew you were always secure in the
knowledge that your blindness made no difference and that you
were an outstanding teacher who just happened to be blind! It was
moving and heartwarming, though, to hear what a fine teacher you
were from one of your former students--one who believed in you,
who had truly learned from you, who respected you, and who loved
you!


[photos: Three photographs accompany this article. caption 1: Steve Shelton
caption 2: Debbie Kent Stein caption 3: Noel Nightengale]
                 PRODUCTIVITY AND INDEPENDENCE:
                      THE BLIND GET IT DONE

     From the Editor: At this year's convention three
Federationists spoke on Thursday afternoon, July 6, about their
jobs and the way they approach them. The three were Steve
Shelton, a senior systems engineer with ALLTEL Information
Services of Oklahoma City and Treasurer of the National
Federation of the Blind of Oklahoma; Deborah Kent Stein of
Chicago, a distinguished writer and respected author of books for
young people; and Noel Nightengale, an attorney with the
Environmental Practice Group of Heller, Ehrman, White, and
McAuliffe in Seattle. Here are the presentations they made:

                          Steve Shelton

     Dr. Jernigan and President Maurer, thank you for giving me
the honor of speaking to this convention. It was over eighteen
years ago when I began my career as a computer programmer. That
first job was a turning point in my life. It gave me an
opportunity to prove to others as well as myself that I could be
an independent, self-sufficient individual. When I took that
first job, I was considered legally blind. Unfortunately, like
many of us with some vision that's beginning to fail, I tried to
hide my blindness. In reflecting on that time now, I realize that
I was fooling nobody; I was simply making excuses for my
blindness and avoiding situations that would expose it.
     However, in spite of my attitude, I got that first job and
was very successful. I should have been satisfied with where I
was and glad to have that job, but something was bothering me. I
recognized that my retinitis pigmentosa was causing my eyes to
continue to deteriorate. As I reflected on that, I wondered how I
would do my job when I could no longer read print and no longer
see the computer screen. At that time I had not even heard of the
National Federation of the Blind. I had no one to turn to. I had
no answers for my questions.
     Several years later, though, I learned of the NFB and in
1985 attended my first state convention in Oklahoma. At that time
I began to get answers to my questions. Over the next few years
the NFB helped me to overcome my fears and to develop a positive
outlook for the future. That gets us to today.
     As Dr. Jernigan said, I work for ALLTEL Information
Services. ALLTEL is an information technology company that
provides services and software for companies worldwide. One of
our clients is Liberty Bank of Oklahoma City. At that center I am
a technical support for check-processing computer applications.
I'm excited about the opportunities that I have in my job to make
a difference for the blind, to change what it means to be blind.
     Currently I am in the midst of one of the most challenging
opportunities of my entire career. Recently our company
designated the Oklahoma City office, where I work, to be a
development site for the next generation of their computer
software products. These products are banking-related and operate
in the Microsoft Windows environment. Although I am not on the
development team, I was able to participate in the training to
learn how to do programming in Windows. Furthermore, our company
encouraged the entire programming staff to think of ways to
integrate this new technology into their existing systems. I was
happy to take advantage of this opportunity, and soon I will be
implementing a Windows application for Liberty Bank, a program
that I wrote.
     I think it was important for me to do this. It wasn't a
requirement. I took the initiative and asked to be allowed to do
it. It was important for two reasons. First, I demonstrated to my
management that as a blind person I could make the transition
from traditional mainframe programming to programming in the
Windows environment. Second, the knowledge that I gained has
allowed me, not only to point out problems for the blind in the
new products that were developed, but to offer solutions to them.
     Another aspect of my job is that I get the opportunity to
evaluate new technology. I'd like to tell you about some
technology that I've become aware of recently that I think may
become a beneficial tool for the blind in the future. Before I do
that, I need to give you a little background about this
technology and how it's used in banking. Then you will see how it
can be applied to the blind. The check processing department of a
bank is where all the checks that you and I write go. These
checks are then sorted and sent to the originating banks in the
most efficient manner. It's very important that this get done in
a timely manner, because the banks pay float on those checks if
they hold them.
     One of the most time-consuming and labor-intensive parts of
the job is the process by which the amount is encoded on the
bottom of the check. Every check that you and I write has to go
through a machine where a human has to read the amount off the
check and type it on the bottom--every check that's written!
Liberty Bank, for example, processes five hundred thousand checks
a day. Some banks are beginning to use new technology that scans
the check and reads the handwriting on the check to determine
what the amount is. At present this technology reads about fifty
percent of the checks that are processed. What we have here is a
technology where handwriting is read and interpreted. In a matter
of years this technology will be improved and will be available
for applications to help blind people--software that could read
handwriting and interpret it.
     I'm excited about the things that I do on my job, and I'm
excited at making a difference in the blindness field.
     In closing I would like to say on behalf of all the people
of Oklahoma we thank you for your thoughts and prayers in the
aftermath of the April 19 bombing. It was very close to all of
us, and I'm proud of how Oklahoma responded in the crisis. We
thank you very much for your concern. [applause]

                        Debbie Kent Stein

     It's an honor to be here. I have to say that I didn't start
out as a writer. I began my post-college career as a social
worker. Once upon a time, about twenty years ago, I worked in a
place called the University Settlement House in New York City,
mostly doing counseling with parents and kids, people from the
neighborhood which was on New York's lower East Side. It was
really a wonderful place to work in a lot of ways. It was very
comfortable. It was like a big family. It was a great community-
oriented sort of place, and all the kids who came in knew all of
the social workers, and all the social workers knew all the kids.
Well, I had been there for a few years, and one of the other
social workers was getting ready to leave to go take a bigger and
better job. She had been working with a boy named George who was
about twelve. When she was telling him that she was going to be
leaving, she asked him, if he could have a choice, who would he
like to have as his next social worker when she was gone. He
thought about that for a while, and then he finally said, "I want
to work with Debbie." Helen asked him why. He said, "Because
she's blind, so she's not going to be able to find another job
that easily, so she's not going to leave."
     This kid really had things pretty well worked out. A lot of
people had left in his life, and he'd been doing a lot of
thinking about this problem. He had figured out that there are
people who are going places, and there are people who settle in
for the duration. He had me pretty much pegged as the kind who
settle in. Apart from being amazed at George and really admiring
his perceptiveness, I found the concept was troubling. I had
always seen myself as somebody that liked challenges and went out
after new experiences. Here I was, this kid from the suburbs,
working on the lower East Side. People thought that was pretty
adventurous, and I had allowed myself to think that I had come as
far as I could go.
     I didn't like the idea of being the sort of person who just
finds a nice comfy niche and stays there. But I had to admit I
had run into a lot of roadblocks when I was looking for a social
work job, the kind of roadblocks that all of us who are blind run
into when we're job hunting. Job hunting was not my favorite
thing. Now I had a job that I liked, and I did not care for the
thought of ever leaving this nice little nest that I had at the
University Settlement House. But at the same time I didn't want
to work there forever on the basis that there was nowhere else to
go and I was afraid to go any place else.
     This kid George really got me thinking. The more I thought,
the more I started to realize that I really was ready to make a
change. I knew that I wanted to do something creative. I wanted
to write. I had been writing stories since I was old enough to
hold a slate and stylus. I had kept journals since I was fifteen.
I have been collecting my share of rejection slips since I was in
college, sending stories out to the Atlantic and to the New
Yorker and getting them back. Now that I was working full time as
a social worker, I really wasn't doing much writing anymore. My
whole life had gone in a very different direction.
     Well, even if you decide that you want to make a very
serious commitment to writing, how do you go about doing that? I
didn't have a clue until I spent a summer vacation in the town of
San Miguel de Allende in the mountains of central Mexico. In San
Miguel there was a small, American-run fine arts college, which
offered a lot of courses in creative writing, and there was also
a thriving colony of foreign writers living in this town. During
my vacation I took some writing classes, and I wrote the first
couple of chapters of a novel.
     As my departure time got closer and closer, I realized that
I really wanted to stay where I was in San Miguel. I knew that
there was a way that I could actually do it. I had saved enough
money to live in Mexico for a year or two. (This was back in the
mid-seventies when it was actually possible to live in New York
and still save some money.) I figured that, if my writing venture
didn't quite come through and I wasn't successful, I still had my
social work degree, and I could go back and look for a social
work job again based on my education and my experience. So I
wasn't burning all my bridges. If I wanted to, I could go back
and look for another job.
     So finally I went back to New York, and I handed in my
resignation. I gave up my apartment. I packed all my worldly
goods into my parents' attic and moved to Mexico. I remember one
of my colleagues at the Settlement House saying that he was so
jealous that he almost hoped that I wouldn't have a good time.
     I spent the next few years living in San Miguel, writing and
hanging out with other writers, and learning everything that I
could about writing: the day-to-day, nitty-gritty aspects of
making yourself stick to a schedule and get work done, the world
of publishing, how to find an agent, and a whole host of things
about which people were very willing and generous in sharing
their experience.
     I completed my first book, which was a novel for teenagers
about a blind girl who goes into a public high school program for
the first time. I called it A Different Drummer after the line
from Thoreau's Walden about some people's marching to the beat of
a different drummer. I sent it off to the Houghton Mifflin
Company, and I waited for a few months, and back it came with a
very nice rejection letter. All of a sudden I thought, you know,
I'm at a crossroads here. My money is running out, my confidence
is running out, and I haven't sold a book. I have been here for
two years. How long can I drop out of the real world? Maybe I
need to go back. I might never sell a book, and even if I do, I
might not be able to live on what I make. I started making plans
to leave San Miguel and go back to New York.
     Ever since I had come to Mexico, I had been hearing about a
woman named Marguerita, who was supposed to be a bruja, which is
a witch. She was supposed to be a white witch. People said that
Marguerita cured illnesses and told fortunes. She did all sorts
of neat things that people were very impressed by. I thought, I
have to meet this lady because this would be a terrific article
that I could write for some publication.
     One afternoon a friend who knew her took me to meet
Marguerita. We trekked out into the hills and found her in this
little two-room hut out in the countryside with no electricity
and no telephone or any kind of modern conveniences. There was
this great big long line of people standing outside her door,
waiting to get in and talk to her one at a time. They were all
very serious and very intent. As I stood there in line, I thought
this really isn't a joke; she may not like the idea of this
American coming in and trying to interview her for a Sunday
supplement somewhere up in the States. I really better have a
good reason to talk to her. So I started thinking I've got to
have a question to ask this lady. When I got in, she asked me why
I had come. I said, "Well, I'm trying to make a decision in my
life. I'm trying to decide whether I should stick with writing as
a career or whether I should go back to New York and do social
work again."
     She listened and said, "Well, what is this social work? What
are you talking about?" I said that I worked in an office. Then
it occurred to me that she hadn't a clue about what an office
was, so I said, "It's sort of a room, and people come and talk to
me about their problems, and they ask me questions, and I try to
help. I try to give them some answers." The more I talked about
this, the more it started to sound a lot like what Marguerita was
doing. The trouble was I had never had a line of people standing
outside the door, waiting to talk to me the way she did. Then she
asked me a couple of leading questions. She said, "When you are
doing this social work, do you ever feel a great heat inside your
head?"
     I said, "No, I didn't remember that ever happening to me."
     She said, "Have you ever felt a great flash of lightning in
front of your eyes?"
     I said, "No, I don't think so. I don't think that ever
happened to me."
     Then she reached out and patted my hand very kindly and she
said, "I think you should continue with your writing."
     I definitely got the feeling that she didn't think I was cut
out for social work. Actually, my feelings were not at all hurt
at that point because in her unique way she had confirmed
something for me which I knew was right. She had pointed me
onward in the direction that I already had chosen. I didn't want
to go back to social work. I wanted to continue with my writing,
and, sure enough, as the next couple of weeks went by, a job
opened up for me in Mexico so that I was able to stay. I got my
first book published, and I also got together with a fellow
writer Dick Stein, who is now my husband.
     Things sort of fell into place. In this age of layoffs and
cutbacks, nobody's job is secure. Any kind of career change
involves a substantial risk, and taking risks is not always a
desirable thing to do in a world that seems more and more
precarious every day. But risk-taking is part of growth, and
growth is part of the life process that doesn't stop with
physical maturity.
     As humans we have a great need to meet new challenges, to
learn, and that's something that lasts all our lives. As we go
on, we need to face the possibility that we might indeed fail,
and the consequences of failure can range from minor
embarrassment to a loss of our livelihood. As blind people I
think we receive a lot of subtle and not so subtle warnings about
taking risks. We are told all our lives, "Be careful; this might
be dangerous. You might get hurt." How many times have we all
heard this? It is not limited to crossing streets and handling
sharp knives in the kitchen. It applies to taking emotional risks
too. It's the blind teenager who is in the throes of her first
crush, and people around her are saying, "You know I hate to see
her go through this. I hate to see her get hurt."
     Crossing a street, dicing vegetables, falling in love--
almost any human activity could carry a warning label. I sense
that people think somehow that as blind people we're in greater
peril than others, that somehow we are less able to survive the
hurts and disappointments that are part of life for everybody.
We're all very aware that there is an appalling rate of
unemployment among blind people. Seventy percent is the figure
that we hear all the time, and it's appalling and shocking.
     Those of us who do have jobs are among the lucky ones, the
people who have had quality training and who have had
opportunities that have allowed us to get to where we are. So
it's no wonder a blind person who is fortunate enough to land a
job is likely to cringe at the thought of letting go of that job
to try to strive for a promotion, to try to tackle a career
change. But not to do so, not to allow ourselves that possibility
can actually be a betrayal of our inborn capacity for growth.
     If we cling to what we know and to what seems safe and
certain, we give up on our need for challenge. There is a
terrible price for that security, and that price is the
possibility that we can become stagnant. We lose that spark that
keeps the mind and the spirit alive and enables us to continue
growing and learning throughout our lives. I'm not saying that
everybody should just go hand in their resignations on Monday
morning and cut out for Mexico. There are foolish risks, and
there are calculated risks. It pays to calculate with a lot of
thought and care. But I think we owe it to ourselves to develop
to our fullest potential. We owe it to the world to try to make
the greatest contribution that we can.
     As a writer I've written fiction and non-fiction for
children. I've written romances for teenagers. I've written books
about kids who have more serious problems. I've written
biographies. I've written books about states and books about
countries and the history of the Vietnam War. Everything that
I've written requires research and requires learning about new
topics and presents me with a whole set of brand new challenges,
so whatever I'm working on remains interesting and exciting. I
didn't get to be successful writing in a vacuum. I owe an
enormous debt to loving and supportive family, to the many
friends who have believed in me, to the National Federation of
the Blind for helping to create a climate in which blind people
can hope to live full and rewarding lives. And I owe something to
a kid named George who lived on the lower East Side, who helped
me balance the need for security against the need to move on
toward new horizons. Thank you very much.[applause]

                       Noel J. Nightengale

     I am a lawyer with the large West Coast law firm of Heller,
Ehrman, White, and McAuliffe. I work in the Seattle office in the
Environmental Practice Group. I got the job the ordinary way that
new attorneys get jobs with law firms, which is that I worked
with Heller, Ehrman during the summer, and they liked my work and
offered me a permanent position.
     After the bar examination last summer I attended an NFB
training center, where I learned Braille and better cane travel
and engaged in other activities that helped build my confidence
as a blind person. I recommend to anyone in this room
contemplating such a move, do it.
     My job is probably not very interesting to those who observe
it from the outside. I research specific legal issues and then
write memoranda to more senior attorneys about those issues. I
then discuss my research with them and do follow-up research as
needed. As a new attorney I don't get much contact with the
clients; I'm pretty much stuck off in my office doing research
and writing. But I also attend a lot of meetings, primarily at
lunch, where we sit around and talk about issues that affect the
law firm--how to develop clients, how to hire environmental
consultants--a broad spectrum of issues. I also attend a lot of
social events that the firm holds or that are sponsored by other
organizations that the law firm would like to establish or
develop business relations with.
     The job accommodations I use aren't unique. I use Braille, a
white cane, a reader, and adaptive computer equipment. I find
that the most challenging aspect of my job as an attorney has
nothing to do with the job accommodations I make. Rather, it's
dealing with my colleagues and persuading them to see me as just
another new attorney, rather than focusing on my blindness.
     My colleagues' attitudes and reactions toward me are
typified by a retreat I went to with them in May. It was in a
town a little way from where I live. For the first time my law
firm hired an organization which provides business with
challenging activities for executives to engage in that are
designed to facilitate personal and team growth. You may have
heard of organizations like Outward Bound and Ropes. Well, our
organization was called Sportsmind. It's the same idea. We
weren't told what these activities would be, and, as the time for
the retreat drew nearer, all of the attorneys' anxiety levels
about it grew stronger and stronger.
     About a week before the retreat one of my colleagues, a
friend in the firm who was on the retreat committee, came to me
and asked if I was planning on participating in the retreat. I
told her that I was, and she asked if I had any concerns. I said
that I didn't know what was going to happen and that I was
planning to give everything the old college try. Then I addressed
her real question, which was, because I am blind, could I do it?
She assured me that that hadn't been her question, but that
unnamed people had come to her with concerns about my ability to
participate. I said again that I planned to participate in all
the events.
     But as the retreat drew nearer and nearer, I started hearing
rumors about what these events were, and one of them was that
there was going to be a very high balance beam that we were going
to walk on. I did become a little nervous at hearing that, and I
began calling my NFB colleagues to get some tips on alternative
techniques. But nobody I called had ever done anything like that,
so all they could do was assure me that I would do fine. but they
had no specific recommendations.
     The morning of the retreat came, and at the breakfast that
all the attorneys attended the Sportsmind leader came up to me
and got down on his knees so that his face was very close to mine
as I sat in my chair, and he spoke to me in the kind of voice
that one speaks to a child with. He asked me if I was really
going to participate. I think he was hoping I was going to say
no. But I assured him that I was, and he walked away
disappointed.
     We walked down to the area where we were going to do warm-up
exercises, and that went fine until a little way into the
exercises. Then they told us to stand on one foot with the other
foot touching our behinds. I started wobbling the minute I did
it. I had to keep touching the ground with my raised foot. That
shook my confidence. I thought, "If I can't stand on one foot,
how am I going to walk on a balance beam?" Then I remembered Dr.
Jernigan's talking about a sighted person's asking him about a
blind person's ability to balance. He tried standing on one foot
and found that he couldn't do it very well. But when he practiced
a little, he could do it fine, and that steadied me. I told
myself that I wasn't balancing well because I was nervous.
     We then split up into teams of three and went to the event
area. As the sight was described to me, there was indeed a
balance beam about seventy feet in the air, stretched between two
trees, with a rough ladder against one tree, leading up to the
beam. The leader told us that we would be wearing harnesses with
ropes attached to them and that the event would be perfectly safe
if we chose to participate. One brave attorney decided to go
first. She climbed up and walked out to the middle, where we were
supposed to trust those ropes and jump off. She did just fine,
and several more attorneys went, and soon there were only a few
of us left who hadn't done it. And some of them were so scared
they were talking about not doing it. I decided that, before
these people psyched me out, I had better get going and do it.So
I started up the ladder, which was easy. I just found each rung
with one hand and then pulled myself up another step. But, when I
got to the beam, which took forever, I got myself onto it and put
my back to the tree with my hands behind me, hugging the tree.
That's when I noticed that the beam was round and narrow--three
and a half inches across. I was very scared! So I shouted down to
the Sportsmind leader, "Now what?"
     He shouted back, "Walk to the middle and jump off."
     I said, "How?" I guess it is becoming clear to you that I am
a chicken. Eventually I made myself take that first tentative
step, but it was so scary that I quickly jumped back and hugged
the tree. I could not figure out how I was going to do this. I
stood there for a while slowly realizing that I either had to go
or come back down. I was afraid that I would take one step, fall
off, and bang into the tree.
     But eventually I decided that the best thing was just to get
it over with. So I started walking, and eventually I got to the
middle. But when they started shouting that I was in the middle,
I didn't believe them. I thought they were just saying that to
make me feel good. So I kept going. Then I noticed that their
shouts were sounding very insistent. It was definitely time to
jump. I stopped and gathered myself for a minute, and then I
jumped, and the rope stopped me the way it was supposed to. When
I eventually got to the ground, my colleagues rushed up to me and
hugged me and cheered. They told me how great I had done, better
than anybody else. But I hadn't done better than anybody else. I
probably did worse than anybody else, except for the ones who
didn't attempt it.
     The next two events went fine. I performed at about the same
level as my colleagues, or maybe a little worse, I don't know.
But by the end of the day I was getting an incredible amount of
praise and adulation. People from other groups were walking up to
me and telling me that they had heard that I was the star of the
show. I began to feel very uneasy and uncomfortable. Why were
these people so impressed by my mediocre achievements? I
concluded it was because they had started out with such low
expectations of what I was going to do that day. And that very
much disturbed me. If they had such profound doubts about my
ability to walk on a balance beam, how could they possibly
believe that I was able to be as competent at the law as they
were?
     This brings me to telling you about the one other job
accommodation I make on the job that I think every blind person
must make. It makes all the other accommodations work. I work to
maintain a high level of confidence in myself. The only way my
colleagues can learn to have confidence in me is for me to have
confidence in myself. But this confidence must be grounded in
substance--confidence in my strong blindness skills and in my
lawyering skills.
     When Mr. Maurer spoke to the Student Division Sunday night,
he alluded to the fact that, when he faces something challenging,
he remembers his brothers and sisters in the Federation and their
love and support for him.
     That's exactly what I did on that balance beam. After I took
that first failed step, I stood up there on that beam and thought
about all of you in this room and how you would be cheering for
me and supporting me. That's what gave me the courage to go for
it and prove that I could do it. That's the only way I know of to
maintain a steady level of self-confidence in a world filled with
doubts about the ability of blind people--be an active member of
the NFB and work side by side with great blind people. Thank you
very much.


            CHIEF OF BLIND SCHOOL WELCOMES CHALLENGE
          SUPERINTENDENT KNOWS HE MUST BE LION-HEARTED
                 LIKE SCHOOL'S SYMBOL AND MASCOT
                          by Susan Roth

     From the Editor: For the past year we have reported
periodically on events at the Arkansas School for the Blind. (See
the November, 1994, and July, 1995, issues of the Braille
Monitor.) In January of this year Leonard Ogburn, the school's
erstwhile superintendent, who had first been suspended and then
fired for harassing a teacher by spanking her, pled no contest to
the charges facing him. This spring Dr. Ivan Terzieff was hired
as superintendent and took up his duties on June 1. Throughout
the evolution of this story, the Arkansas Democrat Gazette
followed it closely and faithfully reported on the continuing
morale problems at the School and the legislature's growing
dissatisfaction. On Sunday, July 2, 1995, Susan Roth, the
reporter who had stayed with the story, wrote a follow-up piece
reporting on Dr. Terzieff's first month on the job. If Susan Roth
is to be believed, the Arkansas School for the Blind may actually
have landed on its feet. Only time, the integrity and toughness
of Dr. Terzieff, and the maturity and good will of the staff and
public will tell for sure. But here is the story:

     The life-size stuffed lion sitting watch in a window of the
Arkansas School for the Blind is the school's mascot and its
symbol as well. Once an image of strength and grace beloved by
hundreds of children at the school, the lion is old and faded,
faintly rancid, falling apart.
     There may not be much hope for the old lion, but there is
hope for the school, says new Superintendent Ivan Terzieff.
Terzieff, who took the position June 1, is resolutely optimistic
about the school's future. He knows his job will be hard. By all
accounts he has walked into a lion's den.
     In the past two years Leonard Ogburn, the former
superintendent, faced accusations of sexual misconduct, nepotism,
favoritism, and financial improprieties. Ogburn left the school
last September, but the controversy tore the school into two
fiercely warring factions: Ogburn supporters and detractors.
     The selection process that chose Terzieff as the new
superintendent was tainted. One of the other three finalists for
the position had been fired from his last job for failing to
report sexual abuse by students at an Illinois school.
     And now, because of alleged mismanagement, the Legislature
has ordered a reorganization of the Arkansas School for the
Blind, starting with the transfer of several departments to
management by the neighboring School for the Deaf.
     But Terzieff, fifty-seven, says he is up to the challenge of
restoring the School for the Blind. A gentle man of quiet
determination, he is friendly but with an air of respectful
formality and a slight accent that betrays his European roots.
     The story of the School for the Blind pales in comparison to
Terzieff's own personal story. He is reluctant to tell it, but
friends like to tell of his daring escape from his native
Bulgaria at age eighteen. He and two friends slipped through the
barbed-wire border of the Communist country and hiked through the
Strange Mountains into Turkey, where they were held in refugee
camps.
     Four years later Terzieff came to the United States with the
help of an American who befriended him in Turkey. The experience
gave Terzieff great personal strength, according to a former
supervisor.
     "Ivan has a certain calmness, a sense of being able to
really identify a crisis and not get carried away by any crisis
that happens every minute of the day," said Dennis Thurman,
superintendent of the Iowa Braille and Sight Saving School, where
Terzieff was principal for eight years before coming to Arkansas.
     "He accepts people as they are; he likes people," Thurman
said. "His strength is relating to kids. He really loves kids."
     Terzieff earned a bachelor's degree in Russian from the
University of Massachusetts in 1964, a master's in education from
the University of Pittsburgh in 1972, and a doctorate in special
education administration from Ohio State University in 1980.
     He said he discovered his interest in vision by accident. He
was teaching in an inner-city school in Pittsburgh before
attending graduate school when he noticed that many students who
had trouble reading had visual problems. Later he enrolled in the
University of Pittsburgh's program in teaching the visually
handicapped.
     After earning his master's degree, Terzieff took a job
coordinating the orientation and mobility program here at the
Arkansas School for the Blind. The school has changed since 1973,
he said.
     "Everything was in place; everything was working. There are
still as many good people here now as there were then. But the
atmosphere was different," he recalled.
     "In this past year a lot of energies were directed outside
the school, and that may have contributed to problems here,"
Terzieff said. "I'm hoping those energies will turn in now. I'm
hoping to put them to work here."
     His primary focus is the students--the fifty-two arriving
this weekend for summer school and then the 120 expected in
August for the fall term. Terzieff is concerned that the recent
furor has resulted in neglect of the children. Neglect is visible
in a tour of the buildings themselves.
     The peeling paint on the entry to Girls' Cottage, a
dormitory for young girls, is just an introduction to the
crumbling walls inside. The elementary classrooms and the
connected dorm for the youngest students smell of mold and
mildew.
     In apartments for seniors in the Smith Vocational Building
next door, bathrooms are moldy and crumbling, and the floor has
sunk a couple of inches into the hillside, leaving a gap between
the wall and the floor and cracks in the walls. Roof leaks have
led to gaping holes in the ceilings.
     Piles of junk littered the campus when Terzieff arrived.
Most of the broken furniture, old mattresses, pipes, pieces of
wood, and rolls of fencing are now gone.
     "It was all just laying around outside," Terzieff said. "It
was all around the school. Nobody ever moved it. I'm sure
somebody cared, but . . . ," he shrugged his shoulders. "It
appears that nobody did."
     Somebody definitely cared about Shults House, the dorm for
the oldest girls. There is no peeling paint, outside or inside.
The carpeting is new and plush; the walls are clean and hung with
framed artwork; and there are antiques, soft sofas, and a piano
in the living room. Upstairs the spacious bedrooms are full of
attractive furniture in good condition.
     "It's inviting," Terzieff said. "Students ought to feel this
is their home to live in." The building, he said, is not newer
than the others--it's just been better maintained.
     In the other dorms Terzieff has already commissioned fresh
paint and new furniture. Along with the general renovations,
Terzieff plans to tackle the school's lack of compliance with the
Americans with Disabilities Act.
     That means labeling every doorway in Braille, increasing the
access to buildings for students who use wheelchairs, and
creating some wheelchair-accessible bathrooms.
     Part of the reason for this push is Terzieff's intention to
integrate the exceptional unit--the school's version of special
education for students with multiple handicaps--into the rest of
the school. This reflects a national trend towards including
special education students in regular classes whenever possible.
     In the past these students, who numbered about twenty last
year, lived and attended classes in their own building and never
mixed with others.
     Terzieff acknowledged that teachers are already apprehensive
about these changes, but he said the changes will come gradually
so the whole school can adjust. Eventually he'd like to see more
team teaching between regular teachers and those for students
with multiple handicaps.
     There will also be more teamwork between the dormitory and
teaching staffs. House parents used to live in apartments in the
dorms, but they won't any more. Dorm staff will now work in three
shifts starting about 6:00 a.m., 2:30 p.m. and 10:15 p.m. to
cover twenty-four hours. The staff will check on the children
throughout the night, Terzieff said.
     The day shift house parents will attend school with the
students and act as teacher's aides. This will build a connection
between academic and home skills into the curriculum as
recommended by the school's accreditors.
     Terzieff also wants to place computers in the dorms and
classrooms, replace old textbooks, enroll more students in
regular public school classes, and initiate a work-study program
to give pupils work experience.
     He acknowledged that there is some truth to the accusation
of pay inequity among teachers at the school. He said he is
working with state officials to equalize salaries in the next
couple of years.
     Terzieff declined to comment on whether some uncertified
teachers had held improper positions at the school. But he did
say some staff members will be working toward certification.
     All this will take time, he knows. But the first thing he
wants to do is overcome all that's happened in the past two
years.
     "Most of those who are here are willing to put all that
behind them," he said. "I am relying on them to turn it around.
Those that don't want to come along eventually will either have
to come along or go. It's their choice. But they won't disrupt
the rest of the school. I don't even want to know what happened
before," he said. "I really don't need to know. I am interested
in what is happening right now and where are we going from here."
     Thurman, the Iowa superintendent, said it's up to the school
staff and Arkansas citizens to turn the school around. "The
question is not whether he can do it. The question is: Are y'all
up to deciding you want to do something different--citizens and
staff and legislators? If you want to be different, Ivan can help
you, but if you don't want to change, he can't make you."
     Terzieff said he found comfort in the support of alumni and
the Arkansas blind community. He's not sorry he took the job at
the School for the Blind.
     "In spite of everything that has happened, there are
excellent people in the school," he said. "The potential is here,
the community in general supports the school, and with that
behind it, anything is possible. It's a challenge, but it's a
nice challenge."




     If you or a friend would like to remember the National
Federation of the Blind in your will, you can do so by employing
the following language:

     "I give, devise, and bequeath unto the National Federation
of the Blind, 1800 Johnson Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21230, a
District of Columbia nonprofit corporation, the sum of
$__________(or "______ percent of my net estate" or "The
following stocks and bonds: ________") to be used for its worthy
purposes on behalf of blind persons."



[caption: Kenneth Jernigan]
                 OF TOOTHPASTE AND SHAVING CREAM
                       by Kenneth Jernigan

     From the Editor: The latest in the Federation's Kernel Book
series of paperbacks is titled Toothpaste and Railroad Tracks.
The following story provides part of the explanation for the
title. Here it is:

     Almost everybody who thinks about blindness begins with the
assumption that, if you are blind, you are at a tremendous
disadvantage in dealing with the everyday tasks of getting along
and managing your life. To some extent, of course, that is true.
     Regardless of other things, the world is structured for the
sighted. Most books are in print, not Braille; an increasing
number of electrical appliances have lights that flash and
flicker instead of knobs that turn and click; and pictures are
replacing words on everything from the cash register at
McDonald's to the sign on the bathroom door.
     Most of these items and appliances could be marked and
produced in nonvisual ways, but the fact that they aren't (and
that they won't be) is not an overwhelming problem. There are
techniques for dealing with the reading, the flickering lights
under transparent plates, and the pictures that tell you where to
go and what to do.
     Functioning as a blind person in a world designed for the
sighted keeps you on your toes, but with a little thought and
ingenuity you can manage. In fact, you can manage quite well.
     But that isn't the way most people look at it. They figure
that, if you are blind, your days are miserably bleak and
limited. I've been blind all of my life, and I think I am about
as happy and successful as most of the sighted people I know. It
is true that I haven't made a million dollars or been elected
President of the United States--but I get along, pay my bills,
and look forward to a good dinner and a Sunday afternoon. So do
the majority of blind people I know. And I know a lot of them--
some successful, some just managing to get by, and most somewhere
between.
     And let me hasten to add that I am not just talking about
people who have been blind from birth but about all of the other
variations--those who became blind as children, those who became
blind as young adults, and those who became blind in middle age
or later.
     But if blindness is how I say it is--if you can have as much
fun, make as much money, and be as successful as anybody else--
why do people think blindness is so tragic and limiting? I have
given a lot of thought to that question, and I believe the answer
is less involved with the major activities of life than with the
insignificant details.
     It is true that over seventy percent of working-age blind
people are unemployed--not because they can't do the job but
because people think they can't do it and because they haven't
had opportunity. But most people don't know that. More to the
point, they don't think about it, and even if they did, they
would simply take it for granted that the majority of blind
people are not unemployed but unemployable, and then they would
pass on to something else. 
     No, it is not the big things that cause the average member
of the public to think of blindness as tragic and limiting. It is
the routine activities, the details.
     More specifically, it is the fact that, when there is more
than one way to do a thing and when one of those ways involves
using sight, the sighted person will almost inevitably use the
visual technique. It will be done without a second thought, with
the automatic assumption that the visual technique is superior.
Some visual techniques are superior, of course; some are
approximately equal; and some are inferior.
     Let me give you an example. A few mornings ago, my wife
(who, incidently, is sighted) expressed some annoyance that her
toothpaste had fallen off the brush. I was quite surprised, for I
realized that something I had always taken for granted wasn't so.
     "Do you squeeze your toothpaste on to your toothbrush,
looking at it as you do it, and then put the toothbrush loaded
with toothpaste into your mouth?" I asked.
     "Why, yes," she said. "Doesn't everybody do it that way?"
     "I don't," I said. "I put the tube up to my mouth, bite off
what I want, and then put the brush on my teeth and go at it."
     My wife was as surprised by my technique as I was by hers.
"It makes sense," she said. "I'll try it."
     She did, and she said how much more efficient my technique
was than the visual method she had been using. About a week later
I asked her if she was still using my toothpaste technique, and
she rather sheepishly said that she wasn't. When I asked her why,
she thought about it a minute and then said, "I guess I'm so used
to looking at it that it's just too hard to change."
     Here's a case where the nonvisual technique is clearly
superior but where the visual method is automatically used even
though it is not as good. My wife (along with most of the other
sighted people I have asked) has always, without even thinking
about it, taken it for granted that the sighted technique is
superior.
     If she had considered it at all before our conversation, she
would probably have felt that my method of putting toothpaste on
the brush would be the same as hers except that I would need to
feel for the brush, which would be a little harder than just
looking at it.
     Certainly the world doesn't turn on whether you bite your
toothpaste or squeeze it onto a brush, but life is a matter of
daily routine, not dramatic events. So let me move from
toothbrushes to razors.
     I shave every day (or almost every day), and I do it with an
ordinary razor with a blade. Many of the sighted men I know tell
me that they shave in front of a mirror. Yet I have known a great
many sighted men who have worked at schools or training centers
for the blind and who, after seeing blind boys and men shaving in
the shower, have tried the technique and adopted it. I have never
known one of them to return to the visual technique. In fact,
even those who shave in front of a mirror almost always rub their
hand across their face to feel if it is clean shaven. Even so,
the average person tends to think that shaving without sight is
difficult. It isn't. The nonvisual method is easier and offers
more flexibility.
     Like most men who shave with a blade, I use shaving cream,
the kind that comes from a can under pressure and makes a big
pile of foam. Since I have to wash my face anyway, I combine the
operation with shaving. I get my face (including my forehead)
wet, and I then spread shaving cream all over it. When I am
finished, I rinse and am done.
     A few years ago, when I was making television announcements
for the National Federation of the Blind, I thought it might be
interesting to demonstrate different techniques used by the
blind. I had shots made of me walking down the street, carrying
wood to a fireplace, tying my tie, and shaving.
     As the TV editors looked at the pictures, everything was all
right until they came to the shaving sequence. One of them said,
"We can't show that. It would look like a vaudeville act, like
somebody throwing a pie at your face."
     I gathered from my questions to them that they were
accustomed to seeing TV commercials about shaving and that in
those commercials a small amount of shaving cream is put on a
part of the face. Those commercials, it would seem, had formed
their image of what was normal and acceptable. As with some of
the other things I have been discussing, I had always assumed
that other men used shaving cream the way I did. Apparently such
is not the case.
     I said to one of the TV editors: "Don't you wash your face
in the morning?"
     "Yes," he said, "but I don't do it with shaving cream. I
wash my face and forehead with soap. I rinse my face; and then I
put shaving cream on and shave." It seemed to me that this was a
time-wasting, inefficient way to do it, but I thought I would
keep my opinion to myself.
     When I was Director of Programs for the Blind in the state
of Iowa, we bought an old YMCA building for a headquarters and
training center. It had seven floors, and the only way to get
from the basement to the top was either by climbing the stairs or
by using the elevator.
     It was, to say the least, not a modern elevator. In fact, it
was one of the old-fashioned kind using direct current. It had a
grille-work at the front of the cab and a lever that you pushed
one way to go up and the other way to go down. There was no way
to tell when you got to a given floor except by looking--or, at
least, that's what we thought when we moved in.
     But those of us who were blind had the strongest possible
incentive to devise a nonvisual technique, for we couldn't afford
to hire an elevator operator--and we didn't want to walk up and
down the stairs between the seven floors all day.
     My first thought was that, if we couldn't see the floors,
perhaps we could string a cable from the top to the bottom of the
elevator shaft with some kind of tabs on it that would brush the
elevator car and make a noise at each floor. That would have been
expensive and complicated, and we never got around to it. In the
meantime we walked--at least, those of us who were blind did.
     Then, one of the blind trainees found that he could stick a
knife or comb through the grille-work and touch the bar on the
elevator door at each floor, thus allowing a blind person to
operate the elevator easily and efficiently. A little later we
learned that we had been going about the whole thing wrong. If we
paid attention, we could feel the air currents coming off the
floors as we passed them and could level the elevator without any
mechanical devices at all.
     Why did it take us so long to discover this technique? I
believe it was because it never occurred to us to think in any
other way except in visual terms. We thought that, if we couldn't
see the floors, we needed to devise a substitute to do the same
thing, to touch them in one way or another. Only when we opened
our minds and let our imaginations run free did we get the
solution.
     The elevator technique we developed was not superior to the
visual technique used by the sighted occupants of the building,
but it was just as good. The fact that it was different didn't
make it inferior. It just meant that it was different.
     There is more opportunity for blind people today than there
has ever been in the history of the world, and we are only
beginning to realize our possibilities. We are truly changing
what it means to be blind, and one of the ways we are doing it is
by coming to understand that visual techniques are not
necessarily superior to nonvisual techniques. And it isn't just
blind people who are learning this. It is also an increasing
number of the sighted public. We who are blind must lead the way
and do for ourselves, but we must do it in partnership with the
sighted. And we must do it with imagination and new ways of
thinking.


                LOOKING BACK AT TRAINS AND TRACKS
                      by Maureen Pranghofer

     From the Editor: If you read the preceding article, you know
where the toothpaste comes from in the title of the newest
Federation Kernel Book, Toothpaste and Railroad Tracks. Now
discover the railroad tracks, beginning with Dr. Jernigan's
introduction:

     An unnamed terror, needless and debilitating, accompanied
Maureen Pranghofer from early childhood to middle age. In the
story that follows, Maureen tells of her struggle to get on the
right track. Here is what she has to say:

     My fascination with trains began on the north side of the
living room and gradually spread south. For it was on the north
side that the television was located just a little to the right
of the front door. And it was just south of this where I played
"train" with my great aunt Nora.
     As it did with other young children in the early 1960's,
television was playing an increasingly important role in my daily
life. There were certain TV programs which were rallying points
for the entire family. Paramount among these were the famous ones
which grabbed the rest of the U.S.--"The Flintstones," "The
Jetsons," and the "Mickey Mouse Club."
     But the most central fixture on the tube which came blasting
into the north side of the living room was the program featuring
the train of Casey Jones. At noon channel 11, an independent
station, delighted area children by presenting "Lunch with
Casey."
     As the sound of a chugging train was heard in the distance,
a booming voice would announce "Now arriving on track 11...."
Casey Jones would get off the train, which had come to a tooting,
screeching halt, and run into the club house. He would sit down
at his lunch table, remove the napkin from atop his meal, and say
something like "Well, well, what do we have here? It looks like a
peach and cottage cheese and, oh yes, a chicken sandwich and a
big glass of milk. I'm ready for my lunch. How about you?" Then
the cartoon-filled half hour would progress along as quickly as
an Amtrak train speeding to its destination. I liked hearing the
sound of that train. I liked watching Casey hop off. And I was
always interested in what he had for lunch.
     My concept of tracks, trains, and railroads would probably
have remained in the realm of television had it not been for my
younger brother's birthday gift. In a large square box came a
present meant for my two-year-old brother which I immediately
claimed. It was a train set, complete with plastic tracks,
switching mechanism, and little cars which hooked together.
Truthfully I can never remember playing with the cars much, but
the tracks and switching device were major highlights in my
seven-year-old life.
     At least three times a week I built and then tore down my
railroad empire, which was situated just south of the TV and
which usually ran in an east-west direction. Building was
accomplished by arranging the tracks in whatever way fit my fancy
at the moment.
     There were countless possibilities. One had only to use
imagination and hook the tracks together. Hooking the track
together meant simply that you would take each piece of plastic
track and fit the end with the round notch sticking out into an
accompanying piece of track which had the round notch indented.
These track pieces were of various lengths, shapes, and sizes.
When fit together they formed one continuous track.
     This in and of itself was not all that wonderful, but the
switching mechanism was the hallmark and centerpiece of the
entire toy.
     This mechanism was plastic like the tracks and was shaped
like a capital "T." There was a small crank which when rotated
turned the track until it cut across the opposite track and thus
made the train turn around.
     Now, if you have been around trains you already know how all
this works. But for me, a seven-year-old who had only seen two
minutes of an engineer disembarking from a television locomotive,
it was a big deal.
     In addition to my younger sisters and brother I had an
occasional lunch-time buddy who was equally fascinated with
trains. That was my great aunt Nora. Now Nora was the dream fairy
godmother of any child. When she came to visit, her purse was
stocked full of surprises like gum and Life Savers.
     If you wanted to read, color, play a game, or watch
television, your wish was her command. She would read as long as
you were willing to listen, talk about important childhood things
which were seen as silly to any other adult, and enter into a
child's world of play as though she, too, were a kid.
     Whether or not she was in actuality as personally interested
in Casey's train as I was is something I'll never know. But if I
was interested in trains, then she, too, could be captivated by
them as well in order to please me.
     So I was not surprised when, one noon hour while we were
jointly watching the tube, she said, "Maybe we'll take the train
somewhere. How would you like that?" I was beside myself with
delight. Awaiting the day when we would actually be real live
passengers aboard a for real train ride was almost more than I
could stand. But finally the day arrived.
     Nora, my mother, two younger sisters, and my younger brother
drove into Minneapolis, where we would catch the train which
would take us across the river to St. Paul. There we would eat
dinner at the depot and meet my father, who would drive us home.
The entire time on the train was less than a half hour, but that
didn't matter to me.
     With a stomach full of butterflies I walked into the depot.
Tickets were purchased, and then a voice over the loudspeaker
boomed, "Now arriving on track 29, train bound for St. Paul."
     "Just like TV," I thought as I stepped out of the main area
of the depot and turned toward the waiting train.
     The moment I stepped through the glass doors out into the
boarding area my excitement turned to fear. It was an intangible,
eery feeling, but one I was sadly familiar with and was to
experience for years to come.
     The first time I'd experienced this unnamed fear was after
visiting a friend. My mother was carrying me out to the car. It
was night, and, though I was in her arms, I felt totally
panicked. Later I again recognized this nightmarish feeling when
my aunt Carla took me to a theater to see West Side Story. And
again this envelope of fright would surround me while riding in
the car at night, alone in the back seat, while my mother and
grandmother talked in the front seat.
     It was a feeling I couldn't put into words--a terror which
would leave me crying at times and unable to explain to
questioning adults what was happening. It was a fear which left
my palms sweaty and my heart pounding. And, as I grew older, it
did not diminish as do childish fears of the monster under the
bed or the boogieman in the corner.
     As a nine- or ten-year-old I was followed by it when I
walked across the busy street by my grandmother's home. It
accompanied me to restaurants and to new places. It accompanied
me as I was walking at night.
     Finally as a forty-year-old woman I now understand what
caused my joyful fascination with trains to turn to fear. I now
know why going out to eat in a fancy restaurant was nerve-racking
and why an evening walk in our quiet neighborhood was not
enjoyable.
     It all had to do with blindness. As an individual born with
partial sight I did not live in the world of blind people. I used
my vision and was not considered to be blind as far as my family
was concerned. Yes they knew I had "problems seeing," but these
were never talked about openly.
     Like a train on the right track I did fine as long as I
could use my vision. But put me into a situation where this
wasn't possible, and I immediately became derailed.
     It took an accident in the summer of 1993 which left me
totally blind to get me truly on the right track. Not having any
sight was at first terrifying, confusing, and depressing. But
with the help of the National Federation of the Blind I have
learned at long last that blindness does not have to be a scary
thing. I have learned that independence is possible and that
travel, in even in unfamiliar environments, does not have to be
equated with terror.
     I think of all the times when I couldn't enjoy evening
walks, couldn't enjoy dimly lit restaurants, and of the special
time with Nora and the "real live train" that I could not enjoy
because I couldn't see where I was going in the unfamiliar,
poorly lit boarding area. How many others are uneasy about doing
these same things and too ashamed to talk about it?
     Today I travel confidently thanks to the National Federation
of the Blind. I know where I'm going, and I'm glad I'm on the
right track.


                     THE DECLINE OF BRAILLE
                       by Madeline Drexler

     From the Editor: The following article appeared in the June
25, 1995, edition of the Boston Globe. It is cheering to discover
that a writer for one of the nation's major newspapers can
produce a story about Braille that is accurate and sensible. It
is also encouraging to note that all of the sources she consulted
were in agreement about the importance of Braille. Here is what
Madeline Drexler wrote:

     Long before the computer age spawned new language codes, a
fifteen-year-old French boy, the blind son of a harness maker,
invented a code that opened an information highway to millions of
people. His name was Louis Braille, and in 1824 he developed a
tactile system of raised dots, based on the domino, that
dramatically boosted the literacy of people who suffered vision
loss. Though initially spurned, the Braille code came to be
universally accepted. But with technology now pushing us toward a
"paperless society," what will become of this vital language that
is the ultimate in low-tech: fingertips to embossed pages?
     That question worries many people who work in the blind
community. Surveys suggest that Braille literacy has declined in
the last forty years. Blind children, most of whom attend public
schools, may not be acquiring the Braille skills they need to
function in the sighted world. Such a trend is alarming because,
among people with little or no usable vision, mastery of Braille
greatly enhances prospects for higher education and for jobs.
     Braille has many advantages over other forms of
communication for the blind. It is more easily scanned and
retraced than an audio tape and therefore better for reviewing
information-dense materials such as a history book or a manual.
Someone giving a speech can hold Braille notes instead of relying
on memory. Braille is handy for phone numbers, addresses, and
lists. And it is an excellent way to organize things, from office
files to groceries. "There are blind people who may not pick up a
copy of War and Peace in Braille, but they can label their canned
goods," says Frances Mary D'Andrea, manager of the National
Initiative on Literacy, in the Atlanta office of the American
Foundation for the Blind.
     Unfortunately, not everyone who might benefit from Braille
knows the code. Surveys conducted by the American Printing House
for the Blind, in Louisville, Kentucky, show falling rates of
Braille literacy. In 1963, among legally blind children and
adults in rehabilitation, fifty-two percent knew Braille. In
1994, the figure was ten percent.
     According to Mary Nell McLennan, director of educational and
advisory services for the printing house, that ten percent, while
a decline, "is not quite as alarming as the numbers would have
you believe." This is because the surveyed community of blind
people is larger and more varied than it used to be. Of the 1.1
million legally blind people in the United States, only twenty
percent are blind; the rest have some small amount of central or
peripheral vision that can be enhanced with optical aids such as
magnifiers and contrast-enhancing TV screens. Moreover, a growing
proportion of blind people became sightless with age. And the
blind community now includes infants and young children with
multiple handicaps, youngsters who often would not have survived
several decades ago. In other words, a bigger fraction of blind
people today either can't learn Braille or are not inclined to do
so.
     On the other hand, Braille is not taught as widely as it
used to be. Unlike the 1950's and 1960's, when vision-impaired
children attended special residential schools, they now are
likely to go to public schools, where they are encouraged to use
audio materials and whatever sight they have. Braille may not be
offered or may be taught by an unqualified instructor. And
because fewer university special-education programs teach
Braille, there is a shortage of instructors.
     All of which worries Marc Maurer, President of the National
Federation of the Blind, in Baltimore. His mother taught him
Braille the summer after he was in first grade. Soon Maurer, who
is now forty-three, grew to love books, sneaking Braille texts
under the blankets at night. He went on to the University of
Notre Dame and law school. From his perspective the drop in
Braille literacy amounts to class discrimination. "The obvious
implication is that you have blind people who cannot read Braille
and cannot do what you need to do in your business life," he
says.
     A more subtle effect, he adds, is that society doesn't
expect much from blind people. However accurate, the oft-quoted
ten percent Braille-literacy figure "is terribly important and
terribly revealing," Maurer says. "The schools think that blind
people don't have any future. If teachers begin with the
proposition that you're not going to do something complex, then
they won't teach the skills to handle complex matters."
     Employment statistics add weight to Maurer's contention.
About seventy percent of working-age people who are blind are
unemployed or underemployed, according to the American Foundation
for the Blind. Those who have jobs are twenty percent more likely
to use Braille than are those who are unemployed but want to
work, the foundation says.
     Ironically, as Braille literacy sags, high-tech devices have
emerged that can render printed text and other materials into
Braille--and vice versa. Optical character-recognition machines
translate print into Braille. Small "refreshable" electronic
displays can produce in Braille whatever text is splashed across
a computer screen. Special printers churn out embossed copy from
standard computer disks. Portable electronic Braille note takers
can be hooked up to speech synthesizers or Braille displays. And
hundreds of new books are printed each year in Braille (though
new audio books are more plentiful, partly because they're
cheaper to produce).
     Braille instruction isn't the answer for every vision-
impaired child. But advocates for the blind want to retain the
option. "If the student, parent, or teacher thinks it's important
for the child to learn Braille, that's what should be done," says
Maurer. Such a provision is under consideration in the
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, a federal law from
the mid-'70's that Congress is redrafting.
     Even in the digital age, a nineteenth-century tactile code
based on raised dots remains relevant. "I think there's always
going to be a need for Braille--a personal, portable, literary
communication system that doesn't depend on electricity," says
the foundation's D'Andrea. Or, as Mary Nell McLennan puts it,
"Braille will remain healthy and viable long after we stop
kicking."


[Caption: Adrienne Asch, Ph.D.]
                 VISUAL IMPAIRMENT AND BLINDNESS
                        by Adrienne Asch

     From the Editor: Dr. Adrienne Asch is Henry R. Luce
Professor in Biology, Ethics, and the Politics of Human
Reproduction at Wellesley College. She is also a longtime
Federationist. Last year she was asked to prepare the visual
impairment entry for the Encyclopedia of Social Work, 9th
Edition, a publication of the National Association of Social
Workers, Washington, D.C. Adrienne is always deluged with writing
and speaking projects beyond the scope of her already demanding
professional responsibilities, but she recognized that this
invitation was a valuable opportunity to give social workers
solid, accurate, sensible information about blindness. Somehow
she made the time to write the article. The Encyclopedia is now
in print, and useful and constructive information is available to
social workers who turn to it for guidance. Her article will also
undoubtedly be useful to Federationists engaged in public
education about blindness. This is what Adrienne wrote:

     A December 26, 1994, story on National Public Radio's
(NPR's) "All Things Considered" vividly captured the prevailing
images of blindness. The story described a fifty-three-year-old
Mexican immigrant to the United States whose work as an
accordionist and singer in the New York City subways "amazes and
entertains even the most cynical riders." According to the NPR
reporter, "What made this so incredible was that the musician was
blind. But there he was, moving slowly through the swaying and
speeding car, never missing a beat in the music, never losing his
balance." She reported that nickels, dimes, quarters, and dollar
bills began "to fill the white plastic cup taped to his
accordion." The reporter was astonished that he came from Mexico
City to New York "all alone" and that "he lives in one of the
poorest, highest crime areas of New York City but...has never
been robbed or assaulted; on the contrary, strangers help him up
and down the subway stairs; his neighbors...help him to run his
errands." She closed the program by saying that the man "must
have an angel looking over him."
     Whereas the reporter was astonished, the musician himself
was matter-of-fact. To her queries about coming from Mexico City
to New York alone, he said, "Yes, I was scared when I first came
to New York, but now that I know my way around, I'm not afraid
anymore." As to how he kept his balance in the moving subway when
the reporter lost hers, he replied, "That's what you call
practice." And in summing up his life, he explained, "I'm happy
because I have everything I need, except that I'm blind, but that
doesn't count any more. It did at the beginning, but I've been
this way thirty-three years." And he countered the reporter's
idea of a special angel by saying, "Oh I'm sure of that, not only
an angel, but there's also God, who looks over me and everyone
else."
     This story provides important clues to images and realities
about visual impairment and blindness and suggests the sharply
contrasting perceptions of a newcomer to blindness and of someone
who has learned to live as a person with a visual impairment.
     Like most people who rely on their vision, the reporter was
astonished that a blind musician could make his way in the world
safely and competently without it and concluded that he must have
been protected by kind strangers, neighbors, and a special
guardian angel. Such beliefs are not idiosyncratic, as studies of
people's attitudes toward blindness and other disabilities
(Makas, 1988; Siller, Chipman, Ferguson, & Vann, 1967; Siller,
Ferguson, Vann, & Holland, 1967) have found and as indicated by
the fact that NPR deemed the story newsworthy. Thus, although a
1991 survey by Louis Harris and Associates reported that
blindness is a "more accepted" disability than is mental illness
and that 47 percent of the survey population considered
themselves "very comfortable" when meeting a blind person, many
people equate blindness with helplessness. As Asch and Mudrick
("Disability," volume 1) explain about attitudes toward
disabilities in general, people assume that life with a long-term
condition, such as impaired vision, is as stressful,
disorganizing, and difficult as the crisis of traumatic injury or
acute illness. They imagine that, if it is difficult for them to
manage their lives with all their senses, then surely someone
without sight would have even more trouble. Of course, the image
of the blind man as a beggar, musician, or both goes back at
least to the Old Testament and further enshrines the notion that
those who lack vision must depend on and can make little or no
positive contribution to others.
     Fortunately, the facts and possibilities of life for people
who are blind differ markedly from these myths. After training in
managing as a blind person, and when not barred by fears of
others, blind people study, hold jobs, raise families, go to
restaurants, and participate in typical life roles and
activities. Because blindness and visual impairment are
relatively rare, because some visually impaired people may also
have other social and health problems that isolate them, and
because blind people have faced past and continuing patterns of
discrimination, social workers may have had little contact with
people who are blind and may imagine that a person's blindness
precludes functioning competently in the world. Many of those
with impaired vision are also over the retirement age, are new at
dealing with their sight loss, and are experiencing other health
problems (Ainlay, 1988). They may indeed appear frail, weak, or
in need of help, but their difficulties may stem from lack of
training in dealing with blindness or from these other health
problems and not from blindness itself. This entry provides
information on the visually impaired and blind population of the
United States today, describes legislation and services of
special relevance to this population, considers the significance
of visual impairment at different life stages, and concludes with
thoughts on the role of the social work profession in working
with clients and colleagues who have visual impairments.
     As will be discussed here, many people have some sort or
degree of visual impairment, but if they can rely on their vision
to perform tasks of daily living, reading, writing, and traveling
safely, they do not have visual impairments that cause them or
others to regard them as having particular problems or as
requiring special services or adaptations. Thus, although some of
those who have visual problems may benefit from a more
accommodating environment, such as larger print on street signs
or brighter lighting in buildings, they are not the focus of this
entry because they do not define themselves and are not defined
by others as having problems related to their vision that require
services or alternative means of functioning. In fact, fewer than
one-quarter of the visually impaired population are unable to see
at all and would be described as totally blind (Kahn & Moorhead,
1973; personal communication with C. Kirchner, American
Foundation for the Blind, 1994); the rest have some vision that
may be useful and efficient for certain tasks but not for others.
However, this entry uses the terms "visually impaired" and
"blind" interchangeably to describe people who must rely on
nonvisual methods to function.

                             History
     The earliest approaches to helping blind and visually
impaired people in the United States stressed special, separate
education for blind children; sheltered or specialized,
noncompetitive employment for blind adults; and a specialized
system of service agencies to meet the social and recreational
needs of blind clients. Carroll (1961) argued that, in order to
adjust to the loss of vision, the newly blind person had to
"mourn" the "death" of the sighted self and to work to assume a
new identity.
     Scott's (1969) classic study revealed that most social
service agencies in "the blindness system" adhered to this
philosophy and maintained that few blind or visually impaired
children or adults could function in ordinary activities in
school, at work, and in the community. Thus, social and
educational programs for visually impaired people taught Braille;
travel with a long cane or a guide dog; and some methods of
cooking, sewing, and maintaining daily life. However, they also
engendered in their clients a belief that visual impairment
prevented them from participating in their former employment or
community activities and that they needed to develop new outlets
and new lives as blind people. Furthermore, traditional social
services agencies in the blindness system did not challenge laws
that prohibited blind people from taking civil service
examinations or serving as jurors, for example.
     The challenge to the notion that blindness and visual
impairment entail separation from ordinary activities came from
blind people themselves, particularly those who founded the
National Federation of the Blind (NFB)--the first major civil
rights group of people with disabilities anywhere in the United
States (Asch, 1985; Matson, 1990). With its civil rights,
minority-group approach to blindness, NFB endorsed the need for
high-quality rehabilitation training and training in alternative
techniques of living for people who could not always rely on
vision, but it also endorsed the right of blind people to speak
for themselves and to combat laws and practices that excluded
them from ordinary educational, work, civic, and leisure-time
activities. This latter approach stresses learning alternative
techniques of functioning, contact with other people who have
mastered these techniques, involvement in consumer groups to
press for public education and social change, and the application
of these skills and attitudes to whichever areas of life an
individual enjoyed before he or she became visually impaired.
This approach wholeheartedly rejects Carroll's (1961) notion of
the person's need to adopt a new identity as a blind person in
favor of carrying on one's previous life and roles as a person
with impaired vision (Jernigan, 1994).

           Profile of the Visually Impaired Population
         Defining Visual Impairment and Legal Blindness
     According to the most recent available data, 1.6 million
people over age fifteen are unable to see well enough to read the
words and letters in ordinary print, even with eyeglasses
(McNeil, 1993). This figure is derived from the U.S. Bureau of
the Census's 1991-92 data on the noninstitutionalized population
and thus excludes about half a million people in nursing homes or
other institutions from the count of those with serious visual
difficulties (Nelson & Dimitrova, 1993). Furthermore, because
only visual limitations with reference to reading are explored,
these data do not indicate how many people cannot manage tasks
that require intermediate or distance vision, such as seeing a
computer screen, spotting a familiar person or building across a
street, or watching television (Nelson & Dimitrova). Thus, as
Kirchner (1994) pointed out, there are gaps in what is known
about the status and needs of everyone in the United States with
a serious visual limitation.

                        Demographic Data
     About 1.6 million people reported in 1991-92 that they could
not see well enough to read print even with glasses, or about
half a million more than the estimated population who were
defined as legally blind people (McNeil, 1993). However, because
visual impairment is far more prevalent in people over age sixty-
five, the omission of residents of nursing homes and other
institutions from the data collection drastically understates
those who could potentially benefit from vision services. Of the
people who are defined as legally blind, 64 percent are over age
sixty-five, 5 percent are under age twenty, and the remaining 21
percent are ages twenty to sixty-four (the prime working years).
     Legal blindness occurs in males and females in roughly equal
numbers until age sixty-five, but because women typically live
longer than do men, the elderly blind population is largely
female. Blindness and visual impairment are found more often in
people of color than in the white population, largely because
people of color are disproportionately denied the health services
that could diagnose and treat preventable blindness (Tielsch,
Sommer, Witt, Katz, & Royall, 1990).
     Information on the employment and income of visually
impaired people also comes from the 1991-92 census data on those
who reported that they were "unable to see to read," a number
greater than those who are defined as legally blind. Compared to
the overall working-age population, working-age men and women
with visual impairments are substantially underrepresented among
the employed. In 1991-92, 89 percent of all men, 73 percent of
all women, and 80 percent of those ages twenty-one to sixty-four
were employed. In contrast, only 31 percent of the men, 21
percent of the women, and 26 percent of the overall population of
those who could not see to read were employed. These data reveal
an urgent need to determine the reasons for unemployment in this
population and to promote this population's entry into the world
of work.
     In 1991-92 the mean monthly earnings of employed people with
visual impairments ($1,238), were well below those of the work
force as a whole ($1,962). Perhaps the inability to read
channeled some people into lower-paying jobs that did not require
reading. However, many of those who were unable to read print
used alternative means, such as Braille, recordings, and
electronic means of reading to perform their jobs; thus, not all
the disparity in earnings can be attributed to the types of
employment in which people were engaged.
     As a whole, regardless of their employment status, people
with visual impairments are far more likely to be poor than are
those without visual impairments. In 1991-92, 20 percent of the
total U.S. population, but 43 percent of those who reported they
could not see to read, were living just above, at, or below the
poverty level. Whereas 34 percent of the total population had
incomes four times the poverty level or more, only 11 percent of
those who could not see to read had such incomes (McNeil, 1993).

                   Causes of Visual Impairment
     Nearly all visual impairment stems from disease; only 3
percent to 4 percent of blindness results from accidents.
Although some blindness is traceable to genetic conditions, such
as retinitis pigmentosa or retinoblastoma, by far the most
frequent causes are associated with aging, senile degeneration,
macular degeneration, cataracts, and glaucoma. Diabetic
retinopathy, which can occur as the result of juvenile-onset or
adult-onset diabetes, is also a significant cause of blindness.

             Blindness and Other Health Impairments
     Many people with visual problems, especially those over age
sixty-five, have other health problems (most commonly arthritis
and back problems) in addition to blindness. However, 53 percent
of those over age sixty-five and 63 percent of those under age
sixty-five considered blindness to be the health condition that
limited their activities the most (McNeil, 1993).
     Although 60 percent of visually impaired children and young
adults also have other impairments of hearing, cerebral palsy, or
mental retardation (Kirchner, 1988; U.S. Department of Education,
1992), the vast majority of the reported 43,000 school-age blind
students in 1993 were not listed as being served in programs for
children with multiple handicaps (American Printing House, 1993).
Thus, social workers who serve clients of any age with visual
impairments should be aware that some of their clients' problems
may be attributable to health conditions and disabilities other
than blindness.

         Services and Legislation Affecting Blind People
     People with visual impairments may obtain vision-related
services from low-vision clinics, government and private agencies
that serve people with many disabilities, and agencies that
specialize in serving blind people. In 1993 the American
Foundation for the Blind listed over 1,000 services from
government, private, medical, and educational facilities in its
directory of services to blind people. Some of these are schools
and rehabilitation agencies that work only with the blind and
visually impaired population, but many services are also located
in general agencies in the medical and social welfare system that
serve everyone in the community. Although two-thirds of the
visually impaired population is over sixty-five and the 1992
amendments (P.L. 102-569) to the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 have
mandated increased services to older blind people, the blindness
system still gears its services primarily to blind children and
working-age adults. Some government and private agencies that
specialize in serving blind people restrict their services to
those who meet the definition of legal blindness, whereas others
provide vision-related services to the broader visually impaired
population discussed earlier. However, it is not known how many
visually impaired people who do not meet the definition of legal
blindness do not receive services that could restore vision or
provide rehabilitation.
     Blind people benefit from the legislation discussed by Asch
and Mudrick ("Disability," volume 1) and Asch and Watson (1992)
that is intended for all people with disabilities. Nevertheless,
several pieces of legislation are of special relevance to or have
different implications for legally blind people than for people
with other disabilities.

                   Access to the Printed Word
     In 1852 the American Printing House for the Blind began
producing books for blind people. The federal government began
its commitment to provide blind people with literature and other
educational materials in 1879 when it created legislation that
enabled the American Printing House for the Blind to expand the
scope of its educational work. The American Printing House
continues to provide textbooks and educational materials for
legally blind children and youths (from preschool through high
school) and adults who require special formats for books,
diagrams, and maps.
     Access to literature was expanded by a 1904 law that
authorized sending Braille materials as "free matter for the
blind," to avoid the prohibitive cost of mailing Braille (and
later recorded) materials that weigh much more than equivalent
printed documents (Postal Reorganization Act of 1970, P.L. 91-
375). In 1931 the Pratt-Smoot Act (P.L. 71-787) established the
Books for the Blind program in the Library of Congress, which
later became the National Library Service (NLS) for the Blind and
Physically Handicapped (established under P.L. 87-765). This
federal program established regional libraries to provide Braille
and recorded literary and music materials first to blind people
and later to anyone who could not read standard print because of
a visual, learning, or physical disability. Of the 765,000 NLS
patrons, more than 85 percent are legally blind people who obtain
books, magazines, and musical scores through the system of
cooperating libraries (National Library Service, 1994).

                  Education and Rehabilitation
     The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 1975
(P.L. 94-142) and its 1983 and 1990 amendments and the
Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and its 1992 amendments apply to all
people with disabilities, including those with visual
impairments. The Rehabilitation Act authorizes payment for
services to the visually impaired rendered by separate agencies
that serve exclusively this population, and just over half the
states have established separate agencies for such clients. Some
states with separate agencies for the blind restrict their
services to those who meet the definition of legal blindness
discussed above, but others serve everyone with significant
visual problems. For the purposes of rehabilitation, the act
provides that each state may establish its own definition of
legal blindness. Social workers who suspect that a client needs
vision-related services should first refer clients to specialized
agencies; only if a specialized agency declines service because
the individual has more vision than the clients they typically
work with, should individuals be referred to the state's general
rehabilitation agency.

                 Special Employment Legislation
     In the 1930's the federal government passed two laws giving
blind people access to sheltered and noncompetitive employment:
the Wagner-O'Day Act (P.L. 75-739), which established a system of
sheltered workshops, and the Randolph-Sheppard Act (P.L. 74-734),
which gives blind people preference in obtaining employment as
operators of vending facilities on federal properties. These laws
and their subsequent amendments have provided work for thousands
of blind people since that time, but because of actions of state
and private rehabilitation agencies, the working conditions have
not always compared favorably with those for people in the
general labor force. Shop employees are considered workers under
federal law, but some agencies have attempted to treat them as
clients and have denied them the right to organize for improved
wages and working conditions. Although the National Labor
Relations Board has generally upheld the rights of shop workers
to form unions and to bargain collectively to improve their
working situation, some agencies continue to pay shop workers
less than the minimum wage, which they are legally entitled to do
under the provisions of Section 14C of the Fair Labor Standards
Act. Vendors obtain licenses to operate their facilities from the
state agency that serves the blind, and the same agency
supervises their work and service requirements. Despite this
state agency involvement, vendors are considered self-employed
entrepreneurs.

                         Income Support
     Adults who are legally blind and have had no connection to
the work force may obtain Supplemental Security Income (SSI). The
federal SSI benefits for blind people are the same as those for
people with other disabilities ($458 per month for individuals
and $687 for couples in 1995). However, some states that
supplement the federal grants choose to provide greater cash
assistance for blind people than for people with other
disabilities (Social Security Administration, 1994).
     For legally blind people who are eligible to receive Social
Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) because they have worked in
the past but are not performing "substantial gainful activity,"
the earnings criteria for the receipt of benefits are different
from those for people with other disabilities. Blind people may
continue to work and receive SSDI benefits until their
"substantial gainful activity" or earnings after impairment-
related work expenses are deducted exceed $940 per month, or
$11,280 annually (Social Security Administration, 1994).
     For those with other disabilities, "substantial gainful
activity" is defined as no higher than $500 per month. Social
workers serving legally blind clients should be alert to this
difference in entitlement and be sure that local Social Security
offices examine work activity and earnings of their blind clients
in light of this provision of the Social Security Act.

          Services to Deaf-Blind and Older Blind People
     Two segments of the visually impaired and blind population
who have been identified as having unique and sometimes unmet
needs are people with hearing as well as visual impairments and
people who lose vision near the end of or after they have
completed their working lives. Title VII, chapter 2 (P.L. 502-
569) of the Rehabilitation Act Amendments of 1992 set up services
for people over age fifty-five whose vision is deteriorating and
who require assistance to maintain themselves in their homes,
families, and communities even if they no longer expect to work
in the paid labor force. Until this legislation established
rehabilitation services geared to this population, hundreds of
thousands of older people, the largest segment of the visually
impaired population, could not always receive help because
federal law tied rehabilitation services to obtaining a vocation.
Similarly, with the establishment of the Helen Keller National
Center for Deaf-Blind Youths and Adults under the Rehabilitation
Act Amendments of 1992, Congress recognized that a portion of the
visually impaired population also incur hearing loss that
precludes their use of some alternative techniques and
necessitates the development and teaching of new techniques at
this center.
     All the legislation discussed in this section provides
entitlements to services and benefits that can be invaluable for
blind people and their families. The distressed man or woman who
assumes that loss of sight means loss of reading and independence
may regain pleasure and confidence in himself or herself by
discovering recorded books and tactile stove markings.
Unfortunately, some people who seek vending licenses,
rehabilitation services, or SSI benefits are first denied them.
The legislation contains crucial appeal rights designed to
protect people from the problems of bureaucracy, and social
workers should alert individuals to these legislative provisions.
A major function of advocacy groups like the National Federation
of the Blind is to aid individuals in obtaining their rights
under federal and state legislation, and social workers should
urge clients to contact these groups for their expertise and
assistance.

      Lifespan Approach to Blindness and Visual Impairment
     Information: the critical factor.
     When individuals or family members discover that they or
their loved ones are likely to have serious visual problems, it
is natural for them to react with such emotions as distress,
sadness, fear, and confusion. What will the fact of poor vision
or total blindness mean for family life, relationships, school,
work, recreation, and finances? Blind clients and their families
need accurate information about laws, services, and alternative
techniques for performing household tasks, reading, writing,
traveling, and the like that people customarily imagine cannot be
handled without vision. Although the onset of visual impairment
sometimes necessitates in-depth counseling and therapy for an
individual or a family, social workers should eschew the formerly
common notion (Carroll, 1961) that blindness brings about a new
psychology or gives rise to completely different personality
problems (see Asch & Rousseau, 1985, for a critique of the
psychoanalytic and social work literature on blindness).
     Social workers should assume that clients need realistic
information about services and possibilities for maintaining
their work, school, family, and leisure roles and actively aid
clients by steering them to such information as the practical
guidance available from the National Center for the Blind in
Baltimore, the American Foundation for the Blind (1993) directory
of services, and such useful books as If Blindness Comes
(Jernigan, 1994).

            Blind Children in the Family, at School,
                      and in the Community
     How can a blind child receive a high-quality education,
participate in family life, and not jeopardize the plans and
goals of other family members? Social workers who deal with
families of infants and toddlers who are blind can get some
interesting suggestions from Fraiberg (1971), but they and the
families of blind children of various ages should be referred to
journals such as Future Reflections and to the National
Organization of Parents of Blind Children, a division of the
National Federation of the Blind. Along with state and private
service agencies, this group can guide parents to toys and games
that offer stimulation and can advise them on whether their
children should learn Braille and whether the children will need
assistance in learning to get around safely using the long cane.
     Because many childhood eye conditions are progressive and
the demands of school and social life will expand as a child
grows, the blind youngster who can manage with large print and
without a cane during the elementary years may be hindered later
on without exposure to alternative means of reading, writing, and
traveling. Social workers in school settings should aid parents
to participate in meetings about their children's educational
future and should help them become experts in appropriate
technological devices and alternative methods that allow blind or
visually impaired children to participate in sports and
recreation, industrial arts, home economics, crafts, music, and
extracurricular as well as academic activities in school
(Willoughby & Duffy, 1989).

                 Blindness and Visual Impairment
                    During the Working Years
     Thirty-one percent of the legally blind population are in
the prime working years, and most are unemployed. Many people who
develop vision problems during these years fail to learn about
available rehabilitation services from ophthalmologists or
hospitals and often languish at home for months or years without
obtaining information that could give them access to their valued
activities. Social workers can be advocates for their clients
with rehabilitation agencies, can tell clients about guide dog
schools, and can convince apprehensive families that work and
independent travel and family life are still feasible. They must
combat the myth that the roles of spouses and parents are
inevitably changed for the worse by blindness by reminding
everyone of all the talents and capacities that remain despite
vision loss. Similarly, there is no reason to assume that a
visually impaired person cannot return to the field of work in
which she or he engaged before becoming blind. Sometimes the
person will not be able to do so, but the social worker should
refer a client to the tools and skills that will enable her or
him to continue in chosen and valued roles when possible.

                     Blindness in Late Life
     The Rehabilitation Act Amendments of 1992 provide for
increased services for the thousands of people who lose their
vision after they leave the labor force. These services are
intended to keep visually impaired people active in their homes
and communities by providing them with tools for daily living,
travel, and communication. Social workers who see clients in
senior citizen centers and nursing homes should be especially
alert to the clients' deteriorating vision and should link their
clients with the specialized services that will enable them to
continue their activities. Most people will be able to resume
activities with whichever group of senior citizens they were
involved before they became blind.

             Blindness and Other Health Impairments
     Learning the techniques to function without sight may be
more difficult if individuals have manual dexterity problems that
prevent them from reading Braille or hearing problems that
prevent their use of sound in orientation and travel. Some
visually impaired people with cognitive impairments from mental
disabilities or brain injuries will need services from agencies
and organizations that specialize in cognitive rehabilitation.
Social workers must know that a visual impairment may not be a
client's chief difficulty, but they should also be aware that
agencies that serve people with hearing, mobility, or cognitive
impairments may fear taking on clients who have visual
disabilities as well. In such circumstances social workers can
play a crucial case-management and advocacy role to ensure that
clients with multiple disabilities receive the services to which
they are entitled.

                Serving Visually Impaired Clients
                       in General Settings
     The foregoing comments were directed to social workers who
meet clients or families in which visual impairment appears to be
a major concern and need for service. However, visually impaired
people will increasingly seek social services for marital or
family problems; as part of their employment through employee
assistance programs; or on behalf of other relatives, when
blindness is incidental or irrelevant to the request for
assistance. In the past social workers tended to adopt the
mindset that people with visual or other disabilities need
services from specialists in blindness or disability in general,
but such ideas were often wrong then and are now indicative of
subtle prejudice and discrimination by social workers or their
agencies. It is essential for a social worker whose blind client
and spouse come for marital therapy, for example, to concentrate
on the couple's dynamics. However, if blindness comes up
repeatedly as a source of friction, the worker may properly
examine whether the client and his or her spouse know the means
of optimal functioning as a blind person.

           Training and Working with Blind Colleagues
     People with visual impairments have entered the social work
profession for many decades, but schools of social work,
fieldwork sites, and employing agencies sometimes still display
the stereotypes and fears about blindness discussed earlier.
Therefore, they too need to contact knowledgeable experts on
blindness to ensure that blind students and practitioners are
given the training, resources, and opportunities they need to
function at the level of sighted students and practitioners. In
addition to sources that may be obtained through the Council on
Social Work Education, the National Federation of the Blind's
Human Services Division maintains a list of dozens of employed
social workers who can assist schools and agencies in solving
problems that arise in training and working with colleagues who
have visual problems.

                  Blindness as a Social Problem
     Much of the foregoing discussion has stressed serving
individuals and families by linking them to people with
specialized expertise and knowledge that will enable them to
learn the techniques of living with reduced or no vision. Because
a key approach to blindness is to recognize that it is a social
as well as an individual problem, this entry concludes by
commenting on how social workers can instill such notions in
their clients and can link clients with consumer groups that
uphold such a social-problem view.
     Social workers should remember that clients and families are
likely to feel overwhelmed by the challenges of managing the
logistics of blindness (Ainlay, 1988) and are going to need time
before they see that Braille, cane or guide dog, recorded
materials, live readers, adapted computers, and new ways of
managing a home and work life can be as efficient as the ways
that relied on sight. Not only is contact with more experienced
blind people often indispensable in convincing newly blind people
of these possibilities, it is also invaluable in gaining allies
with whom they can battle discrimination and exclusion when it
occurs. Of the organized consumer groups of blind people, the
National Federation of the Blind is the oldest and largest group
committed to fighting discrimination in employment, public
accommodations, and education. It has also worked to end agency
custodialism and second-class treatment of visually impaired
clients, and its members and leaders stand ready to help newly
blind people of all ages and their families take an assertive
approach to blindness as a social problem.

References
Ainlay, S.C. (1988). Aging and new vision loss: Disruptions of
     the here and now. Journal of Social Issues, 48(1), 79-94.
All things considered. (1994, December 26). National Public
     Radio.
American Foundation for the Blind. (1993). AFB directory of
     services for blind and visually impaired persons in the
     United States and Canada (24th ed.). New York: Author.
American Printing House for the Blind. (1993). Distribution of
     federal quota based on the January 4, 1993 registration of
     eligible students. Louisville, KY: Author.
Asch, A. (1985). Understanding and working with disability rights
     groups. In H. McCarthy (Ed.), Complete guide to employing
     persons with disabilities (pp. 172-184). Albertson, NY:
     Human Resources Center.
Asch, A. & Mudrick, N. (1995). Disability. In Linda Beebe (Ed.),
     Encyclopedia of Social Work (pp. 752-761). Washington, DC:
     NASW Press.
Asch, A., & Rousseau, H. (1985). Therapists with disabilities:
     Theoretical and clinical issues. Psychiatry, 48(1), 1-12.
Asch, A., & Watson, S. (1992). Legislation affecting disability
     management practices. In S.H. Akabas, L.B. Gates, & D.E.
     Galvin (Eds.), Disability management: A complete system to
     reduce costs, increase productivity, meet employee needs,
     and ensure legal compliance (pp. 22-64). New York: Amacom.
Carroll, T.J. (1961). Blindness: What it is, what it does, and
     how to live with it. Boston: Little, Brown.
Chiang, Y., Bassi, L., & Javitt, J. (1992). Federal budgetary
     costs of blindness. Milbank Quarterly, 70, 319-340.
Fraiberg, S. (1971). Insights from the blind. Baltimore: National
     Federation of the Blind.
Jernigan, K. (Ed.). (1994). If Blindness Comes. Baltimore:
     National Federation of the Blind.
Kahn, H., & Moorhead, H.B. (1973). Statistics on blindness in the
     model reporting area, 1969-1970. Washington, DC: U.S.
     Department of Health, Education, & Welfare.
Kirchner, C. (1988). Data on blindness and visual impairment in
     the U.S. (2nd ed.). New York: American Foundation for the
     Blind.
Kirchner, C. (1994, May 10). Summary of key sources re blindness
     and visual impairment in the USA. Unpublished manuscript
     prepared for the Statistical Data Related to Visual
     Impairment Working Group, Baltimore.
Louis Harris & Associates. (1991). Public attitudes toward
     people with disabilities. Washington, DC: National
     Organization on Disability.
Makas, E. (1988). Positive attitudes toward disabled people:
     Disabled and non-disabled persons' perspectives. Journal of
     Social Issues, 44(1), 49-61.
Matson, F. (1990). Walking alone and marching together: A history
     of the organized blind movement in the United States, 1940-
     1990. Baltimore: National Federation of the Blind.
McNeil, J.M. (1993). Americans with disabilities: 1991-1992: Data
     from the Survey of Income and Program Participation. In
     Current population reports (Series P-70, No. 33, pp. 70-73).
     Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.
National Library Service, Library of Congress. (1994, January).
     Facts: Books for blind and physically handicapped
     individuals. Washington, DC: Author.
Nelson, K., & Dimitrova, G. (1993). Severe visual impairment in
     the United States and in each state, 1990. Journal of Visual
     Impairment & Blindness, 87, 80-85.
Postal Reorganization Act of 1970. P.L. 91-375; 84 stat. 719.
Randolph-Sheppard Act. Ch. 638, 49 Stat. 1559 (1936).
Rehabilitation Act of 1973. P.L. 102-569, Title I.
Rehabilitation Act Amendments of 1992. P.L. 102-569, 106 Stat.
     4344.
Scott, R.A. (1969). The making of blind men: A study of adult
     socialization. New York: Russell Sage Foundation.
Siller, J., Chipman, A., Ferguson, L., & Vann, D.H. (1967).
     Studies in reactions to disability, XI: Attitudes of the
     nondisabled toward the physically disabled. New York: New
     York University School of Education.
Siller, J., Ferguson, L., Vann, D.H., & Holland, B (1967).
     Structure of attitudes toward the physically disabled. New
     York: New York University School of Education.
Social Security Administration. (1994, October 31). 1995 cost-of-
     living increase and other determinations. Federal Register,
     59(209), 54464-54469.
Social Security Disability Amendments of 1980. P.L. 96-265, 94
     Stat. 441.
Tielsch, J. Sommer, A. Witt, K., Katz, J., & Royall, R. (1990).
     Blindness and visual impairment in an American urban
     population: The Baltimore eye survey. Archives of
     Ophthalmology, 108-286-290.
U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education
     Programs. (1992). Fourteenth annual report to Congress on
     the implementation of the Individuals with Disabilities
     Education Act. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing
     Office.
Wagner-O'Day Act. Ch 697, 52 Stat. 1196 (1938).
Willoughby, D.M., & Duffy, S.L.M. (1989). Handbook for itinerant
     and resource teachers of blind and visually impaired
     students. Baltimore: National Federation of the Blind.

Resources
American Foundation for the Blind, Eleven Penn Plaza, Suite 300,
     New York, New York 10001.
National Center for the Blind, 1800 Johnson Street, Baltimore,
     Maryland 21230.
National Federation of the Blind Human Services Division, 1800
     Johnson Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21230.
National Organization of Parents of Blind Children, National
     Federation of the Blind, 1800 Johnson St., Baltimore,
     Maryland.


[Caption: Bennett Prows]
                  TECHNOLOGY IS NOT THE ANSWER
                        by Bennett Prows

     From the Editor: The following article appeared in the
Summer, 1995, issue of the Blind Washingtonian, the publication
of the National Federation of the Blind of Washington. Ben Prows
is one of the leaders of the Washington affiliate. Here is what
he has to say:

     There are those who say that listening to recordings, speech
synthesizers, and live readers obviates the need for Braille.
They say Braille is slower, less efficient, and soon will be
totally outdated. Of course we know that, if this were the case,
print would also be obsolete, and the sighted could listen to
synthesizers too. But this would be true only if people didn't
have to write down what they said at all. I read an article
recently in which the author emphatically argued that technology
will soon mean the end of the need for teaching Braille to blind
people. A recent personal experience demonstrates why this is not
the case. The following account reveals again why Braille is
necessary, even today.
     My job is to investigate discrimination cases in hospitals,
health centers, departments of social and health services, etc.
Sometimes I am required to travel great distances to interview
witnesses and to review medical records. On one occasion I
traveled to a neighboring state for a week of witness interviews.
I had lined up about seventy-five people to interview during the
course of this investigation. I was planning to take notes on a
laptop computer that could operate either on alternating current
or by batteries. I also took a Braille 'n Speak, which would
allow me to take notes in Braille for later conversion into print
text. (Use of the Braille 'n Speak presupposes, of course, a
knowledge of Braille.)
     The first day of interviews began smoothly. I began the task
of questioning the first witness. I had plugged in the laptop
since I was able to set up in a conference room for the week.
     Soon, however, the laptop started beeping, and the "low
battery indicator" came on. I ascertained that the plug I was
using, which was permanently connected to the battery charger,
had shorted. This meant that I could get neither AC electricity
nor charged batteries. The small catastrophe had quickly rendered
my laptop computer completely useless. Moreover, I determined
that a new charger would cost over $100, so I would have to wait
until I got back to the office to get a new one.
     Not to worry, though; I had my Braille 'n Speak. I pulled it
out, turned it on, and immediately was told "battery low." I
looked in my briefcase and discovered that I had left my power
supply/battery charger for that device in Seattle. The special
auxiliary battery and plug were not in my briefcase either.
     Two down. Neither electronic note-taking device was working,
and I had seventy-four interviews to go. Luckily for me, I
thought, I have my Braille slate and stylus. Wrong. They were not
in my briefcase because, with all the technology I had brought, I
had decided I didn't need them. What a dilemma! I had no way to
complete my interviews. Sure, I had a reader with me, but she was
scheduled to take written notes on records I had to review. If I
packed up and went back to Seattle, I would have to reschedule
the entire review. I would cost my employer a considerable amount
of money and time and could have risked losing my job. After all,
the mess wasn't my employer's fault; I had been provided with
reasonable accommodation. What could I do?
     I found a local NFB office in the area and bought a new
slate and stylus. I came back to do the rest of the interviews
and took notes all week in Braille. In short, I was able to
handwrite my notes, just as a sighted person would have done in
my situation, and then transposed the notes back at the office. I
could do this, of course, because I was taught Braille and used
it. If I had subscribed to the theory that Braille was worthless
or that the computer would solve my problems, I would have been
at a distinct disadvantage.
     This is what we mean in the NFB when we say that, given
training in the alternative techniques of blindness, e.g.,
Braille, we can compete on an equal basis with our sighted peers.
If I had not been able to buy the equivalent of a pen or pencil
at the local NFB office, I would have been unable to perform the
job tasks in a timely manner. I would have had to make excuses
and sell myself and other blind people short. This is why it is
important for blind people to learn and use Braille. It is one
more reason why technology is not the answer for the blind. It is
also why we need the National Federation of the Blind.


  THE 1996 NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM

     This year's scholarship program will be the thirteenth since
the organization determined to expand the number, variety, and
value of the scholarships we would present each year at our
annual convention in July. Assisting the nation's most talented
post-secondary students to fulfill their academic and
professional dreams is one of the most effective ways for us to
demonstrate our conviction that blind people deserve the chance
to enter whatever field they demonstrate themselves equipped to
succeed in.
     Scholarships will be presented this year to twenty-six
college, vocational-school, and graduate students. The awards
will range in value from $3,000 to $10,000, and we will bring the
winners as our guests to the 1996 convention of the National
Federation of the Blind to experience firsthand the excitement
and stimulation of a gathering of the largest and most dynamic
organization of blind people in the country today.
     Again this year we plan to present three of the scholarships
to students who won scholarship awards in a previous competition.
The purpose of these special awards is to nurture in today's
students an ongoing commitment to the philosophy and objectives
of the Federation. The students so designated will be recognized
and honored as the 1996 tenBroek Fellows. All current students
who were scholarship winners in previous years should take
particular note of this new program and consider applying for the
1996 National Federation of the Blind scholarships.
     Every state affiliate and local chapter can help in
spreading the word of this extraordinary opportunity for
America's blind students. Scholarship applications have been or
soon will be mailed to financial aid offices in educational
institutions around the country, but many of these will be filed
for reference when students come to ask about financial
assistance. It is very helpful to have local representatives
deliver or mail forms to the actual college administrator who
works with blind students. Being identified with such a valuable
national scholarship program gives the local chapter and state
affiliate prestige and respect, and the local touch insures that
more blind students will actually have an opportunity to apply
for these scholarships.
     Anyone can order scholarship forms from the Materials
Center, National Federation of the Blind, 1800 Johnson Street,
Baltimore, Maryland 21230. State Presidents and members of the
1996 Scholarship Committee will also be sent scholarship forms.
These may be copied as long as both sides of the form are
reproduced.
     Here is the text of the 1996 National Federation of the
Blind scholarship application form:

                NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND
                    1996 SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM
     Each year at its National Convention in July, the National
Federation of the Blind gives a broad array of scholarships to
recognize achievement by blind scholars. All applicants for these
scholarships must be (1) legally blind and (2) pursuing or
planning to pursue a full-time post-secondary course of study. In
addition to these restrictions, some scholarships have been
further restricted by the donor. Scholarships to be given at the
National Convention in 1996 are listed here with any special
restrictions noted:

                    1 SCHOLARSHIP FOR $10,000
     American Action Fund Scholarship - Given by the American
Action Fund for Blind Children and Adults, a nonprofit
organization which works to assist blind persons. No additional
restrictions.
                 3 SCHOLARSHIPS, EACH FOR $4,000
     Melva T. Owen Memorial Scholarship - Given in memory of
Melva T. Owen, who was widely known and loved among the blind.
She and her husband Charles Owen became acquainted with
increasing numbers of blind people through their work in the
"Voicepondence" Club. Charles Owen says, "There shall be no
limitation as to field of study, except that it shall be directed
towards attaining financial independence and shall exclude
religion and those seeking only to further general or cultural
education."
     Two National Federation of the Blind Scholarships; no
additional restrictions.

                22 SCHOLARSHIPS, EACH FOR $3,000
     Hermione Grant Calhoun Scholarship - Dr. Isabelle Grant
endowed this scholarship in memory of her daughter. Winner must
be a woman.
     Mozelle and Willard Gold Memorial Scholarship - Endowed by
the energetic and effective former president of the National
Federation of the Blind of California, Sharon Gold, in loving
memory of her mother and father, both of whom were dedicated to
creating opportunity for their daughter and for all blind persons
through Braille literacy and dedication to service. No additional
restrictions.
     Frank Walton Horn Memorial Scholarship - Given by Mr. and
Mrs. Charles E. Barnum, the mother and stepfather of Catherine
Horn Randall. No additional restrictions, but preference will be
given to those studying architecture or engineering.
     Kuchler-Killian Memorial Scholarship - Given in loving
memory of her parents, Charles Albert Kuchler and Alice Helen
Kuchler, by Junerose Killian, dedicated member of the National
Federation of the Blind of Connecticut. No additional
restrictions.
     Howard Brown Rickard Scholarship - Winner must be studying
or planning to study in the fields of law, medicine, engineering,
architecture, or the natural sciences.
     National Federation of the Blind Computer Science
Scholarship - Winner must be studying in the computer science
field.
     National Federation of the Blind Educator of Tomorrow Award
- Winner must be planning a career in elementary, secondary, or
post-secondary teaching.
     National Federation of the Blind Humanities Scholarship -
Winner must be studying in the traditional humanities such as
art, English, foreign languages, history, philosophy, or
religion.
     Fourteen National Federation of the Blind Scholarships; no
additional restrictions.
     CRITERIA: All scholarships are awarded on the basis of
academic excellence, service to the community, and financial
need.
     MEMBERSHIP: The National Federation of the Blind is an
organization dedicated to creating opportunity for all blind
persons. Recipients of Federation scholarships need not be
members of the National Federation of the Blind.
     MAKING APPLICATION: To apply for National Federation of the
Blind scholarships, complete and return the application on the
reverse side of this sheet, attaching to the application all the
additional documents there requested. Multiple applications are
unnecessary. Each applicant will be considered for all
scholarships for which he or she qualifies. Send completed
applications to: Mrs. Peggy Elliott, Chairman, National
Federation of the Blind Scholarship Committee, 814 - 4th Avenue,
Suite 200, Grinnell, Iowa 50112; (515) 236-3366. Form must be
received by March 31, 1996.
     REAPPLICATION: Those who have previously applied are
encouraged to apply again. If previous winners present credible
applications, it is our policy to award not fewer than three
scholarships to those who have received them in the past.
     WINNERS: The Scholarship Committee reviews all applications
and selects the scholarship winners. These winners, the same
number as there are scholarships to award, will be notified of
their selection by June 1 and will be brought to the National
Federation of the Blind convention in July at Federation expense.
This is in addition to the scholarship grant.
The National Federation of the Blind convention is the largest
gathering of blind persons (more than 2,000) to occur anywhere in
the nation each year. You will be able to meet other blind
students and exchange information and ideas. You will also be
able to meet and talk with blind people who are successfully
functioning in your chosen profession or occupation. Federal
officials, members of Congress, and the makers and distributors
of new technology attend Federation conventions. Above all, a
broad cross section of the most active segment of the blind
population of the United States will be present to discuss common
problems and plan for concerted action. It is an interesting and
exciting week.
     AWARDS: The day before the convention banquet the
Scholarship Committee will meet to determine which winners will
receive which scholarships. The scholarship awards will be made
during the banquet.
                NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND
                  SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATION FORM
     Read reverse side of form for instructions and explanation.
Form may be photocopied but only if reverse side is also
included.
     To apply for a scholarship, complete this application form
and mail completed application and attachments to: Mrs. Peggy
Elliott, Chairman, National Federation of the Blind Scholarship
Committee, 814 - 4th Avenue, Suite 200, Grinnell, Iowa 50112;
(515)236-3366. Form must be received by March 31, 1996.
Name (please include any maiden or other names by which you have
been known):
Date of birth:
School address:
School phone number:
Home address:
Home phone number:
Institution being attended in spring semester, 1996, with class
     standing (freshman, senior, etc.):
Cumulative grade point at this institution:
Institution to be attended in fall of 1996, with class standing.
     Send by separate letter if admitted to school after
     submitting completed application:
List all post-secondary institutions attended with highest class
     standing attained and cumulative grade point average:
High school attended and cumulative grade point:
Vocational goal:
State your major:
Awards and honors (attach list if necessary):
Community service (attach list if necessary):
    Attach the following documents to completed application:
     1. Send us a letter: What schools have you attended? What
school do you plan to attend during the coming year? What honors
have you achieved? What have you done to deal with situations
involving your blindness? What are you like as a person? What are
your goals and aspirations? How will the scholarship help you?
     2. Send two letters of recommendation.
     3. Provide current transcript from institution now attending
and transcripts from all other post-secondary institutions
attended. If you have not yet attended such an institution or
have not completed one year of study, send high school
transcript.
     4. Send a letter from a state officer of the National
Federation of the Blind evidencing the fact that you have
discussed your scholarship application with that officer. We
prefer that you discuss your application with the Federation
state president, but a letter from any Federation state officer
will suffice. President's address provided upon request.


                  THE BLIND BEAK OF BOW STREET
                         by John Dashney

     From the Editor: The following article first appeared in the
Braille Monitor in June of 1984. Most recently it was included in
Toothpaste and Railroad Tracks, the latest in our Kernel Book
series of paperbacks. We thought that it would be appropriate to
reprint this profile of one of England's most distinguished blind
citizens, so here it is, beginning with Dr. Jernigan's
introduction:

     Can a blind man be a policeman? This one was--and he lived
more than 200 years ago. Here is his story as it appeared in
Lifeprints.

     One of England's first and greatest policemen was blind.
     Sir John Fielding, the younger half-brother of the great
English novelist Henry Fielding, was born in 1721. He joined the
navy as a youth, but an accident cost him his sight at the age of
nineteen. This was in 1740, nearly seventy years before Louis
Braille would be born. There were no radios, no tapes--no known
way for a blind person to be able to read. So what did John
Fielding do?
     He opened a business which he called the Universal Register
Office. This was a combination labor exchange, travel agency,
information office, real estate agency, and insurance company.
John ran it single-handed. In his spare time his brother Henry
taught him law.
     Henry Fielding, when not writing novels such as Tom Jones,
had become a magistrate. This was an office something like that
of a justice of the peace. Henry had the power to investigate
crimes, question suspects, and then either release them or order
them held for trial. He was successful enough to be given the
title of Chief Magistrate. He was, in fact, what we today would
call a chief of police--except that London of the 1750's had no
organized police at all!
     Imagine a city of over half a million people, terrible
slums, a high crime rate, and no real police. The few parish
constables were chosen by lot, much as we choose juries today, to
serve for one year. Most paid substitutes to take their place,
and many of the substitutes were as dishonest as the criminals
they were supposed to control. Most of the rest, along with the
night watchmen, were too disorganized, too feeble, or too
frightened of the powerful street gangs to be of any use.
     Henry Fielding tried to change all this. He drew up plans
for controlling crime, turned his house in Bow Street into a kind
of police station, and hired a few of the best constables to
serve as more or less permanent police officers--"Bow Street
Runners" was the name by which they would soon be known.
     But Henry's health was failing, and in 1754 he had to
retire. The position, which would become known as Chief of the
Metropolitan Police, was offered to his blind half-brother. John
Fielding accepted it and held it until his death in 1780.
     John immediately set out to put Henry's plans to work.
Within two years his runners had broken up most of the gangs of
street robbers. John then organized a horse patrol to combat the
mounted highwaymen who prowled the roads leading to and from
London. He set up systems of rapid communication and published
descriptions of wanted criminals and stolen goods. We take these
things for granted now, but the Fieldings were the first to think
of them.
     John's main skills were in questioning witnesses and
suspects. Usually he left the legwork to his runners. But
sometimes he investigated cases personally. When, in 1763, Lord
Harrington's house was robbed of more than three thousand pounds
worth of silver, gold, and jewels (nearly one hundred thousand
dollars in today's money), John investigated the theft
personally.
     Using one of his helpers for his eyes, he spent the whole
day and most of the night examining and questioning. He
determined that what was made to look like a burglary was really
an inside job. His suspicions fell on a servant, who later
confessed. Elementary? Perhaps. But this was more than one
hundred years before the first Sherlock Holmes story was written.
     About this time John was knighted for his services and
became Sir John Fielding. The common people, though, gave him
another title--"The Blind Beak of Bow Street." ("Beak" was the
eighteenth century slang for anyone in a position of authority.)
     A contemporary described Sir John as wearing a black bandage
over his eyes and carrying a switch, which he flicked in front of
him as he entered or left his courtroom. He was strict with
hardened criminals and was responsible for sending many men (and
some women) to the gallows. But he was lenient with young people,
especially first-time offenders.
     There was no welfare or aid for dependent children in the
1700's. Most of London's slum children died before they grew up.
Most of the boys who survived became thieves, and most of the
girls who survived became prostitutes. Sir John tried to save as
many as he could. He helped organize charities to feed and clothe
abandoned children and institutions to teach them reading,
writing, and some kind of a trade. As a police official he saw
that the best way to stop criminals was to get to them before
they became criminals. In this he was almost two hundred years
ahead of his time.
     In his role of keeper of the peace, Sir John Fielding often
had to intervene in labor disputes and sometimes even control
rioting, angry mobs. As a negotiator he became known for his
fairness toward the workers and apprentices, the poor and
underprivileged. Curiously enough, the one group that Sir John
Fielding did not make any special efforts to help was the blind.
This was because he considered his own blindness as no great
handicap and assumed that other blind people felt the same way.
     London would not have a regular police force until nearly
fifty years after Sir John Fielding's death, but many of the
rules and guidelines he set down for his Bow Street Runners are
still used in police training manuals today.
     People often feel that law enforcement is no field for a
blind person even to consider. They don't realize that one of the
first and greatest police officials ran the London Metropolitan
Police for twenty-six years without the aid of any sight.


              WORKING TOGETHER FOR PERSONAL INCOME
                    AND FUNDING OUR MOVEMENT
                         by Sharon Gold

     From the Editor: Sharon Gold is a long-time leader in the
Federation. This is what she has to say about a new and promising
business opportunity available to members of the National
Federation of the Blind:

     Perhaps the most talked-about subject in the country today
is the economy. One need only turn on the radio or television,
attend a community meeting, or speak with friends and family
members to know that every conversation eventually flows to or
from the economy. The truth is that we are living in a changing
world, and the challenge is to maintain personal dignity for
ourselves and our families. For those of us who are members of
the National Federation of the Blind, a part of maintaining our
personal dignity is helping to provide support to our
organization.
     Last spring a new business opportunity opened up to blind
people, their families, and friends when Dr. Norman Gardner
learned about QUORUM International and facilitated the creation
of a business relationship between QUORUM and the National
Federation of the Blind. QUORUM is a young network marketing
company headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona. Its product lines
include personal safety; home security; vehicle security and
maintenance; health and life sciences, including biological and
dermatological products; and personal productivity, including
pagers and paging service. In addition to these items, the
company offers two catalog lines--one of electronic, home and
office, telecommunication, and personal care products and one of
personal development and motivational audio and video cassettes.
     In June Dr. Gardner and I met in Phoenix with Martin
Matthews, Executive Vice President of QUORUM, and began to work
out details for the company's sales materials to be prepared in
Braille and recorded formats for blind distributors. Mr. Matthews
attended our National Convention and during the meeting of the
Board of Directors spoke about the QUORUM opportunity. At that
time he announced that the QUORUM sales materials would be made
available in accessible formats.
     The QUORUM opportunity is available to any person who wishes
to become an independent QUORUM distributor. Those who sign up in
the National Federation of the Blind group can earn commissions
from their own sales as well as from the sales of their downline
while at the same time supporting the Federation through
commissions which go directly to the organization. The NFB group
is open to Federationists, who may recruit family members,
friends, and other Federationists in order to develop their
downline.
     Today many Americans are looking for employment
opportunities. Home-based business is widely recognized as a
highly successful means of developing either primary or secondary
income. QUORUM is one of the most progressive and fastest-growing
companies, and many financial advantages are available to QUORUM
distributors.
     For the whole QUORUM story contact Norman Gardner at (801)
224-6969 or Sharon Gold at (916) 424-2151.


                             RECIPES

     This month's recipes were submitted by the NFB of Oklahoma,
who call their state the land of the native Americans, cowboys,
great football and basketball teams, and fabulous Federation
cooks. The following is a variety of tasty contributions.


[Photo: two photographs accompany the recipes this month. Caption 1: Nannette
Murrin Caption 2: Joe and Janet Triplett]
                        FORGOTTEN COOKIES
                        by Nanette Murrin

     Nanette Murrin is a long-time member and officer in the
Tulsa Chapter and also serves as state Vice President. She was in
Baltimore last year for the Braille mentoring seminar. She and
her husband Arthur live in Tulsa and have one son, who attends
college. Those who have tasted these cookies have unofficially
renamed them "unforgettable." They get their name because you put
them in the oven, turn the oven off, and forget them till the
next morning.

Ingredients:
2 egg whites
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup chopped pecans
6 ounces chocolate chips

     Method: Have all ingredients at room temperature. Preheat
oven to 400 degrees. Beat egg whites with vanilla until foamy.
Gradually add sugar, one teaspoon at a time, then continue
beating until very stiff peaks form. Fold in chocolate chips and
nuts. Drop by teaspoonfuls on foil-covered cookie sheets. Place
cookie sheets in the oven. Turn the oven off. Leave in the oven
for six hours or overnight.

                           COWBOY SOUP
                         by Joe Triplett

     Joe is President of the Oklahoma affiliate. He is also a
student at Tulsa Junior College and runs the sound board for the
television ministry of his church. Joe serves on several consumer
committees at the state and local level. This soup is low in fat.
It takes little time to prepare and tastes wonderful when it is
football weather.

Ingredients:
1 pound ground turkey or lean ground beef
1/2 medium onion
1 can cream style corn
1 can Spanish rice
1 can tomatoes
1 10-ounce box (or 1-1/2 cups) frozen mixed vegetables
1 can chili beans

     Method: Cook meat and onion together until brown. Drain and
place in a 4-quart pot. Add all other ingredients. If you like,
you may thin the soup with either water or V-8. Cover and simmer
on low for about a half hour or until vegetables are done. Tastes
great with oyster crackers or small cheese crackers. Note: you
can vary the flavor. Use stewed tomatoes or any of the flavored
canned tomatoes. If you don't like chili beans, use plain kidney
beans instead.

                       LOW FAT OVEN FRIES
                        by Janet Triplett

     Janet Triplett is Secretary of the state affiliate, chapter
secretary in Tulsa, and Job Opportunities for the Blind Field
Representative for Oklahoma. She has been working for five years
as a medical transcriptionist in a Tulsa hospital. Janet is
currently on a weight-loss program. This recipe is her own
invention for people who like the taste of good old-fashioned
home-fried potatoes with onions.

Ingredients:
1 pound raw potatoes
1/2 medium onion
cooking spray
1/3 cup bread crumbs
dehydrated vegetables (chopped chives, parsley, peppers)
Seasonings as desired

     Method: Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a non-stick pan
with cooking spray or line a pan with foil and lightly grease
with canola oil. Rinse potatoes and cut out eyes and other
undesirable parts. Dice into small cubes. Do not drain. Peel and
dice onion and set aside. Place wet potatoes in ziplock bag (one-
gallon size is best). Add crumbs and dried vegetables. Shake
until potatoes are thoroughly mixed. Pour potatoes into prepared
pan, spreading evenly. If it is more than covering the bottom of
the pan, don't worry as long as the layer is even. Sprinkle onion
over the top and season as desired. Spray thoroughly with cooking
spray. Place in hot oven and let cook about forty-five minutes,
stirring once. Test to see if potatoes are tender. When done,
carefully remove from the pan and serve while warm.

                       OVEN BEEF BURGUNDY
                     by Brooke Williams Cook

     Brooke Williams Cook is a new Federationist, having joined
earlier this year. She is excellent at working with computers.
She is also a very recent bride. This is an oven-baked dish
similar to beef stew, but it has an interesting combination of
soy sauce and wine.

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons flour
2 pounds beef stew meat, cut in 1/2-inch cubes
4 medium carrots, peeled and cut in chunks
2 large onions, sliced
1 cup thinly sliced celery
1 clove minced garlic
4 teaspoons black pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground marjoram
1/2 teaspoon ground thyme
1 cup dry red wine
1 cup sliced mushrooms
Cooked rice, noodles, or potatoes

     Method: Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Blend soy sauce with
flour in 3-quart Dutch oven. Add beef and toss to coat the meat.
Add carrots, celery, onion, garlic, pepper, marjoram, thyme, and
wine to meat mixture. Stir together. Cover tightly and bake at
325 degrees for one hour. Add mushrooms, stir gently, and bake
another one and a half to two hours until the meat and vegetables
are done. Serve over rice, noodles, or potatoes.

                      COLD SPAGHETTI SALAD
                       by Barbara Shelton

     Barbara Shelton is the wife of Steve Shelton, Treasurer of
the Oklahoma affiliate. Steve works as a computer programmer with
a bank in Oklahoma City. His convention presentation about his
job appears elsewhere in this issue. Additionally, Steve and
Barbara are very active with their sons in their church's youth
group.

Ingredients:
1 pound broken spaghetti (linguine is best)
1 cup grated green bell pepper
1 cup diced tomatoes
5 green onions, diced
1 small can black olives, diced
1 12-ounce bottle Viva Italia dressing
1/2 jar salad seasoning spices

     Method: Cook spaghetti according to package directions and
drain. Add salad seasonings and salad dressing while pasta is
hot. When it has cooled, add remaining ingredients. Refrigerate
at least twenty-four hours before serving.

                       SEVEN-UP POUND CAKE
                       by Cordelia Sanders

     Cordelia Sanders describes herself as a country girl who has
been blind practically all of her life. She has been a
Federationist for many years. She has served the Oklahoma City
Chapter as Vice President and Treasurer. Currently she is on the
state board. Her hobbies include singing and reading, especially
biographies, detective stories, and "good spiritual reading."
This is one of her favorite recipes.

Ingredients:
3 cups sugar
3 cups flour
1/3 cup butter
1/3 cup Seven-Up
5 eggs

     Method: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream butter and sugar
together. Add eggs one at a time, stirring after each egg.
Alternately add flour and Seven-Up, stirring slowly after each
addition. Pour into a prepared bundt pan. Bake for approximately
one hour, depending on the oven. Let cake cool a little in the
pan, gently loosening the sides of the cake when cool. Place cake
plate over pan and invert. Tap gently to loosen pan.


                     MONITOR MINIATURES  

*** Correction:
     In the August-September issue we incorrectly announced that
the National Federation of the Blind of Illinois had presented a
gift to the national organization in the amount of $35,000. The
amount of the gift presented at the July 3 meeting of the Board
of Directors was actually $75,000. Such generosity deserves
accuracy at the very least, as well as much gratitude. We
apologize for the error.

*** Braille Readers Are Leaders Contest Forms Available:
     The 1996 Braille Readers Are Leaders Contest for Braille-
reading students from kindergarten through high school began on
November 1. It ends February 1, 1996. But it isn't too late to
enter the contest. Entry forms are available from the Materials
Center, National Center for the Blind, 1800 Johnson Street,
Baltimore, Maryland, phone (12:30 to 5 p.m., Eastern Time) (410)
659-9314.

[Photo: The photograph accompanying this miniature is of Pete Grunwald
Caption: Peter Grunwald, 1952-1995]
*** In Memoriam:
     Steve Benson, President of the NFB of Illinois, recently
wrote to President Maurer as follows:
     It is with great sorrow that I must inform you of the death
of Pete Grunwald. He died Saturday night, August 26, just short
of his forty-third birthday after a three-year battle with
cancer. For twenty years Pete was a very effective leader in
Illinois. He served in several elected positions, including
Chicago Chapter President, state First Vice President, and state
Treasurer; but for most of the time since 1977 Pete presented our
legislative effort in Springfield. He wrote the language for our
jury law, for our insurance law, and for our Braille law. His
sound logic and matter-of-fact testimony before legislative
committees earned him and us respect and admiration from
legislators on both sides of the aisle.
     Pete never sought the limelight. He didn't crave recognition
for what he did. He did what was necessary with maturity,
confidence, dignity, and discipline.
     In 1985 the Illinois affiliate paid tribute to his
outstanding work in the Federation when it presented him with the
Gwendolyn Williams Award, our highest honor. Pete knew Gwendolyn
Williams, so he fully comprehended the award's significance. He
redoubled his efforts, assuming entirely the responsibilities
that accompany such a singular honor.
     On Saturday, September 9, 1995, a memorial service was held
in tribute to Pete. More than 150 people attended, including
State Senator John Cullerton, former Illinois House
Appropriations Committee Chairman Woods Bowman, and former State
Senator and State Comptroller Dawn Clark Netsch. Mrs. Netsch, who
is now a professor of law at Northwestern University, and John
Cullerton spoke eloquently and movingly about their experience
working with Peter Grunwald on legislative issues affecting blind
people. The memorial service was a fitting tribute to a
Federationist.

*** New Seedlings Catalog Available:
     We recently received the following announcement:
     Seedlings Braille Books for Children announces the
availability of its new 1996 Catalog. This catalog contains over
230 low-cost Braille books for children, ages one to fourteen.
     Thirty-two new books have been added this year, including
print-and-Braille books with sound buttons to push for
preschoolers; print-and-Braille easy-readers like Daisy-Head
Mayzie by Dr. Seuss for beginning readers; award-winning fiction
in Braille like Missing May by Cynthia Rylant for older children;
and selections from popular series such as The Baby-Sitter's
Club, The Boxcar Children, and Goosebumps.
     Seedlings is a non-profit corporation dedicated to providing
high-quality, low-cost Braille books for children. To receive a
free catalog or for more information, call (800) 777-8552 or
write to Seedlings, P.O. Box 2395, Livonia, Michigan 48151-0395.

*** Help Needed:
     We have been asked to carry the following request:
     Patricia Schnepf recently sent us the following letter from
a man she had briefly met in the Czech Republic with the request
that we pass it along in the hope that someone might be in a
position to help:
     I am sending you my best regards from Koprivnice. I am
writing you because of my male friend who is blind. He is a
musician/teacher; he plays a double bass and a trumpet, and he is
intensively learning English. His greatest wish is to visit the
United States. I should like to ask you if you could help us to
find any contacts with people who would be able to receive us for
an exchange. He wants to have experiences about the lifestyle of
blind people in your country. He wants to improve his English as
well.
                                                Yours faithfully,
                                              Zdeka Treucheuov.
You may contact Petr Suttner, Na drahch 276/2, Kopivnice, 742
21, Czech Republic.

*** Caribbean Cruise Brochures Now Available:
     Susan Brewer has asked us to carry the following
announcement:
     The 1996 Holland America Line Caribbean cruise brochures are
now available in Braille or print or on cassette. You may contact
Custom Cruises, 8036 Congresswood Lane, Cincinnati, Ohio 45224,
in Braille or on cassette, or call (513) 931-2234.

*** Elected:
     The Masonic Square Club of the National Federation of the
Blind announces its election of officers: Ben Snow, President;
Jerry Cameron, Vice President; Brett Winchester, Secretary; and
Robert Page, Treasurer. The Square Club meets annually in
conjunction with the NFB National Convention. NFB members and
associate members who are members in good standing of any Masonic
lodge are eligible to apply for membership in the Square Club.
The group meets for social and fraternal purposes and to raise
funds for an NFB scholarship award. Persons interested in joining
should contact Ben Snow or any other member. You may call Ben
Snow at (203) 787-0287, or write to 358 Orange Street, Apartment
409, New Haven, Connecticut 06511.

*** For Sale:
     We have been asked to carry the following announcement:
     Ferguson Enterprises carries Computers; Scanners; CD-ROM
Titles (which are accessible with speech in both DOS and
Windows); CD-ROM bundles; Screen Readers (such as ASAP,
Vocal-Eyes, and JAWS for both DOS and Windows); OutSPOKEN for
Windows; and speech synthesizers--off-the-shelf software which
works with your favorite screen reader. We have some new games
which are accessible with speech. Other new products are
Flashback Recorder, Sony modified stereo tape recorder, Sharp
Talking Clock/Calculator, and much more.
     We are taking orders for the following items which are
coming soon: Window-Eyes and ASAP for Windows. When you purchase
a Windows screen reader from us, you receive free the Windows
Tutorial on cassette and the Windows Manual on disk. When you
purchase a modem from us, you receive a DOS-based fax program
that is very easy to use and works excellently with speech.
     For more information about our monthly specials or for a
free catalog on disk, in large print, or on cassette, please call
Ferguson Enterprises, RR1 Box 238, Manchester, SD  57353-9722,
Voice: (605) 546-2366, Fax: (605) 546-2212. We are open on
Saturdays from 9 A.M. to 3 P.M. CST for your convenience.

*** In Memoriam:
     Wayne Davis, President of the NFB of Florida, informed the
NFB of the death of Beatrice Love Gladden on September 1.
Beatrice had only recently resigned as President of the Greater
Miami Chapter of the NFB of Florida because of her illness. She
was among the leaders in associate member sales, and a valued
member and friend. Beatrice greatly valued the Federation and
gave it her very best. She will be long remembered.

*** Elected:
     Mary Brunoli, Secretary of the Greater New Haven Area
Chapter of the National Federation of the Blind of Connecticut,
reports the following election results: Ben Snow, President;
Paula Krauss, Vice President; Mary Brunoli, Secretary; Jeff
Dittel, Treasurer; and Jim Camarda, board member.

[Photo: The photograph accompanying this miniature shows the Governor of
Mississippi seated at his desk with Sam Gleese and Nell Carney standing beside
him. Caption: Governor Kirk Fordice of Mississippi signs the state's Braille
bill into law while Sam Gleese, President of the National Federation of the
Blind of Mississippi, and Dr. Nell Carney, Executive Director of the
Mississippi Department of Rehabilitation Services, look on.]
*** Another Braille Bill:
     We recently received the following brief report from
Mississippi:
     On Friday morning, April 7, 1995, with Dr. Nell Carney,
Executive Director of the Mississippi Department of
Rehabilitation Services, and the Reverend Sam Gleese, President
of the National Federation of the Blind of Mississippi, looking
on, Mississippi Governor Kirk Fordice signed into law the Blind
Persons Literacy Rights and Education Act.
     This event was made possible by the intense planning and
consistent efforts of Mr. E. U. Parker, chairperson of the
legislative committee, and his committee members. From the latter
part of September, 1994, until the law's passage on March 25,
1995, Mr. Parker tracked every move of the bill from the
Mississippi House of Representatives to the Senate. Although this
is a giant step for blind children in Mississippi, it is only one
step.
     This was made clear during our 1995 state convention in
Meridian, Mississippi, on March 25, 1995. Following the playing
of the NFB video, That the Blind May Read, a representative from
the Mississippi Department of Education, Ms. Troy James,
addressed the convention on educating the blind in the present
and future.
     She informed us that the Department had plans to hire
sighted teachers and finance their training to qualify them to
teach blind children to read Braille. Despite our persistent
statements that we now have an over-supply of blind persons with
the credentials for the task, she was unmoved.
     What happens in the months ahead will determine the extent
and quality of the education that the blind will receive in our
state. All of us in Mississippi and across America must remain
determined to press forward until blind children receive a
quality education equal to that of their sighted peers. We must
not stop until we have totally changed what it means to be blind.

*** Elected:
     Sandy Jo Hansen, Secretary/Treasurer of the Black Hills
Chapter of the National Federation of the Blind of South Dakota,
reports the following election results: Noble Mellegard,
President; Bonnie Bender, Vice President; Sandy Hansen,
Secretary/Treasurer; and Jean Thompson, Ray Thomas, and Julaine
Rollman, board members.

*** For Sale:
     We have been asked to carry the following announcement:
     For sale, magnifier reading machine, Telesensory Vantage
CCTV, model ER2A. Bought in 1991. Like new, asking $1,500. Call
(505) 623-4241, or write to Elmer E. Estey, 608 Mimosa, Roswell,
New Mexico 88201-6560.

*** Education Never Stops:
     The following tidbit appeared in the Summer, 1995, edition
of Insight, the publication of the National Federation of the
Blind of South Dakota. Ted Lubitz may be one of our oldest
members, but that doesn't keep him from doing what he can to
educate the public about blindness and the abilities of blind
people. He recently sent the Governor of South Dakota a copy of
The Journey, one of our Kernel books which includes "The
Biography of Theodore Paul Lubitz." Here is the newsletter item
in its entirety:
     Ted Lubitz, board member from Watertown, is proud to share
his recent letter from Governor Janklow with us:

Dear Theodore,
     Thank you very much for the book which contains your
biography. Your life story was extremely interesting. I
especially liked the three percent savings that you imposed on
yourself throughout your life. I enjoyed your story so much I
shared it with some of my staff, and they have shared it with
other people as well. Thanks again for sending it to me.

                                                       Sincerely,
                                               William J. Janklow

*** Catalogs Available:
     We have been asked to carry the following announcement:
     International Disabled Marketing Associates (IDMA) is
pleased to offer the following catalogs for 1995-96: the Ann
Morris Enterprises Catalog of Innovative Products Dedicated to
People with Vision Loss, large print, cassette, and IBM-format
disc, no charge; Braille edition, $10; Amway Christmas Catalog,
two cassettes, $2; and Electronics Catalog for Home and Business,
one cassette, $1.
     IDMA offers additional catalogs plus an excellent part-time
or full-time business opportunity. A free introductory cassette
is available upon request. Make your check payable to Jack H.
Morgan and send it to IDMA, RD #1, Box 29A, Cheswick,
Pennsylvania 15024, or call (412) 265-4821. Please make note of
our new address and telephone number.

*** In Memoriam:
     We recently received a letter from Donald Capps, President
of the National Federation of the Blind of South Carolina, which
said in part:
     Reba Hancock, eighty-one, who served as President of the
National Federation of the Blind of South Carolina for two terms
between 1974 and 1978, died June 10, 1995, after several years of
declining health. Reba had been a member of the Federation for
nearly fifty years, having joined the Columbia Chapter of the NFB
of South Carolina when it was organized in 1947. She attended
many NFB conventions and proudly participated in several
Washington seminars. As long as she could possibly do so, Reba
faithfully attended monthly meetings of the Columbia Chapter. She
was very generous and unswerving in her support of the Federation
on the local, state, and national levels. In appreciation of her
generosity Hancock Road, the main entrance to Rocky Bottom Camp
of the Blind, was named in her honor. Because Reba was one of
those Federationists who could always be relied upon for loyalty,
faithfulness, and generosity, she will be greatly missed.

 Interesting Offerings from National Braille Press:
     We recently received notice of the following new
publications from National Braille Press:
     If you crave chocolate desserts, like German sweet chocolate
cake or chocolate pecan pie, check out Baker's Easiest-Ever
Chocolate Recipes by Kraft Foods, Inc. What makes these recipes
so easy is Baker's new one-bowl method of baking. Discover how to
prepare delicious homemade brownies, cookies, and more in the
same amount of time it would normally take to prepare a mix. One
volume in Braille for $10.
     Interested in turning your computer into a terminal to
access the world? Across the country blind computer users are
turning to Commo, a popular, low-cost telecommunications program
that works well with speech and Braille.
     Written by Fred Brucker, Commo is a shareware program, which
means it's inexpensive ($30 for students and $40 for others).
Free evaluation copies are available on many bulletin boards.
With this shareware program you can gain access to the Internet,
bulletin boards, or other electronic sources of information.
     National Braille Press has gone one step further with a
Commo reference card, written especially for blind users by Dean
Martineau. This handy Commo reference card (in Braille only) is
available for just $5.00.
     Order from National Braille Press, 88 St. Stephen Street,
Boston, Massachusetts 02115, or call (617) 266-6160 and charge
it. All orders must be prepaid.

*** For Sale:
     We have been asked to carry the following announcement:
     I have for sale a Prose 4000 speech synthesizer, excellent
speech quality, works best with Vert software, asking $600.
Pocket-Braille, handy portable note taker works like the Braille
'n Speak, has had light use, $500. DECtalk Express speech
synthesizer, brand new, includes one-year warranty, $1050. For
information call Jean at (303) 388-4023.

*** Elected:
     On March 4, 1995, the San Diego County Chapter of the NFB of
California, elected the following: John Miller, President; James
Lyons, Vice President; Sheila Johnson, Secretary; Ivan Weich,
Treasurer; and Joseph Lopez and Wayne Ives, Board members.

*** In Memoriam:
     Steve Benson, President of the NFB of Illinois, has notified
us with sadness of the deaths of two Illinois Federationists. He
wrote as follows:
     Francis Allen was a charter member of the Illinois
affiliate; and, though during the last several years poor health
prevented her from being as active as she and we would have
liked, she remained solid, committed, and outspoken in her
loyalty to the Federation. Francis worked as a medical
transcriber and as a proofreader of English, Spanish, and French
material. Her wisdom and patience will certainly be missed by all
of us who knew her well.
     Mary Nimis died on July 10, 1995, only days after she worked
at the National Convention as a crowd marshal and as one of the
Illinoisans who provided assistance wherever it was needed. Mary
will also be missed.

*** New Chapter:
     Don Capps, President of the National Federation of the Blind
of South Carolina, reports the formation of the affiliate's
fiftieth chapter, the Jasper County Chapter, on June 22, 1995.
The new officers are Lois Lowry, President; Hoover Noonan, Vice
President; Angela Williams, Secretary; and Iva Payne, Treasurer.

*** Perkins Brailler Repairs Available:
     Joseph Staniewski requests that we carry the following
announcement:
     The Selective Doctor, Inc., is a repair service for all IBM
typewriters and now Perkins Braille writers. Located in
Baltimore, the service has done work for the Maryland School for
the Blind and a number of other organizations in Maryland. They
now accept Perkins Braillers sent to them from around the
country. They advertise top quality service at yesterday's
prices. They also request a phone call before shipment of
Braillers and ask that equipment be insured in the mails. For
more information contact the Selective Doctor, Inc., P.O. Box
28432, Baltimore, Maryland 21234, or call (410) 668-1143.

[Caption: Jeanine Lineback stands at the buffet while Homer Page talks with
staff members and reception guests.]
*** Celebration in Denver:
     We recently received the following brief article written by
Dr. Homer Page, President of the NFB of Colorado. Homer became
Executive Director of the Colorado Center for the Blind upon the
retirement of Diane McGeorge from that position on September 1,
1995. Here is the announcement:
     On August 10, 1995, the NFB of Colorado and the CCB
(Colorado Center for the Blind) hosted an open house so that we
could celebrate the completion of our new facility at 1830 South
Acoma Street. For several weeks before the open house, our staff
and students and members worked to shine up our new building and
prepare wonderful food for our guests to enjoy. Over 200 persons
came to see our new building.
     President Maurer came from Baltimore to be with us. He
delivered a most inspiring talk, which keynoted our program.
Governor Romer sent a very nice letter congratulating us on our
role as a resource for the blind of Colorado. Mayor Webb and
Congressman Skaggs had representatives at the open house. Many
persons in leadership roles with agencies that provide services
to blind persons were in attendance. Everyone with whom I spoke
appreciated the promise for the future that is contained in our
new facility.
     We invite anyone who was not able to attend the open house
to visit and become familiar with our new facility. It has room
for meetings, for conversation, and for planning a better future
for the blind of Colorado. A building is only bricks and mortar;
however, the future for those of us who are blind depends on our
ability to work together with intelligence and dedication. So our
open house was not just a time to look at a new building. It was
an opportunity for us to get together and to dream for things to
come.

*** Talking Products Available:
     Federationist Denise Russell has asked us to carry the
following announcement:
     Give the gift that says something. Introducing new Speak to
Me Catalog specializing in products that have the ability to talk
or let you record your own voice. Some of our new products
featured are the following: personal recorders, ranging from ten
to 120 seconds of recording time; novelty clocks; talking caller
I.D. phone; and a talking bread machine. In addition there are
many fun novelty items such as talking salt and pepper shakers,
spatula, toothbrush, fork and spoon, birthday candle, as well as
a singing happy birthday bear, plus many more items for everyone.
Visit the Speak to Me Catalog on the Internet and hear sound
demos of these talking products. The address is
http://clickshop.com/speak/
     Voices can remind you of important events or special
memories. Call (800) 248-9965 to receive your free Speak to Me
catalog. Request print, cassette, or IBM floppy copy.

*** For Sale:
     We have been asked to carry the following announcement:
     Accent SA external synthesizer with SV 50B screen reader,
including tape instructions. Asking $600. Call (503) 752-2373,
weekdays, 10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., Pacific Time.

*** Video on Financial Aid Available:
     We have been asked to carry the following announcement:
     A videotape titled Financial Aid for Students with
Disabilities in Postsecondary Educational Settings is now
available. This videotape is designed to help state vocational
rehabilitation agencies and other rehabilitation entities provide
training for vocational rehabilitation agency staff and other
rehabilitation practitioners in securing financial aid for
students with disabilities in postsecondary educational settings.
To order this 120-minute, VHS videotape, send a $20 check to
Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on Blindness and Low
Vision, P.O. Box Drawer 6189, Mississippi State, Mississippi
39762.

*** New Products:
     We have been asked to carry the following announcement:
     Introducing Alphatek, a company that specializes in talking
products of all kinds: talking watches, clocks, calculators, key
chains, and the newest innovations in talking technology. We
invite you to check out our low prices and excellent service. For
a free print catalog call (310) 393-7780 or write to Alphatek,
1223 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 494, Santa Monica, California 90403.

*** New Chapters:
     The California affiliate is proud to announce the addition
of two new chapters to its affiliate family. The River City
Chapter was formed in August. The new officers are Eric Clegg,
President; Bryan Bashin, First Vice President; Raquel Gomez,
Second Vice President; Ellen Paxson, Secretary; and Paul Carver,
Treasurer. Diane Domingue and Doug Langley will serve as the two
Board Members.
     The newly formed San Diego East County Chapter also recently
held its first meeting and election of officers. They are Norm
Peters, President; Joseph Lopez, Vice President; Sheila Johnson,
Secretary; and Maria Deer, Treasurer. Ivan Weich and Lisa Irving
were elected to serve as Board Members.

*** Activities Book About Blindness Available:
     Ramona Walhof, Secretary of the National Federation of the
Blind and President of the NFB of Idaho, writes as follows:
     When you go to meetings and other National Federation of the
Blind activities, do your children and young friends ask what it
is all about? You now have a new way to help them understand.
     Julie and Brandon, Our Blind Friends is an educational
activities book produced by and available from the National
Federation of the Blind of Idaho. Contained in this book are
twenty-four pictures to color, seven pages relating Braille to
print, several descriptions of tools and techniques used by the
blind, a short story by President Maurer, and more.
     It is a book about blindness for sighted children from
kindergarten to middle-school age. We have found that many adults
enjoy these activities as well. This book provides a unique
approach to educating the general public about blindness, and
those who have seen it have loved it.
     Individual books sell for $4 plus $1.50 shipping. Twenty-
five books or more may be purchased for $3 each, plus $5 shipping
for each group of twenty-five books. Make checks or money orders
payable to National Federation of the Blind of Idaho, and send
them to 1301 S. Capitol Boulevard, Suite C, Boise, Idaho 83706.
Be sure to tell us where to ship your books.

*** For Sale:
     We have been asked to carry the following announcement:
     I have several Perkins Braillers that are looking for new
homes. Costs start at $300. All are in excellent condition.
Trade-ins accepted and payment plans are negotiable. In addition,
I offer a complete Perkins Brailler service. I purchase and/or
repair old Perkins Braillers. If you have a machine that is
feeling poorly or if you have an old Perkins that you would like
to sell (working or non-working), call me. For more information
contact Nino Pacini, evenings and weekends only, at (313) 885-
7330.

*** Pen Friends Wanted:
     We have been asked to carry the following announcement:
     I would like to correspond with people in Braille Grade I or
II or on cassette. I am a born-again Christian with many
interests. Bob Riibe, 2116 South Duluth, Sioux Falls, South
Dakota 57105.

[Caption: The Reverend Sandy Smith, 1914 to 1995]
 In Memoriam:
     We recently received the following sad news from the
National Federation of the Blind of Louisiana:
     On Monday, July 31, 1995, the Reverend Sandy Smith died at
his home in Tallulah at the age of eighty-one. The Reverend Smith
served for many years as President of the Northeast Chapter of
the NFB of Louisiana and was a member of the Board of Directors
for over twelve years. He and his dedicated wife Lyndella worked
diligently to serve the blind people of his region, state, and
nation. Always dependable and loyal, Sandy held his chapter
together when the affiliate was embroiled in strife. He proved
himself to be a member who had the best interests of all blind
persons at heart.
     "Reverend Sandy could always be counted on whenever we
needed him. He was a good man with great wisdom and integrity,"
Joanne Wilson said. "When I needed to hold things together, Sandy
was the man. We will really miss him. He was a man of great
faith--faith in God and faith in the philosophy of this
movement."
     He was a good soldier in the cause of freedom for all of the
nation's blind, and he will be greatly missed but never forgotten
by those of us who knew and loved him.

*** Software Reviews Available:
     The International Braille and Technology Center for the
Blind, in conjunction with the NFB in Computer Science and the
Committee on the Evaluation of Technology, has prepared a
comprehensive 250-page document which provides extensive and
detailed reviews of virtually every screen review program on the
market today. These reviews, prepared by blind users themselves,
cover all the DOS-based screen review programs as well as seven
programs for accessing Microsoft Windows. Also reviewed are
access programs for IBM's OS/2 and the Apple Macintosh.
     If your employer or you are considering a switch to
Microsoft Windows, you need this document. No one but the NFB has
ever done this many reviews all in one place with this much
detail.
     Since the reviews will change as existing products are
updated and new ones are introduced, they will be available only
electronically, on 3.5 inch computer disk. The disk, which will
work on IBM and compatible computers, contains both ASCII and
WordPerfect 5.1 versions of the file. It is available from NFB's
Materials Center at a cost of $5. The order number is LSA57D. You
can order by mail, if payment is enclosed, or you can order over
the telephone using a major credit card. Contact NFB Materials
Center, 1800 Johnson Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21230,
Telephone: (410) 659-9314. Please call between 12:30 p.m. and
5:00 p.m. Eastern Time.

[Caption: Eileen Edlund]
*** In Memoriam:
     Just as this issue was going to press, we learned of the
death on Sunday, September 24, 1995, of Eileen Edlund, long-time
Federationist and wife of Dick Edlund, member of both the NFB
Board of Directors and the Kansas Legislature. Eileen had been
ill for sometime; she will be deeply missed by us all. We join
Dick in grieving Eileen's loss.

*** Banquet Address Honored for Excellence:
     The semi-monthly periodical, Vital Speeches of the Day
included "The Heritage of Conflict," the 1995 banquet address at
the National Federation of the Blind's annual convention, in the
August 15 issue. President Maurer's address appeared with
speeches by Secretary of State Warren Christopher; former
Secretary of Agriculture Clayton Yeutter; Chairman, Price
Waterhouse World Firm, Dominic A. Tarantino; and Executive Vice
President, American Petroleum Institute, William F. O'Keefe. The
periodical, which is placed in school libraries across the
country, defines itself as "The best thought of the best minds on
current national questions." We can all take pride in knowing
that the philosophy of the National Federation of the Blind is
once again available to young researchers, writers, and debaters
as well as everyone else who reads Vital Speeches of the Day.

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