The Braille Forum Vol. III January 1965 No. 5 Published Bi-Monthly by the American Council of the Blind Oklahoma City, Oklahoma To Inform Its Readers and to Provide an Impartial Forum for Discussion * Editor: Mrs. Marie M. Boring 1113 Camden Avenue Durham, N.C. 27701 * Associate Editors: Ned E. Freeman 136 Gee's Mill Road Conyers, Georgia 30207 Mrs. Mary Jane Hills 33 1/2 Edmonds St. Rochester, N.Y. 14607 George Card 605 South Few St. Madison, WI 53703 * Executive Offices: 136 Gee's Mill Road Conyers, Georgia 30207 ***** ** Statement of Editorial Policy The BRAILLE FORUM is dedicated to promoting the greater independence, autonomy and dignity of all blind people. The FORUM will carry official ACB news and programs, but its pages will also be available for free expression of views and opinions. Insofar as possible the Forum will publish news of organizations and agencies of and for the blind and any developments of interest to its readers. Timely material is solicited. Selections of material will be made on the basis of interest, timeliness, originality, clarity and forcefulness of expression. In controversial matters space will be made available for the presentation of divergent points of view. ** Notice The BRAILLE FORUM is available in braille, inkprint and on tape. Miss June Goldsmith, 652 E. Mallory Avenue, Memphis, Tennessee 38106, should be notified of any change of address or of any person desiring to receive the braille or inkprint editions. The tape edition may be obtained from Mr. Ned E. Freeman, 136 Gee's Mill Road, Conyers, Georgia 30207. Letters and material for publication should be submitted to the Editor or to one of the Associate Editors. ***** ** Table of Contents ACB President's Fireside Chat Insurance Against Blindness, by Durward McDaniel Why the American Council of the Blind?, by George L. Fogarty Poles Apart, by Dr. Berthold Lowenfeld The Anne Sullivan Macy Service for Deaf-Blind, by Louis J. Bettica Musical Typewriter Akron Chapter Tackles Problem of Multiply-Handicapped Blind Child, by Clyde E. Ross California's New Orientation Center, by J. Henry Kruse, Jr. I Am a Multiple Sclerotic, by Margaret Avery Accidental Discovery May Enable Blind Persons to "See" Hyde Park Corner, Conducted by Earl Scharry Here and There, by George Card ACB Officers and Directors ***** ** ACB President's Fireside Chat My Friends: So here we are at the beginning of a new year. Much has happened during the past 12 months, and we of the American Council are anticipating a great deal of further progressive activity during the coming year. The growth of ACB during 1964 was nothing short of phenomenal. Six state organizations of the blind voted during the year to become affiliated with ACB, thus bringing the total number of our affiliates to thirteen. With the addition of these new affiliates, our total membership roll has also nearly doubled. As a result, we are expecting our convention in Louisville next July to be the largest and most enthusiastic one we have had -- truly representing the blind from coast to coast and border to border. One of our greatest successes during 1964 was the passage by the Congress of the resolution making the observance of October 15 as National White Cane Safety Day an annual event and the signing by President Johnson of the first National White Cane Safety Day Proclamation. It is hoped that in 1965 it will be possible to include all of the 50 states in the list of those participating and that every state and local group will be active in securing local publicity for this public education campaign. The time since my November "Fireside Chat" appeared has been short, but as yet I have had no reaction from you concerning my plans for a seminar between the agencies and the organized blind next spring. Several governmental and private agencies have expressed interest in the project and have indicated that their representatives probably would be able to participate. With this encouragement it is hoped that the organized blind themselves will be sufficiently interested to make this a worthwhile milestone in the progress of work for the blind. Russell Kletzing, president of the National Federation of the Blind, and Oliver Bacon, executive director of the Blind Veterans Association, have been invited to join with ACB in arranging for the seminar. With the participation of all three of these national organizations of blind people, the proposed seminar should be truly representative of all the organized blind of the nation. It is sincerely hoped that these plans will work out. As this is being written, I am enjoying the numerous Christmas cards and greetings from many of you. I wish it were possible for me to thank each of you personally for your expression of goodwill and for your support of the activities and programs sponsored by the American Council. It is always a great pleasure to hear from you, and all of us are most anxious to serve you and your friends in any way possible. To each of you, from Loretta and me, all good wishes for a happy and prosperous and soul-satisfying New Year! Faithfully yours, Ned Freeman ***** ** Insurance Against Blindness By Durward McDaniel (Mr. McDaniel, First Vice-President of the American Council of the Blind, is Vice-Chairman of the Council's Legislative Committee.) The Council's Board of Directors has voted to give priority to legislation which would write into the Social Security Act the principle of "Insurance Against Blindness." In so doing, the Board decided to advocate the provisions contained in the Humphrey Amendment to H.R. 11865, about which you received a bulletin in September, 1964, from the ACB Legislative Committee. The 89th Congress has just commenced, and your active support on behalf of this and other legislative objectives will be vital to the enactment of a progressive program. I hope you will study the explanation which follows and act as requested. While it would be difficult to improve upon Hubert Humphrey's explanation of his amendment, a few points can be emphasized. First, "Insurance Against Blindness" would provide for all of those working in covered employment -- present and future -- the advantage of Social Security benefits upon the loss of sight. Second, it would avoid the regressive effect of the "disability concept" and its penalizing means test -- "inability to engage in any substantial gainful activity." Third, it would recognize that blindness imposes additional costs upon a person, therefore justifying eligibility for benefits for persons who are blind and gainfully employed as in the case of blinded veterans, who receive government pensions. And fourth, it would not discriminate against those who are already blind, thereby establishing a uniform eligibility for all who may apply in the future. Although this proposal would apply to all insured workers who lose their sight, concern has been expressed by some that it would create a special privileged class. Each category of beneficiaries is specially designated, otherwise it would not exist. Likewise each category might be considered to be specially privileged if it were not for the significant fact that all beneficiaries -- present and future -- pay direct tax in accordance with the law as a condition to their eligibility. Morally and philosophically there is no difference between insurance against blindness through Social Security and that so often provided through group accident and health insurance policies in industry. Senator Humphrey said, "My amendment would liberalize the Federal disability insurance program for persons who are now blind — and, perhaps even of greater importance -- it would make disability insurance payments more readily available to more persons who become blind at the time when blindness occurs. "My amendment would do the following: "First. It would incorporate the generally recognized and widely used definition of blindness into the provisions of the disability insurance law; that is, blindness is central visual acuity of 20/200 or less in the better eye with correcting lenses or visual acuity greater than 20/200 if accompanied by a limitation in the field of vision such that the widest diameter of the visual field subtends an angle no greater than 20 degrees. "Second. It would allow any person who meets this definition in visual loss, and who has worked in social security covered employment for a year and a half -- six quarters -- to qualify for disability cash benefits. "Third. It would allow persons who meet the above requirements in measurable sightlessness and length of time in covered employment to draw disability benefits, and to continue to draw them, so long as they remain blind -- and irrespective of their income or earnings, if they are fortunate enough to be employed. "This amendment seeks to make the disability insurance program a true insurance program against the economic catastrophe of blindness -- against the economic disadvantages which result when blindness occurs in the life of a working-man. "Under present law, a person who is blind and unable to secure social security covered work for 5 years cannot qualify for disability insurance payments. Reducing the present requirements from 20 to 6 quarters would be a much more reasonable and realistic requirement for people who, though often-times well qualified for gainful work, still encounter much difficulty in obtaining any work at all. Under existing law, a worker who becomes blind but has not worked for 5 years in covered employment is denied the sustaining support of disability insurance payments at a time when his whole world has collapsed, when disaster has terminated his earning power, and he is faced with surrendering dignity and self-pride and applying for public or private charity -- hardly a sound basis for instilling self-confidence and reviving hope -- so essential as the first step in rehabilitation and restoration to normal life and productive livelihood. "Under existing law, a person who is blind and earns but the meagerest of income, is denied disability insurance payments on the ground that even the meagerest earnings indicate such person in not disabled -- or sufficiently disabled in the eyes of the law -- to qualify for disability payments. "As a matter of fact, Mr. President, the economic consequences of blindness exist, and they continue to exist, even though a blind person is employed and earning; and these economic consequences are expensive to the blind person who has the will and the courage to compete in a profession or a business with sighted people, who must live and work in a society structured for sighted people. "Adoption of this amendment would provide a minimum floor of financial security to the person who must live and work without sight, who must pay a price in dollars and cents for wanting and daring to function in equality with sighted men." The Humphrey Amendment was adopted by the Senate, but the entire bill died in Conference Committee. President Johnson will soon be proposing a major Social Security bill in the new Congress. If we can get the Administration to include "Insurance Against Blindness" in its bill, we will have a good chance for success. Accordingly, every reader of the Braille Forum is urged to write to the White House requesting the inclusion of our proposal in the Administration's Social Security bill. For easy identification all communications should refer to the Humphrey Amendment to H.R. 11865 appearing in the Congressional Record for September 3, 1964. Also, you and your organization are urged to write to your respective Congressmen and U.S. Senators asking each of them to introduce a separate bill containing the provisions of the Humphrey Amendment, again referring to the date of the Congressional Record. Enactment of an "Insurance Against Blindness" bill is undoubtedly the most significant thing we can accomplish toward our goal of economic independence. To be effective, we must act without delay. If it is convenient, please send copies of your letters to this writer at Box 1476, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. ***** ** Why the American Council of the Blind and What Is Its Role? By George L. Fogarty of California (Speech given at the 1964 convention of the Oregon Council of the Blind) The American Council of the Blind came into being on July 7, 1961. In the short time since its founding by a group of representative blind persons from some 30 states who felt the need for a national organization which would foster individual initiative and independence among the blind, its membership has soared to well over two thousand persons, and at the present time has ten affiliate organizations within its ranks. The purpose of ACB, as set forth in its constitution, is to strive for the benefit of our TOTAL community "through a representative national organization primarily of blind people; by providing a forum for the views of the blind from all corners of the nation and from all walks of life; by elevating the social, economic and cultural level of the blind; by improving educational and rehabilitational facilities; by broadening vocational opportunities; by encouraging and assisting the blind, especially the newly blind, to develop their abilities and potentialities and to assume their responsible place in the community; by cooperating with public and private institutions and agencies of and for the blind; by providing for the free exchange of ideas opinions and information relative to matters of concern to blind people through the publication of a braille magazine; by conducting a program of public education aimed toward improving the understanding of the problems of blindness and of the capabilities of blind people." This purpose, though unique in many ways, cannot of itself explain the existence of ACB. For some 20 years prior to its existence, this purpose in many of its aspects has been pursued by the blind on a national scale. During the years immediately preceding the formation of ACB, a sharp divergence of opinion arose as to how best to accomplish this goal among those seeking it. Did it require acceptance of a rigid loyalty to a single individual and to a single set of ideas as a condition precedent to success, as alleged by some, or could there be disagreement with dignity within our own ranks as a means of going forward, as contended by others? During the course of the argument, many foolish tactics were resorted to by those upholding the "Strong Leader at Any Cost" point of view: suspension, expulsion, incredible infringements upon the right of free speech; unreasoned force rather than the force of reason. The unresolved question resulted in the formation and creation of the American Council of the Blind. Not wishing to "try the future's portal with the past's blood-rusted key," and at the same time heeding George Santayana's warning that "those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it," several safeguards were written into the Council's constitution and by-laws that would forever preclude the practices that had brought about such devastating differences. Dedicated to the dignity of the individual, to the integrity and autonomy of local and state groups, and to a proper respect for the rights of minority opinion within its own ranks, provisions guaranteeing these and other procedures of fair play are to be found throughout the provisions and practices of the American Council of the Blind. We concur completely with Justice Brandeis' statement that "justice is but truth in action," and that "we cannot hope to attain justice until we have the proper respect for truth." So it is that suspension and expulsion cannot occur without a fair hearing and without a two-thirds vote; so it is that a small clique cannot gain control and perpetuate themselves in office, inasmuch as officers and board members are limited to a definite number of terms of office and service; so it is that the manipulation of the will and intent of the membership cannot be accomplished by the use of "paper affiliates" that have no validity in fact, for the procedures pertaining to voting are specifically set forth and prevent such stratagems of weakness; so it is that actions of the officers must be authorized by the membership in advance of the action taken, and not merely ratified long afterwards. But however carefully conceived, however compelling the cause for its being, it is in its image that the American Council is to make its real contribution. The image of any organization or movement is that of its members and can never be other than this, however distorted the view. What then is the image we seek, and how do we propose to make it a living reality? To more clearly convey the course we have taken and the status we seek, let me point in passing to a few of the perennial pitfalls we have striven to avoid. Should we, for instance, be a volunteer service organization, or a serve-us pressure group? Are we to have as our national anthem the blaming of the problems of the blind and the woes of the blind upon a discriminating and rejecting sighted public? Are we to perpetuate the persecuted attitude that so many labor under and with, that has been so aptly described by that great Oregonian, the late Dr. Tom Cutsforth, as the "Chinese Wall of the Blind," that better serves to contain ourselves than to keep out the invaders? This wall, he pointed out, constructed out of fear of the sighted public and of feelings of inadequacy in dealing with them, makes it extremely difficult, if not impossible, to scale ourselves, and thereby approach whatever is without, while we still feel vulnerable from every side. Blind people are first of all people, and have the same rights and responsibilities as anyone else to be citizens and members of their community. Our own members are engaged in almost every known occupation and are essentially independent and socially integrated people -- or are striving to become so. As a responsible organization we must have a due regard for the welfare of others as well as for the advantages to be sought for the blind. We believe that our organization should be a self-help organization. We must be the subjects rather than the objects of civic action. Things are too often done for or about or to or because of, but they are less frequently done BY us: We would seek to change this. Many who stand up vigorously for their rights fall down miserably on their obligations. We hear much about equality of opportunity, but equality of opportunity is only the pre­condition for equality, and not its equivalent. The more we get what we want in terms of formal rights, the more responsibility we have to assume toward our own fate. The American Council of the Blind, in another refreshing departure in the organized blind movement, does not compete with any other group. Rather, it strives to cooperate with civic, private and governmental agencies toward the achievement of its objectives. Wherever our influence can be promoted by the practice of GOOD public relations, this is to be preferred to coercive methods of establishing and enforcing laws guaranteeing the rights of the blind. As Goethe, the great German philosopher, put it: "If we take people as they are, we may make them worse. If we treat them as if they were what they ought to be, we help them to become what they are capable of becoming." We need friends, we need their help, and they need us. Together we can accomplish much; apart and opposed we serve no useful purpose, for the way one thinks or acts has much to do with the way things are. Just as a job cannot long exist unless it fulfills a need, an organization cannot long continue without a sufficient necessity or demand for the service it seeks to give. Is this national organization, the American Council of the Blind, necessary? Does it fulfill an existing or an unmet need? If it does not, or if it cannot, then rightly it should perish. What then IS the existing need, and HOW do we propose to meet it? The day when many of the matters vitally affecting the blind could be satisfactorily solved solely on a state and local level has long since passed. With the enactment of such significant legislation -- as the Social Security law, with its vast and ever-increasing influence on welfare activities and thinking, the Barden-LaFollette Act and its subsequent amendments, so directly bearing on that other large area of greatest concern to the blind, rehabilitation, with its ever-accelerating force in this field -- much of this means of dealing with these problems has been far removed from the local scene. Today on the state level we constantly run into roadblocks of administrative rulings on many of the final decisions most vitally affecting the blind, and these are made in Washington. Aside from the opportunity and convenience that comes with proximity to the scene of action, there is another even more compelling reason why you must be a part of the national movement. Only in this way will you, and will we, be properly heard and our common goals be properly understood. No collective action is possible except through the individual. Speaking of laws and of how they are made, Justice Brandeis had this to say: "A measure without friends will fail, no matter how good it is. Laws pass because of a public demand rather than because they are good." Large national groups are listened to. Each new state affiliate brings with it two new senators along with its allotted number of representatives. This fact can do much toward swaying the balance when considering important decisions concerning the blind. Yet, while the need for national affiliation is great, for the reasons here stated, the vital role still to be filled by local and state group action must not be ignored and destroyed. It is this level, the "grassroots" level, where the true sentiment, the REAL problems can best be known. It is here that many of the problems are yet to be found, and it is here that they are yet to be solved. Fully aware of the contribution these groups are so uniquely prepared to make and of the source of strength they CAN be, every affiliate member of ACB is guaranteed complete autonomy on local and state matters. While help is always available, it is never and will never be forced upon an affiliate. There is no subsidizing of state affiliates by ACB, no "slush-fund" with which to influence them politically. It is our ardent hope that you will want to become affiliated with the American Council of the Blind, that you will want to join forces with others who believe in and work for the same ideals and objectives as those of the Oregon Council of the Blind. I have been sent here today to assure you that you will be warmly and enthusiastically welcomed if you should see fit to further our mutual goals through affiliating with us and becoming a part of this rapidly growing movement. Ned Freeman, our president, and George Card, our dynamic membership chairman, have many personal friends among you. They asked that I particularly convey their warmest greetings to each of you and express their real regret at their inability to be here with you today. One more word, and I am done. I have here in my possession several braille brochures telling of ACB. Also, anyone wishing to request that they be put on our mailing list of those receiving our excellent publication, The Braille Forum, of which we are justly very proud, and which is available in braille, in ink print, or on tape, may do so by seeing me, giving me their names and addresses, and the form in which they prefer to receive it. I will forward this information to our circulation editor, Miss June Goldsmith, way down there in Tennessee, and she will take it from there. With this final word, and a long one it was, I wish to thank you for this opportunity to tell you of the American Council of the Blind. Speaking personally, I would like to express my appreciation for the warm and wonderful way you have received and treated me. Thank you. ***** ** Poles Apart By Dr. Berthold Lowenfeld as excerpted by George Card (Editor's Note: The excerpt below is from a brilliant paper by Dr. Berthold Lowenfeld, delivered at last summer's meeting of the American Association of Workers for the Blind and published in the November New Outlook for the Blind. Dr. Lowenfeld, now retired, is a world-renowned educator of the blind. His book Our Blind Children is in its second edition and has become a classic in its field.) I would like to discuss with you two points of view among those who work with the blind, both, in my opinion, extreme and unrealistic. On the one hand, there are people who feel that they must describe their concept of blindness by enumerating and detailing all the possible losses it can generate. True, blindness is a severe loss which seriously affects the cognitive, social and economic functions of any individual. But what good does it serve to depict the blind in such a way that the blind person can hardly recognize himself, lost in all these losses, and that the seeing are led to conclude that there is either no chance or only rarely a chance for their full rehabilitation. On the other hand, there are those who claim that blindness is just a nuisance or inconvenience. Surely blindness is more than that, since both terms imply that you can get rid of it if it annoys you. Statements of this kind if they are made by professional workers in the field, inevitably cast serious doubt on their realism and are taken for wishful thinking only. While the loss appraisal leads one to believe that, in the face of such overwhelming losses, nothing really effective can be done, the nuisance appraisal evokes the question why, in the face of such a rosy evaluation, anything should be done. I want to warn of both appraisals, since they prevent a recognition of the actual status and needs of the individual blind person. In my opinion, they do far more harm than good, though they may be temporarily captivating. As a result of all these influences, the majority group tends to have preconceived ideas about the capacities and other personal characteristics of blind people. Collectively they are inclined to separate them from the majority and to provide for them those services which they think are good for them and needed by them. This approach dominated the early charitable agencies for the blind, and there are unfortunately too many of them which have not yet shed it. One of the most encouraging facts in this situation is that blind persons themselves have assumed increasing leadership in guiding their own destinies. This is expressed by the important role which organizations of the blind are playing in promoting legislation on behalf of the blind and determining the direction of work for the blind in general. ***** ** The Anne Sullivan Macy Service for Deaf-Blind Persons History and Development By Louis J. Bettica, Coordinator Anne Sullivan Macy Service for Deaf-Blind Persons (Prepared for presentation at the 1963 interbranch conference Pennsylvania Association for the Blind, Lycoming Hotel, Williamsport, Pennsylvania, October 18, 1963. Had time permitted, this paper would have been presented at the 1964 convention of the American Council of the Blind.) Historically, blindness alone has been viewed as a very severe disability. Add to it the handicap of deafness, that is, the inability to hear, and the resulting handicap appears to be overpowering. Add to this the absence of speech, which is a common occurrence among many congenitally deaf people, and the handicap appears to be unconquerable. This, unfortunately, is the feeling of many: lay people, professional people and almost all newly deaf-blind people. As devastating as this handicap may be, the impact of a rejecting society, the inertia on the part of many professional workers, the cleavage in the family relationship is in reality the unsurmountable hurdle, leading to a deflated self-image and a feeling of worthlessness resulting often in a life of deprivation, insolation and, not too infrequently, vegetation. The unfortunate thing about all this is that this should not be. There need not be this wastefulness. The community must become aware of the potentialities of the deaf-blind. Opportunities for rehabilitation services must be made available and must be consistent with the individual's capacity for acceptance of these services. However, the appraisal of the deaf-blind person's capacity should only be made by skilled personnel. All too frequently, a determination of the deaf-blind person's readiness for a comprehensive training program is made by individuals with limited experience with this group. A lack of awareness of the benefits possible through such a program and a worker's own negative attitude toward this handicap is also an inhibiting factor toward a proper diagnosis of the client and his situation. This wastefulness need not continue if workshops serving blind people offered opportunities to this group who are also blind. If we are to think of the workshop as being a resource for individuals unable to obtain employment in outside industry, then what better use can we make of this type of facility than to open its doors to this limited number of blind people. In fact, when one considers the effect of idleness upon this group, wouldn't it seem logical to extend a priority to the deaf-blind rather than the rejection of services? In short, it is amazing how little help is given to the deaf-blind, despite the fact that they obviously need so much help. The Industrial Home for the Blind (IHB) for many years has proved that deaf-blind people can benefit from vocational opportunities and rehabilitation services. Deaf-blind people have been receiving services at the IHB since 1920, shortly after Dr. Salmon began his employment at that agency. One by one, deaf-blind men became clients of the IHB workshop and there were 12 in 1945, at which time the Department for Services to the Deaf-Blind was inaugurated. The major goal of this department is to elevate the level of functioning of deaf-blind people, helping each to move toward greater participation within the agency and in his community; toward greater independence and in being more of a self-directing person. The role of this department in the over-all agency program is three-fold: A. It provides some services directly to deaf-blind persons, including preparatory rehabilitation work in communications, self-care, arts and crafts, and specialized recreation, vocational counseling, shop supervision, vocational placement and case finding. B. It coordinates the services provided by other departments to deaf-blind persons. In this role, it is often used as a consultant body by these departments. Furthermore, it assists in orienting IHB staff members to the techniques of working with deaf-blind persons. C. It engages in a program of community relations which interprets the needs and potentialities of the deaf-blind and helps to break down some of the walls of misunderstanding that separate deaf-blind persons from others in the community. One aspect of this service is the recruitment and use of volunteers. These volunteers perform essential functions in relation to deaf-blind clients. The social contacts provided by volunteers have helped deaf-blind persons to develop socially, become more conscious of social standards of dress and behavior, and to become motivated to seek further social stimulation. At the present time, 70 deaf-blind people are receiving services of one type or another at the IHB; 6 are residents of Burrwood; 20 are residing at the Brooklyn residence; 30 are employed at the IHB workshops and only 4 of these are receiving supplementary assistance through welfare. Of this group, 24 participate in such weekly activities as bingo, dancing, shuffleboard, fishing, bowling, card playing, with special emphasis on having them plan their own activities and special events. Ten deaf-blind women attend the special Day Center Program at Jamaica. In 1956 the IHB and Office of Vocational Rehabilitation (OVR) joined in a project to study the program at the IHB and characteristics of the deaf-blind being served. One of its recommendations was that the special needs of the deaf-blind around the country can best be met through the use of regional rehabilitation service programs. With this recommendation in mind and upon the failure of other agencies to develop a regional program, the IHB, with the co-sponsorship of the VRA, inaugurated a regional service for this group in 1962, to be called the Anne Sullivan Macy Service for Deaf-Blind Persons. Health, Education and Welfare Regions I, II and III is the area which receives the expanded and intensive help by the personnel of the project, although we are always prepared to be helpful to the deaf-blind and agencies outside of this area where help cannot be obtained. The role of the ASMS is as follows: 1. Direct Service to Deaf-Blind Clients. Upon referral from a sponsoring agency, a plan for the client is drawn which may see him enter the LIRC for training with specific goals in mind. It is hoped that clients referred for this training can be returned to their own communities to a more satisfying life with the combined efforts of the sponsoring agency and the personnel of the ASMS. One of the unique features of this service is that funds are available for the ASMS personnel to travel to the communities of the clients within HEW Regions I, II and III without charge to the sponsoring agency. At the LIRC, the client receives a six weeks' evaluation period, followed by a period of prevocational training when indicated. One of the goals of any agency is to minimize the handicap. Therefore, as part of the evaluation, the client is seen by the ophthalmologist, the optometrist in the Optical Aid Service, the otologist and the audiologist in the Speech and Hearing Service. During this period he is also seen by the psychologist and the medical doctor, and referrals are made to the proper specialists when necessary. Casework services, in most cases, start prior to the evaluation period and are carried forward, depending upon the client's need for this help. Training in skills in communication, skills of daily living, development of personal skills, mobility, testing of manual skills and development of social skills is part of the program at the LIRC. 2. Assistance to Agencies. We are committed to assist agencies with their work with the deaf-blind and to develop staff to a point where the agency can be satisfactorily used as a local resource. The ASMS also intends to develop other regional centers by encouraging larger agencies to work with this group. Personnel of the ASMS can also travel for this purpose. Mr. Smithdas, other personnel and I can be called upon for assistance by those agencies interested in developing services for this group. Recently a three-day seminar was held for the home teachers and workshop supervisors of the Massachusetts Division for the Blind in Boston. A two-day seminar at the IHB was held this spring for personnel of state agencies within the regions covered by the project. 3. Community Relations. Somewhat similar to the above, except that we are interested in talking to all groups about the possibilities of help to deaf-blind people. As part of the education program, newspaper releases and articles in professional magazines will be a major part of this program. 4. Research. I held my comments on research until the end because I believe there is a great void in research in this field, and it is hoped that the personnel of this project, as well as those of the IHB, will retain an open mind toward the many areas now under research. I feel it is essential that we constantly review our own work and our own approach for the purpose of developing the most successful techniques. We are learning, through the use of seminars as a medium and the use of questionnaires as a tool for measurement, that communication is really the key to services and that the learning of communication methods tends to develop a feeling of adequacy among individuals. We also are learning that when skills are presented properly people are interested in learning them, and inhibition toward the learning of communication methods can be broken down very easily. The major goal of these seminars is to investigate the possibility of changing attitudes of groups toward the deaf-­blind. We have been pleasantly surprised to find that the participants of these seminars have not only become aware of the potentialities of deaf-blind people but have actually made direct contribution toward the enhancement of our program by volunteering their services, despite the fact that we deliberately did not make an effort to use these seminars as a resource for volunteer recruitment. An effort is being made to determine the effect that training at a rehabilitation setting such as the LIRC has on the life of a deaf-blind person. In order to do this, we have decided on having a nonparticipating observer stay with a deaf­blind person during the time the person is awake, for the purpose of recording his activities, minute by minute. At this stage of the investigation we have visited several clients prior to their entrance into the LIRC and discovered that the deaf-blind people we visited were idle (externally) approximately 10 to 12 hours per day. This means that these people do nothing for 10 to 12 hours per day, 7 days a week, etc. I find it difficult to conceptualize this kind of existence, and I feel that many of you here today would find it extremely difficult to picture life with this amount of inactivity. This investigation alone should point out the necessity for intensive case finding as well as offering a comprehensive program to those deaf-blind persons known to us. In conclusion, may I say that deaf-blind people can benefit substantially from a comprehensive rehabilitation program, and quite possibly such a program may truly be the only feasible way of developing within the individual the interest and the skills he needs to sustain him for the many years that he must endure life with the absence of sound and the loss of vision. I have seen very small agencies provide a deaf-blind person with adequate service. I have seen very large agencies rejecting help to this group because "their personnel cannot cope with the problem." Therefore, I would like to leave you with this assumption: It is not how large the agency is, but how large is the heart of the personnel of that agency that really counts. These people have displayed a tremendous amount of courage over what appears to be an insurmountable handicap; shouldn't we display a little of that courage and join them? ***** ** Musical Typewriter From the Ohio Council Bulletin Now is the time for all composers to learn the art of touch typing. Lilly Pavey, a 46-year-old London, England, housewife has invented the world's first musical typewriter. The machine types musical scores and strikes the note on bells at the same time. It took Lilly 14 years studying music, mathematics, mechanics and electronics to perfect the machine. She thought it would be useful to everybody and invaluable to blind musicians and composers. Oscio Publishers and typewriter companies which she canvassed with her idea thought she was out of her mind. She wrote to the Queen and to Prince Philip. Finally the National Research Development Council gave her a 1500-pound grant. Last year came success. She won a gold medal at the Brussells Invention Exhibition and now a typewriter company is preparing to make versions of her machine at 140 pounds each. The London County Council thinks stone-deaf children can be taught music with the invention. ***** ** Akron Chapter Tackles Problem of Multiply Handicapped Blind Child By Clyde Ross (Editor's Note: Mr. Ross was for many years president of the Ohio Council of the Blind and is still president of the Summit County Society of the Blind. He has also been a member of the Ohio Commission for the Blind and has been extremely active in many areas, including Lionism.) Many readers will remember that, almost 10 years ago at a national convention in Omaha, George Card and Bernard Gerchen tried unsuccessfully to persuade a national organization of the blind to establish and maintain a residential school for multiply handicapped blind children. It was to have been a pilot project to demonstrate what could be done. St. Louis was proposed as a location because highly skilled personnel could have been available on a part-time basis from the Missouri School for the Blind. Mr. Gerchen was ready to set up a foundation to provide finances, and he had lined up a board of trustees consisting of many prominent educators and business leaders in St. Louis. The proposal failed to obtain convention approval, mainly because the full strength of the administration was thrown against it. Many delegates were persuaded that such a project would make too much of a demand on the organization's limited manpower, and many also got the mistaken impression that it would cost the organization money. Neither the seriousness nor the immensity of the problem of the multiply handicapped blind child had previously occurred to me. Possibly many others were caught equally unaware. But the picture haunted me. If we the blind were not concerned, could we expect others to be? If we made no effort to solve the problem, did we have a right to expect our sighted friends to do something about it? For a number of years, in an unofficial way, we in Ohio gathered data. We have determined that there are at least 440 such children in Ohio without any governmental educational or training facilities. We could not raise enough money to start a residential school for multiply handicapped blind children. But if you cannot have a whole loaf of bread, even one slice will help. On July 1964, the Summit County Society of the Blind started its school for multiply handicapped blind children. It is not a national school. It is not a state school. It is not even a residential school. It is a day school, supported entirely by our chapter. We employed a qualified teacher, with 14 years' experience in the public school system. She had worked with mentally retarded children but never with blind children. She listened to our story. She went to the homes to see some of the children. The challenge inspired her. She became a part of our dream. Every dream, as it becomes a reality, requires much work, often by many people. Another person who figured in the development of our school was a lady who had worked with the blind in California several years ago. She has headed our transcribers group. She is a former school teacher. She helped to run errands to find children and to make contacts; she helped to coordinate the work of others. Among her finds was a man who had directed the county program for retarded children. He knew many things that we needed to know. He counseled us and now considers himself a part of our team. The instructor is the only person who is paid. We have a school board, which includes some members of our own board. The funds are appropriated from the income of the Mensch estate. Our instructor made home visits the first month, getting applications and getting acquainted with both parents and children. Out of forty possibilities, two were selected to start in a class. After a week a third child was added, then a fourth, a fifth and a sixth. They range from five to nine years of age. They have from one to four handicaps in addition to blindness. They have instruction from nine-thirty to two-thirty Tuesday through Friday. On Mondays the instructor continues to make home visits, counseling the parents of the present students and continuing the research among newly found children. Six children out of forty is not the total solution to our problem in Summit County, but it is possible that our instructor will be able to enlarge her class as the present students become accustomed to class routine. The school, as small as it is and as new as it is, is already producing results. One couple who formerly rejected their son now take him with them to the store and to church. Another child had been accustomed to crawling rather than walking, and at any unusual sound would flatten out like an animal. Now she walks with an uncanny sense of direction. Her vocabulary and pronunciation are improving beyond expectation. There is other evidence of progress in the class, but these illustrations alone would justify the work and the money that have gone into this school. While we are perfecting the little school that we have, we are studying sources of financial help that will permit us to expand our educational facility. We are hopeful that the public school system will look in upon us and find a way to incorporate our little program into its big program. We are hopeful that other communities where the need is similar will find the resources and the spirit to develop schools. similar to ours. Because there are many areas in the state where the population is sufficiently scattered to make a project of a day school for multiply handicapped blind children extremely difficult, I am not giving up my dream of a residential school on a state level. ***** ** California's New Orientation Center By J. Henry Kruse, Jr. The Oakland Orientation Center for the Blind was established about a dozen years ago on the same premises as the California Home for the Blind and the Oakland Branch of California Industries for the Blind. In 1962 the property was condemned by the Division of Highways. The Home was abolished, California Industries went into new rented quarters in Berkeley, and the Oakland Orientation Center went into temporary quarters on Grove Street in Oakland. For almost two years, a beautiful new facility for the Orientation Center has been under construction in Albany. There will be over an acre of floor space on a beautiful 3.2-acre plot. Four large buildings will be connected by covered walkways. Some moving has already begun, and the last of the buildings is scheduled for completion very soon. It is expected that students can be accepted before the end of the year. The new center will be known simply as the Orientation Center for the Blind, and the address is 400 Adams St., Albany, California, 94706. ***** ** I Am a Multiple Sclerotic By Margaret Avery Of 207 Tennessee St., Bolivar, Tenn. When, more than eight years ago, a prominent neurologist saw me walk and listened to my story of how one body function after another had weakened and almost disappeared, he said to me, "Without making any further tests, it is obvious that you have multiple sclerosis." My husband and I had suspected as much for a year or two, but having our fears confirmed by an authority on the subject did not make it any easier to accept. Nothing could be done to alter the facts, and since there was no adequate treatment for this disease, we must face life with a totally new outlook. Our first thoughts were for our two children and how we could help them to lead normal, happy lives in spite of my handicaps and the increasing responsibilities that these handicaps would cause for them. As I look back from the vantage point of years and the comparative safety of a wheelchair, I wonder how we made it during those earlier difficult days. There was the day when our little boy said to me, "Mother, were you ever a normal women? Did you ever run and play like other people?" And I was the one who taught him to throw and to catch his first ball, but he couldn't remember. It was I who played countless games of "Look out, the witch will get you" with him and his sister. These words were softened for me many months later when, on being asked what was wrong with her mother, our little daughter replied in shocked surprise, "Why, nothing." Maybe I was learning to cope with the situation, maybe. There were many days in those earlier years when I thought that life was literally leaving me. I would be working in my flowers, hanging a wash, or doing one of those tasks that fall to the lot of any homemaker, when I would become too tired to take another step. Regardless of the rest of the world, I had to lie down where I was, be it back yard or kitchen floor. After a few moments of complete inactivity and rest, life would flow back into my stricken body and I could get up and go my way. Another bitter blow fell when I had to give up driving the car. I took turns with another mother in chauffeuring the neighborhood children to school. For some time my better judgment had been telling me that it was time to stop driving, for my eyes could no longer judge distance properly, and I was inclined to drive too far to the right. I always moved at a snail's pace because I did not have the strength to bring the car to a sudden stop. Then, one day when I needed the brake, in spite of my slow speed my foot refused to move off the accelerator. I had to reach down and with my hand, move my foot from the gas pedal to the brake. Breathing a prayer all the way, I managed to get the children safely home, but I knew as I drove into the garage that I had made my last trip behind the wheel. Thus another job fell to my husband. How many times over the years has this happened? I had always done the family chauffeuring, and that is quite a job where there are children. But now this broad-shouldered husband of mine took it up without a murmur. I wondered how much he could endure, for job after job of mine had fallen to him. I knew there were more to come his way, but never yet have I heard a complaint from him. He has picked me up as often as I have fallen and has comforted me when I needed it. There have been days when my torture-racked body seemed pulled at by a thousand demons, all urging me to say the bitter, cutting thing. I heeded their urging, and my husband's life must have been a hell on earth; but still he carried on, and his dogged faith and determined cheerfulness have given me the courage to step forward when the road ahead seemed very dark. One of the most embarrassing things that has happened to me is the loss of emotional control. Often in the midst of a sentence, my voice breaks and my cup overflows, all for no good reason. I never go where there will be a touching scene to witness, and I don't dare open my mouth on any subject that stirs me. Often when discussing the most trivial matter, my tears begin to flow, and I beat a quick retreat to privacy. It was bad to become totally blind in my left eye, but after a few months of that, the vision began returning. Although it was blurred vision, still it was good to be able to see, and I had one good eye which the doctor said I could use as much as I wished. Over the years, the vision in that one good eye has become impaired. When reaching for the paper one morning, I realized that I could not even read the headlines, and I felt that my life had really come to an end. But a good friend who saw and understood my state of helpless confusion, and one whose mother had been blind for years, introduced me to the Talking Books, and now I wouldn't be without them. One must lose his vision to know the joy that comes back into life when he realizes that he is no longer cut off from good books. Now, instead of sitting helpless, with hands folded, I can sail the seven seas with Peter Freuchen or, if I prefer, spend days in quiet thought and philosophic pondering with Albert Schweitzer. Hands and arms are more important than feet and legs. Although it is inconvenient to be chained to a wheelchair and not to walk about as one wishes, nor to go up and down stairs, as long as the hands and arms remain strong and able, little is lost. When strength begins to ebb in the aforementioned extremities, one is really in trouble. Having moved about considerably in this country, I kept in touch with a large group of friends and relatives by correspondence. When my fingers would no longer hold a pen, I took to the typewriter. There was no implement to guide -- only keys to peck -- and that was much easier. But what am I to do now? There is only one finger left that is strong enough to peck the keys, and it often refuses to hit the symbol it is aimed at. Words that should read, "It amazes me that so many people," often turn out to be, "it a, axes ,e tgat sp mant peoplr." And there is the matter of house-wifely duties. It is a joy to most wives and mothers to keep a cooky jar filled with homemade goodies ready for the eager fingers that come home at the end of the day. That disappointed look that comes over faces when they find the jar empty weighs heavy on the heart of one who can no longer mix and stir. It is not an easy job, either, to call two youngsters in from the badminton court to iron or clean or prepare the evening meal because mother is not able to do it. Spending most of the daylight hours alone and with the lower half of my body helpless, I cannot afford accidents. One day, though, I leaned too far out of my chair and found myself on the floor. This was the very thing that I had hoped to avoid for, once getting down, there was no getting up without assistance. But there I was and with both doors locked on the inside. I managed to pull myself over the floor to the telephone where I met with disappointment. From my position on the floor, I could reach only the "0" of the dial. I called the operator, but she did not answer, though I waited what seemed an interminable length of time. It surely was her lunch hour. Slowly, my despair turned to fury at myself for being so careless, and I resolved to get back into my chair without any help. Turning my body prone on the floor, I inched my way across the dining room and the living room to the edge of the sofa. There I had to lie and rest for a long time before attempting to get myself onto it. Carefully maneuvering myself into a sitting position, with my side leaning against the couch, I leaned forward and caught my hands around the arm of the piece, hoping to pull the upper half of my body onto it. Time and again my efforts came to naught. Falling down on the floor to rest again, I decided that an entirely new approach was needed. Sitting this time with my back to the sofa, I put my hands behind me and up on the cushion of the couch. With all the strength that I could muster, I gave a great push up with my hands and arms and made it. I was sitting precariously near the edge of the sofa and in immediate danger of sliding to my former position on the floor, but with another tremendous effort I corrected that and slumped against the back cushion in exhaustion. At length I reached out and pulled my chair up beside me. Gripping it firmly by both of its arms, I pulled myself into it. How good to be in circulation again, and what a victory for me! My voice is beginning its slow deterioration, and hearing is leaving me; but in spite of all this, these are the happiest days of my life. I have learned to live with my handicaps, our children's feet are set in the right direction, and my husband and I face life together, confident and unafraid. ***** ** Accidental Discovery May Enable Blind Persons to "See" From the Seattle Times "A laboratory discovery made accidentally 16 years ago conceivably could result in artificial eyes for the blind, and for robot explorers of the moon and Mars. Back in 1946, some scientists of the Air Force Cambridge Research Laboratories, Bedford, Mass., were experimenting with reflected light. "It would be another ten years before the world's first spacecraft, Sputnik I, would be in orbit. The experimenters could not possibly have been musing -- during working hours, at least -- about the fantastic unmanned vehicles which on some future day might scout the lunar and Martian countrysides. Nevertheless their accidental discovery may play an important role in space exploration and eventually prove to be a boon to the blind right here on earth. "The discovery was that 'naturally reflected light passing through two properly aligned pinholes onto a photomultiplier produced some very interesting results.' When the output of the photomultiplier was amplified and connected to a pair of earphones, it was possible to detect variations in the texture of objects in the field of view. In other words, what the eye sees by reflected light can be converted into electrical signals conveying the same information to the ear. It can also be translated, through a device called a transducer, into vibrations detectable by the skin, or into coded impulses which could be made meaningful by an electronic data processor. The 16-year-old discovery was recalled when scientists got to worrying about the problems involved in human exploration of the moon and planets. As the Air Force said, 'Before man can successfully walk across the surface of the moon, or Mars, he must first have knowledge of the potential pitfalls ahead of him.' "For the planetary tractor and the blind person on earth the hazards are much the same; the pitfall, or crevasse; the step up and the step down; low-hanging objects such as tree limbs or rock formations. In both cases ability to recognize approaching or departing objects -- whether taxicabs or six-legged Martians -- would be useful. ..." ***** ** Hyde Park Corner Conducted by Earl Scharry (Editor's Note -- This column is provided for the purpose of encouraging our readers to express themselves on any issue concerning blindness. Please write to Earl Scharry, 264 Saunders Avenue, Louisville, Kentucky 40206, and give him and our Forum readers the benefit of your ideas or experiences concerned with blindness or with the ACB. This is our readers' "soap box"; you are invited to climb on and sound off.) But a Whole Loaf Is Still Better. We find it difficult to moderate our enthusiasm for the Orrell article which appeared in the September Forum under the title "Men vs. Vending Machines." The arguments presented there for the superiority of vending stand service over vending machine service seemed both exhaustive and persuasive; and Bud's experience in both areas seems to make him a uniquely competent judge. However, the important departure of the article seems to us to be the fact that the case for the vending stand service is presented from a competitive rather than a legalistic standpoint. We fear that too often heretofore the procedure has been to approach an existing or prospective location armed with the club of a legal preference for blind stand operators and to demand the customer's patronage. This never failed to conjure up in our imagination the picture of a customer making a purchase at gunpoint. We felt that a shotgun purchase must be an even poorer foundation for a successful business relationship than a shotgun wedding would be for a successful marriage. We have no quarrel with the big stick of a legal preference; but it should be kept definitely in the background and not brandished except in case of extreme emergency. The Orrell article at long last gives full recognition to the fact that a vending stand business, like any other business, must depend upon mutual agreement between the businessman and his clientele -- upon the need or desire of the latter for goods or services offered by the former. It recognizes that the vendor has to live with his customers in a harmonious relationship, not in an adversary proceeding. The Orrell approach does not seek to exclude vending machine competition, but to meet it with superior service. In order to promote customer goodwill (the vendor's most valuable asset), it is willing to pay for a desirable rent-free location by allocating a percentage of the gross receipts to the location for welfare or other funds, just as the vending machine competition does. Undoubtedly, the vending stand program has been an important landmark in the progress of the blind toward equal opportunity, and Leonard Robinson, Jennings Randolph and the others who pioneered in its establishment deserve nothing but commendation. But we believe that, like any true pioneers, they would be the first to recognize that there is always a new and fairer frontier over the horizon. It is also true that there are many highly successful vending stand enterprises throughout the country, though even these are haunted by the spectre of vending machine and cafeteria competition. On the other hand, it is also true that all too often the manna which the vending stand program promised has been a shoddy product -- half a loaf of opportunity and half a loaf of welfare. Since it has all too often been put on display as a welfare product, its beneficiaries have received only the marginal security which is ever the outer limit of welfare's bounty. Too often only the least desirable facilities have been made available, and even then only the least desirable location within the particular facility. Too often, the enterprise has been hedged about with restrictions on the type of goods and services which can be offered, which nullify its effectiveness as a competitive undertaking. Too often, the most desirable locations -- particularly the lush industrial locations -- are beyond the reach of the program. We believe that these conditions will persist so long as we continue to present the vending stand program as a haven protected by preferences and taboos. The threat of vending machine and other forms of competition will continue -- and perhaps grow. What the vending stand programs should do, and what we should urge that they do, is to provide the best possible training, equipment and other forms of assistance to enable the blind entrepreneur to meet it by providing equal or better service to the public. The Orrell article, it seems to us, sounds the keynote for such an approach. We believe that ACB should lend it the most effective backing possible. This column invites the comments of stand operators and other interested persons on this subject. ***** ** Here and There By George Card From the IOWA NEWS BULLETIN: "Lee Iverson, who was recently elected President of the American Association of Instructors for the Blind, has resigned as Superintendent of the Iowa Braille and Sight Saving School and has accepted a position as Chief of the Children's School of the Department of Children and Family Services for the State of Illinois. ... About a dozen blind chiropractors met in Des Moines in June to protest the barring of blind students from all schools of chiropractic and to seek, if necessary, remedial legislation. ... Hubert Smock, whom some will remember as Iowa delegate at Santa Fe in 1959, suffered a severe stroke in June and has never regained consciousness." Cleveland AP: "Everytime Louis Fioritto, 17, marches with the 120-piece Euclid High School band, fellow bandsmen shake their heads in wonderment. They say the youth, who wears dark glasses, never misses a beat regardless of how fancy or high-stepping the routine. A member of the band as a clarinetist since junior high, Louis asked band director Dale Harper for a chance to march at the football games. He weas a success at the first practice. All Louis needs during the drills is a nudge in the right direction supplied by his close friend, Rip Baldini." From the November NEW OUTLOOK: "At its convention last summer The Blinded Veterans Association presented a special award to the U.S. Justice Department, Central Branch, Washington, D.C. Blind persons presently employed include three attorneys, one court reporter, three clerk-typists, and two transcribing machine operators. They are given the same consideration for in-grade salary increases, on-the-job training, and promotions as are all employees. Because of these realistic policies of hiring, training, and promoting blind employees on the same basis as their sighted fellow-workers, the Justice Department has helped create a general acceptance of visually disabled individuals by the professional, semi-professional, and clerical staffs in all Department activities. ... Frederick James Dale, a teacher at Condover Hall School in England, is teaching at Perkins this year, while Lewis Huffman, a Perkins teacher, is teaching at Condover Hall in exchange." (Mrs. Card and I spent a week at Condover Hall in 1954, studying the British answer to the very serious problem of how best to handle the training or education of the multiply handicapped blind child. It was then considered the best school of its kind anywhere and has been so successful that a second British school has since been established.) From the PEORIA AREA OBSERVER: "Earlier this year Burt Coleman, blind attorney from Chicago, together with his guide dog, toured several countries in Europe. The purpose of the trip was to demonstrate the use of the guide dog. Chatting with a stranger on a Paris street corner, the latter asked if Burt's guide dog could take him across the street. 'Of course,' he said, and started away from the curb, not realizing that it was the widest street in the world. Cars, trucks, horns, noise, general confusion, everything happened the further he went but the dog stayed calm. After some time he reached the other side and a big cheer went up from an amazed crowd and he was informed that he had just crossed 16 lanes of hectic traffic." Recording for the Blind in its current newsletter also features Burt Coleman as the organizer of the group of Illinois blind lawyers who call themselves "The Blinks" and for whom RFB has been recording current decisions by Illinois appellate courts and the Illinois Supreme Court, as well as certain other vital legal material. The American Foundation now has plastic file cards which can be marked with either slate or braillewriter. They come in two sizes, 3 x 5 inches and 4 x 6 inches, and will last almost indefinitely without any signs of wear. From the BLIND ADVOCATE (London): "A new drug called urokinase has aroused the interest of many eye specialists. It is claimed that urokinase dispels blood clots forming after a severe impact, such as an automobile accident. Formerly, in such cases, the eye had to be removed quickly in order to avoid a sympathetic infection in the other eye. ... A device called a phonoscope, designed by a laboratory of the Sverdiovsk Institute of Defectology, is claimed to have revolutionized the method of teaching blind children. Resembling a flashlight, the device converts images into audio signals, varying in pitch with the shape, color and illumination of the objects it is aimed at. Blind children are now able to use visual aids in physics, chemistry and other subjects. The phonoscope is capable of 'seeing' the dial of any instrument; detect the color of water in vessels; the path of light through lenses, etc. ... Viscount Cobham has been appointed as the new president of the Royal National Institute for the Blind, in succession to Lord Ismay, who has retired for health reasons after holding the post for the last 12 years. ... Mrs. Mary Simpson, who is 96 years of age, was successfully operated on for cataract at Doncaster Royal Infirmary and regained the sight of her right eye. She is considered to be one of the oldest people in the country (if not the oldest) ever to successfully undergo such an operation. ... This year the Irish Parliament has again refused to bring blind children under the compulsory education act which applies to all other children. ... In Australia all blind people receive a basic pension of 11 pounds 10 shillings every fortnight irrespective of income. A blind couple gets 11 pounds each." Mrs. J.J. Brandon, who has completed 40 years of dedicated work as a home teacher in Tennessee, recently received a signal honor from her state in recognition of her long service. … In almost all states the Governor's Committee on the Employment of the Handicapped selects the "Handicapped Citizen of the Year" for its highest annual award. The 1964 winner in Tennessee is of unusual interest, since he is totally blind. He is Mr. Prentice Scott, of Lexington, who has operated a large feed mill and built up a successful grain and feed business. Mr. Scott has employed as many handicapped workers as possible, including four who are legally blind. In spite of the Democratic sweep of Kansas including his home county, Reese Robrahn, our sterling national treasurer, was elected to a county judgeship on the Republican ticket. There are five judgeships in Shawnee County and only one other Republican made it. David Murrell, Assistant Attorney-General in Kentucky, who has been out of law school only a year, has now won ten straight decisions. He has been blind since he was a small boy. The publicity resulting from the promulgation of the proclamation by President Johnson of October 15 as National White Cane Safety Day has been quite encouraging. At least 31 state governors issued their own proclamations and many of these received very good press coverage. Each year, however, it will be again necessary to stimulate as much publicity as possible on the anniversary date. I appeared on a television program demonstrating the long cane technique, but I am thankful that none of my blind colleagues could check on my performance. From the ANNALS OF ALLERGY: "A study by a New Jersey physician suggests that glaucoma is allergic in nature. When allergy-producing factors can be detected, desensitization injections to build resistance to them can bring the eye problem under control." From the K. A. B. News (Kansas): "Reese and Nelda Robrahn surprised their friends in August by announcing an addition to their family, an adopted baby girl, whom they have named Resa Lynn." In driving home a point Editor Mary Walton refers to the legend of the mountaineer who, coming to a dangerous chasm, was able to o'erleap it and proceed on his journey, but who soon turned back and built a stout bridge for those who might come that way later. It seems to me this legend embodies the true spirit of the organized blind movement. Many of those who provide its driving power have, through good fortune or sheer ability, been able to overcome the odds that all blind people must face and have achieved independence and status. Their deepest concern now is to bring about, through a collective effort, more humane and enlightened legislation, a more realistic understanding on the part of the sighted world of the actual problems imposed by serious visual impairment, and eventual demolition of the high wall of prejudice and superstition which has so long stood blocking the path to economic opportunity and social acceptance. The October ZIEGLER MAGAZINE records the passing of three blind women who had achieved great distinction and whose careers exemplified indomitable courage and dedication. Mrs. Ruth T. Durnall had been a home teacher in Delaware for 35 years. She died just a few days before the 1964 AAWB convention, at which she was to have received the Alfred Allen Award in recognition of her long and faithful service. Miss Mary I. Curran, of Worcester, Mass., had been an outstanding home teacher in her own state, also for 35 years. She had been president of the Eastern Conference of Home Teachers and had received numerous honors, including citations by both the President's and the Governor's Committee on the Employment of the Handicapped, for meritorious service far beyond the call of duty. Dr. Eleanor Gertrude Brown died on July 21. She had been the first blind graduate of Ohio State and the first blind person to obtain the Ph.D. degree at Columbia. She had taught in the public schools of Dayton, Ohio, for forty years and was the author of several books. Her story appeared in the March issue of the BRAILLE FORUM under the title THE "NO" PEOPLE CAN BE BEATEN. From HADLEY HIGHLIGHTS: "The Hadley 1964 'Student of the Year' Award went to Dr. Samuel Thomas, a 37-year-old pediatrician at Presbyterian St. Luke's Hospital in Chicago, with an M.D. degree from Northwestern University. Dr. Thomas lost his sight because of diabetes in 1962. He immediately began studying braille reading and writing with Hadley, receiving top grades. He is currently studying German with the Hadley School, which he hopes will be helpful in his studies of psychiatry, a field he now plans to enter. Dr. Thomas's attitude towards his blindness, his determination to continue in the medical profession, and his scholastic ability left no doubt that he should be the Student of the Year for 1963. … The members of the Winnetka, Illinois, Lions Club have wrapped and labeled a large portion of the 4,500 braille volumes turned over to Hadley last winter by the Library of Congress for shipment to various destinations. Many of the books were shipped to Lima, Peru, to replace much of the braille library which burned to the ground there nearly a year ago. Other shipments of books were sent to several schools and libraries for the blind in this country that needed books but had limited funds to purchase them." Overwork and the strenuous pace at which she has always driven herself compelled Juliet Bindt to undergo a nine-day hospitalization, as a result of which she had to miss a part of the recent convention of the Associated Blind of California of which she is President. Under strict doctor's orders, she was compelled to notify her organization that she must relinquish her office as of January 1965. At that time the First Vice-President, Mrs. Catherine Skivers, 836 Resota, Hayward, will take over. A devastating tragedy struck the family of Hoyt Bell Knoxville, Tenn., former President of the Tennessee Federation of the Blind. Hoyt had been a candidate in the November 3rd election. His wife and his father were driving to the polls to cast their votes. At an intersection a Mrs. Cheri Lowry ran a stoplight and crashed into the car. The accident was fatal to both passengers and left three motherless children. Hoyt and Eva Bell had been childhood sweethearts at the Tennessee School for the Blind. Mrs. Lowry is being held on a charge of manslaughter. On November 10th Dick Schrempf, of Peoria, Ill., who attended our first two national conventions and is a charter member of ACB, was married to Miss Muriel Weller, of Metamora, Ill. The December NEW OUTLOOK FOR THE BLIND contains two articles of unusual interest. One describes a ten-week course for blind students preparing to make the difficult adjustment to college life, and it is being given at the Orientation Center in Little Rock, Arkansas. The other is about a course for piano technicians at Talladega, Ala. Mr. R. Henry Gentry has been appointed Superintendent of the Tennessee School for the Blind, succeeding Mr. E.J. Wood. In 1920 the American Printing House for the Blind in Louisville had a budget of slightly over $38 thousand and a staff of 20. In 1964 its budget was almost $3 million, and its staff consisted of 400 full-time and 40 part-time employees. One of the big attractions of the 1965 ACB national convention next summer will undoubtedly be a conducted tour of the APH with its tremendous new space-age IBM system. Just to see this incredible monster in action will be well worth the trip. Some time ago I quoted an item from another publication which contained a reference to blindness insurance. I received a number of letters asking for the address, which I did not have until now. It is: Bonded Vision Services, Inc., American Hardware Mutual Building, Minneapolis, Minn. 55416. ... From LISTEN: "Harvey H. Borowski, President of Bonded Vision Services, Inc., and a promoter of eyesight insurance for nearly three decades, predicts that the Minnesota-based service, which offers lifetime annuities to policy holders who lose 90 percent or more of their useful vision, will possibly be available throughout the nation within about two years. Basis of Borowski's optimism is the recent appointment of regional directors of the unique service in test areas of the Upper Midwest plus plans for expansion of the program so that by 1966 some 2,000 regional officials will direct approximately 20,000 authorized representatives to sell Bonded Vision policies. Bonded Vision is now underwritten by Old Security Life Insurance Company of Kansas City, a company with a top reputation and which has $500 million of insurance in force.' ... Father Thomas J. Carroll, in a letter to New England ophthalmologists, has announced the opening of St. Raphael's Geriatric Adjustment Center. Its services will be open to elderly blind people and will fill a long unmet need. ... William Stegner, a 26-year-old Missouri man, who is said to be the first blind person issued a radio engineer's permit by the Federal Communications Commission, began work at Station KGHM in Brookfield, Mo., last month. ... Earl Nickerson, 48, a blind computer programmer and mathematics expert, was named Massachusetts's Handicapped Person of the Year. He entered college when he was 40 years of age and graduated with highest honors three years later. He is an employee of Avco Corp. in Wilmington, Mass., and a holder of a Bachelor's and a master's degree in mathematics, summa cum laude, from Boston University." A Christmas letter, fairly bubbling with cheerfulness and optimism from Frank and Mary Collins, brought word today that they have settled permanently in Ogden, Utah, where Frank is already doing a flourishing business in his work as a piano technician. Their many friends will be glad to have their new address, which is 1037 Second Street, Ogden, Utah, 84300. Fred Krepela, 636 Court St., N.E., Salem, Ore., 97301, became President of the Oregon Council of the Blind during its annual convention last October. ***** ** ACB Officers and Directors President: Ned E. Freeman, 136 Gee's Mill Rd., Conyers, Ga. 30207 1st Vice President: Durward K. McDaniel, Suite 305 Midwest Bldg., Oklahoma City 2, Oklahoma 73102 2nd Vice President: David Krause, 4628 Livingston Rd., SE, Washington, D.C. 20032 Secretary: Mrs. Alma Murphey, 4103 Castleman Ave., St. Louis 10, Missouri Treasurer: Reese H. Robrahn, 210 Crawford Building, Topeka, Kansas 66603 ** Directors * Directors Until 1966: George Card, 605 S. Few Street, Madison, Wisconsin 53703 G. Paul Kirton, Room 6327, Department of the Interior, Washington 25, D.C. Mrs. Marie M. Boring, 1113 Camden Avenue, Durham, North Carolina 27701 * Directors Until 1968: F. Winfield Orrell, 5209 Alabama Avenue, Chattanooga, Tenn. 37409 Mrs. Mary Jane Hills, 33 1/2 Edmonds St., Rochester, New York 14607 R.L. Thompson, 104 West Hanlon St., Tampa, Florida 33604 Fred C. Lilley, 53 1/2 West Jackson, Chicago, Illinois ###