News Releases
Contact: Dena Fellows, Marketing Director
Vision Forward Association
414-615-0134, cell 414-526-7998,
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
For Immediate Release
New Vision Forward website offers quick, accessible access to vital information for people with vision loss
MILWAUKEE, WI (December 2, 2011) – Vision Forward Association is proud to announce the launch of its new website, www.vision-forward.org. The new website continues Vision Forward’s mission to create a full-service resource center providing a continuum of services to people of all ages who are visually impaired and their families.
“We are really excited to be able to offer this new, highly practical information resource to people who are impacted by vision loss,” said Patrick Brown, Vision Forward Association’s Executive Director. “The new site is very easy to navigate and highlights the ways people of all ages with vision loss can benefit from Vision Forwards’ specific programs focusing on support, education, and training.”
In January 2010, the Badger Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired and the Center for Blind & Visually Impaired Children merged into one organization. Today, Vision Forward Association combines more than 130 years of expertise in serving individuals and families affected by vision loss.
With its clean and simple design, Vision Forward’s new website has been developed with maximum functionality and accessibility. The site meets and exceeds the ADA and W3C (protocols and guidelines that ensure the long-term growth of the Web) compliance standards for low vision and has been tested by individuals who are blind. Accessible features were built into the web pages making this site convenient and more available to everyone – including users with disabilities. These techniques also make web pages more usable both by people using older computers and by people using the latest technologies (such as handheld computers or cell phones).
In addition to the programs offered on the new site, Vision Forward has an extensive network of resources and referrals to help answer many of your questions relating to vision loss. Vision-forward.org is designed to be a primary resource on where to turn when diagnosed with vision impairment.
For more information on our new website or to learn if your website is fully accessible to the 60,000 people living with vision loss in Southeastern Wisconsin, please contact Dena Fellows, Marketing Director, at 414-615-0134.
About Vision Forward Association
Vision Forward is Southeastern Wisconsin’s premier resource for people who are blind or visually impaired. Our vision is to provide specialized services and programs to people of all ages and at all stages of vision loss so that they have every opportunity to be vital contributing members of our society.
###
November 4, 2011
For Immediate Release
VISION FORWARD HOSTS ‘DINING IN THE DARK’ NOVEMBER 13
3rd Annual event features elegant Bacchus dining while raising awareness of vision loss
Milwaukee, WI – Imagine preparing for an exquisite dining experience at a 5-Star restaurant and then not being able to see the warm, beautiful surroundings or even the food on your plate. Imagine being cloaked in darkness for the entire evening and having to relay on your remaining senses – hearing, smell, touch and taste.
On Sunday November 13th, Vision Forward Association presents such an experience with the 3rd Annual Dining in the Dark event at Bacchus, 925 E. Wells Street in Milwaukee. The doors will open at 5 p.m. This popular event raises public awareness of vision loss while raising funds for Vision Forward Association.
“Every 7 minutes, someone in the U.S. permanently loses their vision,” said Patrick Brown, Executive Director of Vision Forward Association. “As many as 200,000 people in Wisconsin are blind or visually impaired. By 2030, the number of Americans affected by age-related blindness is expected to double. Dining in the Dark is a wonderful way to help people gain a better understanding of the abilities of people who are blind and visually impaired.”
Dining in the Dark originated in Germany in 2003 and, as the name suggests, the experience allows seeing individuals to eat an entire meal in compete darkness, with the aid of low lighting and a blindfold. A special menu was created by James Beard Award-winning chef Adam Siegel that is sure to delight the senses of smell, taste and touch.
“This wonderful yet unconventional dinner offers a unique opportunity to help raise funds for this critical cause while building awareness about how people who are blind and visually impaired live, work and play in a world they cannot see,” said Brown. “At the same time, everybody has a great time and gets to enjoy a fabulous meal.”
For more information, call 414.615.0134 or visit www.dininginthedarkmke.org.
Editors Please Note - Several special arrangements can be made to assist your news coverage including:
- Advance interviews with chef Adam Siegel, Bacchus owner Joe Bartolotta and Vision Forward Association rehabilitation specialists and visually impaired clients who can discuss their day to day experiences
- A Day in the Life – Your reporter can interview and/or follow along with a blind or severely visually impaired person to provide a real-life picture of the life of someone without vision.
To make these special arrangements or to make any additional requests, please contact Dena Fellows as noted above.
About Vision Forward Association
On January 1, 2010, the Badger Association of the Blind and Visually Impaired and the Center for Blind and Visually Impaired Children merged to become Vision Forward Association. Combining over 130 years of expertise, Vision Forward is Southeastern Wisconsin’s premier resource for people of all ages who are blind or visually impaired.
Our Mission is to create a resource center providing a continuum of services to visually impaired people of all ages and their families.
Our Vision is to provide specialized services and programs to people of all ages and at all stages of vision loss so that they have every opportunity to be vital contributing members of our society. For more information, visit www.vision-forward.org.
###
Contact:
Dena Fellows, Marketing Director
Vision Forward Association
414.615.0134 •
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
October, 2011
For Immediate Release
VISION FORWARD LAUNCHES NEW ERA AS WISCONSIN’S FIRST COMPREHENSIVE VISION LOSS RESOURCE CENTER
Badger Association and the Center for Blind & Visually Impaired Children to Change Name
Milwaukee, WI – Members of Greater Milwaukee’s blind and visually impaired community will soon have access to the state’s first comprehensive resource center designed to help people of all ages adapt to their vision loss and move forward with their lives. Effective October 28, 2011 the merger of the Badger Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired and the Center for Blind & Visually Impaired Children will be reflected in the organization’s new name, Vision Forward Association.
Vision Forward Association will celebrate the merger and the launch of the organization’s new name with a Launch Party and Open House on October 28th from 5 a.m. – 1 p.m. at 912 N. Hawley Road, Milwaukee. There is no charge to attend the event and the public is invited.
The two entities have a proud, combined history of 140 years in delivering a unique, individualized approach to the physical, emotional and social sides of vision loss, allowing clients to continue doing the things they enjoy. The name change reflects a growing community need with parents seeking additional programs and services for their children and adults seeking ways to live successfully with their changing vision.
“Our new name is very focused on our current and future client base and it speaks of a new era of services,” said Patrick Brown, Executive Director of Vision Forward Association. “Our hope is that this new era will feature a synergy of programs dedicated to enhancing quality of life and increasing opportunities for independence among children and adults who are living with vision loss with the Greater Milwaukee Community and all under one roof.”
For more information, call 414.615.0134 or visit www.badgerassoc.org.
###