The Eye Center - Resources for People With Low Vision

Selected Resources for People
With Low Vision

The selected resources included in this list may help individuals with visual impairments make the most of remaining sight. This list provides examples of available resources and we welcome suggestions for additions. These resources may also be able to refer you to services in your area. Inclusion in this list does not imply endorsement by the National Eye Institute or the National Institutes of Health.

http://www.nei.nih.gov/

General Information

American Academy of Ophthalmology
P.O. Box 7424
San Francisco, CA 94120-7424
(415) 561-8500
http://www.eyenet.org
Provides brochures on low vision and other eye problems.

American Council of the Blind
1155 15th Street, N.W., Suite 720
Washington, DC 20005
(800) 424-8666
(202) 467-5081
ncrabb@access.digex.net
http://www.acb.org
Offers a wide variety of services to visually impaired persons with emphasis on employment opportunities. Publishes the Braille Forum.

American Foundation for the Blind
11 Penn Plaza, Suite 30
New York, NY 10001
1-800-232-5463
(212) 502-7600
afbinfo@afb.org
http://www.afb.org
Offers consultation services to eye care, rehabilitation, and education professionals. Serves as a national clearinghouse for information about blindness and visual impairment. Provides referrals to low vision centers. Maintains regional offices throughout the country.

Regional Offices:

(404) 525-2303 - Atlanta, GA
(312) 245-9961 - Chicago, IL
(214) 352-7222 - Dallas, TX
(212) 502-7657 - New York, NY
(415) 392-4845 - San Francisco, CA
(202) 457-1487 - Washington, DC

American Optometric Association
243 Lindbergh Boulevard
St. Louis, MO 63141
(314) 991-4100
AmOptNEWS@aol.com
http://www.aoanet.org
Provides brochures on low vision and other eye problems.

Association for Education & Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impaired
4600 Duke Street, Suite 430
P.O. Box 22397
Alexandria, VA 22304
(703) 823-9690
aernet@laser.net
http://www.aerbvi.org
Includes educators, rehabilitators, administrators, parents, and houseparents of blind children; agencies, schools, and other interested in the education, guidance, vocational rehabilitation, or occupational placement of the blind and partially-sighted. Cooperates with colleges and universities in conferences and workshops. Presents awards, conducts certification programs, and maintains job exchange services and speakers' bureau.

Council of Citizens with Low Vision International
1-800-733-2258
(317) 254-1332
Serves as an advocacy group for the visually impaired. Provides information on low vision technology. Offers scholarship. Publishes the CCLV News.

Lighthouse International
111 E. 59th Street
New York, NY 10022
1-800-829-0500
(212) 821-9200
(212) 821-9713 (TDD)
info@lighthouse.org
http://www.lighthouse.org
Serves as a national clearinghouse for information on vision impairment across the life span and services available nationwide. Offers a comprehensive selection of education products, large print materials, talking products, and related specialty items for people with visual impairments. Adaptive devices are available through catalog sales.

Low Vision Council
111 E. 59th Street, 12th Floor
New York, NY 10022-1202
(212) 821-9790
http://www.lowvisioncouncil.org
Works to raise awareness of low vision rehabilitation among eye care providers, as well as visually impaired consumers and their caregivers.

National Association for the Visually Handicapped
22 W. 21st Street, 6th Floor
New York, NY 10010
(212) 889-3141
http://www.navh.org
Serves as a clearinghouse for information about all services available to the partially-sighted from public and private sources. Conducts self-help groups. Provides information on large print books, textbooks, and educational tools.

National Association for Parents of Children with Visual Impairments, Inc.
P.O. Box 317
Watertown, MA 02272-0317
1-800-562-6265
(617) 972-7441
http://www.spedex.com/NAPVI/index.htm
Offers emotional support for parents of blind or visually impaired children. Provides information, training and assistance, and help in understanding and using available resources. Publishes Awareness, a quarterly newsletter.

National Federation for the Blind
1800 Johnson Street
Baltimore, MD 21230
(410) 659-9314
1-800-638-7518 - Job Opportunities
http://www.nfb.org
Provides a wide variety of services to visually impaired people. Publishes the Braille Monitor and Future Reflections. Distributes a catalog of publications available in large print, braille, or audiocassette, and a catalog of aids and appliances.

Resources for Rehabilitation
33 Bedford Street, Suite 19A
Lexington, MA 02173
(781) 862-6455
info@rfr.org
http://www.rfr.org
Offers training programs for public and professionals on coping with low vision. Distributes materials on coping with low vision.

VISIONS/Services for the Blind and Visually Impaired
500 Greenwich Street, 3rd Floor
New York, New York 10013-1354
1-888-245-8333
(212) 625-1616
Info@visionsvcb.org
http://www.visionsvcb.org
Offers free services to anyone over age 55 with vision problems. Services include self-help study kits, counseling, professional support systems, consumer workshops, and an information center.

Print and Audio Materials

National Library Service for Blind and Physically Handicapped
Library of Congress
1291 Taylor Street, NW
Washington, DC 20542
1-800-424-8567
(202) 707-5100
nls@loc.gov
http://www.loc.gov/nls
Provides free library service to individuals with visual impairments. Offers braille and large print materials and recorded books and periodicals.

American Printing House for the Blind
1839 Frankfort Avenue
P.O. Box 6085
Louisville, KY 40206-0085
1-800-223-1839
(502) 895-2405
http://www.aph.org
Provides free subscriptions to Reader's Digest, Newsweek and other magazines on disposable audiocassettes. Provides Reader's Digest in braille.

Associated Services for the Blind
919 Walnut Street, 2nd Floor
Philadelphia, PA 19107
(215) 627-0600
http://www.libertynet.org/asbinfo/
Provides subscriptions (for a nominal fee) to magazines such as: Family Circle, Fortune, Smithsonian, Science News, and others.

Braille Circulating Library, Inc.
2700 Stuart Avenue
Richmond, VA 23220
(804) 359-3771
(804) 359-3743
Loans braille materials, talking books, audiocassettes, and large print Christian materials.

Choice Magazine Listening
85 Channel Drive
Port Washington, NY 11050
(516) 883-8280
Offers selected articles from popular print magazines on special-speed, 4-track audiocassette, six times each year. Free service nationwide.

Christian Record Services, Inc.
4444 South 52nd Street
P.O. Box 6097
Lincoln, NE 68516
(402) 488-0981
Provides a lending library of books in braille, and large print materials, disks, and cassette tapes.

Jewish Braille Institute of America
110 E. 30th Street
New York, NY 10016
(212) 889-2525
Provides talking books, braille and large-print books, a circulating library and a public education program. Offers counseling and referrals to low vision care in the U.S.

John Milton Society for the Blind
475 Riverside Drive, Room 455
New York, NY 10115
(212) 870-3335
Provides free Christian literature in braille, audiocassette, and large type.

New York Times/Large Type Weekly
229 W. 43rd Street
New York, NY 10036
(212) 556-1234
1-800-631-2580
Offers subscriptions to the New York Times.

Reader's Digest Large Type Publications
P.O. Box 241
Mount Morris, IL 61054
(800) 431-1246
(815) 734-6963
Offers subscriptions to Reader's Digest in large type.

Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic - Headquarters
The Anne T. MacDonald Center
20 Roszel Road
Princeton, NJ 08540
1-800-221-4792
(609) 452-0606
http://www.rfbd.org
Provides free cassette tapes, textbooks for students, and materials needed for occupational pursuits.

Recording for the Blind Regional Offices
(415) 493-3717 - California
(212) 557-5720 - New York

Talking Tapes for the Blind
3015 S. Brentwood Boulevard
St. Louis, MO 63144-2715
(314) 968-2557
Provides textbooks on audiocassettes for students who are blind or visually impaired

TIME Magazine Large Edition
P.O. Box 64436
Tampa, FL 33664-4436
1-800-881-2137
Offers subscriptions to the large print weekly edition of TIME.

Vision Foundation, Inc.
818 Mt. Auburn Street
Watertown, MA 02172
(617) 926-4232
1-800-852-3029 (Massachusetts only)
Publishes a catalog of materials available in large print and on audiocassette.

Xavier Society for the Blind
154 E. 23rd Street
New York, NY 10010
(212) 473-7800
Serves as the National Catholic Lending Library and Publishing House. Publishes The Xavier Review in braille, large print, and audiocassette.

Employment

Job Opportunities for the Blind
National Center for the Blind
1800 Johnson Street
Baltimore, MD 21230
(410) 659-9314

Blinded Veterans Association
477 H Street, NW
Washington, DC 20001
1-800-669-7079
(202) 371-8880

Directories

Directory of Services for Blind and Visually Impaired Persons in the United States and Canada, 25th edition (1998)
American Foundation for the Blind
11 Penn Plaza, Suite 300
New York, NY 10001
1-800-232-3044
afbinfo@afb.org
http://www.afb.org

Living with Low Vision: A Resource Guide for People with Sight Loss, 5th edition (1998)
Resources for Rehabilitation
33 Bedford Street, Suite 19A
Lexington, MA 02173
info@rfr.org
http://www.rfr.org
(781) 862-6455

Rehabilitation Resource Manual: VISION, 4th edition (1993)
Resources for Rehabilitation
33 Bedford Street, Suite 19A
Lexington, MA 02173
(617) 862-6455
info@rfr.org
http://www.rfr.org
(617) 862-6455

Aging and Vision--Directory of Programs and Services for Older Adults With Impaired Vision (1996)
Lighthouse International
111 E. 59th Street
New York, NY 10022
1-800-334-5497
(212) 821-9200

June 2000

The Eye Center
Call Toll Free 1.888.844.2020

Last updated or reviewed: 02-16-06