Holiday Gifts for Friends and Family with Visual Impairments

Iris Network 2012 Large Print Calendar $9.95. Call Terri at the Iris Network 207-774-6273 to order.

With Thanksgiving officially behind us, many will be focusing on Winter Holidays and gift-giving. If there is a friend or family member in your life with low vision or blindness, some of the resources below may offer a few suggestions for gifts that you hadn’t thought of, or didn’t know where to purchase.

 First, because I work for the Iris Network in Portland Maine, The Iris Network offers two great stocking stuffers directly from the agency, a Large Print 2012 Calendar, and Bert Silverman’s Book, Bert’s Eye View: Coping With Macular Degeneration, in large print. Silverman, a businessman in Portland Maine, published his book in 1997 at the age of 84. The large print calendar is $9.95 and Bert's Eye View  is on sale for the holidays for $10, which includes shipping. Either may be purchased by calling Terri at the Iris Network, 207-774-6273.

 For a Braille Calendar at no cost, call the National Federation of the Blind (NFB) at 410-659-9314 or use their online shopping basket at http://secure.nfb.org/ecommerce/asp/product.asp?product=887&cat=59&ph=&keywords=&recor=&SearchFor=&PT_ID=.

Bert's Eye View Coping With Nacular Degeneration by Bert Silverman, $10 (shipping included). Call Terri at the Iris Network 207-774-6273 to order. 

One of the suggestions offered by Dr. Bill Takeshita and Julian Vargas on the podcast Great Holiday Gifts-2011 (Council of Citizens With Low Vision International Lectures http://www.airsla.org/broadcasts/CCLVI111116.mp3) is a mini Maglite for loved ones with low vision. This small light will easily fit in a pocket, and has an adjustable focused light beam or a wide-angle beam. Like all Maglites it is manufactured in the USA and available locally or through Amazon.com for about $10.

Bill Spark’s of Bill's Old Time Radio Store http://www.billsparks.com is one of the presenter’s in this years annual Accessible World Tek Talk’s Podcast Stocking Stuffers, a two-part series. One of many gift ideas at Bill’s Old Time Radio Store are recordings of old-time radio episodes, compiled on CD. CDs are $5.99 each and will come with a Braille label if requested. For example, 64 episodes of the Green Hornet with 29 hrs. of play time on one CD is $5.99! For more information by phone call 317-783-4233 between the hours of 9 and 5 Eastern time.

Both podcasts of Tek Talk, Stocking Stuffers I (http://www.accessibleworld.org/content/accessible-world-invites-you-stocking-stuffers-part-1-monday-november-7-2011-0) and Stocking Stuffers II(http://www.accessibleworld.org/content/accessible-world-welcomes-you-stocking-stuffers-part-ii) is available from the Accessible World Archives at http://www.accessibleworld.org/.