Carl Augusto Welcome Video

Transcript of Carl Augusto Welcome Video

Carl Augusto, President and CEO, American Foundation for the Blind

Why the AFB Center is So Important

NARRATOR: Carl, a blind man, sitting in an office. Then, photos of AFB's Center on Vision Loss.

CARL: What we wanted to do is create a physical center where we could demonstrate the skills, have the products in an independent living apartment, you know, simulate what people have in their homes so people will see the adaptations that they need to make their homes totally accessible and the products they need and the skills they'll need to have in order to remain independent. We created the virtual center (www.afb.org/seniorsite) because we know people experiencing vision loss can live independently in their own homes and do the kinds of things that sighted people can do. We have the expertise, we have the information, we have the resources.

Shattering Misconceptions

NARRATOR: Photos of various people shopping, voting and traveling.

CARL: One of the biggest fears that someone experiencing vision loss has is that they're going to be a different person now that they're visually impaired. They're not going to be like they were prior to the visual impairment. That's not true. Visually impaired people, no matter what their age is, no matter what the diagnosis of their visual problem is, they can shop again, they can maintain their home again, they can travel around and be independent again, they can surf the Web again. They can do all the things that they did before with some modification. A few small adjustments can make a huge difference.

The Gradual Road to Independence

NARRATOR: Photos of various people golfing, sledding, hiking, cooking.

CARL: You can't hasten the day when someone is going to be ready. It's got to be his or her timetable. It might take months for that person finally to hit bottom and to say, "Okay, I'm ready for services." We have testimonials in this Web site that you'll be able to see of people who are blind or visually impaired who just a year or two ago felt that they were the end of the line, that blindness or visual impairment was a death sentence. They were ready to close shop. And now they're living independently in their own homes, they're cooking like they did before, but that takes work, it takes confidence. And once that person develops those skills, they're going to retain them, because, again, this is going to be their ticket for independence. It's transformational to see a visually impaired person from despair and hopelessness to maintaining their independence in their own home. And we see this all the time. It's a wonderful sight to see.