October 9th is World Sight Day! Let’s celebrate by learning all about how Goodwill Easterseals Miami Valley supports individuals living with low vision and/or total blindness from guest blogger and Vision Services Manager, Leah McGraw.
Our team provides support to individuals living with low vision and/or total blindness through two key programs:
• Vocational Rehabilitation (VR): Serves individuals aged 14 and older who are pursuing a vocational goal.
• Independent Living for the Older Blind (ILOB): Supports individuals aged 55 and older seeking functional independence within their homes.
We offer the following services through these programs:
Low Vision Services: Includes magnification tools, lighting solutions, distance aids, color filters, and other non-optical aids.
• Assistive Technology Services: Offers training on assistive computer software, phone accessibility features, and other technologies such as Alexa devices and tablets.
• Life Skills Training: Provides instruction on adaptive equipment for cooking, cleaning, and childcare within the home.
• Orientation & Mobility Training: Focuses on community-based navigation using a white cane.
Assistive Devices for Visual Impairment
Here are three assistive devices commonly used to support individuals with visual impairments:
• CCTV A large magnifier designed to help individuals with low vision read, write, and view images more easily. Available in both desktop and portable models for flexible use.
• Computer Software: We utilize three types of software to enable computer access for individuals with vision loss:
o ZoomText: Magnifies the computer screen.
o Fusion: Combines screen magnification with screen reading capabilities.
o JAWS: A screen reader designed for individuals with total vision loss.
• Talking Label Wand: A device that helps users identify and organize items using recorded audio labels. It comes with special stickers or tags, allowing users to record a message for each label and attach it to items like jars, clothing, or documents for easy identification.
Looking ahead, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is expected to play an increasingly significant role in assistive technology. Apps like Seeing AI and Be My Eyes already use smartphone cameras to recognize and describe people, text, objects, and surroundings in real time. We’re also seeing innovations in smart devices, such as:
• Smart Canes: Use AI to provide sensory and multimodal feedback.
• Smart Glasses (e.g., META glasses): Enable hands-free calling and texting and can identify text in the environment.
Success Stories
We’ve featured him before, but I’ll never tire of sharing Ron Tillman’s story. Ron came to us for training on Fusion software with the goal of securing a customer service role. His training was a tremendous success—Ron now works at the front desk of his local YMCA. We couldn’t be prouder of his dedication and achievements.
Another recent success story involves a participant who found his dream job working at a movie theater. After starting the job, he needed a low vision evaluation to find a magnifier that would help him view the screen to check guest tickets and direct them to the correct theater. We provided a digital magnifier with a stand, which allowed him to perform these tasks seamlessly.
Later, he was assigned an additional responsibility: checking guest IDs to verify age eligibility for certain movies. To support him, we found a unique device—a talking ID scanner. This scanner reads the guest’s age in large print and emits a beep if the individual is underage, making it easy for our participant to perform his duties successfully.