Graham Steel has talked with State lawmakers this year about maintaining funding for talking books and other resources for people who are blind or visually impaired. The Wyoming Council of the Blind president also met with Gov. Matt Mead to advocate and spread awareness about issues for people who are blind and have low vision in Wyoming.

Steel also invited American Council of the Blind President Kim Charlson to the organization’s annual state convention, which was held Saturday in Casper.

The state council is working to revitalize its membership and activities, and “re-grouping” was the theme and a major topic of Saturday’s convention. Leaders hope the conference will spark more efforts across Wyoming. The nonprofit organization under the American Council of the Blind works to advocate, connect people around the state and point people to resources, Steel said.

“We’re focusing on getting the word out and bringing in new people,” Steel said.

Those efforts are crucial, Kim Charlson said during her talk.

“What happens when people don’t know or see blind people, they don’t think they’re there,” she said. “And the last thing you want is for the decision-makers here in Wyoming to think that there aren’t any blind people, because there are. Especially in a rural state, it’s even more important to be vigilant and outspoken to make sure people know what your needs are and the funding that you need for your programs and your service.”

She described the national council’s numerous advocacy efforts, including for paper money that’s accessible to people who are visually impaired or blind, prescription containers with audio features and laws about service animals.

Attendees Saturday afternoon also would see technology demonstrations from Brian Charleson, director of technology for the Carrol Center of the Blind. He showed people how they can use apps on their phones to access services. That morning, he showed a reporter how he can use his phone to dial the Instant Access to Information service. An agent there read him the numbers for his raffle tickets he’d bought at the event that morning. Other speakers included staff members of Wyoming Independent Living, which provides services for blind and low vision.

The Wyoming Council for the Blind later filled open board seats during its annual meeting at the convention as part of its effort to grow the organization, said state council board member and past president Tom Lealos before Saturday’s convention.

The council’s activities include a monthly newsletter and distributing the National Council for the Blind newsletter to help people stay informed about what’s happening for advocacy, advancements and resources around the state and country, he said. He and the other leaders are working to increase awareness about the council and increase its activities throughout the state, he added.
 

The council had gone through a period of low activity and membership, and is working to revitalize, Lealos said.

“One of the questions we’ll ask this year at our membership meeting is what do you, as a member, want us to do, what do you expect from this organization,” Lealos said. “And that will give the board of directors some really good ideas of which direction to work, and where to focus the energy and necessary dollars.”

Kim Charlson encouraged attendees to support the Wyoming Council for the Blind leaders to promote inclusion for people who are blind and visually impaired in Wyoming.

“ACB is doing a lot of work in a lot of areas that touch the lives of people who are blind and visually impaired,” she said. “We can’t do it all by ourselves, we need advocates in the trenches to help us get our message out there and help us make change.”
Source: http://www.kpvi.com/news/regional_news/wyoming-council-for-the-blind-aims-to-spark-new-efforts/article_94ececf0-d2e7-5a6d-9f3d-8222941edf80.html