FOCUS

Attending and participating in the special activities of our parent organization, the American Council of the Blind (ACB), is a worthwhile expenditure of time. Several ACBI members, however, did more than just attend required meetings and general sessions. They gave up a portion of their convention time to engage in direct involvement in various convention programs.

The Recreation Zone found Gerry Koors, Indianapolis, teaching several water aerobic classes during convention week. Don served as her assistant to ensure the safety of all participants.

As a member of the ACB Scholarship Committee, Don Koors also spent time participating in the activities planned for the scholarship winners.

Josephine Price, Indianapolis, conducted a knitting class for beginners and intermediates. Attendees engaged in projects appropriate to their level of knitting skills. Josephine was also available by appointment throughout the entire week to provide additional assistance to students.

Jim Stanga, Lafayette, helped in the Press Room to make certain conventioneers had their daily newspapers, ACB Resolutions and Constitutional Amendments in braille and large print,

Earlene Hughes, Lafayette, actively participated in the deliberations of the Constitution and Bylaws Committee and spent some time helping in the Press Room getting out the daily newspaper and other special publications.

Former member Suzanne Ament, now teaching in Virginia, displayed her musical talent as a participant in the Friends in Art Annual Showcase.

ACBI is proud of this special group of members.

2. Remembering Hank Hofstetter – A Gentle Giant
Sept. 10, 1914 to May 10, 2002

Much has been written in this publication about the tremendous accomplishments and impact our long-time devoted treasurer Dr. Henry W. Hofstetter made upon the optometric field worldwide during his lifetime. Rather than repeat those accolades, it seems more appropriate to convey the wonderfully human side of this great leader whom we affectionately called “a gentle giant - a gentle man whose presence was always felt but was never intrusive.” This can best be done by reprinting one of his own articles written of an experience in 1933. The text of that article follows:

A December I Remember
by Henry Hofstetter

(Printed in the Meadowood Messenger, December 1994)

It was the winter of 1933, early December, in my third month of teaching following my 19th birthday. It was my first salaried job in the so-called Wilson District one-room schoolhouse in a back road area of rural Middlefield, a small town in snow-covered northeastern Ohio. All of my 32 pupils, averaging four for each of the eight grades, were Amish except for three children of Czechoslovakian immigrant parents and two others of somewhat nondescript identity whom the Amish called ‘Yankee” kids. Presumably my own ethnic identity, too, was regarded as Yankee in the local Amish vocabulary. The dirt road, variously muddy or snow-covered, was virtually impassable by car most of the winter but traversed by two or three horse-drawn vehicles, buggy or sled per day. All of the children and I walked to school, my distance being about two miles.

Because electricity had not yet been made available to this area, nor requested by the predominantly Amish population, all routine school activities were conducted in daylight hours. Such niceties as the use of ink were ruled out by reason of freezing at night, as the wood-burning stove could not be stoked for adequate heat retention in the overnight absence of 32 children and me, the teacher (and janitor).

Nevertheless, spirits were typically high, and each day seemed to produce its share of fun. So, the idea of Christmas emerged quite naturally. What to do about it? Let’s have a Christmas program to which the parents would be invited, about a dozen couples. They could be accommodated with several borrowed benches. Parents would be asked to bring lanterns, kerosene or Coleman. My fourth to eighth graders would cut a tree from a nearby wooded area. I assured the excited youngsters that I could obtain clip-on candle holders from the attics of friends of mine in the village who were now using electric Christmas tree lights on their trees. So, the makings and ideas for a program began to shape up.

I found a couple dozen candle holders quite easily among the villagers, though not in Amish homes, for the Amish were not free to indulge in decorative efforts. They were, however, quite willing to enjoy the efforts of others. But candles! With the advent of electric Christmas lights, the traditional wax candles had suddenly become obsolete. They were no longer stocked in stores — grocery, pharmacy, hardware, or Kresge’s — nor were they procurable through their jobbers. I learned from one of the merchants that the wax candles had been made by the Standard Oil Company, and that the company headquarters was in Cleveland. Somehow I acquired the address and promptly wrote a letter to the president of the corporation. I simply asked him (no hers, then) if there was any possibility that, in spite of the discontinuation of the candle production, there might be a dozen or two left in stock or otherwise available. I explained the circumstances of my need and my willingness to pay. I was not optimistic. In fact, I was certain that this was an absurdly naive attempt which, at best, would merely have satisfied my conscience.

No response. A week or two had passed. On the forenoon of Friday, December 22, the last day of school before Christmas, we were rehearsing our parts, songs, poems, recitations, etc. In the environmental quietness of the rural countryside, disturbed only by the schoolroom hubbub, we faintly heard the distant grinding sound of a large truck motor. This was indeed a rarity, though I realized that the mud road on that day was frozen hard enough to be passable by a motor-driven vehicle. Since this could be an unusual sight for the youngsters, I suggested that they line up at the windows to see what modern apparatus would be passing by.

Soon we could see a huge tank truck slowly approaching down our road. The driver must obviously be lost. When he pulled partly into the narrow drive of the schoolyard we could see the quizzical look on his face, so I opened the schoolhouse door and asked if I could help.

“Is this the Wilson District School?” the driver shouted. “Indeed,” I responded. “Well, I have a package of candles from our president’s office. Are these for you?”

144 candles! 12 dozen!

Needless to say, I have retained forever a soft spot in my heart for the Standard Oil Company.

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3. The Late James K. Frech Honored

As a tribute to the late James K. Frech’s commitment to the community, a flower garden was dedicated to him on August 6, 2002 at the beginning of the National Night

Out Against Crime Program. Unfortunately, Mr. Frech had died just 4 days prior to his neighbors’ special honor.

Mr. Frech was well known as he had served as a clerk 30 years for the Indiana State Library, retiring in 1997. Perceiving a need to do something to dispel the negative perception of the Northeastside and Eastside neighborhoods in Indianapolis, he and his wife, Janet, promoted the neighborhood’s adoption of a Crime Watch program.

Although the celebration was a happy one in many respects, neighbors indicated they would very much miss their blind neighbor who had done so much to improve their environment.

4. ACBI Holds 31st Annual Meeting

By the time you read this newsletter, the 31st annual meeting of ACB of Indiana will be history. We hope many of you were able to attend and participate in the various scheduled activities at the Holiday Inn Conference Center in Columbus, Indiana.on September 26 and 27, 2002.

Details of the business meeting and the elected leadership will appear in the next issue of FOCUS.

5. ACBI President’s Message by Dolly Sowder

Did you know that fifty five per cent of college educated people with disabilities are unemployed compared to fourteen per cent of their non-disabled college educated counterparts? More than half of the disabled who struggled through the hardships to get a college education is rewarded with unemployment. How depressing. It almost makes you want to give up. Thank God we live in a country that lets us have choices. We can give up or we can go on. I say lets go on and change things for the better.

Do you have a vision of what you would like to do in your life? I choose to work hard to advocate for people who are blind and visually impaired. There is a ton of information to share with the public about sight loss. We can do this by sharing what the American Council of the Blind is all about.

White Cane Awareness Day is Oct. 15. Would you be willing to share with your community the abilities a blind or visually impaired person has? They far exceed any disabilities. Sending a letter to your local newspaper can easily do this.

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6. Education, Diversity, & Fun Characterizes North Central’s Activities
by Sandy Lingofelter

Many readers look forward to the report of our North Central ACBI Chapter because it demonstrates just what can be done when enthusiastic and creative leaders are committed to enriching the lives of its members. Here is a short listing of the chapter’s recent accomplishments reported by President Sandy Lingofelter.

Program & Activities:

The Lions Eye Bank.
Demonstration of Computers for Blind & Visually Impaired followed by a get together at Mc Donalds.
Paul and Sue Ponchilia from Western Michigan University.
Tour of the Elkhart Career Center
50th Anniversary Celebration of ADEC.
Dinner at Peddlers Village Restaurant.
Annual August Picnic.

Upcoming Events:

Annual Hot Dog Roast (September)
Fall Round-Up and Hay Stack Supper (October).
Dr. Gabrile from the Gabrile Eye Institute (November).
Annual Christmas Party (December).

Current Officers:

Sandy Lingofelter, President
Helen Watts Vice President & Program Chair
Ron Ray, Secretary
Carolyn Speicher, Treasurer.

Anyone living in the Elkhart area should contact Sandy Lingofelter at 219.848.4010 or by e-mail at sanken3@juno.com for information about times and places of the monthly meetings.

7. Circle City Chapter In Review
by Gerry Koors

Another year of meetings for Circle City Chapter have come and gone. Some of the highlights for this year are as follows:

Our Christmas dinner was a fun evening with music and door prizes along with a delicious dinner.

In February our own Suzanne Ament talked to us about her experiences in Russia and how blind people are treated there. She has a Ph.D. in Russian history.

In March, Cheryl Sparks gave a most interesting and delightful account of her trip to Cuba. We look forward each year to her travelogs.

I think the main highlight of this year was our attendance at the State Lions Club dinner May 4th at the Indiana School for the Blind. The school is one of their projects and they bought new playground equipment which was dedicated that night. One of our members, Don Osburn, is an active member of a local Lions Club. The grilled pork chop dinner was held outdoors and the weather was perfect. We truly enjoyed the evening and thank the Lions Club for making us a part of their evening.

Hope you had a great summer!

8. Report from South Central
by Ada Bailey, President

Our fundraiser at this time was selling chances on a beautiful full size quilt made and donated by a lady in Mitchell, Indiana. Tickets were $1.00. The drawing was held at the ACBI annual meeting.

In September our speaker talked on estate planning and living wills.

On October 12 members of our chapter, the local Lions members and other volunteers will be passing out candy and information on vision loss.

On August 19th Dolly and Mike Sowder visited with the Seymour low vision support group. They met at the New Covered Bridge Health Care Center where they were served a delicious breakfast and had a tour of the new facility. They passed out information on ACBI and the 2002 convention. Dolly and Mike really enjoyed their visit. Rev. Ed Anderson is doing a great job leading this support group.

If you would like information about our meetings, please call me (Ada Bailey) at 812.834.6419.

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9. Beware of Phone Scams
(Courtesy of AT&T)

The more you know about the various scams, the easier it is to protect yourself. You are encouraged to go to the AT&T Fraud Education website for complete details but we’ll include a brief description of a couple scams here.

Placing International Calls Without Realizing It:

It’s not always easy to tell if you’re dialing an international telephone number. In most cases, you have to dial “011’ to begin a call to a foreign country. But there are locations outside the U.S. whose telephone numbers may look like domestic long-distance calls, but they are actually international calls and international rates apply. For example, 809, 284 and 876 are area codes in the Caribbean.

There are many scams that deceive consumers into calling international numbers. You may see an ad for a service that directs you to call a specific number, or you may receive a page, an e-mail message or an ‘urgent” message on your answering machine. All messages direct you to call a number for more information – almost always an international number.

Your Defense:

Be cautious about area codes you don’t recognize. Check your telephone directory or call the operator to determine where the area code is before making your call.
Control access to your telephone so unauthorized callers do not use your phone to call these services. A block on calls to “900” services will not stop calls to “011” or “809” numbers. If you’re sure you won’t need to make international calls, call your long-distance carrier and ask them to put an international block on your telephone line.

Call Forwarding Scam

You may receive an automated message on your telephone that says you have won a prize or money. The message directs you to dial a 2-digit code preceded or followed by the *(asterisk) or # (pound) key (such as *79 or 72#), and then an 800 number to claim your prize. When you dial the number, you are not connected to anyone. What this procedure has done, though, is program your telephone to forward your calls to a long distance operator. Con artists can then call your number, be forwarded to the long-distance operator and place calls that are billed to your home telephone number.

Your Defense:

If you receive this type of call, simply hang up. If you receive this message on your answering machine, do not place this call. No legitimate sweepstakes or contest would likely contact you in this manner.
Know the numbers used for Call Forwarding from your local telephone company.

Unfortunately, there are more scams. Go to www.att.com/fraud/home.html#three to learn more and protect yourself.

10. Transcribe Your Own Braille Music Quickly, Automatically and Accurately

Do you remember the days when you needed a piece of music transcribed into braille? You sent it to a trained transcriber, and then waited weeks and sometimes months for the precious braille score to be returned. That isn’t how it works now! Thanks to GOODFEEL® 2.6 for Windows users can automatically braille their music in seconds.

If you are a blind singer or instrumentalist who needs to have braille scores quickly, an educator or rehabilitation professional serving blind musicians with no time to study braille music transcription manuals, you will want to check out GOODFEEL® 2.6.

GOODFEEL® automatically converts several kinds of music files to braille; the same files used to print the score for sighted players. To prepare and transcribe these files with GOODFEEL® you do not need to know how to read braille music!

The process is fast and flexible. You can braille a single part, selected parts, or an entire score in seconds! GOODFEEL® 2.6 features integrated literary braille translation for most western languages so you can braille both the words and the tune.

U.K. Formatting: GOODFEEL® can now be configured to conform closely to the formatting conventions used for Braille Music production in the U.K.

Lite Version

GOODFEEL® Lite gives you all the features of the full product but limits you to just one of these formats: instrumental music, vocal parts, keyboard or full score.

Briefly, here is how it works:

Scan the print score (optional step).
Use Lime or Cakewalk to enter and edit the score or sequence using your PC and/or MIDI musical keyboard.
Proofread or audition your piece.
Emboss or edit braille notation.

You can download a free demo from their website.

For current prices and/or more information, contact: Dancing Dots, PO Box 927, Valley Forge, PA 19482. Tel: 610.783.6692. Fax: 610.783.6732. E-mail: info@dancingdots.com. Web: www.dancingdots.com.

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11. RFB&D Goes Digital

September 3, 2002 will long be remembered by many visually impaired and learning disabled students as the day that Recording for the blind and Dyslexic (RFB&D) released its inaugural collection of 6,000 digitally recorded educational titles, ranging from Harry Potter to Systems of Psychotherapy: A Transtheoretical Analysis. This collection will be added to the 91,000 accessible textbooks already in the RFB&D library. Without a doubt, this is the largest collection of its kind in the world.

This new collection is different from other accessible reading materials because they are recorded in human voice by volunteers who are experts in the subject areas they read. RFB&D’s books are not scanned digitally to be played back in synthetic speech, which can often distort or mispronounce scientific, foreign and complex terminologies.

To listen to RFB&D’s AudioPlus textbooks, students need a portable CD player equipped to play RFB&D’s books or a standard multimedia computer equipped with a CD-ROM drive and specialized software. Playback hardware and software will be available through RFB&D for nonprofit sale.

There are many advantages to the RFB&D’s digitally recorded textbooks on CD. They allow instant access to any page, chapter or subheading in a book with the touch of a button - there is no need to fast-forward through and count embedded beep tones as is done with books recorded on analog cassette tape. The CDs hold more than 40 hours of recorded material. Therefore, the contents of a standard textbook, which requires eight to 12 RFB&D cassettes, will now fit onto a single CD. Portability, ease of navigation and bookmarking capabilities make digitally recorded textbooks from RFB&D more effective study tools for students with print disabilities.

Contact: RFB&D by phone - 866. RFBD-585 (866.732.3585) or visit their website – www.rfbd.org/ap.htm.

12. Talking Government Forms Developed

Many low vision and blind individuals have found it increasingly difficult to access government forms on the Internet because most are available only in “PDF” — Portable Document Format. The screen reading software finds it difficult to read PDF because it views the screen as a picture rather than words.

The software was developed by Plexus Scientific Corp. in conjunction with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), to meet the accessibility requirement of Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act that became effective last year. The project cost around $1 million, with much of the funds contributed by Adobe Systems, Inc., the makers of PDF.

The IRS is demonstrating the “talking tax form” to other agencies that are also grappling with the problem of making their online services accessible to the visually impaired. The IRS plans to post the new form next year on its website at www.IRS.gov.

13. Federal Job Opportunities for Individuals with Disabilities

According to a recent announcement by President Bush, the U.S. Office of Personnel Management has created a new website at www.opm.gov/disability/ for people with disabilities who seek federal jobs.

14. Accessing the Emergency E-Mail Network

To simplify access, the Emergency Email Network can now be accessed at the following web addresses:

If you want to sign up to receive notifications, go to either www.emergencyemail.ORG/ or from a link on The U. S. Federal Government Website at www.firstgov.gov/ - America Responds to Terrorism Link Page.
If you are a government agency wanting to become a network member, go to www.emergencyemailnetwork.com/EMEPublicServices.htm.
If you are a private sector firm wanting information about Emergency Email & Wireless Network private sector services for your corporation or organization, go to www.emergencyemailnetwork.com/EMENCorporateServices.htm.

If you are not already receiving free e-mail notifications of such emergencies as current emergency news, tornado & hurricane information, other severe weather information, suspicious letter and package information, and/or anthrax, other hazardous material or disease information, we urge you to sign up right away. The local, regional, or national information can be requested for more than one geographic area and is just another way of ensuring homeland security – without the establishment of a new government department.

These services are free to the public and the mailing lists are completely confidential. This delivery process ensures that you will get the information to protect life and property in an emergency.

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15. Medication Information On the Web

If you are looking for information regarding how and/or when to take different medications, potential side effects, etc., surf by either www.drugstore.com or www.mdadvice.com. Just enter the name of the medication you’re looking for, whether it be prescription or nonprescription, in the search box, and you’ll get information about that medication.

16. Telephone Area Code Finder

As the phone systems expand, more and more familiar area codes are becoming obsolete. Not only is this frustrating, but phone calls to incorrect area codes cost valuable time and money.

There is now an online database that provides the latest information. States, then cities, are listed alphabetically. Just use your Find Command to locate the city. The various area code(s) are immediately at your fingertips.

Check it out at: www.mmiworld.com/statelis.htm.

17. USPS Zip + 4 Code Look-Up

The United States Postal Service now has a speech-friendly website that provides current zip code information. It is located at www.usps.com/ncsc/lookups/lookup_zip+4.html. All you need to do is fill in as much information about the address that you have, press the Process button, and the zip + 4 code will appear.

18. Talking Yellow Pages

If you’d like to look up names and phone numbers of businesses in your area, try calling the free nationwide yellow pages at 888.654.1236. When asked, give the password code 1222. You can then search by town/city, name or zip code. You either speak this information or use the keypad to enter it. When the search is complete, you will be given the name of the business, the address, and the phone number will be repeated three times.

Users report this is significantly easier than asking the phone company to find this information for you.

19. Accessible Games & More From BSC

Blindsoftware.com L.L.C. (BSC) has introduced some new games that provide education and make it fun to learn.

Word Strain Volume 1 provides a fun way to practice and increase your vocabulary. It comes with two highly addictive word games that will hold your interest for hours. Both games have tens of thousands of words in their libraries which mean it is virtually impossible for two games to be the same.

Part A: Word Blast is a game where you have to create words whose letters come only from a word the computer gives you.

Part B: Word Jitter is a frantic race against the clock to shuffle the given letters into place to form an actual word.

If you’re not exactly into “words”, you might want to look at 15 Numbers, a really cool and different puzzle game.

BSC offers a number of other types of useful software that is accessible to those with all degrees of vision loss. Its blind owner Justin Daubenmire guarantees it.

Complete information about all of the BSC software, the demos that can be downloaded, pricing, and ordering information can all be found on its website. While payment cannot be made directly on the website, toll-free telephone numbers are provided for credit card purchases made in the USA, UK, and several other countries. You can also subscribe to the free newsletter so you will be kept informed of each new product as it is released.

Contact: Blindsoftware.com LLC, c/o Justin Daubenmire, PO Box 3716, Boardman, OH 44513. E-Mail: sales@blindsoft.com. Web: www.blindsoftware.com.

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20. Tips for Family Members of Older Visually Impaired Persons

If you are the spouse, adult child, or another close relative of an older person with vision loss, you are not alone. There are 10+ million older Americans experiencing vision loss severe enough to interfere with their ability to function independently. In the United States, over 80 percent of the supportive assistance and care needed by older people who are limited in their ability to function independently is provided by family caregivers. Family members and significant others are a powerful source of support for the older person who is experiencing vision loss. When a family member experiences deteriorating vision, the rest of the family feels the emotional impact. They worry about their relative becoming depressed, isolated, and dependent. But with the right services and training, the older person can continue to be independent and productive. You can help in the following ways:

Encourage Eye Examinations
Make sure your relative is examined by an ophthalmologist, a medical doctor who specializes in eye diseases.
Be certain, too, that your relative is evaluated by a low vision specialist, usually an optometrist with a specialization in low vision. The low vision specialist can help your older relative make the best use of remaining vision by prescribing low vision devices, such as hand-held magnifiers, high intensity lighting, and other devices.

Know About Vision-Related Rehabilitation Services

Be aware of the vision-related rehabilitation services provided by state and private agencies serving blind and visually impaired persons. These include independent living skills training - learning adaptive techniques for carrying out activities of daily living, and orientation and mobility training - learning how to orient oneself to familiar and unfamiliar environments and how to move about within them, including travel with the use of the white cane.
Find out how to access these rehabilitation services by contacting your state agency serving blind and visually impaired people, or a local private agency serving older persons who are visually impaired. Check your local telephone directory, or call ACB of Indiana for a referral at 317.251.2562.

Support Your Relative During Rehabilitation

When you find out about the rehabilitation services in your community, explain them to your family member. Encourage your relative to participate, but leave the decision up to him or her.
Get involved in the independent living skills training. Learn as many of the adaptive techniques as you can. That way you can offer encouragement to your relative and reinforce the new skills.
Encourage your relative to be independent at home and in the community. It can help to make adaptations within the home, such as rearranging furniture for greater ease of movement, improving lighting, and using contrasting colors for greater visibility.

Make This A Family Affair

Foster open communication among family members about the impact of vision loss on individual family members.
Support your visually impaired family member’s interest and ability to continue or resume important activities and tasks.
Create opportunities for interdependence among members of the family. Remember that your visually impaired relative can be both a recipient and provider of assistance within the family across generations.
Find out from a local agency serving older persons who are blind or visually impaired if there are support groups for newly visually impaired people. Also inquire about family caregiver support groups. If such groups don’t exist, think about starting one!

Remember, your family member can still be a productive and contributing member of your family and your community. You can help your relative look toward a future of independence, self-esteem, and self-confidence.

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21. Tips for Older Drivers with Vision Problems
(Courtesy of Lighthouse International)

The ability to drive a car and get around independently is essential for millions of adults across the country. While driving safely is a key concern of anyone traveling in a car, changes in the aging eye make it an especially “driving” matter for older people. Everyone experiences some vision changes due to normal aging; these include difficulty focusing on near tasks like reading, difficulty distinguishing colors and contrast, and the need for more light. What’s more, as Americans are living longer, increasing numbers of people are affected by more severe vision problems due to conditions such as macular degeneration and glaucoma. Kent Higgins, Ph.D., Vice President for Vision Science, Lighthouse International, advises all older persons to have regular eye check-ups to maintain eye health and to ensure that their ability to drive safely is not compromised by undetected vision loss.

The following insights and tips for older drivers with vision problems are based on an established body of research and on original research conducted by the Arlene R. Gordon Research Institute of Lighthouse International:

If you are 60 years of age or over, know that you are driving with only about one-third of the light you had when you were 20 years old. This is due to changes occurring within the eye, of which we are generally unaware.
Also keep in mind that, as an older driver, you cannot process and respond to visual information as quickly and efficiently as you could when you were younger.
Be aware that driving under the influence of some medications can dramatically diminish an older person’s ability to react to unexpected road hazards. Ask your doctor about the medications that you are taking.
Nighttime driving, which typically involves exposure to bright, fleeting glare, presents a particular challenge to older drivers. With this in mind, take extra caution regarding your decision to get behind a wheel at night.
To minimize glare exposure when driving at night, do not look directly at the headlights of oncoming vehicles. Instead, direct your gaze down the road and toward the right side of the lane in which you are driving.
Older drivers require more time to adjust to sudden changes in light level such as when one enters a darkened tunnel from the bright afternoon sunlight. You can partially solve this problem with a pair of “flip-up/down sunglasses.” View through the sunglasses for a few minutes while approaching a tunnel. Then flip them up and out of the way on entering the entrance of the tunnel. Another approach to achieve the same result would be to use “wrap-around” sunglasses that fit over the top of your prescription eyeglasses, but can be easily removed upon entering the tunnel.
Cataracts can seriously interfere with driving performance, even though they may produce only a small decline in one’s ability to read a chart in the doctor’s office. If you are developing cataracts, check with your eye doctor about whether or not it’s time to have the cataracts removed.
If you are an older driver with vision problems, plan your travel to minimize the impact of any visual limitations. When possible, drive in familiar locations and avoid driving at night, in bad weather, and during the busy rush hours.
Consider speaking to an eye care specialist, friends, or family members about any concerns you may have related to driving.

Contact: Lighthouse International, 111 East 59th Street, New York, N.Y. 10022-1202. Tel: 800.829.0500 / 212.821.9200. TTY 212.821.9713. E-Mail: info@lighthouse.org. Web: www.lighthouse.org.

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22. When You Can’t Afford Medicine

When individuals cannot afford their medicine, don’t despair. There is help. There is a “Medicine Program” that offers assistance to individuals who are regularly required to take prescription medication but lack adequate income to fill their prescriptions each month. There is a one time $5 filing fee per prescription and then the Medicine Program staff will fill out the paperwork necessary to get the individual into one of the drug manufacturer-sponsored patient assistance programs. Several drug manufacturers are now sponsoring patient assistance programs that provide free medicine to those that qualify. This service is available to people of all ages. Brochures are available in both Spanish and English.

For more information, please visit www.themedicineprogram.com or call 573.996.7300.

23. Overcoming Macular Degeneration: A Guide to Seeing Beyond the Clouds

Each year, more than 400,000 Americans are diagnosed with macular degeneration, an age-related, progressive eye disease that immediately raises a fear of total blindness. The good news is: YOU ARE NOT GOING BLIND. However, you are dealing with a disease that causes serious visual impairment - an inconvenience the author, Dr. Yale Solomon, has become personally familiar with since he was diagnosed in one eye in 1990 and the other in 1997. Now, in his book published February 2000, this respected ophthalmologist offers a compassionate and understanding look at both the medical and human side of macular degeneration and ways to meet the challenge of its impact on everyday life. Chapters include:

What exactly is macular degeneration?
The importance of monitoring the disease.
Steps that can be taken to slow the progression.
Risk factors associated with the disease.
How to find and work with a low-vision specialist.
Getting the most out of visual rehabilitation.
Driving tips, helpful devices, and other aids.
Adapting your home for easier living.
Tips on maximizing your sight.
The best diet and nutritional supplements for eye health.
The latest medical and technological advances.

And much more!

The book also includes a comprehensive appendix of associations, organizations and foundations, large-print publishers, audiotape and videotape resources, and a helpful list of suppliers of products and services.

”Overcoming Macular Degeneration: A Guide to Seeing Beyond the Clouds” is available free of charge on cassette from the National Library Service Talking Book Program through its network of regional libraries - Book: RC-51826 or from the Kentucky Library for the Blind – Book Ky-BPH (KY 2348).

Editor’s Note:

The 272-page paperback edition is available from www.Amazon.com for $10.36. The book is also available through your local bookstore at a slightly higher price.

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24. Notes & Quotes

There is no use to wait for your ship to come in unless you have sent one out.

******

I keep the telephone of my mind open to peace, harmony, health, love, and abundance. Then whenever doubts, anxiety, or fear try to call me, they keep getting a busy signal -- and soon they’ll forget my number.

******

A negative attitude is a true handicap.

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It’s What Inside That Counts

Dana’s favorite treat was canned peaches. “We can’t forget the peaches, Daddy,” she exclaimed as she shopped for groceries with her father. There was only one can of peaches left on the shelf. It was dented and the label was partially removed. Dana grabbed the damaged can without a second thought and placed it in the cart.

In the next aisle, they encountered a boy Dana’s age who was with his mother. This boy was severely deformed and wore thick glasses. His face seemed to light up when he saw Dana and he waved. “Hello, Dana.”

Hi,” Dana answered curtly without looking at him. She pushed the cart past him quickly.

“Dana, who was that?” her father inquired.

“Just some boy from my class that I don’t like,” Dana replied.

“Why don’t you like him?” her father asked.

“Daddy, you saw him. There’s something wrong with him.”

Dana’s father picked up the damaged can of fruit. “Look at this can of peaches. There’s something wrong with it. Maybe we should put it back.”

“The can is banged up but the peaches inside are still good,” Dana protested.

“You’re right,” her father replied. “It doesn’t matter what it looks like on the outside – it’s what’s inside that counts. And that’s true for people, too.”

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PLEASE JOIN US

Persons interested in becoming a member of this forward-looking and democratic organization need only to send their check for $7, along with the following information:

Name ______________________________________________________

Address:_____________________________________________________

City/State/Zip: ________________________________________________

Phone Number: _______________________________________________

E-Mail Address: _______________________________________________

Occupation: __________________________________________________

Newsletter Format Preference:

____ Large Print,

____ Audiocassette

____ Computer Disk

____ E-Mail

Mail To: Donald Koors, 5885 North Central, Indianapolis, IN 46220

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Webmaster: pprice@indy.rr.com
Updated: September 29, 2002