Helping the blind with Braille
THERESA CAMPBELL | Staff Writer
theresacampbell@dailycommercial.com
Braille is vital tool for those with reduced vision or blindness, and New Vision for Independence is offering to help businesses, schools and nonprofit organizations expand their client base with free printed materials in Braille.
"Our community could use some more Braille menus in restaurants and Braille sales flyers for those who are visually impaired," said Chantel Buck, executive director for New Vision, which is housed at Lake Hall on the campus of Lake-Sumter State College.
"We are noticing that Braille literacy is on the decline a bit because of the smart phones and new technology, but for those who are Braille readers, they want access to literature and that is a powerful market because once consumers who use Braille notice a business is supportive, they let all of their friends know," Buck said. "It is an interesting community that businesses should be wanting to tap into."
For a limited time, New Vision is offering to transcribed printed business documents and small restaurants' menus in Braille.
"A business can have a flyer or marketing piece printed in Braille; a grocery store can have the store layout printed in Braille," Buck said, which could help customers know which aisles have different items.
Buck believes the service could help meet a community need.
"The last estimates of people who are visually impaired in Lake and Sumter County is just over 13,000 and it's estimated that maybe about 10 percent of people who are visually impaired are avid Braille readers," she said. "They may be able to access other kinds of print, so we are looking at 1,000 to 2,000 people in our community. It's not very time consuming and it's not an extra expense (to have documents in Braille) since we are doing it for free. We are just encouraging people to have it available."
New Vision will work with businesses and organizations on the process.
"We will work with them on formatting it so it is easy to read with Braille," Buck said. "We will print it and provide all the paper."
During New Vision's independent living classes designed to help clients learn how to use adaptive items to adjust with low vision, Buck said clients often talk about going to restaurants, but having to rely on others to tell them what's on the menu.
"They have no idea that large print and Braille menus are available in the larger chains," Buck said. "Once they learn about that, they are very excited and they always ask 'Why don't the smaller places have them as well?' "
Buck wants smaller restaurants to know that New Vision can provide them with a Braille menu.
"For bigger companies, it is a requirement that you have to follow the Americans with Disabilities Act and that you have this literature available," Buck said. "A lot of the small restaurants that we have in Lake County are exempted from the requirement, but it is still a good idea to have it available so that you are not isolating certain customers. They want to go out to eat and they want to know about the specials that the local pharmacy is offering."
New Vision also provides free classes for those who want to learn Braille as well as other classes to help those with low vision. The organization's client base continues to grow with the expansion of The Villages.
"Sumter County is the fastest growing county in the state and most of those individuals are retirees," Buck said. "And 75 percent of our client base are retirees who have lost their vision later in life. We're constantly letting people know that we are here."
Friday, February 08, 2013 - www.dailycommercial.com/8feb2013blind