Vol. 36, No. 3
September 2006

VRATE AT A NEW LOCATION

The tenth annual Vision Rehabilitation and Technology Expo will be held this year at Glendale Civic Center on Friday, November 17, from 9 am until 5 pm.  This is a free event that is open to the public. More than forty exhibitors will be on hand all day in the east end of Crowne Ballroom including companies that will showcase the latest technologies, agencies that provide services for those with visual impairment, guide dog schools, and advocacy organizations.  In short, this is the place to go to find all the latest information about resources available to you.  Talking Book Library staff will be on hand all day in Booth 26 and we look forward to seeing you there.

The morning speaker will be Dr. Kean T. Oh, a retinal specialist with Retinal Consultants.  His presentation, scheduled for 10 am in the west end of the Crown Ballroom, will cover the latest research and developments in retinal diseases.  There will be lots of time for questions at the end of his presentation.  The speaker area will be walled off from the exhibit area, so the overall acoustics will be much better than in prior years.

In the afternoon the speaker area will be divided into three separate rooms and will be used for additional presentations.

At 1:00 pm Dr. Robert Kanocz will discuss useful adaptations for the homes of people who are visually impaired; Dr. Kevin Huff’s topic will be Coping with Visual Impairment; and Leisa Friedman will present information about electronic magnification.

At 2:00 pm Mark Nelson discusses electronic portable PDA’s/ notetakers; Dr. Lori Grover discusses bioptic driving; and Sandra Everett will demonstrate how to access and search the Talking Book Library’s online catalog.

At 3:00 pm Michael Slaughter will teach self defense for the visually impaired; Stan Dyser reviews computer basics for people with visual impairment and George Hill will present information about the Lions Foundation.

At 4:00 pm Chuck Wright and Mark Stenzel will discuss electronic video magnification.

Of course some of the schedule might change before November, but it will be updated on the VRATE phone line, 623-505-4830 and on the web site: www.vrate.org.  The Glendale Civic Center is a change of venue from previous years; please note that there are three free parking lots within the Civic Center block.  In future years VRATE will alternate between the East and West valleys.  Talking Book Library staff looks forward to seeing you in Glendale this year!