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Scott & Sue’s Excellent Adventure
 Board members Scott & Sue Soldan journeyed to Atlanta in support of Scott’s uncle, Jim Horton, at his Atlanta VisionWalk. Jim was the first family member diagnosed with RP in the late ‘60’s. He has been involved with the FFB for over 20 years, first in Massachusetts and for the last eight years in Atlanta.
Despite the torrential rain the night before and dismal forecast for walk day, it was clear sailing by walk time! The walk was held in Piedmont Park, a lovely location, not far from downtown. Home Depot joined the effort with a project for the children and demonstrations of how the visually impaired can do simple projects around the house. There were Team Cheers, Best T-shirt (which Scott’s uncle won!), face painting, snacks, warm up exercises led a personal trainer, a lively mix of music for-all ages to enjoy, culminating in a fair like atmosphere. The Event Coordinator, Lesley Ireland, did a wonderful job despite Mother Nature!
The Braille Challenge®
Board Member Christine Day’s children, Derrick, 7 and Meredith, 5, participated in the preliminary Braille challenge at Maryland School for the Blind on February 9th. Derrick placed 2nd in the first and second grade level. Meredith placed 1st in the pre-kindergarten level. This was the second year both children participated in the challenge.
The Braille Challenge® is a two-stage academic competition unlike any other. It is designed to motivate blind students to emphasize their study of Braille, while rewarding their success with a fun-filled, but challenging, weekend of events. They work with agencies and individual teachers from across the United States and Canada to who encourage their students to participate in the preliminary round.
Once the contests are scored, the top eligible students are invited to Los Angeles, where they match skills against the top Braille readers in the nation at the National Braille Challenge.
New Trustees
The Baltimore Chapter congratulates Jay and LuAnn Blackman and Mindy Berman Caplan on being selected as 3 of the newest National Trustees for the Foundation. Jay is a senior vice president and chief operating officer at Howard County General Hospital in Maryland and a former Wilmer Eye Institute administrator. His wife, LuAnn, is an author and educator. Both are longtime supporters of the Foundation who also chaired this past year’s Baltimore Dining in the Dark. Mindy is the daughter of Beverly and the late Ben Berman, co-founders of the Foundation, Mindy was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa as a youngster and, like her parents, actively supports our cause. She is president of the Foundation’s Baltimore chapter and is chair of its VisionWalk in June.
Chapter speaking engagements
The Baltimore Chapter had the opportunity to speak to several groups: The Diamond Plan of Coventry Health Group; Wicomico County school nurses and the Delta Gamma Sorority of American University, educating them about retinal disorders, the FFB and VisionWalk. A special thank you to Mr. Ben Shaberman from the FFB, who spoke to the Wicomico school nurses and aids.
Chapter presentations
The November Speaker series was a success! We had approximately 30 attendees. Dr. Janet Sunness from GBMC’s Hoover Low Vision Center spoke about retraining your brain for better vision. Erin Piesach, a registered Dietician with Shop Rite of Timonium gave a presentation on “Eat Right for Good Sight”. You can view her presentation here.
Matthew Lipsey’s interview with The Jewish Times
Matthew Lipsey was interviewed by the Jewish Times about living with Stargardt disease and his trip with the 2012 Global Explorers Leading the Way program to the Grand Canyon. Read the article here.
The Day’s interview for the film with a link to video
Board member Christine Day and her family were interviewed for a video that will be shown at Dining in the Dark events nationwide. Christine, her husband Doug and their two children, Derrick, 6 and Meredith, 4 speak about living with visual impairment. Watch the video here.
RP discussed in the Baltimore Sun
Chapter Leader Scott Soldan weighs in on the impact of RP for a Baltimore Sun article. Read it here.
Celebrating Excellence
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Dot and Steve Dutterer (front right) with
"Team Lancelot" at the
2012 Baltimore VisionWalk. |
Baltimore VisionWalk leaders Dot and Steve Dutterer were presented with the Foundation’s Member Excellence Volunteer of the Year Award for the Mid-Atlantic Region at the VISIONS 2012 national conference in Minneapolis in June. The honor recognizes their excellent service in support of the Foundation’s mission in 2011. The Dutterers’ “Team Lancelot” has been instrumental to the success of the VisionWalk, reaching out through a passionate letter writing campaign each year. Since 2001, they’ve raised over $270,000 for sight-saving research through the walk and other Foundation fundraising events. Despite Steve’s vision limitations, the Dutterers are often found cruising the globe, where they share their story and determination to support research with fellow travelers, raising awareness and engaging new support for their VisionWalk team. Congratulations Steve and Dot!
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