Departments

• Independent Living
  Life-long learner takes up Braille in her eighties
  Simple Braille knowledge increases independence
• Vocational Rehabilitation
  ADA turns 20
  Accessible Technology: The BookSense
• Library for the Blind & Physically Handicapped
  Volunteers are our best ambassadors
  Audio book downloads give library patrons freedom
  ISU grad students to lead writing course at IDB
  Honoring postal workers
  From the Librarian
  Booklist
• Orientation Center
  Orientation Center students get some culture on field trips
  Center graduates hones Braille skills
• Youth Transition
  Ag-oriented teen lands job at local ag supply store
  Summer camps for blind and visually impaired youth
• Business Enterprises

   

 

Independent Living

 

Life-long learner takes up Braille in her eighties

By Barb Weigel, Contributing Editor

Lenore Barnes began losing vision in her early 80s due to macular degeneration—an eye disorder that primarily effects older adults and causes damage to the retina. In her mid-80s, as her vision continued to decrease, she quit driving and purchased a closed-circuit television (CCTV), which enables the user to enlarge printed materials. Eventually, her vision worsened, and while the CCTV remained helpful it was of diminishing benefit.

With her vision loss, Barnes also became increasingly fearful of her ability to go anywhere by herself, and she began to limit her outings to those occasions where friends and family volunteered to take her places.

Barnes, who had always been active and had a lively interest in the world around her, began to fear the possibility of becoming isolated and losing her independence because of her vision loss. She knew she could count on family support, but she did not want anyone to worry about her.

Barnes was referred to the Department’s Independent Living (IL) program and was soon contacted by Jonathan Ice, a rehabilitation teacher. She had two basic needs in mind: better access to print information and the ability to go whenever and wherever she wanted. As Barnes put it, she wanted to “stay among the living.”

Barnes decided to embark on the process of learning some new techniques. She learned Braille, travel with a long white cane and non-visual techniques for cooking and home management. Ice also helped her to access and learn to use audio books and public transportation.

Ice said Barnes was the oldest person to whom he had ever taught Braille.

“When I was working with her, Lenore was a delight to work with,” said Ice. “She worked on her Braille between my visits and always had good questions to ask to clarify confusing points about the Braille code, and she learned from my answers! She has a refreshing openness to trying new things—not common in people of any age, and even more remarkable for people of advanced age—and an interest in learning for learning’s sake. Her kind and generous spirit makes it hard not to love her.”

Barnes also began to participate in a local support group for the blind and visually impaired in Davenport, in southeast Iowa.

Today, Barnes, 95, is in the full swing of life. In response to a standard request for comments and feedback on services provided by the Department, Barnes said: “I would like to express my appreciation for the services I have received from the Department for the Blind and from my instructor, Jonathan Ice. He has worked hard with me to teach me to read Braille and get about independently. He has also answered many questions to help me to adjust to my ever-failing vision. I also appreciate the book-tapes from the library and the help I receive selecting them. I was an avid reader, and with their help, can still enjoy books…. I am so glad I put away my fears and decided to accept training.”

Simple Braille knowledge increases independence

Braille is a writing system made up of a series of cells, each containing up to six raised dots. Each cell can create an individual letter, number, word or punctuation, depending on the combination of raised dots.

Learning to read and write Braille is like anything else a person wants to learn. Once the basic structure is explained and understood, the learning process is much less overwhelming. All it takes is the desire to learn, the ability to memorize and a sense of touch. In fact, many people in their 70s and 80s learn basic Braille and find it very useful. Here are some examples of ways to use Braille:

• Labeling clothing. You can create your own labels using Teflon Dymo tape or you may also choose to purchase metal clothing labels already containing Braille.

• Labeling medications. You can attach adhesive Dymo tape to your prescription and over-the-counter medications for independent management of these items. And, you can use Braille to document the pharmacy and prescription number.

• Managing phone numbers and addresses. Create a card-filing system using Braille to record a name, address and phone number on each card. The cards can then be filed alphabetically for easy retrieval.

• Managing finances. Use Braille to document who is owed, how much and when a bill is due. You can put Braille on the envelope flap or attach it to a bill. Braille and a talking calculator will also allow you to balance your checkbook.

• Labeling kitchen items. Magnetic Dymo tape or adhesive Dymo tape can be attached to canned goods, spices and other kitchen items for easy identification.

• Signage in public buildings. Braille is used on elevators, restrooms and office numbers.

• Playing games. Playing cards, Monopoly, Scrabble and many other games are equipped with Braille.

• Reading novels, magazines and textbooks. The IDB library holds a large collection of Braille.

As you can tell, Braille can be used for just about anything. Devoting a little time each day will enable you to learn Braille and begin to use it in your daily life to make things accessible, identifiable and efficient.

If you or someone you know would like to learn Braille, contact the Department at 800-362-2587

 

Vocational Rehabilitation

ADA turns 20, but fear of the disabled persists

By Julie Aufdenkamp, Contributing Editor

This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which President George H. W. Bush signed into law on July 26, 1990 to prohibit discrimination against and ensure equal opportunity for people with disabilities. The law has paved the way for improvements to disabled people’s lives, including equal access to jobs and better access to public facilities and transportation.

During the last 20 years, vocational rehabilitation counselors and employment specialists at the Iowa Department for the Blind (IDB) have seen an increase in awareness of disabilities through the implementation of the ADA. However, the law has not been a contributing factor in landing jobs for IDB clients.

Though there are many blind Iowans who are successfully employed, roadblocks for blind people seeking employment still exist.

Curtis Chong, IDB’s director of field operations and assistive technology, said though the law has increased awareness, it has also barred prospective employers from asking certain questions.

“While we know that employers have some very real fears and concerns about a person’s ability to accomplish specific tasks because of blindness or low vision,” said Chong, “it is also true that an employer is prohibited from asking questions, such as, ‘If you can’t see, how are you going to read printed material on the job?’”

According to IDB Employment Specialist Brenda Criswell, who has worked for the Department for more than 30 years, the law has not contributed much to client statistics. It also has not improved the unemployment rate among the blind community, nor for the disabled population as a whole.

“There is still almost a 70-percent unemployment rate for persons with disabilities, as I believe was the case since the inception of the ADA in 1990,” said Criswell.

Chong said the ADA has not removed the “technological barrier that often makes it difficult or impossible for nonvisual access technology to be integrated into the workplace.

“Today, it is not uncommon to find corporate information technology systems that have been designed for the sighted which cannot work with programs, such as JAWS for Windows,” Chong continued. “A blind job applicant who meets all of the paper qualifications and who is, in fact, the top candidate from a human resources perspective, may not be able to accept the job because of the inability to use computer software throughout most of the day without sighted assistance.”

After two decades, some say much work remains to guarantee that Americans with disabilities are ensured equality. “I do not think the story regarding the ADA is complete,” said Chong. “There are still court cases to be fought and won or lost. Questions such as: ‘What is a disability?’ still seem to trouble our judicial system.”

Criswell, who works every day with Iowa businesses to secure jobs for blind Iowans, says employers are fearful of the ADA in that it will force them to make changes they do not feel they can afford.

Criswell said the responsibility to combat fear about disabilities lands on the disabled. If they take personal responsibility for their employment searches, the law will work for them if necessary.

“The law doesn’t get people jobs, people do,” she said. “I really believe that the ADA is the foundation and that we are the ones, along with our clients, who ‘build the house.’”

 

Accessible Technology

“The BookSense:A Sensible Reading Solution”

By Michael Barber

We’ve all heard about the Victor Reader Stream and the PlexTalk Pocket, small hand-held devices which read digital text or audio files. Now the BookSense is here. This handy little device is the size of a candy bar, fits nicely in a shirt or coat pocket, and comes in two flavors: Standard and XT.

The Standard is orange and has a slot for an SD card, which stores all of your folders and files. The XT is white and comes with four gigabytes of onboard storage plus an SD card slot for added storage.

Both versions of the BookSense will play the following types of material:

• Digital talking books from the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, Bookshare.org, Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic, and audio books from Audible.com;

• Newspaper articles from NFB-NEWSLINE®;

• Podcasts, music and other audio files stored in MP3, MP4, OGG, WAV, WAX, M4A, and WMA audio formats;

• Described movies that can be downloaded from Serotek’s System Access Mobile Network (SAMNET); and

• The following electronic text file formats: TXT, RTF, DOC, DOCX, HTML, CML, BRL and BRF.

And if this isn’t enough, both models also have an onboard clock and alarm system as well as a sleep timer you can set by entering your own parameters. You can also record voice notes or proceedings of conferences in either Wav or MP3 format and with four different microphone sensitivity settings.

The XT boasts an FM radio and Bluetooth connectivity for your headset. The Neospeech Kate and Paul voices used in the BookSense for text-to-speech conversion adds a nice touch for people who want to use the device to read a lot of text documents.

You can quickly charge the battery either with the AC adapter or via the USB port.

Finally, this little unit puts out a lot of volume from its relatively small internal speaker, a quality I’ve come to appreciate over the past few months.

It is manufactured by HIMS of Korea and sold in the U.S. by GW Micro.

For more information about the BookSense, contact GW Micro at www.gwmicro.com or (260) 489-3671.

 

Library for the Blind & Physically Handicapped

Volunteers make for some great IDB ambassadors

By Beth Hirst, Contributing Editor

Volunteers are an integral part of the Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped. They transcribe text into Braille, they record books and magazines in audio format, they proofread, scan or shelve books, and they help support our mission and events. When people come to the Department for volunteer opportunities, they are sent to the Library and quickly put to work.

The Library has a network of more than 100 volunteers throughout the state that help grease the wheels that keep the Library operations moving and growing.

Each year the Library honors one outstanding volunteer with the Elizabeth Perowsky Volunteer Award during an annual volunteer recognition event.

“The award ceremony is a special time to recognize the tremendous amount of work contributed by the Library’s volunteers and to highlight a single person’s dedication to the Library,” said Library Director Tracey Morsek.

The event is named for Elizabeth Perowsky, a renowned ballerina, choreographer and dance teacher from Iowa who was an avid volunteer Braillist. She taught herself literary Braille, Nemeth code (used for math) and music Braille.

When the Iowa Library for the Blind opened in 1960, Perowsky had already been Brailling for 27 years. In addition to volunteering for the Library, she served as leader and main teacher for the Temple Sisterhood Braille Group. She also conducted training workshops across the country. Elizabeth was still Brailling within a few weeks of her death at the age of 97 in May 1996.

Perowsky’s many Braille projects included the complete Old and New Testaments, mathematics and foreign-language textbooks, musical compositions and much more. Her dedication and leadership were an inspiration to all who knew her.

The Library’s annual volunteer event was re-named the Elizabeth Perowsky Volunteer Workshop and Luncheon in 1997, and a volunteer of the year award was instituted in her memory. Music Braillist Alberta Wing, a former student of Elizabeth’s, was the first recipient.

The 2009 winner of the Elizabeth Perowsky Memorial Award was Braillist Lila Fisher of Ottumwa. In her 11 years as a certified Braille transcriber, Fisher completed about 125 assignments, including novels, textbooks, cookbooks, hymnals and menus.

“My longest assignment was 21 Braille volumes, which was ninth-grade literature,” Fisher stated when accepting the award. “I really enjoyed it because it had such a variety of formatting challenges. I learned a lot about Braille formatting and literature from that particular assignment. I have a friend who once said that I should be eligible for a college degree for the information I have read and Brailled. Well, I have now earned my degree: The Elizabeth Perowsky Award.”

All IDB volunteers are eligible for consideration to receive the Perowsky Award. Past recipients have included narrators, audio cassette rewinders and machine repair volunteers, in addition to Braillists.

The 2010 Elizabeth Perowsky Volunteer Workshop and Luncheon will be held April 16 at the Iowa Department for the Blind. Anticipation is running high—who will be this year’s Volunteer of the Year?

 

Audio book downloads bring patrons freedom

For the first time in history, library patrons can get books and magazines of their choice at any time of the day or night and keep them in their own “virtual library.”

The National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (NLS) now offers digital audio recordings by download from the Internet through its Braille and Audio Reading Download (BARD) service. Recently a Kentucky library user accessed the 1-millionth piece of reading material from BARD, just shy of a year from its April 30, 2009 launch date.

More than 18,000 titles are currently available from BARD. More than 15,000 of NLS’s 800,000-plus patrons are registered for BARD.

“We’re gratified by the passionate response BARD has received,” said NLS Director Frank Kurt Cylke. “At NLS, we strive to continually improve our patrons’ opportunities to access a wide range of reading material. BARD has been an unequaled success in speeding delivery to our patrons.”

Patrons can transfer the downloaded files to a digital cartridge with a USB cable. The cartridge can be played on the Digital Talking Book machine.

Cartridges and cables are available for purchase from the Iowa Department for the Blind’s Aids and Devices Store. Contact Jodi George at 800-362-2587 for current pricing.

One library patron reported: “Finally having instant access to thousands of books and magazines that I can download and read as desired, rather than waiting and hoping for new books to come in the mail, has been an incredible experience. After using BARD, I can’t imagine what I did without it.”

To learn more about BARD and how to sign up, call your reader advisor.

 

ISU graduate students offer new writing course at IDB

To me, the greatest pleasure of writing is not what it’s about, but the inner music the words make.  ~Truman Capote

This summer the Library will be offering a free creative writing program for library patrons who, like Capote, enjoy “the inner music the words make.”

Instructors Laura Sweeney and Jason Arbogast will conduct two, six-week courses at the Iowa Department for the Blind to help participants express themselves in writing.

Sweeney and Arbogast are Iowa State University graduate students, and the courses are offered for free through ISU.

The first course will be offered May 17 through June 25 and will be geared to adults. The second program, designed for youth participants, will be held July 12 through Aug. 20.

There is also a distance-learning option, which will run for one month. Space is limited, so please contact your reader advisor to register. When you call, please let them know what time (morning, afternoon, evening) and what days of the week would be best for your schedule.

Honoring postal workers

As part of the Library’s 50th anniversary, we are honoring postal workers who make the distribution of our books possible throughout Iowa.

We want to hear from you, our patrons, about your mail carrier.

Do you have a mail carrier who goes out of his or her way to ensure you receive your library material?

Help us say thank you by submitting a name for nomination by May 1 to your reader advisor or library secretary Dawna Ray at (800) 362-2587 or dawna.ray@blind.state.ia.us.

Provide the carrier’s name, post office address and phone number and details as to why you are making the nomination.

From the librarian

The Library’s magazine program offers a wide variety of reading options. Do you find yourself too busy to tackle a whole novel? Try Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine or Asimov’s Science Fiction. Are you fascinated (or horrified) by current politics? How about The National Review or The Nation? Are you interested in history, science, gardening, cooking or sports? There are titles in all these areas.

More than 100 magazines are available in Braille or audio format.

There have been some changes in the magazines offered. U.S. News and World Report, Discipleship Journal and Healthy Exchanges Food Newsletter have all ceased publication. Choice Magazine Listening is still available for download but is no longer on cassette. Matilda Ziegler is not being produced in Braille or cassette anymore but is available on the Internet at www.matildaziegler.com.

The Week, a current events magazine that includes “all you need to know about everything that matters,” replaces U. S. News. Also new is Looking Back, which contains stories of “the happy days gone by.”

Call your reader adviser to order these or any other magazine titles at (800) 362-2587.

Happy reading,

Tracey Morsek

Booklist: Mysterious Women

We all like a good mystery. Whether it’s a cozy British country house story by Agatha Christie, a hard-boiled detective tale by Sue Grafton, or a historical police procedural by Anne Perry, a harrowing tale of murder can allow us a shiver of fear while comfortably settled in a recliner.

This quarter the Library is featuring mysteries and crime novels by women authors. There are titles for every taste, including some of those shown in the “crime scene” photo to the right. Library staffers Deena Cross, Deb Wade, Susie Stageberg, Tracey Morsek, Marcella Edmonds and Beth Hirst demonstrate that suspense can be had in Braille, large print, digital audio and cassette formats.

DB64062, RC64062
Strangled Prose: 1 Claire Malloy Series by Joan Hess
Bookstore owner Claire Malloy hosts a reception celebrating the release of her friend Mildred Twiller’s trashy new romance novel. During the party, excerpts reveal Mildred has libeled many of the attendees. Soon after, Mildred is found strangled to death. Some strong language. 1986.

BR9684, DB63926, RC63926, LT4327
Dead Man’s Island: 1 Henrie O. Series by Carolyn G. Hart
Media magnate Chase Prescott invites old flame retired reporter Henrietta O’Dwyer Collins—Henrie O—to his private Carolina island to ferret out his would-be murderer from among the family and associates assembled there. Henrie O questions fellow guests as a ferocious hurricane draws near. Some strong language and violence. 1993.

BR18384, DB69645, RC69645
Dead Until Dark: 1 Southern Vampire Series by Charlaine Harris
While waiting tables at a bar in Bon Temps, Louisiana, telepath Sookie Stackhouse meets handsome vampire Bill. When a rowdy vampire gang moves into town and murders remain unsolved, Sookie’s attraction to Bill puts her in danger. Violence, explicit descriptions of sex and some strong language. 2001.

BR13928, DB53709, RC53709, LT7169
Daddy’s Little Girl by Mary Higgins Clark
Ellie Cavanaugh returns to Westchester County, New York, to protest the parole of wealthy heir Rob Westerfield, convicted of murdering her teenaged sister 22 years ago. Then someone threatens her life. 2002

DB61421, RC61421, LT7762
Body Double: 4 Rizzoli and Isles Series by Tess Gerritsen
Boston medical examiner Maura Isles discovers that the dead woman in her driveway is her identical twin. Detective Jane Rizzoli, who is expecting a child, assists Maura in the investigation, which leads them to a serial killer who targets pregnant women. Violence and strong language. 2004. u

BR17341, DB65393, RC65393
The Séance by Heather Graham
Boston medical examiner Maura Isles discovers that the dead woman in her driveway is her identical twin. Detective Jane Rizzoli, who is expecting a child, assists Maura in the investigation, which leads them to a serial killer who targets pregnant women. Violence and strong language. 2004.

 

Orientation Center

Students get some culture during OC field trips

By Rebecca Swainey, Contributing Editor

Field trips are a vital part of the Orientation Center’s program. They provide students numerous opportunities to put newly acquired skills into practice. They are also often good opportunities to examine attitudes, both our own and those of the general public.

On Feb. 7 students and teachers attended a theatrical production of “Eye Piece” at the University of Iowa, which aimed to present the experience of blindness to the general public.

“Eye Piece” is the work of playwright/director/actor Rinde Eckert in collaboration with Dr. Ed Stone of the University of Iowa Carver Family Center for Macular Degeneration and Stephen Kuusisto, University of Iowa English department faculty member. This “piece” came about as part of The Creative Campus Innovations Program administered by the Association of Performing Arts Presenters and funded by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation.

In “Eye Piece” a promising young artist is losing his sight to retinitis pigmentosa, a disorder that attacks the retina and causes gradual blindness. The style pulls in several theatrical elements, mostly from Greek tragedy. Thus the playwright makes use of two mythological figures; Tiresias, famous for his clairvoyance despite blindness, and Oedipus, famous as an example of pathetic helplessness and despair. The storyline is presented from a medical perspective with a group of “doctors” acting as Greek chorus throughout.

The young artist is a patient his doctor cannot “cure.” The doctor, while concerned and caring, doesn’t know how to advise his patient. Left much to his own devices, the artist goes through a number of stages to which many in our group could easily relate, running the gamut from depression to determination. Somehow by the end, the artist is back to working successfully.

The problem with the play is that it gives no hint as to how this transformation from a newly blinded individual to a successful working blind person took place. It would seem from this production that, once the doctors are no longer able to help, something magical and mysterious occurs to put the blind person back on his or her feet. What’s more, they suddenly begin carrying a cane for mobility with no training having taken place. Nowhere in the entire three-hour performance is there even a suggestion of rehabilitation services being involved in the process. Unfortunately this scenario—doctors unaware of, or unwilling to suggest, services beyond the medical profession—is all too familiar to many of our clients.

Tales of a Chocolatier

On March 4 we enjoyed an outing to Chocolaterie Stam, where we were greeted with plates of tasty treats accompanied by our choice of beverage. While we sampled, owner Ton Stam regaled us with stories of his family’s long history as chocolatiers in Holland. After moving to the U. S. he opened a highly successful branch of the family business here in Des Moines.

In addition to several amusing anecdotes, Stam gave a very informative explanation of the process of making chocolate. He even had a dried cocoa pod to pass around. Later, in the production area, we felt the candy molds while learning more about the process of transforming cocoa beans to mouth-watering confections.

Center graduate hones Braille skills, confidence

Ken Murphy, a former second-grade teacher from Cedar Falls, is among our most recent Center graduates. At the age of 55, training in the Center was not easy for Murphy, particularly the challenges presented by Braille.

Because of decreased sensitivity in his fingertips from diabetes, he found it hard to feel the small, raised dots on the page. He struggled to memorize contractions. Tracking lines was an arduous task. But through creativity and perseverance he overcame the barriers to learning Braille.

“I was struggling in most all my classes and beginning to think I’d never make progress,” Murphy said. “The breakthrough in Braille is what made the turn-around for me. Once I began to see definite progress there, I knew I could make it. I really feel good now about Braille.”

For Murphy, Braille not only provided a tool for communication, it was the means through which he regained self-confidence and began to look at his life not in terms of limitations but of possibilities.

 

Youth Transition

Ag-oriented teen is hired on at local supply store

By Tai Blas, Contributing Editor

Growing up in rural Iowa, Alex has always been interested in agriculture. In 4-H, he raised two cows from bottle calves to breeding stock. Now at age 17, he is a member of Future Farmers of America and participated in the FFA national competition last November in Indianapolis. Currently, he is working in FFA’s business management division and will be attending the national competition again next year.

So when Alex began looking for work in the agriculture field, the most logical place to look was Theisen’s, a farm supply store in Grinnell.

Blind since birth due to a retina disorder called juvenile retinoschisis, Alex has very limited vision. He had some concerns regarding how he would perform the essential functions of a job at Theisen’s as a blind person.

After Alex applied for the job, Megen Johnson, IDB transition work experience specialist, contacted Rob Thomas, then the general manager of Theisen’s. He said while the store had a hiring freeze, he hoped to hire a new employee in the near future. Johnson asked whether Theisen’s would need extra help during the holidays and offered to provide paid on-the-job training for Alex.

“One of the essential benefits the Department can provide to employers is trained, qualified employees who can start work before a business goes through the time-consuming and sometimes costly process of advertising a position, interviewing candidates and hiring,” Johnson said. “An employer is much more likely to hire a pre-trained individual with whom they already have a relationship.”

Alex began his training in November 2009. Because he did such a great job during training, he was hired by Theisen’s when the freeze was lifted and is now working 12 to 16 hours a week earning $7.50 an hour.

His duties include unloading pallets, loading customer orders into vehicles, stocking products and cleaning the store. Other than the use of a pocket magnifier, Alex needs very few accommodations to complete his job duties.

According to manager Craig Loftin, “Alex has become one of the Theisen’s family. He possesses the farm-boy work ethic, is very reliable and always has a positive attitude, qualities that are essential in our industry. Alex gets things done so quickly that we are constantly giving him more things to do. He is a great employee.”

Alex said he loves working at Theisen’s. “The Iowa Department for the Blind gave me the boost I needed to land this job by putting in a good word for me,” he said. “IDB allowed me to prove I was a good worker and that I could do this job as a blind person.”

Summer camps offered for blind youth

IDB Transition program will host a series of camps for teens with vision loss to help them gain confidence, meet other teens and have fun. The camps are:

• June 14-15 FUNdamentals: Blindness skills and fun

• June 23-27 Artful Antics: Interactive art experience

• July 19-21 Mission Possible II: Success in jobs

• July 16-28 Dare to Care: A look at community service

• Aug 2-4 Action Extravaganza: Recreation and sports

• Aug 13-15 The Great Outdoors Weekend Retreat

To register for these camps or for more information, contact Keri Osterhaus or Tai Blas at (800) 362-2587.

 

Business Enterprises Program

Vending business growth occurs at multiple levels

By Roger Erpelding, Contributing Editor

In the Business Enterprises Program (BEP), we are always on the hunt for new income for our blind managers. In some cases, new income can be found through new products or services. Other times, income can increase by expanding vending operations to new locations.

Under the federal Randolph-Sheppard Act, passed by Congress in 1936 to give blind persons employment in selling dry goods on federal property, many federal locations are “law covered.” This means the BEP has priority to provide vending services there. Of course, since its enactment, the law has been amended several times to include other types of food services (snack bars, cafeterias and vending machines).

Through frequent contact with our federal partner, the General Services Administration (GSA), we remain engaged in the growth opportunities for vending in government buildings.

Currently, the BEP works with 21 blind managers who operate 22 locations around the state of Iowa.

A new Internal Revenue Service call center scheduled to open this June in West Des Moines and a new federal court house slated to open in late 2012 are just two prime examples of government projects our blind managers will expand into in the near future.

The process for securing these expansions mainly involves long-term planning, keeping our ears open and staying in close contact with the GSA. But we are always ready and eager to find new locations and to grow our program.

We do not only set up vending operations in public buildings, we venture into the private sector, as well.

One of our blind managers, Jon Buffington, had a great experience contracting with a call center near Sioux City operated by a company called STREAM.

In the summer of 2006, Buffington, who operates several vending facilities in Sioux City, heard that a new call center in nearby Sergeant Bluff would be coming to town. The company would occupy a large building formerly operated by another call center firm. He called about vending, but was told they had a vendor in place and didn’t need anyone.

Being in the vending business, and with his ear to the ground, Buffington soon heard that STREAM was unhappy with its current vending arrangement and wanted a change. He contacted IDB staff Mark West and me. West stopped by, found the parking lot full of cars and couldn’t wait to present our materials to the company and to talk about Buffington. “Don’t take my word for it,” West said. “Here are some of Jon’s nearby locations, look for yourself.”

STREAM did and found his record to their liking.

A contract was forged, and Buffington began vending at STREAM on Dec. 7, 2006. The company’s employment varies from 400 to 1,200, and currently stands at about 1,000 employees. Buffington and I make frequent contact with STREAM management to make sure everything is in order. At all of our locations, we sell service, and we must deliver accordingly.

Buffington has been able to adjust and meet the challenges associated with vending at STREAM. “With the reductions in state and county employees, and the rough winter on the roadside, STREAM has definitely been a positive force in my business,” he says.

Since our blind managers are “working managers,” our program continues to give us the opportunity to spread the word about our positive attitude, which is so essential to success as blind people. u

Roger Erpelding is the program administrator for the Business Enterprises Program. Reach him at roger.erpelding@blind.state.ia.us