Close your eyes and imagine sounds – and a white cane - are what you have to navigate Grand Rapids’ busy city streets.
“There have been strides in installing more detectable warnings at street corners. We've seen more of those pop up, which are so helpful to prevent people who are using canes from just drifting into the street without knowing it.”
Abby Koroma‘s husband is visually impaired as are two of her three children.
She spoke at the Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired White Cane Awareness Walk as educator and accessibility advocate.
“My husband takes a lot of pride in his blindness, and we're trying to instill that pride in our children as well, as we send them the message that they are complete the way they are, and just wouldn't change a thing about them. And for the community to come around that message as well, and for this gathering to happen is really meaningful for that reason."
Orientation Mobility Instructor Josh Thomas says the white cane also serves as a signal to others of visual impairment; whether a person is completely blind or has low vision in certain conditions.
“Sometimes it is one of those invisible disabilities, and without having that identification, we might not get the answers that we want when we're asking for a menu, or asking information about the environment, or asking for a bus route number. If you have that white cane, it identifies you.”
The Grand Rapids-based Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired serves more than 1,000 people in 13 West Michigan counties with rehabilitation, counseling, job training, assistive technology and more.
For a weekly dose of news right to your inbox, sign up for the WGVU newsletter.
