American Macular Degeneration Foundation – www.macular.org – Learn how to live with Age-Related Macular Degeneraiton.
American Printing House for the Blind – www.aph.org – The ConnectCenter has reliable, free information for all ages on virtually every aspect of vision loss.
Delaware Division for the Visually Impaired – dhss.delaware.gov/dhss/dvi/ – Provides family and individual counseling for adjustment to blindness, training in daily living skills (kitchen safety, laundry, managing money, and more), and low vision evaluation and enhancement, adjustment to blindness, and more to newly diagnosed. All services are free.
Hadley Institute for the Blind – www.hadley.edu – Hadley creates personalized learning opportunities that empower people with vision loss to thrive at home, at work, and in their communities. Hadley offers programs through Seminars @ Hadley and Adult Continuing Education.
NFB Newsline – Free audible and online access to newspapers, magazines, TV listings, and news announcements. Register at www.nfbnewsline.org or call (866) 504-7300.
VisionAware – www.visionaware.org – Featuring comprehensive news and resources from experts, this site is your partner as you navigate life as an adult with vision loss.
AFB – www.afb.org – AFB offers the Leaders Development Program to usher in a new generation of blind leaders into today’s workforce by increasing upward mobility and creating meaningful relationships.
Delaware Division for the Visually Impaired – dhss.delaware.gov/dhss/dvi – Provides family and individual counseling, vocational training, equipment, job placement, and low vision evaluations.
Hadley Institute for the Blind – www.hadley.edu – Hadley creates personalized learning opportunities that empower people with vision loss to thrive at home, at work, and in their communities. Hadley offers opportunities through its Adult Continuing Education program and the Forsythe Center for Employment & Entrepreneurship.
Mississippi State Research and Training Center on Blindness and Low Vision – www.blind.msstate.edu – Research and useful publications to enhance employment success for people who are blind or visually impaired.
NIB – www.nib.org – Enhancing opportunities for economic and independence through a national network of nonprofit agencies employing people who are blind or visually impaired.
Advocacy
American Council of the Blind – www.acb.org – national membership organization that supports independence, security, equality of opportunity and quality of life for people with vision loss.
American Foundation for the Blind – www.afb.org – AFB’s mission is to create a world of no limits for people who are blind or visually impaired by mobilizing leaders, advancing understanding, and championing impactful policies and practices using research and data.
Blinded Veterans Association – www.bva.org – The BVA promotes the welfare of blinded Veterans through advocacy, information and annual conferences.
Delaware Council of the Blind Delaware – www.dcbvi.org – Delaware’s one-stop-source for blindness and visual impairment resources.
National Federation of the Blind – www.nfb.org – The NFB is a membership organization welcoming all blind people, parents of blind children, blind students, those losing vision, and more.
National Federation of the Blind Delaware – NFB Delaware is the local chapter of the National Federal of the Blind.
NOAH – www.albinism.org – Provides accurate and authentic information about all aspects of albinism for persons with albinism and their families.
iCanConnect – The national deaf-blind equipment distribution program – (800) 870-DATI (3284)
Helen Keller National Center – www.hknc.org – HKNC provides programs for deaf-blind youths and adults, giving people who are deaf-blind the tools to live, work, and thrive in the community of their choice. Online and hybrid courses available.
Equipment & Devices
Aira – www.aira.io – Aira is a technology company dedicated to making lives simpler, easier, and more fun. Aira uses the latest technologies to connect people who are blind or have low vision with real, highly-trained professionals who provide visual information on demand.
Be My Eyes – www.bemyeyes.com – A free app that lets blind people contact a network of sighted volunteers for help with live video chats.
Delaware Assistive Technology Initiative – Assists individuals with disabilities to learn about technology and funding options, and connect them with supports for effective device use.
ORCAM – www.orcam.com – The World’s leader in wearable assistive devices that increase independence by reading text, recognizing faces, identifying products, and it’s easy to use.
Eye Health
Mayo Clinic – Provides comprehensive guides on vision diseases and conditions from Mayo Clinic experts.
National Eye Institute–The National Eye Institute’s mission is to conduct and support research, training, health information dissemination, and other programs with respect to blinding eye diseases, visual disorders, mechanisms of visual function, preservation of sight, and the special health problems and requirements of the blind.
Prevent Blindness – www.preventblindness.org – Provides information for adults and children about eye conditions, health insurance and Medicare coverage, nutrition, data and prevalence rates, school readiness and more.
Families/Children
Braille Bug – www.braillebug.org – Encourages literacy among sighted and visually impaired children in a fun environment with facts, games, graphics, and activities.
Braille Tales – www.aph.org/kids-with-vision-loss/braille-tales – Early reading develops braille awareness skills and an enthusiasm for literacy in the hearts of young children. That’s why APH offers free print/braille books for preschoolers who are blind or visually impaired.
Braille Institute – www.brailleinstitute.org – The Braille Institute offers several free opportunities.
Braille Challenge – www.brailleinstitute.org/braille-challenge – The only academic competition of its kind in North America for students who are blind or visually impaired to motivate students to practice and hone their braille literacy skills which are essential to academic and employment success. Events are held across the country.
Cane Quest –www.brailleinstitute.org/cane-quest – A national orientation and mobility competition. Events are held across the country for students in grades 3-12.
Dots for Tots® – www.brailleinstitute.org/special-collection – Multi-sensory storybook kits for preschoolers, 2 to 5 years old. Each includes a picture book with uncontracted braille overlays and manipulatives that represent the characters or concepts of the story.
Hadley Institute for the Blind – www.hadley.edu – Hadley provides the Family Education Program with courses for parents, teachers, and students.
Helen Keller National Center – www.hknc.org – Programs for youth who are deaf-blind, including camps and on-line programs.
National Braille Press – www.nbp.org – Every month, NationalBraillePress’s editors choose a popular, classic, and/or seasonally-appropriate children’s book in print. Our Production Staff cuts the print books apart at the spine and inserts the identical text in braille on transparent plastic sheets.
Seedlings Braille Books for Children – high quality, low-cost, children’s books in Braille.
VIPS – Visually Impaired PreSchool Services – www.vips.org – VIPS offers the Can Do!Video Library series of essential videos on DVD for parents of young children who are visually impaired. These videos offer practical and proven techniques that foster the development of children who are blind or visually impaired.
Moving Safely
White Canes primarily allow users to scan their surroundings for obstacles or orientation marks, but it is also helpful for onlookers in identifying the user as blind or visually impaired and taking appropriate care.
Sighted Guide is a way of walking with, and guiding, a person who is visually impaired, safely and efficiently, in any type of environment. www.youtube.com/watch?v=4wGrGgeZ99Q
Orientation and Mobility Specialists teach cane users critical skills to remain oriented in their environment as well as specific mobility skills in order to travel safely, efficiently and as independently as possible within the home, at school, at work, and in the community.
Guide Dogs – Guide dogs (colloquially known as seeing eye dogs) are assistance dogs trained to lead blind and visually impaired people around obstacles. There are several nonprofit guide dog schools that match specially trained dogs with people who are blind or visually impaired at no cost to the blind person.
