[corn-you-copia] Spotlight on Horizons for the Blind
- From: "Hap Holly" <hap@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <corn-you-copia@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sat, 14 Jan 2017 18:07:11 -0600
*For many years I was strictly a keyboard musician, working with the Bobby
Lain treo from 1975 to the late 1980s, then with Tommy Youpel into the 90's.
I then played nursing home and assistive living joints into the 2000's.
However, in 1999 I saw the handwriting on the wall that clued me into the
reality that the music business was going down the proverbial crapper. So in
a rare moment of lucidity I realized I needed to make a career change, which
included mastering some basic Windows computer literacy. What motivated me
along with the need to find something else to do that would replace my
dwindling music biz income was the need to more easily edit the interviews
and forum excerpts that went into my ham radio podcast, the RAIN Report
(www.therainreport.com <http://www.therainreport.com> ). To make a long
story somewhat shorter in 1999 I attended 14 weeks of classes in Windows
literacy and JAWS (Job Access with Speech) screen reader technology. In May,
2000 I landed a gig at Horizons for the Blind in far northwest Crystal Lake.
I'm still there after almost 17 years now as an audio engineer. All this is
a round about way to introduce you to my employer, Camille Caffarelli, who
started this 501(c)3 organization 40 years ago this coming March. The area
newspaper, the Northwest Herald, spent a couple hours visiting our company
two days ago, then published an article based on that visit yesterday, June
13. Below is a link to said article along with the text from it. Thanks to
Camille for all her efforts lo' these 40 years.*
http://www.nwherald.com/2017/01/11/crystal-lake-based-horizons-for-the-blind
-provides-products-jobs-for-visually-impaired/aj7m1y4/
<http://www.nwherald.com/>
Crystal Lake-based Horizons for the Blind provides products, jobs for
visually impaired
Published: Friday, Jan. 13, 2017 12:43 a.m. CST
<http://nwherald.com/crystallake> CRYSTAL LAKE - At Horizons for the Blind
in Crystal Lake, Executive Director Camille Caffarelli wants to make sure
everyone is on a level playing field.
To her, that means those who are visually impaired should be able to enjoy
visiting a museum, or be able to read their private bills without having to
ask for help from others.
Caffarelli, who was born blind, started the nonprofit in 1977 out of her
Chicago home with the help of two volunteers. The group worked with the
Chicago Botanic Garden and other museums to create displays the visually
impaired could enjoy.
Forty years later, the Horizons for the Blind has moved from Chicago to
<http://nwherald.com/carpentersville> Carpentersville to Crystal Lake and
expanded its work.
"Now we're one of the leading producers of braille and large print in the
country," Caffarelli said.
Horizons for the Blind works with companies including Comcast, AT&T, Time
Warner Cable and more to provide people across the country with large-print
or braille bills for anything from gas and electrical services to bank
statements.
The organization still works with museums to provide tactile displays and
distributes other products such as a scanner that can identify food and
drink products and their ingredients.
Another part of Horizon's mission is to provide meaningful jobs to those
with visual impairments, Caffarelli said. Horizons for the Blind employs
about 50 people, half of whom have a visual impairment.
"I like to see people working who otherwise wouldn't get a chance,"
Caffarelli said.
Sitting at his desk, Horizons for the Blind supervisor of IT Gavin
Walkington scanned a can of Coke. A speech synthesizer then read out the
name of the product.
His keyboard, and others in the office, have an additional braille row at
the bottom that allow visually impaired employees to read materials that
would usually show up on a computer screen.
Walkington has worked at Horizons for 21 years, he said. It was his first
job out of high school.
"It's a company that is maximizing the potential of blind and visually
impaired people, and making things accessible to them," Walkington said.
Cathy Galizia has worked at Horizons for the past 14 years reviewing
products before they leave the facility. Being visually impaired, Galizia
remembers reading large-print books as a child.
"The stuff wasn't always put together well," Galizia said. "And Horizons
does a really good job of making sure that things that blind and visually
impaired people get they can actually use."
Throughout the office at 125 Erick St., Suite A103, braille can be seen on
business cards, vending machines and plaques on the walls.
Horizons also partners with bus companies to help get visually impaired
employees to work.
Jeffery Thorsen has been a member of Horizons for the Blind's board of
directors for nearly 20 years. He was introduced to the organization through
his work with the Crystal Lake Lions Club, a service club whose mission
includes helping those with visual impairments.
"It's about empowerment," Thorsen said of Horizon's mission.
The organization has succeeded for 40 years because of Caffarelli's sense of
empathy and good business sense, Thorsen said.
"She built it from something very small to something that it is today,"
Thorsen said. "It's a significant enterprise right now."
In the coming years, Caffarelli said she hopes the organization can grow to
provide more materials to create an equal environment for those who can't
see. The work is important to her, she said, because ultimately it improves
others lives.
"I think in the end when we leave here and we go and we see God, I don't
think God is going to say, 'How many cars do you have? How much money is in
your bank?' " Caffarelli said. "I think maybe he'll say what impact did you
make on life to make life better for people."
For information on Horizons for the Blind, visit
<http://www.horizons-blind.org> www.horizons-blind.org.
Copyright C 2017 Northwest Herald. All rights reserved.
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