PA Department of Labor & Industry Will Host Blindness Awareness Expo

HARRISBURG, Pa., May 7, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The PA Department of Labor & Industry's Office of Vocational Rehabilitation, Bureau of Blindness and Visual Services (BBVS), and the Advisory Committee for the Blind of Pennsylvania will host the 2015 Blindness Awareness Expo in the Main Rotunda of the State Capitol Building, 9:00 AM – 2:00 PM, Tuesday, June 2, 2015. All are welcome to attend.

Attendees to the expo are encouraged to explore how Pennsylvanians who are blind or visually impaired overcome challenges in education, employment, and independence. The BBVS will offer simulations of varying visual impairments, while other vendors and organizations will offer hands-on demonstrations with guide dogs, tools, and services that facilitate living with a visual impairment.  

This year's Master of Ceremonies is Dr. Marianne Boltz, of the Advisory Committee for the Blind of Pennsylvania. Bill McCann, founder of Dancing Dots in Valley Forge, PA, is the expo's keynote speaker. Dancing Dots offers technology, educational resources, and training to help blind and low-vision individuals read, write, and record music.

The expo includes an awards ceremony from 9:00 AM – 11:00 AM. Awards for outstanding high school and elementary school student and outstanding employee/employer will be presented, as well as an independence award, and an equal access award. There is also an exhibitor expo from 11:00 AM – 2:00 PM with more than 20 exhibitors showing their visual impairment-related services and products.

In Pennsylvania, it is estimated that more than 215,000 individuals aged 40 and under experience severe vision problems. Of those, more than 69,000 experience total blindness. For those over the age of 50, more than 1.76 million suffer from a severe visual impairment.

For more information please visit the expo website, or contact the BBVS at 717-787-6176 or [email protected].

MEDIA CONTACT: Sara Goulet, 717-787-7530

SOURCE Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry

Related Links

http://www.state.pa.us

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