American Action Fund for Blind Children and Adults
Future Reflections Special Issue: COVID and Beyond ANNOUNCEMENTS
https://nopbc.org/join
Cost: $12 per year
The board of the National Organization of Parents of Blind Children (NOPBC), a proud division of the National Federation of the Blind, has established a new membership tier called Twig Membership. Benefits of Twig Membership include:
Ruderman Family Foundation Applauds Inclusivity in the 2021 Academy Awards
www.rudermanfoundation.org
The Ruderman Foundation is an internationally recognized organization that advocates for the full inclusion of people with disabilities in our society. The foundation lauds the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for the 93rd Academy Awards as a monumental step toward a more inclusive Hollywood. The Oscars ceremony featured an ASL interpreter in the events media room for the first time, closed captioning, audio description, and the first-ever accessible stage with a ramp. NBCUniversal and CBS Entertainment recently adopted the foundation's guidelines to open auditions to actors with disabilities for each of their new film and television productions. The foundation recently announced a three-year, $1 million grant to the Oscars-affiliated Academy Foundation for an initiative that champions new perspectives on filmmaking and film history as well as an accessible and equitable experience for audiences of all backgrounds. The grant will support content and accessibility services at the Academy Museum, which is scheduled to open in September 2021. It also will help fund Academy Gold Rising, an internship enhancement program for college-age students and emerging professionals from communities underrepresented in the film industry.
Children's Braille Book Club
National Braille Press
88 St. Stephen St.
Boston, MA 02115
www.nbp.org
Contact: 617-266-6160
Thanks to a generous donation of $150,000 from the NewCo Foundation, NBP will begin providing free print/Braille books to blind and low-vision children and their families through the Children's Braille Book Club (CBBC). Since 1983 CBBC has been a subscription-based program that sends a print/Braille picture book each month at the same price as the print title. The new initiative will start by offering free one-year subscriptions to 125 eligible families on a first-come, first-served basis. Within the next five years NBP hopes to offer the program free of charge for all families that qualify.
Potts-Abilities Series
by Liz Cooper
Contact: 301-904-1345
[email protected]
Author Liz Cooper has released Morris Flip Sound Machine, the third title in her Pott-Abilities series. In each book students with disabilities who attend Potts Elementary School have adventures and solve mysteries. The books show characters with disabilities, including blindness, demonstrating leadership and ingenuity. The first two titles in the series will be sent to young Braille readers later this year by the American Action Fund for Blind Children and Adults.
Unique You Books
www.unique-you.net
Parents, relatives, and friends who want to create highly personalized books for the child they love can now offer gifts that provide a unique storytelling experience. Unique-You Books is a start-up that aims to create books that every child can identify with, including children of color, children with disabilities, and children with cancer. Customers can create and order personalized books based on the name, interests, appearance, and personality traits of the child.
Slate Pals
Contact: Deborah Kent Stein, [email protected]
Would your child or student enjoy exchanging letters in Braille with someone their age? Since 1987 Slate Pals has been matching children with Braille pen pals in their age range who have hobbies and interests in common. The program is also open to sighted children who have an interest in learning Braille and want to practice by writing to someone who is a Braille user. To apply, please send the following information to the email address above.
Name:
Age:
Grade:
Parent's/teacher's name and contact:
Mailing address:
Interests/hobbies
I would like _____ (number) Slate Pals.
I would like my Slate Pals to be _________ (list age range)
I would like my Slate Pals to be male? female? no preference?
Please check one of the following:
___ I am blind and use Braille regularly at home and at school.
___ I have low vision and use both Braille and print.
___ I am sighted, and I am learning Braille. I would like to write to a Slate Pal who is a Braille reader.
Accessible Pharmacy Services, LLC
https://www.accessiblepharmacy.com
Contact: 215-799-9900
Accessible Pharmacy Services for the Blind is excited to announce upgraded and expanded Braille printing capabilities for medication. The new system allows printed Braille labels to be applied to prescription medications, OTC medication, eyedrops, insulin, vitamins, and nutritional supplements. Braille labels also can be applied to various forms of accessible packaging, including pill organizers and easy-open bottles. Guide-dog and companion pet medications with the same Braille labeling will become available this summer. All Braille labeling, accessible packaging, and delivery are free.