Society for the Blind receives $5,000 to Help Seniors Stay Independent

Liz Culp, Society for the Blind; Lili Zahedani, MAXIMUS; Shari Roeseler, Society for the Blind

Society for the Blind was awarded a $5,000 Grant from MAXIMUS Foundation which will support Society for the Blind’s Transportation Program.

Prevent Blindness America reports that twice as many seniors will have low vision or blindness by 2030. In just 16 years, 7.7 million people will face severe vision impairment from Glaucoma, Cataracts, Age-related Macular Degeneration, Diabetic Retinopathy and other degenerative eye conditions. Through SFTB’s Transportation Program, clients receive blindness rehabilitation and vision health services that have a lifelong impact on the social, educational, vocational, economic, and physical well-being of individuals facing vision loss.

Society for the Blind (SFTB) provides an average of 54 door to door rides each week to seniors who are blind or low vision, giving access to blindness rehabilitation training and vision health services at the SFTB center located in midtown Sacramento. “Senior clients who access transportation and in home visits through this project will be able to learn skills and techniques to help maintain their independence and stay active,” said Society for the Blind Executive Director Shari Roeseler. “For the community it can mean fewer 911 calls due to falls or medication mix ups. It also allows blind and low vision residents to be active, contributing members of the community. The MAXIMUS Foundation has been a valued partner to Society for the Blind for many years. Generous grants from the foundation have supported our mission to empower individuals who are blind or have low vision to live productively and independently. We believe in the potential of people who are blind or low vision to live life to the fullest at home, on the job and in our community and we are proud to lead the way in this effort with the help of partners like MAXIMUS Foundation.”

Society for the Blind has served Sacramento since 1954. Our mission is to empower individuals living with low vision or blindness to discover, develop and achieve their full potential. We believe in the dignity of independence, of working and of being a contributing member of our society no matter what your level of vision. Society for the Blind provides blindness rehabilitation services and programs for people who are blind or low vision and is the only rehabilitation center for the geographic area of northern California covering 26 counties, with 9 primary counties of Sacramento, Sutter, Yolo, Yuba, El Dorado, Placer, Amador, Solano and San Joaquin.  Services are delivered through a variety of programs targeted to different life stages:  youth, adults and seniors.

Society for the Blind provides training and rehabilitation in daily living skills, instruction in Braille, training in the use of adaptive technology, transportation services, an Access News program (audio access to print material) and one of the area’s only Low Vision Clinics.

The MAXIMUS Foundation has distributed more than $399,000 in grants to 137 non-profit organizations in 27 states as part of our most recent grant cycle. “We are so impressed with our non-profit grantees who work diligently to empower a variety of people,” commented Dr. John Boyer, Chairman of the MAXIMUS Foundation. “This was among the most competitive grant cycles we have seen and we were able to support more grantees than ever before thanks to the giving spirit and financial support of the MAXIMUS team.”

Thank you to the MAXIMUS Foundation!