The Braille Forum
Vol. VI September 1967 No. 2

Published Bi-Monthly by the
American Council of the Blind
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

* Editor:
Ned E. Freeman
136 Gee's Mill Road
Conyers, Georgia 30207

* President: 
Reese Robrahn
541 New England Bldg.
Topeka, Kansas 66603

* Associate Editors:
George Card
605 South Few St.
Madison, Wis. 53703

Earl Scharry
5714 Ridgeway Ave.
Rockville, Md. 2081

* Executive Office:
Board of Publications
652 East Mallory Ave.
Memphis, Tenn. 38106

To inform its readers and to provide an impartial Forum for discussion.

** 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 ACB official news and programs, but its pages will also be available for free expression of views 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 Ave., 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

One

1. President's Message -- Reese Robrahn

2. Convention Activities:

1967 Convention Report -- Alma Murphey

Minutes of Board Meetings -- Alma Murphey 

ACB 1967 Resolutions

3. Constitution and By-Laws Changes in ACB -- Ned Freeman

4. Legislative Action -- Now -- Durward McDaniel

5. Social Security Amendments of 1967 -- Durward McDaniel

6. HEW Reshuffled

7. Opportunity in Ohio -- Clyde Ross

8. N.C. and the Multi-Handicapped Child -- Eugene Hargrove

9. WCWB Executive Committee Report -- Marjorie S. Hooper

10. AAWB Broadens Base -- Ned Freeman

11. Walk a Mile Down any Road -- Ted O'Meara

12. Ned's Corner

13. ACB Tape Chatter -- John B. Sevier

14. Here and There with George Card

15. Michigan Federation Affiliates

16. Loretta's Corner

17. Homemaking Tips from an Expert -- Joy Gilpin

18. Letters from Readers

19. Refugees from the Round File

20. Cool Braille -- Earl Scharry

ACB Officers

Directors

*****

** One

I am but one, but I am one. 
I cannot do everything, but I can do something. 
What I can do I ought to do. 
What I ought to do, God helping me, I will do.

-- Anonymous

***

The Braille Forum is sent without charge to anyone who requests it. We do not want anyone to feel under any obligation. Some of you have been sending in contributions to help defray the cost of publication and these are greatly appreciated by all of us connected with the magazine. Now that annual dues for members-at-large have been eliminated (see changes in By-Laws this issue) perhaps more of you would like to help support your magazine. Contributions may be sent to the ACB Treasurer, F.W. Orrell, 5209 Alabama Ave., Chattanooga, Tennessee, 37409

*****

** President's Message
Reese Robrahn

(A portion of the report made to the 1967 convention of the American Council of the Blind)

Most of you have some knowledge of the fact that there have been encroachments by federal agencies and or their employees upon the rights of blind vending stand operators under the Randolph-Sheppard Act. The incidents of violation or encroachment have greatly increased in very recent years, because of the recognition by the federal government of the right of federal government employees to organize themselves into unions, and because of the demands of these employee groups to participate in the proceeds from vending operations on federal properties. This has been and continues to be particularly true in the Post Office Department. The area of most frequent encroachment is with respect to vending machines. Indeed, a federal court in Minnesota has already held that it was not the intention of Congress that the provisions of the Randolph-Sheppard Act apply to vending machines and the proceeds therefrom.

After a thorough examination of the pleadings, arguments and briefs involved in this case, we have concluded that the case for the vending stand operator was not properly presented, that is to say, on the most compelling theory. We believe litigation is still an open door as a way to the solution on this problem. One of the defenses interposed was that the court did not have jurisdiction of the case for the reason that the vending stand operator did not have the right to maintain the action; the ruling of the court was to the contrary, so that question, at least, is settled once and for all. 

As the result of a dispute arising at the post office in Oklahoma City, the American Council was involved in a conference at Washington, D.C., attended by representatives of the Oklahoma State Agency, the Post Office Department, and the Division of Services for the Blind, Vocational Rehabilitation Administration. One of the matters agreed upon at this conference was that VRA should draft standards to be applied nationally and submit the same to the Post Office Department. The Oklahoma dispute was settled by negotiation, but to this day VRA has not submitted standards; and indeed, VRA states in a letter addressed to me that it was not their understanding that such standards were to be drafted by them, and in any event, this would not be the proper method for settlement of the issue, and legislation is probably the answer.

Amendments to the Randolph-Sheppard Act were prepared and supported by the National Federation of the Blind and the American Association of Workers for the Blind, but they have not been introduced into Congress. We have taken the position that while some proposed features are highly desirable, nonetheless these amendments would give statutory sanction to the right of employee welfare committees and other groups to participate in the proceeds from vending machines on federal properties. 

It is my firm conviction that if this gate is opened now the flood will soon be upon us, and students of history will refer to this as the time when the vending stand program under the Randolph-Sheppard Act was scuttled. Yes, the battle lines are already drawn! To appease now would mean certain defeat ultimately. It would be like saying: "Here is our Maginot Line; beyond it you cannot go." No! We must take our stand now; at this time and this place, we must stand and be counted.

I addressed a letter with enclosures to all state directors of vending stand programs during the month of June reviewing these events and stating the position of ACB, urging that a unified stand must be taken by all because the opposition is organized, united, and strong. I requested suggestions. Thus far I have received replies from sixteen states, all expressing agreement with our position and proposals. Many told of their own problems and offered constructive suggestions. 

The American Council of the Blind offers its services to any state agency and to any licensed vending stand operator. We are ready with advice, counselling, and active participation whether by negotiation or litigation to bring about settlement of disputes; and we will greatly intensify our efforts to bring about a permanent solution to this problem that will not forfeit but will strengthen and reinforce the rights of the blind vending stand operator under the Randolph-Sheppard Act.

*****

** 1967 Convention Report
Alma Murphey

Everyone knows that the sixth annual convention of the American Council of the Blind was held at the Broadview Hotel, in Wichita, Kansas, July 19 through 22. But only those who participated in the work and play at Wichita are fully aware that the ACB's 1967 convention is in a class by itself. It was a terrific success — a triumph of cooperation for which we offer our warmest congratulations to ACB President Reese Robrahn; Convention Committee Chairman Bonnie Byington; Supervisor of Displays Otto Peterson; Mrs. Margaret Lee, the Braille Association of Kansas, Inc.; the Wichita Association for Visually Handicapped; and all others who put their shoulders to the wheel. While it is true that more time could have been devoted to convention business, it is nevertheless true that there was something right and satisfying about each item of the program, including the informal social hours, the tour, the delightful banquet program, the credit union breakfast and the luncheon in honor of Dr. Bradley Burson. If you weren't with us, you missed a very special treat. 

The first business session was held on Saturday morning, July 22. It began with a discussion of the amendments to the Constitution and By-laws which had been read to the convention at an earlier session. (The amended portions of the Constitution and By-laws appear elsewhere in this issue.)

A comprehensive legislative report presented by Chairman Durward McDaniel concluded the session. 

During Saturday afternoon the convention adopted sixteen resolutions (see elsewhere in this issue), rejected one, and returned one to the committee for the multi-handicapped. 

ACB Secretary Alma Murphey introduced the Board-sponsored motion that the convention approve establishment of a Washington Office and authorize the Board to proceed toward the attainment of the goal as rapidly as ACB finances permit. Mr. Fred Lilley moved to amend the motion by striking out the word Washington and inserting the word National. The amendment was defeated. The original motion was adopted by a unanimous vote. 

After gratefully considering most cordial invitations from Charlotte and Chattanooga, the convention chose Charlotte, North Carolina, as the site for our 1969 convention. 

A motion instructing future program committees to allocate not less than three general sessions for regular convention business was unanimously adopted. 

Following the usual closing announcements, the convention adjourned at approximately six P.M. 

Some 250 persons representing sixteen states registered for the convention.

*****

** Minutes of Board Meetings
Alma Murphey

The Board of Directors of the American Council of the Blind held its preconvention meeting at the Broadview Hotel in Wichita, Kansas, during the evening of July 18. Four board members were absent: David Krause, F.W. Orrell, George Card and R.L. Thompson. A motion was immediately adopted that the President send night letters of regret to these absent members. 

The President reported that local (Kansas) groups were giving the convention such generous financial backing that the $500 allocated by the ACB Budget Committee for convention expenses probably would suffice.

Although the Treasurer's report had not yet arrived, President Robrahn said that the treasury had approximately eighteen thousand dollars, and that Artistic Greetings, Inc. had agreed to undertake the fall mailing.

After carefully discussing the feasibility of opening a Washington office, the Board decided to present a motion seeking convention approval for this project and authorizing the Board to proceed toward the attainment of this goal as rapidly as ACB finances permit. This decision was unanimous; however, Mr. Lilley said he would speak on the motion when it was being considered by the convention. In compliance with his request, this intention is made a part of the record. 

A motion carried unanimously that the president apply for either full or associate membership in the National Accreditation Council. 

Also unanimously adopted was a motion that the President take all necessary steps to see that the ACB shall be represented in the United States delegation of the World Council for the Welfare of the Blind. Adjournment followed. 

The second meeting of the Board immediately followed adjournment of the convention on Saturday afternoon, July 22, 1967, with nine members attending. 

The Board enthusiastically adopted a motion commending the KAB and ACB's President Reese Robrahn for having planned by far the best convention program this organization has had. 

It was agreed that the budget and audit committees be unchanged, and the President reappointed June Goldsmith and Harriet Penner to the Board of Publications. 

A motion carried that at least one board meeting be held between conventions. 

A motion carried that the Board meet not later than November 1, to discuss establishing a Washington Office. 

A motion instructed the Committee on the Multi-handicapped to survey resources now available for the education of the multi-handicapped child, report its findings to the 1968 convention, and invite persons qualified to speak on such matters to appear on the convention program. 

By unanimous approval, the following changes were made in the budget: (1) the amount for "travel" was increased by $1,500; (2) the amount for "legislation" was increased by $500.

The meeting adjourned at approximately seven thirty P.M.

*****

** ACB 1967 Resolutions

The following resolutions were adopted by the convention of the American Council of the Blind in Wichita July 22, 1967. In the interest of space, we have included only the "Resolved" portions. Anyone desiring complete copies of any of the resolutions should write to Mrs. Alma Murphey, 4103 Castleman Ave., St. Louis, Missouri, 63110. 

67-01. Resolved, that this national organization dedicated to furthering the well-being of blind persons, urge the United States postal authorities to design and issue a postage stamp, similar to one used in Switzerland, which will help to educate and alert the public as to the importance of the White Cane and dog guide in the safety and full living of blind persons who have made the effort to be independent travelers despite their visual handicap. Be it further resolved that this organization emphasizes that the design on any such stamp should not call forth sympathy but rather admiration for the thousands of blind persons who are making an effort to live constructive and useful lives for themselves, their families, and the community as a whole. 

67-02. Resolved, that this organization register its objection to the present trend away from placement and urge vocational rehabilitation agencies, both national and state, to rededicate their policies to basic services including placement which will return blind clients to gainful employment. 

67-03. Resolved, that we focus upon the omission (of emphasis on the teaching of the use of the braille slate and stylus) and urge all residential and other schools educating blind children to continue or to reestablish the teaching of the fundamentals of braille writing including the use of the slate and stylus. 

67-04. Resolved, that letters of commendation be directed to Mr. William Shelton, Chief of Personnel at the Federal Aviation Agency in Oklahoma City, Mr. J. Moody, Chief of Data Processing Division at the Federal Aviation Administration in Oklahoma City, and Mr. John Black at Control Data Corporation in Minneapolis, Minnesota, for the initiative and progressive planning shown by them in these related areas of potential employment for the blind (in the field of computer training and telephone switchboard operation). And be it further resolved that letters be directed to Edward F. Ross, director of the employment program for the blind, U.S. Civil Service Commission, Mary E. Switzer, commissioner, Vocational Rehabilitation Administration, and to others who would assist in the promotion of computer programming and telabraille switchboard operation as fields of gainful employment for blind persons. 

67-06. Resolved, that this organization is in favor of legislation to establish a national center for the deaf-blind for the purpose of demonstrating methods, training professional personnel, and conducting research in the field of services to the deaf-blind; and be it further resolved that the American Council of the Blind favors the designation of some unit of the Department of Health, Education and Welfare other than the Vocational Rehabilitation Administration as the agency to be responsible for administering such legislation. 

67-08. Resolved that this organization favors legislation to exclude social security benefits from the income considered in determining eligibility for veterans' pensions paid by the Federal Government. 

67-09. Resolved, that the American Council of the Blind go on record as supporting the efforts of the striking workers at the St. Louis Lighthouse for the Blind and offer its services to these workers in any way which could lead to a solution of their problems. Be it further resolved that the Board of Directors of the American Council of the Blind is hereby instructed to implement this resolution by whatever methods it deems appropriate. 

67-10. Resolved, that the ACB support amendments to the Social Security Act providing for automatic increases in benefits based on the Consumer's Price Index. 

67-11. Resolved, that we endorse the principle of equal application of the National Labor Relations Act and its attending rights, benefits and protection to employees of sheltered workshops and that appropriate action be taken to prevent future discrimination against such employees under the National Labor Relations Act. (Editor's Note: HR 9995 by Congressman James G. O'Hara would extend the collective bargaining rights under the National Labor Relations Act to employees of sheltered workshops. This bill has been referred to the Committee on Education and Labor with the Hon. Carl D. Perkins, chairman of the sub-committee. Letters should be addressed to Mr. O'Hara, Mr. Perkins and your own congressman in support of the legislation. Such letters should be addressed to the House Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20515.)

67-12. Resolved, that the Director of the Office of Economic Opportunity and other appropriate public officials be called upon to correct this omission (failure to act on the ACB application for 14 state pilot project to strengthen existing credit unions for the blind and to establish new ones) to provide the much-needed benefits of this consumer education project to this substantial number of blind persons. 

67-13. Resolved, that the present United States delegation to the World Council for the Welfare of the Blind be requested to include the American Council of the Blind in this delegation before the end of 1967.

67-14. Resolved, that plans for regional educational and training seminars be made and implemented wherever possible to enlarge the number of participating volunteer workers to facilitate the achievement of the Council's purposes. Be it further resolved that upon invitation of affiliated organizations, the American Council send speakers to the respective affiliates to take part in convention or other programs.

67-15. Resolved, that the President notify state licensing agencies, blind operators and organizations of the blind of the Council's position (opposition to administrative regulations permitting incursion of vending machines for the profit of employee groups in competition with or to the exclusion of, blind persons operating vending stands) and of its willingness to participate in and to support further litigation in a suitable case to protect the employment opportunities of blind persons in the Randolph-Sheppard programs. 

67-16. Resolved, that the 1967 convention theme (Improving Tomorrow Today") be officially adopted for future use as an official slogan of the organization. Be it further resolved that appropriate recognition and an expression of the appreciation be extended to the Oklahoma Federation of the Blind and to its members who originated this slogan and made it available to the Council. 

67-17. Resolved, that a plan for regional organizations of the American Council of the Blind be made and implemented whenever possible and ultimately extended to the formation of affiliated state and local organizations within each region.

*****

** Changes in ACB Constitution and By-Laws
Ned Freeman, Chairman, Constitution Committee

Only one minor change was made in the ACB Constitution by the 1967 convention and two by-law amendments were adopted. 

Article VIII of the Constitution was changed so as to provide that proposed amendments to either Constitution or By­-Laws shall be read to the convention not later than five P.M. of the day prior to the time of final action. 

By-Laws I and III concerning Members-At-Large were amended so as to eliminate the payment of annual dues by such members and to grant membership-at-large upon application accom­panied by an initiation fee of $3.00. This change includes a provision retaining all present Members-At-Large and Charter Members on the rolls until removed by written request or otherwise. 

New editions of the ACB Constitution and By-Laws are in preparation in both braille and large type. Copies may be obtained from ACB President or Secretary, or from the FORUM office, upon request.

*****

** Legislative Action -- Now
Durward McDaniel

Editor's Note: Be sure to read "Social Security Amendments of 1967" in this issue. 

The Social Security Amendments of 1967 continue to be the most vital pending legislation affecting visually impaired persons. H. R. 12080 is the new number for the Social Security Amendments as passed by the House of Representatives. This bill falls seriously short of bringing real security to the taxpayers who now need it. 

The King-Hartke amendment which the American Council is actively sponsoring is not in the present bill, and we must all act now to persuade the Senate Committee on Finance to incorporate this proposal, S. 1681, in the Senate version.

The Administration had proposed to extend Medicare coverage to disabled beneficiaries, but the House Committee on Ways and Means deleted this provision. Social security taxpayers contribute an additional tax to finance Medicare, but if they become disabled, they are deprived of Medicare benefits until they reach retirement age. The Senate will restore this provision if enough people will express support for it now. 

Section 156 of H.R. 12080 contains the most reactionary and oppressive definition of disability ever included in a bill passed by the House of Representatives. It provides that "an individual ... shall be determined to be under a disability only if his physical or mental impairment or impairments are of such severity that he is not only unable to do his previous work but cannot, considering his age, education, and work experience, engage in any other kind of substantial gainful work which exists in the national economy, regardless of whether such work exists in the general area in which he lives, or whether a specific job vacancy exists for him, or whether he would be hired if he applied for work." It provides further: "The Secretary shall by regulations prescribe the criteria for determining when services performed or earnings derived from services demonstrate an individual's ability to engage in substantial gainful activity. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (2), an individual whose services or earnings meet such criteria shall, except for purposes of Section 222 (c), be found not to be disabled.' These amendments are intended to overrule certain court decisions which have favored a liberal and practical interpretation of disability. This new definition will place disabled applicants at the mercy of the whim or prejudice of social security administrators. This social insurance program ought to be a matter of rights based on objective standards of eligibility, and those who have paid the taxes should not be subjected to this kind of insecurity. 

H.R. 12080 provides for a general increase of 12.5 percent in benefits. To more than 1,200,000 Americans who concurrently receive social security benefits and public assistance, this increase will be meaningless because it will be deducted immediately from assistance grants. Thus the payroll tax will again be subsidizing the Federal-State welfare programs without any benefit to the recipients that social security payments (not just the 12.5 percent increase) be disregarded in determining the amount to be paid to public welfare recipients. Social security benefits were earned by the beneficiary when the tax was paid and should be accorded the same exemption as the first $85 per month of current earnings in determining the need of aid to the blind recipients. Social security and public assistance are entirely controlled by our government, which has declared war on poverty. When Congress increases social security benefits but at the same time permits a corresponding deduction from welfare grants it is merely perpetuating poverty. 

The members of the Senate Committee on Finance are listed at the end of this article. If we and our friends and neighbors are ever to bring our influence to bear in favor of real Social Security, it must be now. There cannot be too many letters, telegrams, and petitions to the Senate Committee on Finance and to your individual senators.

* Members of the Senate Committee on Finance

Russell Long, Louisiana
George A. Smathers, Florida
Clinton P. Anderson, New Mexico
Albert Gore, Tennessee
Herman E. Talmadge, Georgia
Eugene J. McCarthy, Minnesota
Vance Hartke, Indiana
J.W. Fulbright, Arkansas
Abraham A. Ribicoff, Connecticut
Lee Metcalf, Montana
Fred R. Harris, Oklahoma
John J. Williams, Delaware
Frank Carlson, Kansas
Wallace F. Bennett, Utah 
Carl T. Curtis, Nebraska
Thruston B. Morton, Kentucky 
Everett M. Dirksen, Illinois

*****

** Social Security Amendments of 1967
Summary of H.R. 12080
Durward McDaniel

Editor's Note: For action required on this legislation see the article entitled "Legislative Action -- Now" in this issue. 

The Social Security Amendments of 1967, introduced into the Congress as H.R. 5710, were revised by the Committee on Ways and Means and reported out under a new number, H.R. 12080. This bill passed the House on August 17 and has been referred to the Senate Committee on Finance. After holding hearings, which probably will be extensive, the Finance Committee will mark up the House version for floor consideration by the Senate. Numerous changes will be proposed by both Administration spokesmen and public witnesses, including one from the American Council of the Blind. If the past is any guide, liberalizing amendments will be added both in committee and on the Senate floor. 

As the law to be enacted will without doubt differ in many respects from H. R. 12080 as passed by the House, no attempt will be made in this report to provide Forum readers with a detailed analysis. The following simplified summary of this 207-page bill will stress the provisions -- or omissions -- which are of greatest importance to large segments of the population as a whole and to significant numbers of blind people.

A. Old-Age, Survivors, Disability, and Health Insurance

1. Benefits. The following increases are provided:
a. A general increase for those already on the rolls of at least 12.5 percent.
b. An increase in the minimum benefit to $50 (from $44).
c. An increase in the special minimum benefit for persons over age 72 with insufficient coverage for insured status to $40 for a single person and $60 for a couple (from $35 and $52.50, respectively.)
d. An increase in the maximum benefit to $212 for a single worker and $423.50 for a family (from $168 and $368, respectively).

No special minimum for workers with long service at low wage rates, as proposed by the Administration, is included.

The maximum benefit for a wife or husband (on which there is currently no limit) is set at $105.

2. Qualifications and coverage. The major changes provided are:

a. Payment of benefits to certain disabled widows and widowers at age 50.
b. Insured status for all disabled workers under 31 equivalent to that currently provided to blind disabled workers under 31.
c. A more restrictive definition of disability (which does not affect the special group of disabled blind workers 55 and over).

Provisions of the King Bill, H.R. 3064, which would make blind persons with six quarters of coverage eligible for disability insurance, were not included in H.R. 12080. 

3. Earnings. The annual ceiling on earnings allowed to beneficiaries is increased to $1,680 (from $1,500).

4. Hospital and medical benefits. The major changes provided are:

a. Permitting direct payment of medical benefits to beneficiaries on the basis of an itemized bill (with no receipt from the physician required).
b. Eliminating the requirement of a physician's certification of the necessity for inpatient hospital services.
c. Transfer of all outpatient hospital services to the supplementary medical insurance program.
d. Extending the maximum duration of inpatient hospital services to 120 days (from 90).
e. Excluding examinations "to determine the refractive state of the eyes" from coverage under the supplementary medical insurance program.

Coverage of disability insurance beneficiaries by the hospital and medical benefits, as proposed by the Administration, is not provided by H.R. 12080.

5. Social Security Taxes. The annual ceiling on taxable wages and self-employment income is increased effective January 1, 1968, to $7,600 (from the present $6,600). 
The provisions for changes in tax rates for 1969 through 1973 are:

a. For self-employed (now 6.4).
1968 - No change
1969 and 1970 - 6.9
1971 and 1972 - 7.5
1973 - 7.65

b. For employed (now 4.4).
1968 - No change
1969 and 1970 - 4.8
1971 and 1972 - 5.2
1973 - 5.65

B. Public Welfare

1.  Earnings. The only liberalization of earnings allowances is in the AFDC category. H.R. 12080 provides for disregarding:

a. All of the earned income of children under 16 and of children between 16 and 21 who are attending school.
b. The first $30 and one third of the remainder of earnings of other individuals in an AFDC family.

2. Services to AFDC families. The States will be required to develop programs to increase employability, reduce illegitimacy, and strengthen family life by:

a. Furnishing child-care services, guidance, basic education, vocational training, and job development.
b. Offering family planning services.

3. Community work and training programs. The present community work and training program is amended substantially. Some of the changes are:

a. "Appropriate" children under age 18 may be included.
b. Wage rates for learners or handicapped persons may be special minimums for these groups.
c. Work may be performed for private employers, organizations, agencies, or institutions.
d. Provision is made for utilization of services and facilities of MDTA and other Federal and State training programs.
e. "Appropriate children and relatives" may be penalized for failure to register at public employment offices, to participate in training, or to accept job offers.

4. Medical assistance. The principal change provided is restriction of Federal participation in medical assistance payments to those cases in which family income does not exceed by more than one third the maximum for an AFDC family of the same size. 

5. Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, Guam. The ceilings on Federal participation in assistance payments in these possessions is increased about one third for this fiscal year, with further liberalizing increases in succeeding years.

C. Child Health

Most of the child health and welfare amendments consist of rearrangements of the present law. One substantive change of particular interest is the inclusion of family planning services among the special projects for which maternity and infant care grants may be made. In addition, more emphasis is placed on special project grants for dental care of school and preschool children.

*****

** HEW Reshuffled

A major realignment of Federal welfare, rehabilitation and social service programs was announced August 15th by John W. Gardner, Secretary of the Department of Health, Education and Welfare. 

A new agency, the Social and Rehabilitation Service (SRS) has been established to carry out the functions of the Welfare Administration, the Vocational Rehabilitation Administration, the Administration on Aging and the Mental Retardation Division of the Bureau of Health Services, Public Health Service. Administrator of the new Agency is Mary E. Switzer, former Commissioner of Vocational Rehabilitation and one of the Department's most honored career executives. 

In announcing the reorganization at a press conference in Washington, Secretary Gardner said, "There are three features of the reorganization. First, in the new Social and Rehabilitation Service we have brought together the various services of HEW that deal with special groups: the aged, the handicapped, and families, particularly children.

"Second, we have separated the administration of programs having to do with cash payments -- that is, public assistance payments -- from the programs offering rehabilitation and social services." 

"Third, we have established a single regional commissioner on the new service in each of HEW's nine regions throughout the country. 

"When you boil it all down, HEW, working with and through the states, counties, and local communities, provides two different kinds of help to these special groups and populations." 

"It helps toward meeting their basic needs, where necessary, by financing medical costs through Medicare and Medicaid, and through cash payments for old age assistance. and aid to the blind, the totally and permanently disabled, and families with dependent children." 

"And it also provides a wide range of services aimed at rehabilitation in the broadest sense of that word -- giving people opportunities to become self-supporting and self-sufficient, where possible; releasing and fostering their energies and talents; enhancing their capacity to cope with the world and to be responsible and participating citizens; enabling them to live their lives with some measure of dignity. 

"Rehabilitation can take many forms. It may mean, in one instance, giving a blind boy the training he needs so he can become a skilled mechanic. In another case, it may mean helping an elderly person find meaning and satisfaction through participation in a foster grandparents' project, at the same time providing a deprived youngster with the interest, attention, and affection of a responsible adult. It can mean helping a bewildered and frightened AFDC mother to develop a realistic budget, receive information about family planning, learn to cope with the tasks of housekeeping and child-rearing, and perhaps get the training she needs so she can get a part-time or full-time job, providing day care for her children while she gets it. Already, we have had a good deal of success in preparing the unemployed parents of AFDC children and other needy people for jobs. ..."  

"The aged, the handicapped, and children should continue to be given special emphasis, and assigning each of these groups special status within the new service while preserving their administrative integrity ensures that each will receive the priority attention it needs and deserves."

"But we find that usually the trouble an individual or family is in is a combination of several related problems requiring a combination of approaches. And those problems, different though they may be, are all concentrated in that one person or one family. We must not take a fragmented approach to them. We want to encourage a unified approach to the problems of all these groups, with special emphasis on the family. We believe that the new service can make this possible and that each of its parts can draw on the strengths of the others and that they can be mutually reinforcing.

"The second key feature of the reorganization is that we have separated the two basic functions: the fiscal, on the one hand, and the services, on the other. The new Assistance Payments Administration will be responsible for the provision of policy guidance to state agencies in the administration of the money payment aspects of the public assistance programs." 

"The third key feature of the reorganization is that an SRS commissioner in each of the regions will supervise all the programs and activities of the Service in his region and will give approval to all state plans. We expect that this will make it easier for the states and communities to deal with the Federal Government on all these matters."

*****

** Opportunity in Ohio
Clyde E. Ross

The Summit County Society of the Blind, an affiliate of the Ohio Council of the Blind, has now completed three years' work with multi-handicapped blind children. We started out with three students, one qualified instructor, and one driver to pick up the children. Now we have 12 children attending classes. Some of these children stay all day, some only an hour. Our list of known multi-handicapped blind children, from cradle to 11, numbers 43. Classes meet each week day except Mondays, when our instructor makes home contacts to work with the parents. 

The committee governing the activity of our school consists of a former school board president, a business man, a former school teacher, a social worker and myself. Two rooms rented from a church are furnished appropriately for children.

Any program that costs money and effort must justify its existence. Our school is not subsidized by any outside money -- no money from the United Fund, no government money. We set up a budget of $10,500 to cover salaries, car allowance, rent, etc. 

In justification for the money we have spent, I shall point out some of the results of which we are proud. Last September, after numerous tests, one of our so-called multi-handicapped blind girls was accepted by the Ohio State School for the Blind. Reports indicate that she has made excellent progress, entirely satisfactory to the school's authorities. Now a second student has been tested and accepted to start in the state school in September, 1967. 

Here are some accomplishments of the more severely handicapped children. A six-year-old Negro girl could not run and often resorted to crawling in preference to walking. She is totally blind. Now she walks, runs, climbs and talks, normally. She has an excellent sense of direction. She identifies voices and all sorts of materials and articles accurately and quickly. She has personality plus. 

Another severely handicapped child would not eat solid foods or drink from a glass. Now he does both. He had a personality problem, which has improved unbelievably. Another anti-social child, who is still slow, has accepted the group. 

With every member of our group there have been improvements both in class and at home, some more obvious than others. Our instructor and her assistant are not only qualified, but are dedicated people.
 
In a recent workshop in Minneapolis, it was disclosed that the Summit County Society of the Blind has one of the two independent programs in the whole United States for multi-handicapped blind children.

*****

** North Carolina and the Multi-Handicapped Child
Eugene A. Hargrove, M.D., North Carolina Commissioner of the Department of Mental Health, Raleigh, N.C. 

(A summary of the paper presented at the 1967 Convention of AAWB)

A new unit for blind multi-handicapped children has recently been established in North Carolina. The children who are served in this unit are totally or legally blind, and in addition are function at a retarded intellectual level, as well as having one or more other handicaps, which may be physical or emotional. Surveys have shown that from 200 to 400 children in North Carolina may fall into this category.

Until now, there have been no facilities in North Carolina designed especially for this group of handicapped children. There are a very few in the entire nation.

A child comes in for a trial admission period of several months in order to determine whether he can benefit from the program of the unit. If admitted, he stays as long as he is making progress. While placing much emphasis on training and education, the program is also geared toward improving each child's social and self-care skills. The operation of the academic program in the unit is similar to that of a nursery school or kindergarten. 

Many of the blind children who come to this unit will eventually go back to their homes. Others will need to be referred to community and state facilities such as schools for the blind and sheltered workshops. Much effort is spent by the staff of the unit in maintaining liaison with families and community agency personnel in preparing them to receive children back into the home and community.

As to future development of adequate care, treatment and rehabilitation opportunities for the blind, the need may develop for additional coordination and direction of all programs for the blind within our state. It may eventually prove economical and more efficient to include deafness as well as blindness in a comprehensive program for the sensorially deprived and handicapped. These measures would join energies to assure optimum facilities in care for the individual. They would be designed to enhance efforts at prevention of blindness, early detection, prevention or reduction in severity of emotional reactions to blindness, as well as to provide long-term care, rehabilitation and placement.

*****

** WCWB Executive Committee Report
Marjorie S. Hooper

The 1967 meeting of the World Conference for the Welfare of the Blind Executive Committee was held at the headquarters of the Union of the Blind, Belgrade, Yugoslavia, during the week of April 17-21, with 27 members present, including officers as well as elected delegates. Like board meetings the world over, the agenda included reports of the President, the Secretary-General, the Treasurer, and the Finance Committee, plus progress reports of the Council's consultative and standing committees, etc. As I saw it, the highlights included: 

Membership -- It was reported that, since 1964, two new delegations had been added -- Kuwait and The Sudan, plus eleven new associate members. Upon adoption of a motion to provide separate delegations from divided countries, such as East and West Germany, to membership in the Assembly, East Germany was approved for an authorized delegation. Approval was also made of membership of a delegation from the Soviet Union. 

Finance -- Over and over during the meeting, it was emphasized that there was great need for additional sources of income aside from Delegate Memberships ($100 each per year) and Associate Memberships ($50 per year).

Education (ICEBY) -- Announcement was made that final arrangements for the Fourth Quinquennial Assembly of the International Conference for the Education of Blind Youth would be held at Perkins School for the Blind, Watertown, Massachusetts, August 20-26, 1967, with some 200 delegates and observers from 55 countries already signed up for attendance.

World Braille Council -- The problems of this Committee are myriad and most difficult, not the least of which is financing. The World Council can provide a maximum of $400 to each of its consultative committees and $300 a year to each of its standing committees. And yet, the World Braille Council (consultative) is probably the most internationally oriented of all the working committees of the Council, for it is the Chairman of this committee who is expected to be the final arbiter in the development of dissident codes within individual countries, although he may have no knowledge of the language, or languages, involved. Again, there is the question of whether it is within the responsibility, or even the province, of the World Braille Council to work for the establishment of library facilities within individual countries, particularly the newly developing ones.

It was also reported that a sub-committee on Braille Music Notation was convened in Belgrade immediately prior to the Executive Committee meeting to discuss variant views on Braille music notation. As a point of information, following the development of the REVISED INTERNATIONAL MANUAL OF BRAILLE MUSIC NOTATION, 1956, as adopted in Paris in 1954, only the United States, the United Kingdom, and a few countries in Asia, Africa and South America, officially adopted the resulting manual. Apparently almost nowhere on the continent of Europe has the manual been adopted, and West Germany, particularly, still wishes to promulgate its Reuss system of notation. As was reported, two days of meeting did not solve the problems raised, but the Music Sub-Committee has been continued to try to work things out by correspondence, particularly to draw up a list of the differences involved, so that they can be studied on a pragmatic basis. 

Rural Activities -- The work of this committee applies particularly to newly developing countries which have primarily agricultural economies. In this connection it is to be noted that there are now nearly 40 rural training centers throughout the world. Interestingly enough, the Chairman of the Committee reported that rural resettlement is often more expensive than urban employment, and that in some centers the proportion of failures was still too high owing to inadequate follow-up.

Services to the Deaf-Blind -- The highlight of this report was the Audience with Pope Paul VI at the Vatican in Rome on April 15th, on behalf of work for the deaf-blind. This was the result of the 1964 General Assembly's resolution on the great value to work for the deaf-blind which could thus be secured, which resolution was brought about by the Chairman of the Committee, Dr. Peter J. Salmon.

African Affairs -- During the past year, a great deal of progress has been made in this geographical area. Of particular note was the First African Conference on Work for the Blind held in Lagos, Nigeria, in January, 1966.

General Assembly, 1969 -- The decision of the officers of the World Council to accept the invitation of the National Association for the Blind and the Indian Government to hold its next General Assembly in New Delhi was unanimously approved. It was also agreed to change the date of the meeting from August to either late October or early November because of more kindly temperatures at that time. 

In conclusion, I would like to say that our hosts and all Yugoslavian people I met were delightfully friendly and thoughtful, except that they determinedly beat you to paying the check, no matter what. They also provided free bus transportation back and forth from the hotel to the meeting place, took us to hear the opera "Tosca" sung in Croatian, and gave us a wonderful tour of Belgrade and its environs. They could not have been nicer.

*****

** AAWB Broadens Base
Ned Freeman

It was my privilege to be the official ACB representative at the 1967 convention of the American Association of Workers for the Blind, Miami Beach, July 1967. During the business sessions, the emphasis was on structural changes which will expand the membership, broaden the geographical representation on the Board of Directors and encourage Chapter activities on a State and Regional basis. 

One criticism which has been voiced concerning conventions of this type is that specialists spend most of their time talking to themselves on a highly professional and technical level in tight little boxes. They seldom hear, or are concerned with, what those most vitally interested -- the clients and those in intimate association with them -- think of the services being offered. It is hoped that the new direction AAWB seems to be taking will bring about important changes in this respect. 

Most of us who are not professionally employed in the field, and many who are, are unable to attend the National Conventions, and when we do we find little opportunity to be heard. State Chapters are now authorized with minimum membership depending upon population. (The largest of these minimums is 50 for more than two million.) Each chapter will elect a member of the National Board of Directors and will hold at least one chapter meeting a year. After 1968, National Conventions will be held only every other year with regional meetings and workshops planned for the intermediate years. Our participation in these state and regional meetings will not only give us a better understanding of the viewpoint of the other 90 percent.

Another interesting development is a new group which is being organized within AAWB and which will be directed toward the interests of the non-specialists and the non-professional. It is anticipated that the programs of the new Group 8 will survey the entire field of services to the blind and will emphasize the whole person and his needs in order to assume his role in the total community. No doubt this unlimited type of discussion will be reflected at the state and regional levels. Here is where we can contribute most and receive the greatest benefit. 

At least one official of every state and local organization of the blind should be a member of the AAWB chapter in his state and should attend any conventions or other meetings held within pocketbook range. We have insisted that the organized blind should be consulted in the planning of programs serving the blind and this is one opportunity for us to make our voices heard. Are we not also workers for the blind? 

The 1968 AAWB convention will be held in Toronto, and it is hoped that many representatives from national, state and local organizations of the blind will be present to help implement the new direction.

*****

** Walk a Mile Down Any Road
Ted O'Mera, C&O/B&O Regional Mgr., Richmond, Va.
(From Chessie/B&O News, Jan. '67)

Charles E. Owens Jr. assistant state right-of-way engineer for the Virginia Department of Highways, and his wife, Melva, operated from their home at Noel, Virginia, a non-profit corporation called the Tarver Memorial Fund, which serves blind and physically handicapped people via tape recordings throughout the United States and 45 other countries. Mr. Owen is administrator of the fund. Mrs. Owen, as his assistant, devotes ten to twelve hours a day to the office duties of filing and mailing tapes and handling correspondence. Mailings sometimes run as high as 3,000 to 4,000 pieces a month. It is with his tape recorder that Charles Owen communicates with the more than 900 blind friends and clients of the Tarver Memorial Fund and its Smith-McKie Memorial Library. 

A letter from a blind girl, who has never left the small Iowa town where she was born, brought tears to Mr. Owen's sighted eyes when she wrote: "Were it not for you, I would have never seen the ocean. I now know the sound of the ocean. I can feel the sand; and the wetness of the water. I can taste the salt in the water. I tell my friends, 'I know what the ocean is like, for I have seen it.'" On a holiday at Cape Hatteras Mr. Owen had produced, on magnetic tape, the word and sound picture of the sea that has been one of his most prized efforts. 

Mr. Owen has done similar descriptive tapes of St. John's Church of Richmond; at the grave of the late President Kennedy; the White House; crossing Chesapeake Bay over the 17-mile bridge and tunnel route; and on a ride in a prop-jet airplane. He has done battlefields and other historical sketches; he has taken his blind friends, via tape recordings on a trip through a tobacco factory and "showed" them how cigarettes are made. 

Mr. Owen spent one summer afternoon sitting under a lilac bush and came away with a 30-minute tape filled with bird songs. "The blind love to hear birds singing," he claims. 

"Walk a mile down any road, then tell us what you see," a blind man suggested to Mr. Owen. And he has found that you can do wonders with that idea -- for down any road there are many things of interest to the visually handicapped, but only if a sighted person, with insight, records them. 

Mr. Owen has a "Facts of Life" series of lectures; a home-making series, covering everything from cooking to housekeeping to marketing; and a monthly magazine, on tape called "Just Between Us." ... For taping general interest materials, Mr. Owen makes good use of the Virginia State Library. Here he reads aloud books, magazines and the New York and Washington newspapers. In addition to sending these tapes out to club members, discussions are carried on by letter and by tape, and subjects range from the best buy in recording equipment to a fair price to pay for men's shirts. ...

In addition to operating the tape library for the blind, the Tarver Memorial Fund also sells recorders, recording equipment, tapes and supplies to blind people at wholesale cost or less. Recorders are sometimes sold to worthy blind people whose incomes, by sighted standards, are extremely low, at prices which are a fraction of the wholesale cost. Financially handicapped blind people may pay only a small amount each month on such purchases. The Fund makes no charge for its services, including its Smith-McKie Memorial Library, and boasts that it loses money on every transaction. ...

The Tarver Memorial Fund is named for a Georgia couple who in 1918 willed their estate to what later became Ways and Means for the Blind, Inc., which provides a substantial annual grant to the Tarver Fund for its maintenance. The Fund is an outgrowth of another non-profit organization operated by Mr. and Mrs. Owen, The Voicespondence Club, made up of tape recorder owners all over the United States and in 49 other countries. The Club dues are $4.00 per year, and each member gets an annual directory, three supplements, and a quarterly magazine, devoted to helping members use their recorders more effectively. Both blind and sighted people belong, about 35% of the members being without sight, and the sighted members are responsible for most of the gifts and contributions to the Tarver Fund.

*****

** Ned's Corner

This has been a most conventional summer for me. It started with attendance at the annual convention of the Florida Federation of the Blind where I was the banquet speaker. Although their president had resigned for reasons of health just six weeks before, the acting President, Dick Knight, and Loy Sumner, convention chairman, had done an excellent job in arranging the program. The FFB is making progress in the number of chapters and in total membership. Services to the blind in Florida also seem to be striding forward. Richard A. Knight, of Sarasota, who helped pioneer the Medical Secretary Field in Illinois, and a former member of the Illinois Federation, was elected to the FFB presidency. We are looking for a great things from the FFB under his leadership. 

Elsewhere in this issue are comments on the AAWB convention which I also attended. During all of these meetings I have been on the look-out for material which would be of interest to you and have accumulated quite a bit, some of which is to be found in this issue, And other articles will appear later. 

Much concern for the multi-handicapped blind child (and adult, too) is being demonstrated by both professional and lay organizations and this subject came in for considerable discussion at both AAWB and ACB meetings. 

Since much of this issue is given over to our sixth convention and it will be covered further in later issues, I shall not discuss it here, except to, add my own applause for a most excellent program throughout our entire stay in Wichita.

In August the Georgia Federation of the Blind held its convention in Atlanta. We have two official groups studying services to the blind in Georgia. One of these is the Statewide Planning Council on Rehabilitation which is similar to the projects now being conducted in each of the States. Due to the great expansion on the field of vocational rehabilitation to include social and cultural disabilities, work with the blind attracts ever less attention from such a generalized agency as this overall Planning Council. Nevertheless, the coordinator of the Council spoke to our group, listened to suggestions offered and asked for letters setting forth further ideas for the improvement of vocational rehabilitation. 

At the request of the Georgia Federation, the Lieutenant Governor has appointed a special committee of the Senate to study the whole field of services to the blind in Georgia. At least a dozen different agencies are concerned with one or more phases of the overall program with most of them having little or no knowledge of what others are doing. Three of the four senators on this committee came to listen to suggestions regarding unmet needs and to assure us that they intended to go thoroughly into the entire subject and that they would recommend to the legislature measures to bring Georgia's services to the blind to a par with those in other States.

*****

** ACB Tape Chatter
John B. Sevier, Tape Coordinator, 449 East 28th St., Baltimore, Md. 21218

Greetings, Tapers: I certainly wish I could have been in Wichita to meet many of you and to discuss our tape club. Remember, this is YOUR club -- use it, enjoy it, make it meaningful. Here are a few new members. Let us all send a tape and welcome them to the hobby of tape correspondence. 

Mrs. Mildred Severance, Routh 7, Box 791, Olympia, Washington, is married, is interested in knitting, desires to raise parakeets, and also is interested in anything relating to the blind. She has one dual track recorder with 3 3/4 and 7 1/2 ips speeds. 

Charles F. Swank, Route 4, Box 292, Harrisonburg, Virginia, is single, is a piano tuner, an organist, a recording artist, interested in music and farming. He has a Norelco 101 recorder portable with 1 7/8 ips recording speed, dual track; and two Wollensaks, dual track, 3 3/4 and 7 1/2 ips speeds. 

Mrs. Dewey Minard, 442 West Dutton, Kalamazoo, Michigan, 48009, is married and is interested in legislation and activities for the blind and in chit chat, but she does not want music, religion or politics on tape. She has two sons, one of whom is in the service. Her husband is also blind and is employed by the local Goodwill Industries. 

Mr. Russell Tome, 3049 Frisby St., Baltimore, Maryland, 21218, is single, is interested in friendly conversation, especially with girls, but is especially interested in having tapes of syndicated television shows, such as "The New Breed," which are not on the networks now but might be available in your area. He's a real nice fellow -- your Tape Coordinator has met him personally -- and he deserves an enthusiastic welcome to the hobby. He has a four-speed, four-track Wollensak tape recorder, and should be able to handle anything you send him. 

Well, that's all for now. How about sending out a tape today to each of the above people as well as those: listed in previous Braille Forum issues. If your memory is a little hazy concerning tapers in previous columns, your Tape Coordinator will be glad to forward a descriptive list upon a request. You can't beat that, can you? 

To Would-Be Tapers -- Send your Tape Coordinator information about yourself -- your interests, hobbies, background, recording speeds, etc., for inclusion in a future column.

*****

** Here and There
With George Card

The April issue of the Florida WHITE CANE BULLETIN announces the admission of an eighth affiliate -- the Halifax Chapter (Daytona Beach), also the reinstatement of the Orlando Chapter, the guiding spirit of which has always been our fine ACB member Laurene Gideons ... "Just before press time, we were shocked to receive a letter announcing the resignation of our state Federation President, Robert Allendorf, of Dade Chapter. Bob has been having a bout with illness and repeated hospitalization. Bob has been having a bout with illness and repeated hospitalization. His place is being taken by our very able First Vice-President, Richard A. Knight, of Sarasota, who has a wealth of experience and has been our fund raiser and chairman of constitutional revision." ... 

The current issue of the NEW BEACON contains an excellent article analyzing the present and future of computer programming as an occupation for the blind. The writer interviews two practicing blind programmers and goes quite exhaustively into the problems which may soon arise with the more extensive use of photography. One of the interviewees told him, "I find an abacus quite useful for totting up and checking trial results." The writer's comment: "Strange, isn't it, that, fingers and toes apart, the earliest counting device should be used now in conjunction with the most complex computing device yet discovered by man." 

From LISTEN: "More than 200 persons -- from Europe, Asia, Africa, Latin America, Bermuda and Canada, as well as the U.S. -- have already registered for the Fourth International Conference of Educators of Blind Youth to be held next August at Perkins School for the Blind. Nine workshops, business meetings, general sessions, demonstrations and tours of Perkins School and of historic and educational sites in the Boston area are scheduled for the week-long meeting which will open on August 20. ... The Eugene O'Neill Memorial Theatre Foundation was granted $105,000 by the VRA to form a professional theater of the deaf. The foundation will set up a professional school for deaf actors, playwrights and technicians at Waterford, Conn., this summer. The new company will make two major tours through the country in 1967 to encourage local activity in this new field. ... There are at least eight species of fish which are totally blind. ... The importance of the so-called "Medicaid" program (Title XIX) is illustrated by the fact that the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind is currently paying out $80,000 a month for medical assistance under this plan and has certified 2,400 blind persons as eligible. ... St. Raphael's Geriatric Adjustment Center for the Blind and Visually Handicapped, Newton, Mass., established in 1965 by Boston's Catholic Guild for All the Blind, has become a regional facility serving the entire New England area. The pioneer center, whose program is designed to help elderly men and women with severe visual loss to adjust to the combined handicaps of old age and visual impairment, has to date provided services for 65 persons, the eldest being 89 years of age. ... Sharon Kennedy, of Fremont, Calif., and Bobby Moses, of Lansing, Mich., both blind, are participating in a series of potentially important experiments to determine the possibilities of echolocation as a mobility guide. Those working with the latter have been able to condense the Kay device (which consisted of earphones and a sort of sonar flashlight) into eyeglass frames, thus freeing both hands. The former is involved in a series of experiments in the Bio-Sonar Laboratory of Stanford Research Institute. ... James C. Wheat, Jr., one of the six newly elected governors of the New York Stock Exchange, has been blind since 1945. Now President and Chairman of the Board of Wheat and Co. of Richmond, he is also President of the Virginia Association of Workers for the Blind and a member of the Virginia Commission for the Visually Handicapped." (Darlene and I share a very pleasant memory of entertainment at the Wheat home during the time we were organizing the Virginia Federation.)

An editorial in the BLIND ADVOCATE (London) points out the importance of noise abatement to the blind pedestrian whose safety is so dependent on his ability to hear and interpret correctly what he hears. The journal of the British Noise Abatement Society is called, "Quiet, Please." 

From a Canadian editorial: "We read a great deal these days about the speed-up in education, about the new skills people will need ten years from now, and the fact that, before long, many of us will re-train four times in the course of our forty-five-year career." 

Recently, Harold Russell informed that Governor's Committees that the Small Business Administration can now make business loans to handicapped persons for establishment or expansion of small businesses having a reasonable expectancy for success. More information can be obtained by contacting the Regional Office of Small Business Administration. 

From the RFB Newsletter: "Following the example of the Library of Congress and of the Regional Libraries for the Blind, Recordings for the Blind, Inc., may make it possible for a million-and-a-half Americans who cannot read for reasons other than blindness to have free access to tapes and talking books. It will depend on the success of a pilot program being conducted by RFB under a two-year grant of $100,000 from the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities. The experimental taped talking book project is now in progress among patients in five hospitals. ... Jasha Levi, RFB's Director of Production and Research, has invented another gadget to make life easier for tape machine users. The item is a tiny cube of polyfoam which, when placed between the reel flanges, keeps tapes from unwinding even under the roughest handling. The cubes replace a variety of plastic and metal tape clips which not only failed all mailing tests but were also 10 times more expensive than Mr. Levi's cubes."

From the Washington State WHITE CANE: "Switzerland is currently using a postage stamp dedicated to the blind. It shows a white cane and an auto wheel with the word 'Stop!' The word 'blind' appears in three languages." 

"For the first time in our history the possibility of providing services for all Americans who need them is actually in sight -- and it may come within five years." -- Mary E. Switzer, Commissioner, VRA, HEW.

From the ABC DIGEST (Calif.): "We've watched in dismay while bills were introduced such as making public the names and addresses of aid recipients, removal of persons employed in sheltered shops from Workmen's Compensation, the attempt to place liens on property, and the re-establishment of the responsibility of relatives. We are having to fight to get a obtain minimum wage provisions for blind workers in California Industries, to obtain provisions for health insurance for these same workers and for vending stand operators; we have met opposition in our efforts to make mandatory the ratio of 75% of the work done in CIB shops to be done by blind persons. ... Dorothy (Dolly) Glass is now the owner of a 24-hour telephone answering service in San Francisco in which she employs 16 operators, a bookkeeper and a part-time accountant. Dolly, an ABC charter member, is in charge of sales promotion. ... Resolution 672-A, adopted at the spring convention, deplores the heartless new policy of the Department of Rehabilitation that denies services to elderly blind persons and those who have been declared non-feasible for vocational rehabilitation. ... The U.S. Junior Chamber of Commerce has included two blind men in its outstanding list for 1966. Sanford D. Greenberg, 26, was nearly blinded by glaucoma when he was 20 years old, but he has achieved an outstanding academic record and has written a book on U.S. foreign policy. He is now a White House fellow on the President's staff in the office for science and technology.  Lloyd Putnam, 27, of Huntsville, Alabama, is the youngest executive in the space program and although totally blind has won acclaim as a college professor, public speaker and businessman. ... ABC member Elder Leger (who drove Julie Bindt to the Atlanta convention and participated actively) has been recognized by his union for twenty-five years of successful employment as a machinist. Elmer continues his activities on behalf of the blind; and as a parent of a sixteen-year-old blind daughter, Darlene, he continues to campaign for the organized blind to seek out the parents of blind children and help them to recognize the potentials for their children. He is concerned over the trend to train the multi-handicapped blind child with those who have only visual limitations. ... Bob Campbell's son David seems to be following in his father's footsteps as a lobbyist. He learned from Bob some of the tricks of the trade. Now as President of the Washington Forestry Association, he has managed to secure the passage of a conservation law long sought by this association. ... Some blind persons find that their free fishing licenses make excellent identification material when cashing checks, etc. ... Hollywood's best-known blind actress is Marcia Blakesley, a cute little blonde with great big blue-green eyes, who has appeared on a score of leading television shows. ... How to simulate blindness is the latest challenge for Audrey Hepburn, an unusually conscientious actress, who is preparing for her role in Wait Until Dark, her first Hollywood film since My Fair Lady, in which she plays a recently blinded wife. 'Portraying blindness is a lot more difficult than it seems,' she commented before undergoing a series of camera tests."

From THE HORIZON (London): "The music-writing typewriter, invented by Miss Lilly Pavey, has been saved for Britain by the intervention of Prince Philip. After she wrote to him, he approached a firm which is now helping to market her invention. As each key is struck on the machine, a device attached to the typewriter strikes the appropriate tone so that blind people can operate it. … A device based on the principle of the photo-electric cell is being developed for the use of students at the Worcester College for the Blind to use in their laboratory classes. Its application will be in the measurement of liquids. When run down the side of a container, the instrument makes an audible signal when it reaches the liquid level. The student then reads off the level on a braille scale on the container."

From the KAB NEWS: "Washburn College has used a $250.00 contribution from the Topeka Lions Club to purchase two tape recorders for the use of its blind students. These are kept permanently in the college library, which also provides space where assignments can be read on tape or where the blind student can listen at his own convenience."
 
Doctor: That pain in your leg is just the result of old age.

Patient: That can't be. My other leg is the same age and it doesn't hurt. 

By courtesy of the National Society for the Prevention of Blindness, Inc.  "The Code of Hammurabi, Emperor of first Babylonian Dynasty in 2100 B.C. had such great reverence for man's precious gift of sight, that it inflicted severe punishment on physicians who caused the loss of a patient's eye."

Waltham, Mass. (AP) -- "Broad-jumping 20' 5", teaching herself to play the guitar, giving solo piano and organ recitals and singing in a glee club make a long list of accomplishments for any girl. Joy A. Taranto, 19, does them all and cooks, too. And she is blind. Besides her record in the running broad-jump (which is less than two feet short of the listed world record for women), she has registered 18' 4" in the standing triple jump and 7' 1" in the standing broad jump." 

From the MONTANA OBSERVER: "The Montana Division of Blind Services has received a Federal grant of $13,500, which is 90% of the funds needed to establish a blind youth rehabilitation program in the state. According to Emil Honka, Division Director, these funds will make it possible to station a Rehabilitation Counselor at the State School for the Deaf and Blind in Great Falls who will work with visually handicapped children and their parents."

From the Akron BEACON JOURNAL: "The number of blind persons employed at the workshop operated by the Summit County Society of the Blind has been doubled through a $5,200 grant by the state for the purchase of material-handling equipment A forklift, jack, conveyor systems and tables for the workshop have been purchased with this money. The equipment is used for unloading trucks bringing work from area industries. The blind currently are repackaging light bulbs on a sub-contract basis with General Electric. Clyde Ross, Society president, said the grant will assure steady employment for 30 for at least the remainder of the year. In the past only about 15 worked off and on."

From the June NEW OUTLOOK FOR THE BLIND: "Time magazine has reported that a New York City optometrist, Dr. William Feinbloom, has developed 'reading binoculars' that magnify 3.5 times and enable many legally blind persons who are not totally sightless to read with relative ease. The binoculars, according to Time, are telemicroscopes mounted bifocal-style in the lower portion of ordinary prescription glasses. Made up of four lenses (one of them a doublet of two lenses cemented together) separated by three sealed air spaces, the tiny, high-powered units provide magnification and correct aberrations."

From the same issue: "A catalogue of optical aids and a supplement of vision testing materials has been issued by the Lighthouse Low Vision Services, The New York Association for the Blind. The 26-page illustrated catalogue comes in five sections, listing hand magnifiers, stand magnifiers, head-borne magnifiers, distance aids and miscellaneous devices. The six-page supplement lists vision tests designed, developed and clinically tested by the Lighthouse Low Vision Clinic staff. The catalogue and supplement are available from the Lighthouse, 111 East 59th Street, New York, New York 10000. The price is $2.00."

From the ILLNIOIS BRAILLE MESSENGER: "Frank Hall, one of the outstanding superintendents of the Illinois Braille and Sight Saving School, made a most significant contribution with the invention of the Hall Braille Writer and the Stereotype Machine. ... Wayne King, the 'Waltz King,' was in Quincy recently for a one-night stand at the Holiday Inn. While there, he volunteered to prepare a 15-minute taped program for the entertainment of the Quincy Chapter at its June meeting. ... The number of persons receiving Blind Assistance in Illinois reached a peak of 8,500 in 1938. By the end of March 1967 it had fallen to 1,937. ... The American Printing House offers a kit of 40 sturdy cardboard tubes for mailing braille letters. Each will hold three or four sheets. Address labels are provided and the tubes can be re-used again and again. Cat. No. 1-0410. $2.00. ... On her 70th birthday Maymie Tuttle received a braille watch from her Sunday School class. She had reached 60 before she had her first birthday cake. Now she is speculating as to what will happen when she reaches her 80th."

It is with deep sadness that I report the passing late in July of charter ACB member Sylvia Burton Nichols, of Brattleboro, Vermont, following surgery. The romance of Al and Sylvia had begun at a national convention and the marriage soon followed. They were an ideally happy couple during their all too brief life together. Our hearts go out to Al in his tragic hour of bereavement.

There were compelling personal reasons why I could not attend the Wichita convention of the ACB but all reports reaching me are glowingly enthusiastic with respect to the program, the attendance, the high morale of the delegates and especially the absolutely tremendous job done by our Kansas affiliate.

The June NEW BEACON suggests in its lead editorial that perhaps the function of a voluntary group (such as an organization of or for the blind) is a dual one -- to pioneer new developments and to fill in the gaps in governmental service. "Pioneering," it says, is "the identification of emerging needs and finding ways to meet them. ... We are concerned today with much more than the relief of material distress. We now aim at the enrichment of life for those who, from whatever cause, are missing or losing what lies in our power to give. We are concerned with the quality of life. Voluntary groups should provide first aid while putting maximum pressure on governmental agencies to provide the remedy. The existence of voluntary service groups alongside state service agencies should stimulate mutual constructive criticism and bring mutual benefit about. Non-governmental agencies have flexibility and freedom from tightly drawn rules and regulations. They can pioneer; they can experiment."

*****

** Michigan Federation Affiliates

The 1967 ACB Convention welcomed the Michigan Federation of the Blind as its sixteenth State Affiliate. This is the original State organization of the blind in Michigan with strong and active chapters in Flint, Kalamazoo and Detroit. Mrs. Betty McWethy, a charter member of ACB and executive director of the Genesee Center for the Blind, is the State President. Henry Cypher, as official delegate, accepted the Charter of Affiliation on behalf of MFB.

All of us in ACB are happy to have this progressive State organization with us and I know our joy is shared by the readers of the Braille Forum.

*****

** Loretta's Corner

Yes, everything was up to date in Wichita. Now a few miles out of Wichita things were not so up to date. A visit to Cow Town with its mud-puddled streets (including geese a-splashing), plank walks, antiquated equipment in dentist's office, barber shop, undertaking parlor, a tiny cubby hole for a Post Office, all emphasized the up-to-dateness of the new city while filling some of us with nostalgia and giving the young folk a glimpse of history. And we can't leave Cow Town without mention of that buffalo barbecue. This was an interesting experience which proved to be quite a treat. The meat was tender and delicious and, except for the faint-hearted, accusing eyes in the huge head still dripping fresh blood at the neck were reassuring proof that it really was buffalo meat. 

Prior to this adventure we saw the unbelievably vast expanse of the Boeing Company where officials and executives of the company served as guides, explaining technical processes as the group examined with white-gloved fingers various parts of the giant B-52 bombers. We then saw the finished product at close range -- walking around the wing spread, touching the engine parts, the enormous tires, the broad fuselage. For many conventioneers this visit to Boeing was a real highlight long to be remembered. 

However, the first stop on that interesting Thursday afternoon was probably the most inspiring and memorable for most of us. It is a rare and powerful experience to witness a miracle -- and this we did at the Institute of Logopedics in Wichita, where miracles are a specialty. Children and adults from all 50 states and 19 foreign nations have received training at the Institute to correct communicative problems. An average of three students are returned to their homes each day with corrected or improved speech. We were privileged to see demonstrations of this great work and to hear the heartfelt tribute of a mother who has become a member of the staff. Most moving was the music therapy that had reached through otherwise almost unsurmountable barriers to bring joy and communication to a handsome young blind boy. There were few dry teacher eyes in the auditorium as this boy, accompanied by his teacher (two pianos), gave his own interpretation of a wide range of musical selections, many familiar to all, and closed with "God Bless America." This home of miracles was founded by Martin F. Palmer over 30 years ago and Dr. Charles Wurth is the Executive Director. They and their truly dedicated teachers have earned the eternal gratitude of hundreds of persons.

As if this were not enough, we returned to the hotel for yet another experience long to be remembered. The stage of the hall in which we met had been converted into something like a bleachers where over a hundred eager, clear-eyed, enthusiastic young people of the "Sing Out, Kansas" group sang and sang for over two hours about their ideals and philosophy. Such a demonstration was a thrilling reassurance that our beloved country is in good hands -- and should be a sharp rebuke to those who fear and criticize. It was the kind of presentation one hated to see come to an end; in fact, I be found the myself dreading the fact that one of these songs must be the last. (Incidentally, several of the participants in the Sing Out were doing double duty as our Girl Scout guides during the convention.)

The Forum will have more to say about the Wichita convention, but we can't delay reference to the magnificent corps of volunteers who were very much in evidence throughout the entire convention. The thermoformed material, the exhibits, and the smooth convention procedure indicated weeks and months of cooperative planning. Hats off! To that great group, the Kansas Braille Association, and to our hosts, the Kansas Association for the Blind.

Also, it was especially gratifying to us to meet so many readers of the Forum!

*****

**Homemaking Tips from an Expert
Joy Gilpin

(From an article in the Illinois Braille Messenger)

I feel the following items are a necessity for the blind homemaker in the kitchen -- a locked lid saucepan, a good tea kettle with a spout and stationary handle, a simmering plate for the top burners of the gas stove, asbestos mitts for both hands, a brailled cooking timer, a good asbestos potholder, four-inch long matches for lighting the oven (obtainable at  many gift and department stores), measuring cups (1/4,1/3,1/2 and 1 cup in a set), measuring spoons (1/4, 1/3, 1/2 and 1 teaspoon plus 1 tablespoon in a set), and medaseptic teaspoon dispenser, an electric frying pan (I feel a blind client should not try anything with grease on the top of the gas stove), a good spatula, tongs for turning meat, a flat colander and an oven thermometer for touch reading is very useful if the blind person has extremely sensitive tactile ability. The safety spoons from the American Foundation for the Blind are very handy and extremely safe. I like the use of the Magna Wonder knife for slicing. The Braille Cook Book of Convenience Foods, published by the Brooklyn Bureau of Social Service and Children's Aid Society, is the only cookbook in braille that covers the full range of convenience foods. Blind homemakers have a special need to know the instructions on frozen food packages, dehydrated mixes, dehydrated spices, etc. The Brooklyn Bureau's Braille Cook Book meets this need, and for the first time brings the modern revolution in food processing into the kitchens of the blind. Its pages are plastic and washable. 

In general household duties, I feel it is necessary for most students to have an electric broom, a long-handled mop, a deck-type scrub brush, a steam iron marked for touch reading, a clearwater distiller to make distilled water, and a funnel for the iron. The homemaker usually needs an electric clock marked for touch reading, a braille tape measure for sewing, needle threaders and self-threading needle, hem gauge and a sewing box which can be marked easily in braille for colors of thread, and invisible nylon thread, usable on any color of fabric. 

I find it is helpful to put the heel of the ironing board at the right hand of the student. The cord of the iron should be plugged into the outlet either at the right hand of the student or behind her. It is often necessary to change the ironing habits of many blind ironers. A sighted ironer usually raises the material slightly with the left hand and pulls it as she irons, thereby pulling the wrinkles out. I insist that the blind ironer must keep the material flat on the board and smooth out all the wrinkles with both hands before ironing. She holds the material down with the left hand immediately in front of the iron and slides the left hand along in front of the iron, smoothing out the wrinkles with the palm and fingers of her hand as she irons. The iron is then lifted and rested back on its heel while the next portion to be ironed is smoothed out with the hands. To find the iron again, the right hand merely slides along the front edge of the ironing board, finds the cord and follows the cord up to the iron handle. The blind ironer is not fearful of burning herself and there is no danger. 

I feel that a teacher of the blind must be a resource person for her students as well as an instructor. She should be able to supply information on a wide variety of subjects. For example, she should know how to obtain a travel concession book for blind travelers, how to use a talking book, how to obtain records from the library, how and where to get brailled recipes and subway charts. She must learn to be a good comparative shopper so that her students can get the best possible value for their money. She must know where to buy specific types of appliances and gadgets and be able to determine how they can be adapted for use by the blind. She should have a knowledge of income tax laws. In general, the teacher of blind students must be aware of all types of materials and resources helpful to her students and where they may be obtained.

*****

** Letters from Readers

June Goldsmith, 652 E. Mallory Ave., Memphis, Tenn.

As I began reading "Loretta's Corner" (July '67 Forum), there I sat with the printed material at the end of my nose, squinting through a magnifying glass, and all hunched over in my chair! I agree, it does not make for the picture of grace and poise! But it's the way I have to read, so -- there you are! I am partially sighted, or legally and industrially blind, take your choice.

I know what Loretta's intention was. She was trying to encourage and hearten the fainthearted among us who cannot see, to lift up the burden of visual handicap and carry it gracefully, to be thankful that we do have a little vision, and to make the most of what we have in personal appearance, character, and whatever may come our way in opportunity.

The ability to read braille proficiently is a marvelous accomplishment, but if one can read print, is it not right that he should use this talent to the best of his ability, and be grateful?

It takes stark courage for a blind or partially sighted person to strike out into the sea of the sighted world. I should be ashamed to tell you that I was nearly grown before I found the will to go places by myself. I was mortified when I had to explain to each new teacher in school that I could not see like the other children could. So I finally gave up school in the seventh grade, to stay at home and get a more or less liberal education from books and the radio. I must say this: but for one or two exceptions, I had wonderful and understanding teachers during the few years I spent in the public schools.

When I was growing up, it was just too embarrassing to have to ask someone where certain places were, or what signs said, etc. But I finally outgrew it, and I learned some interesting things about people. No one seemed to think it odd that I would ask where was the ladies lounge, or what did a price tag say, and so on. People with perfectly normal eyesight ask these questions. No one, in all my life, to my knowledge, has ever laughed at or ridiculed me because I hold something at the end of my nose to see it. My family and the children I grew up with accepted it stoically when I failed at something, and they rejoiced with me if I succeeded. The children always helped me if they could, as a matter of course.

A lot of people don't like to acknowledge, if their vision is far from perfect, that they are "partially blind." That's why we invented "partially sighted"; it's a euphemism, you know. A lot of people are quite outraged when we suggest that they wear their glasses all the time to save the acuity they have. "I can see without my glasses!" they snap at us.

Blindness is no respecter of class, circumstance, race or religion. We must strive to get through to the parents of blind and partially blind children, to see to it that these children receive proper and thorough education and training, that they might stand on their own two feet, and be reasonably happy, self-possessed, contributing members of society.

(Thank you, June: It's good to have some lively discussion within the family. You helped us emphasize that those with severe visual impairment should make the utmost use of any vision they may have, but they should acknowledge the fact to themselves and to the public, making use of the techniques developed by the "totals" wherever these make for greater comfort and efficiency.)

***

Klara Johnson, 2118 Blaisdell Ave., So., Minneapolis, Minn. 55404. 

In the July Forum "Mr. Crepe Hanger" from Pennsylvania writes how devastating it would be were the Corbett Postal Bill to become law. He also thinks that the President's suggestion of a National Center for the Deaf-Blind would be equally devastating and erroneous. 

It is sad when we cannot find anything to be happy about or thankful for. His remarks bring to mind this story. A certain woman was forever griping about something and never had anything for which to be thankful. One year, however, she had an exceptionally fine crop of potatoes. During his visit one day her minister remarked, "Surely you must be very happy to have such fine potatoes!" Her reply was, "Yes; but where are the bad ones for the pigs?"

I too am one of the deaf-blind. I enjoy the Forum. Your and Loretta's corners are always interesting and thought-provoking. Cheerily yours

***

Miss Leona Jennings, 2302 Holdredge St., Lincoln, Nebraska 68503. 

I enjoy reading the Braille Forum which I get from our library. I have a few items for sale which I wonder if I could list in the magazine without prices. I have a desk slate and postcard size, a timer, and two good books with large print for visually impaired, a grammar and on with short stories. Many thanks.

*****

** Refugees from the Round File

"Keep in contact with the sighted world think as much as possible like sighted people, work out a good system for yourself for getting things done when they should be done." This quotation from Dr. Heinrich Baumhof, totally blind attaché at the German Embassy in Washington, opens an excellent article in the Fall issue of Dialogue (a disc recorded quarterly magazine available from your regional library). Dr. Baumhof is the first blind person to achieve the upper echelon in the German Foreign Service. The article not only tells much of his accomplishments but contains considerable information about the German program of services for the blind.

***

Considerable space in the July issue of the Braille Book Review and Talking Book Topics is devoted to the subject of museums especially adapted for tactile viewing. Included in this section is an extensive review of the NASA exhibit "Enlightenment for the Blind" which has been previously referred to in these pages. The revised and updated exhibit is now beginning its 1967-68 tour of the country. Those interested in knowing when this exhibit will be in their part of the country should write to the National Aeronautic and Space Administration in Washington, D.C.

***

Harry Fribush, 27 Colonial Ave., Albany, N.Y. 12203, is offering several assortments of Christmas cards and greeting cards for other occasions in combination of braille and ink prints. The highest quality of Christmas cards are eight for $1.00. Other assortments are priced at fourteen for $1.00 and eighteen for $1.10. For your name in print add 25 cents for each set ordered. Your name in braille will be added without charge upon request. Other types of greeting cards, all of one kind or in assortments, are fourteen for $1.00 with the same provisions for your name in ink print and/or in braille.

***

John N. West, 1088 Stanwood Ave., Akron, Ohio 44314, sends in the following request. An appeal is made for copies of the Braille Forum for April 1963 and September 1966. In order to complete a collection of this magazine for a research library. If any readers have these issues available, it will be appreciated if you will send them to Mr. West at the address given. 

***

The Home Teacher reports that there is a blind physiotherapist in Canada. He is Michael Trotman of the Physiotherapy Department of the Perley Hospital in Ottawa. He was born and educated in England and obtained a diploma from the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy. He came to Ottawa in 1964 and is now Secretary-Treasurer of the Ottawa Branch of the Canadian Physiotherapy Association.

*****

** Cool Braille
Earl Scharry

Having been successively brainwashed by our four children as in turn they passed through the stage of devout and noisy worship at the altar of the current rock 'n roll idols, we are at last compelled to attest the truth that the insistent beat of modern music can evoke a holy ecstasy which we of the older generation can only fleetingly and imperfectly sense. 

With this conditioning, we have some appreciation of the pleasure with which the record buffs will receive the information that there is now a braille magazine devoted 
to their special groove. This little publication called Ring Around the Pops appears quarterly and contains articles and resumes of articles from various print magazines giving biographical and background material on popular recording artists. The subscription price is $2.00 per year. The editor is Laura Lynn Rondi, who is employed as a typist at the American Printing House for the Blind. The assistant editor is Leslie Willensen, a sighted girl from Chicago. Miss Rondi is a recent graduate of the Kentucky School for the Blind whose enterprise and initiative are adorned by a rather shy and reserved manner. Her motivation, it goes without saying, is not profit, but the desire to share her enthusiasm for popular music.

A recent issue of Ring Around the Pops contains the following articles: "Your Direct Line to the Raiders" by Roger Hart, their manager and closest friend; "The Mamas and Papas Again"; "The D.C. (Dave Clark) Five Look It Over"; "A Chat with Stevie Wonder," a sketch of a young blind performer and composer; "Saluting KRIZ, All-Request Radio"; "Donovan: A Mystical Musical Magician," concerning Donovan Leitch, of "Mellow Yellow" fame; "Supreme Happiness," concerning a female singing group, The Supremes; and "Visiting George Harrison," "Visiting Paul McCartney," and "A Behind-the-Scenes Extra," the last three throwing light on the private and professional life of the Beatles.

We believe this venture worthy of support. If you know braille readers who are "platter" enthusiasts, tell them about it. Subscriptions should be sent to the Editor, Miss Laura Lynn Rondi, 113 Kentucky Avenue, Louisville, Kentucky 40206.

*****

**ACB Officers and Directors

President: Reese H. Robrahn, 541 New England Building, Topeka, Kansas 66603
1st Vice President: Ned E. Freeman, 136 Gee's Mill Rd., Conyers, Ga. 30207
2nd Vice President: David Krause, 4628 Livingston Rd., SE, Washington, D.C. 20032 
Secretary: Mrs. Alma Murphey, 4103 Castleman Ave., St. Louis, Missouri 63110 
Treasurer: F.W. Orrell, 5209 Alabama Ave., Chattanooga, Tenn. 37409 

** Directors

Mrs. Mary Jane Schmitt, 55 Queens St., Rochester, N.Y. 14609 
R.L. Thompson, 104 W. Hanlon St., Tampa, Fla. 33604
Fred C. Lilley, 7629 Dale Street, Richmond Heights, Missouri 63117
J. Edward Miller, 2661 Chesterfield Ave., Charlotte, North Carolina 28205
George Card, 605 S. Few Street, Madison, Wisconsin 53703 
Vernon Williams, 217 Western Union Bldg., Aberdeen, S.D. 57401 
Mrs. Catherine Skivers, 836 Resota St., Hayward, California 94545
Floyd Qualls, 106 N.E. 2nd St., Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73104

***

This sight saving edition was assembled and mailed by members of the Oklahoma City Chapter of the Oklahoma Federation of the Blind.

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