Our January 13, 2025 meeting featured three topics:

First, we heard from Sandy Halverson, Director of the Silver Bells program for seniors. Silver Bells empowers older adults who are blind or have low vision to adjust to vision loss and develop essential blindness skills. This engaging dialogue revealed great resources and got members thinking about the actions they could take to grow their blindness skills and their level of personal satisfaction. You can reach Sandy by email at sjh300@outlook.com or by phone at 703-400-6890.

Next, We heard from Becky Keller, DBVI’s pre-employment transition specialist. She discussed Pre-ETS services and opportunities for students who are blind or have low vision and their families, and she promoted a town hall meeting that took place on January 21 that highlighted the many opportunities available to youth who are blind or have low vision. You can contact Becky by email at becky.keller@dbvi.virginia.gov or by phone at 804-845-0685. In addition, information about services available to students can be found at the STUDENTS & TRANSITION LINK:

https://www.dbvi.virginia.gov/students.htm

Our President, Doug Powell, then led us in a discussion of how we can become more involved in our local Area Agency on Aging. We need to advocate for the needs of older individuals who are blind with these agencies. They can provide helpful resources and support to our community but they need to get to know us.

A recording of the January meeting can be found below and here:

ACB Va 2025 01 Program Services to Blind Seniors and Students