Welcome to the North Carolina Blind Lions Club
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Please also visit
Blind Voices Coalition is a website designed for blind & low vision people using screen readers. The site provides resources in an accessible manner for networking, learning, sharing and growing.
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Docent Tour of the North Carolina Museum of Art - March 19th 2019 webpage post
Pictured L/R: Elizabeth Kahn, Jo Ann King, Beth McGuire, Susan McKay, Lion Dale Graham, Lion Bill Graham, Diana Cook, Donna King and Lion Karyn Hampton
Living the Lions Motto of WE SERVE can be Awesome!
Lion Dale Graham, North Raleigh Lions Club Lion Tamer, volunteered to drive five people who are blind or have low vision to a Docent Tour of the North Carolina Museum of Art. Everyone had a fantastic time, including Lion Dale. The tour was arranged by Beth Shaw McGuire, the North Carolina Museum of Art Docent Tour Director and was led by Docent Volunteer Guides, Elizabeth Kahn & Donna King.
The entire NC Museum of Art staff were very gracious and accommodating to there guest who are blind and the Docent Guides were very knowledgable and took time to explain the works of art. The guest who were blind even got some limited tactile experience on Rodin bronze statures, an experience the Docent Tour Guides and Lion Dale were not permitted to do.
The Docent tour split into two groups. Both group’s tour included several Rodin Bronze Statues and one group toured two Dutch 17th Century paintings while the other group toured several modern paintings.
Lion Dale noted that the museum had many pieces of excellent art.
After the tour, the group enjoyed a great meal at the North Carolina Museum of Art Cafeteria.
Whether you are a person with sight or one who is blind or low vision, we can certainly highly recommend you visit the North Carolina Museum to see their wonderful pieces of Art and their outstanding staff.
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The North Carolina Blind Lions are a group of Lions who happen to have vision problems. Their vision ranges from some peripheral vision to no vision at all. They all, however, have a common goal to make the world a better place to live for people with vision problems. one of the first things the NC Blind Lions noticed was that most programs for the blind are designed for people with some vision,. This has an inherit problem. Solutions designed for people with low vision will not work for the significantly blind, however, solutions designed for the significantly blind will work for the low vision. One of the main goals of the NC Blind Lions is to stress that solutions should be designed for the significantly blind so that all people with vision problems can be served.
To this end, the NC Blind Lions have undertaken a project to make Camp Dogwood more accessible. The project included mapping the Camp Dogwood Campus in Open Street Map and placing blue tooth low power beacons in the Camp Lodge for indoor navigation. The project also included working with Duke University to develop a 3D Printer object that can serve as a tactile map of the Camp[ Dogwood Campus. This will assist campers in using a way-finding app, Nearby Explorer, to be able to locate the various buildings on the campus.
North Carolina Blind Lion Bill Graham attended the first session of 2018 Camp Dogwood to deliver the 3D Printer objects and to hold a training session on on how to use the Nearby Explorer way-finding app.
Lion Bill Graham was quoted as saying, “This was a good start in making Camp Dogwood more accessible for all campers. We learned a lot and we hope to make some changes that will make Camp Dogwood one of the most accessible facilities in the USofA”.
One of the more interesting things we discovered is that we will likely have to address two groups of users: those that are low tech and those with some technology skills. The tactile aspect of the 3D printer object made it useful to both groups, but low tech users cannot take advantage of the features of the way-finding apps such as Nearby Explorer.
We will likely have to explore the use of audible adaptive aids to help the low tech users. We also discovered that there is a great need for training of these low tech users on the benefits of smart devices. To our amazement, many people with smart phones or tablets did not realize the adaptive potential built into these devices.
The next phase of the project involves making a tactile map of the Camp Dogwood Lodge. This will be another 3D Project that will be developed in association with Duke University. Also, we will develop a video which will be posted on uTube that is a training tool for how to use the various adaptive aids at Camp Dogwood.
Pictured are NC Blind Lion Bill Graham and his Leader Dog Gibson
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Lion Peter Crumley, Beaufort Lions Club, has written an excellent document - Title: Technology to Aid the Visually Impaired to Achieve an Independent Lifestyle in the 21st Century. This document lays the foundation for how technology is now able to give the blind & visually impaired an opportunity for new freedom never experienced before. Lion Peter will follow this initial document with a detailed description of some initial smart device apps that allow this new freedom. Peter hopes this will be a “living” set of documents that will be continually updated as new software & technology come online.
Lion Peter further argues that Lions Clubs should rethink their strategy of helping in the prevention of blindness to include helping the blind & visually impaired in obtaining these apps. For example, the KNFB smart phone app costs less than a pair of eye glasses and will allow people who are blind or visually impaired to read a document.
Follow the link below to read Lion Peter;s entire document. It is a Great Read!
http://e-clubhouse.org/userfiles/24096/file/Lions%20Tech%20Talk%2004_20_2017.pdf
LIST of apps from article
A - AI Poly Vision , Amazon Alexa
B - BARD Mobil, Be My Eyes, Blind Square
C - Compass
D - Digit Eyes
I - I Walk Straight, iMove
K - KNFB Reader
L - Life 360, Look tel Money Reader
N - NFB Newsline
O - One Password
P - Pandora
S - Seeing Eye GPS
T - Tap Tap See, Tile, Transit, Tune In Radio
End of list (Version 1.0) including 20 apps.
To learn more about the individual Apple applications listed above refer to companion document; authored by Peter Crumley, titled "List of Essential Apple Applications for the Blind". This referenced document expands the knowledge of Apple Applications listed above for the defined Blind visual group with a description of details, examples of usage and cost for each highlightedApp. This list will change and evolve over time as new Apps are developed, while other Apps that are currently available; but not appropriate for use by the Blind, are updated to an acceptable level of functionality allowing them to be included for recommendation for use by the blind.
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The club has two major Goals
First, we want to offer the North Carolina Visually Impaired Persons (VIPs) the opportunity to serve with the best community service organization in the world. We believe one of the best ways to improve VIPs self-confidence and self-esteem is to give them an opportunity to serve others. We believe in “Helping Others as We have been Helped”
Second, we want to improve the lives of all North Carolina Visually impaired Persons by offering Presentations, Discussions Groups & Peer Support. These presentations will be offered in an accessible manner for VIPs. The broarder VIP community will have a voice in what presentations are made. we want to create an environment where people with impairments can participate, learn, grow and have leadership positions without worrying about what the people will think. We hope to have a very safe and welcoming environment.
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We will have conference calls on the 1st & 3rd Tuesday of each month at 7:00 pm.
515-739-1514
Access Code: 423000
Everyone is welcome to participate
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Meeting minutes & presentations can be accessed under the Meetings & Presentation tab
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Check out our Google Groups for Communications page to see how we will make valuable information available to everyone
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See the Other VIP Links page to see what some other groups are doing
Lions meet the needs of local communities and the world every day because they share a core belief - to serve their community.
Lions Clubs International is the world's largest service club organization. We have 1.35 million members in more than 45,000 clubs in more than 206 countries and geographic areas.
Lions have a dynamic history. Founded in 1917, we are best known for fighting blindness, but we also volunteer for many different kinds of community projects - including caring for the environment, feeding the hungry and aiding seniors and the disabled.
Lions give sight. By conducting vision screenings, equipping hospitals and clinics, distributing medicine and raising awareness of eye disease, Lions work toward their mission of providing vision for all. We have extended our commitment to sight conservation through countless local efforts and through our international SightFirst Program, which works to eradicate blindness.
Lions serve youth. Our community projects often support local children and schools through scholarships, recreation and mentoring. Internationally, we offer many programs, including the Peace Poster Contest, Youth Camps and Exchange and Lions Quest.
Our Leo Program provides the youth of the world with an opportunity for personal development through volunteering. There are approximately 144,000 Leos and 5,700 Leo clubs in more than 140 countries worldwide.
Lions award grants. Since 1968, the Lions Clubs International Foundation (LCIF) has awarded more than US$700 million in grants to support Lions humanitarian projects around the world. LCIF was also ranked the number one nongovernmental organization in a 2007 study by The Financial Times.
Lions help during disasters. Together, our Foundation and Lions are helping communities following natural disasters by providing for immediate needs such as food, water, clothing and medical supplies – and aiding in long-term reconstruction.
Lions are active. Our motto is "We Serve." Lions are part of a global service network, doing whatever is necessary to help our local communities.
For more about Lions Clubs, go to www.lionsclubs.org
Lions Clubs International is the world's largest service club organization with more than 1.4 million members in approximately 46,000 clubs in more than 200 countries and geographical areas around the world.
