On-Site Newsletter Fall 2011 Audio & Braille Literacy Enhancement, Inc. Providing alternative ways for people with print disabilities to read ABLE logo Giving the Gift of Reading In this issue you will discover how ABLE is making a difference in children's lives, giving literacy and information through braille and digital audio reading. Find out about what is happening in the classroom and at the theater. Learn about the new ways we are teaching our digital audio volunteers. Celebrate with us our amazing donors and board of directors, men and women who create the framework for our volunteers to make a difference in recipients’ lives. In 2010, we produced over 150,000 pages in alternative format for over 2,000 recipients throughout Milwaukee, in Wisconsin and nationally as well. Here's a snapshot of some of our work. We can't wait to share with you our 2011 accomplishments in our spring 2012 newsletter. Thank you, Mary! Photo of Mary Kellison in her power scooter, receiving her volunteer award from Matt Scholtes After her internship at ABLE through Adonai Employment, Inc. in 2007, Mary Kellison has volunteered with a loyal and passionate dedication to ABLE, putting in over 600 hours from 2008 to the present. She is seen here receiving a service award from Matt Scholtes, ABLE’s Office Manager. “I was brought up to believe that the only thing worth doing was to add to the sum of accurate information in the world.” –Margaret Mead Save the Date! The 2012Annual Awards Luncheon & Benefit will be held on Wednesday, May 16th, 2012 On May 19th, 2011, our local blind students gave a fantastic braille fashion show wearing clothes decorated with tactile objects meant to represent braille dots. They can’t wait to perform at our 2012 luncheon! Photo of an MPS grade school student with fabric circles and puff balls on his tie and cowboy hat to represent braille dots. Photo of MPS grade school student with puff balls glued on her shirt to represent braille dots. Several major donors were recognized at our 2011 luncheon: Industries for the Blind, Chuck Lange, Outstanding Leadership Award Thank you, Chuck, for your tremendous leadership and incredible financial support! Certificate of Acknowledgement for major donors: Greater Milwaukee Foundation, Spirit Gifts Fund Your strong belief in literacy and access to information and your ongoing financial support means so much! Forest County Potawatomi Community Foundation Thank you for giving the gift of reading! Fall 2011 On-Site Page 2 Do Fairy Tales Come True? Ask Lenore Tesch! I’m going to tell you a story, a fairy tale. You will have to use your imagination because the princess was a young divorced mother of two, the cottage was really a two bedroom apartment, the castle was a tall office building, the dwarfs were really Patent Attorneys. You will note there is no Prince Charming because the princess found out the prince was not so charming after all. Here goes: Once upon a time, there was a princess who lived in a cute little cottage with her two lovely daughters. As time passed, the princess realized that she had to get a job, so she called upon her Fairy Godmother, who waved her magic wand and got her a job working in a castle for 16 very tall dwarfs. The princess loved working for the dwarfs. They were very good to her. She didn’t think she could ever leave them. She wanted to work there forever. Well, forever turned out to be only 45 years. Now here comes the scary part—the fire breathing dragon. The fire-breathing dragon in this story was called “retirement.” Oh no! The princess didn’t want to retire! She was too young! She was only 67 years old. She didn’t know what to do. She had no plans for the future. Once again she called upon her Fairy Godmother who whispered one word into the princess’ ear and that word was “braillist.” Braillist. Well, the princess thought about it and thought about it. She thought about it for about two years and then said “why not?” So she left the dwarfs and took a course in Literary Braille which magically lead her on a path directly to ABLE where she lives happily ever after brailling and volunteering. Believe it or not, that’s my story! I am a living Fairy Tale. Photo of Lenore and her grandson, A.J., holding up a dual-vision tactile of ABLE's logo, as it prints out from our tiger embosser. Lenore and her grandson, A.J., hard at work at ABLE! A word of thanks to Lenore from Jane Moran, Teacher of the Visually Impaired: I would like to pass on our many thanks for all the books you brailled for my student. He is able to fully participate in all the activities in the class and loves to have his own little books. Thank you to you all for all your hard work! Fall 2011 On-Site Page 3 Audrey and Kira Featured on “Making Milwaukee Great!” In September, Milwaukee’s CBS 58 featured ABLE braillist Audrey Hemmer and Milwaukee Public Schools student Kira on their “Making Milwaukee Great” segment. You won’t want to miss the recorded program! Go to http://www.ablenow.org/press.html The article from their website follows: As Kira heads back to school, she'll be able to read the same books as the rest of her classmates, thanks to Audrey Hemmer. Still image from CBS-58's segment, shows Audrey looking on while Kira reads a book that she brailled. Hemmer is a volunteer braillist with ABLE, Audio Braille Literacy Enhancement. For the last 30 years, she's spent her retirement brailling more than 60,000 pages. “It's been great and rewarding,” said Hemmer. “It keeps me happy and keeps me going.” The braillist learned the skill because she was looking for something to do in retirement. It's as if she's made another career out of it: working 20 to 30 hours a week to make sure the children get their brailled books in time. “Audrey is making sure that children and adults can participate along with their sighted peers so we have the independence that others have,” said ABLE Executive Director Cheryl Orgas. Visually impaired [blind] herself, Orgas was a recipient of ABLE's services before becoming executive director and she says the organization and Hemmer are vital to the community. “Audrey has been an amazing volunteer,” said Orgas. “She is there for whatever we need. Whether it be brailling or mentoring.” There are a number of volunteer opportunities at ABLE and Hemmer points out it’s a team effort that gets all the work done. She says she brailles the material, someone sorts it, and someone puts the books together. “I would be sad if Audrey wasn't brailling for me,” said fourth grader, Kira. Hemmer is Kira's transcriber and the two were able to meet and read a story together recently. “Audrey, thank you for transcribing my books,” said Kira. “It was my pleasure. I enjoy reading the books,” said Hemmer. ABLE is always looking for volunteers to help out. For more information on the organization, log onto www.ablenow.org. Fall 2011 On-Site Page 4 ABLE wouldn’t be ABLE without our volunteers! We are very excited to welcome our fall 2011 class of audio readers who are using new digital methods such as Rode NT1a, shock mount, pop filter and microphone cable, and Blue Icicle analog to digital converter. Does that pique your interest? If so, give us a call! Special thanks to the Greater Milwaukee Foundation Sunrise Foundation Fund for financial support of this effort. Our group is quite diverse including several librarians with read-aloud skills, one reader from Chicago and one returning experienced cassette reader. Thank you to all our audio program volunteers! Leslie Armstrong – 2004 Bob Balderson – 2004 Tom Brotton – 2011 Lisa Christopherson – 2011 Linda Cieslik – 2011 Paulina de Haan – 2010 Ann Diliberti – 2010 Martha Donovan – 2011 Judith Ebel – 2005 Bill Fudge – 2008 Eunice Gauger – 1995 Nancy Gill – 1995 Kristie Hayes – 2011 Megan Hindman – 2011 Eleanor Hoehn – before 1975 Patricia Jipson – 1997 Kathy Kerrigan – 2011 Roger Kissinger – 2005 Susan Knorr – 2011 James Kuehn – 1988 John Lonsdale – 2007 Jennifer Lopeman – 2011 Kathleen Luglio – 2004 Shirley Miller – 1990 Phyllis Mittelstadt – 1991 Barbara Nevers –1989 Cynthia Otto – 2011 Jean Peerenboom – 2009 Diana Pine – 2005 Margaret Plevak – 2003 David Raasch – 2005 Phyllis Ravel – 2010 Audio Volunteers, continued: Lorie Rieden – 1985 Barbara Siebecker – 2006 Arlene Smieja – 1988 Lisa Stackpole – 1995 Lenore Tesch – 2004 Bret Tuveson – 2010 Welcome, too, to our braillists in training, and heartfelt thanks to all who have given so much over the years! Braille Program Volunteers Barbara Althoen –1998 Joanne Braun – 2011 Sin Leng Chan – 2010 Giles Daeger – 1993 Patricia Diel – 1998 Kris Drollinger – 2009 Kay Effinger – 1979-1995 and 2007-Present Claire Egan – 2011 Audrey Hemmer – 1981 Cindy Kaczmarowski – 2001 John Kaczmarowski – 2003 Cheri McGrath – 1997 Karyl Price – 1998 Edna Proeber – 1987 Angela Scherbarth – 2010 Lenore Tesch – 2005 Becky Williams – 2009 In Training: Elizabeth Hanson – 2011 Jeanne Jordan – 2011 Bernice Norman – 2011 Christine Pruitt – 2011 John Roberts – 2011 Susan Roberts – 2011 And we would never forget our invaluable office volunteers! Nancy Burneske – 2010 Mary Kellison – 2008 A.J. Meinig – 2009 Melissa Panzer – 2011 Fall 2011 On-Site Page 5 ABLE Director Accepts Award Cheryl Orgas, Executive Director of Audio & Braille Literacy Enhancement, 2007 to present, was given the George B. Walter ’36 Service to Society Award by her alma mater, Lawrence University. This award is presented to recognize alumni of Lawrence University or Milwaukee-Downer College who best exemplify the ideals of a liberal education through socially useful service in their community, the nation, and/or the world. At the Reunion Convocation on June 11, 2011, Lawrence University President Jill Beck read the following: Cheryl, following the high expectations of your professors at Lawrence University, you have been a role model to the blind and an inspiration to those with sight. Your tireless efforts to increase awareness of ABLE’s services has given visually impaired people the ability to enjoy some of the things most of us take for granted — textbooks, magazines, menus, and even concert and wedding programs. You’ve made it your mission to change people’s misconceptions about blindness and to help those with visual impairments lead fulfilling lives. You have succeeded time and time again. Cheryl was acknowledged for her passionate leadership of ABLE, her work with Wisconsin Braille and for her efforts in changing misconceptions about blindness. She has also been a tireless advocate for blind people with The National Federation of the Blind since 1982 and is very involved in her community. Photo: Cheryl Orgas stands between the Lawrence University President Jill Beck (left), and the president of the Lawrence Alumni Association, Cathy Statz. The Big Read Milwaukee The Milwaukee Repertory Theater will be working with community partners to host events to promote and support The Big Read Milwaukee between September, 2011 and March, 2012. The events will include dramatic readings, book discussions, movie screenings, panel discussions, a keynote address, an art contest and The Rep’s production of To Kill a Mockingbird. We, too, are taking part in The Big Read Milwaukee. Linda Vincent, Management Librarian for The Wisconsin Talking Book and Braille Library (WTBBL) and ABLE Executive Director, Cheryl Orgas, along with other blind adults, will lead discussions about the book with blind and visually impaired students at Roosevelt Middle School of the Arts and Rufus King High School. Students will be using their digital audio or braille book from WTBBL in order to participate in this experience. Mayor Tom Barrett told us at the kick-off event to “get the book, read the book!” Our blind children at Milwaukee Public Schools will be getting the book and reading the book along with many other Milwaukeeans. We all hope to see the audio-described performance of To Kill a Mockingbird at the Milwaukee Repertory theater in February. We’re excited that we’re able to participate in this community-wide initiative! Contact Us Our office is open to the public Monday through Thursday from 10 a.m. till 4 p.m. ABLE is closed on days that the Central Library is closed. You may reach us by phone at 414-286-3039, or visit our Website at: www.ablenow.org, or email us at info@ablenow.org. Fall 2011 On-Site Page 6 We couldn’t provide our services without the generosity of our donors, March, 2011 — September, 2011. Thank you!! Marilyn J. Wise ABLE (formerly VSVH) Executive Director, 1988 – 1992 ABLE (VSVH) Administrative Assistant, 1986 – 1988 Died, May 14, 2011 Marilyn brought this organization from an informal group to a legal 501(c)(3) organization. She was a tremendous leader. I feel proud to be following her in this job as executive director. She will be remembered fondly by many. -Cheryl Orgas In Memory of Marilyn J. Wise Anonymous Michael J. Adrian Hazel L. Barnett John W. Daniels Jr. & Irma H. Daniels Helen J. Driver Doris L. Eaton Amy L. & Michael A. Gorgen Hahn Revocable Trust Jack & Mary Jean Harris Eleanor Hoehn Christine & John Kitchener Joan Syner Lareau & Robert A. Lareau Mary E. & Dean R. Lederer Jane Lundberg Virginia K. Mago Karen & Barry Mazin Thomas A. & Mary E. Mitchell Donald Natzke & Erica Weise Richard B. & Roberta M. Protzmann Joaileen E. Prouty Quarles & Brady LLP Della A. Rose Betty Lou A. Schmidt Kathleen S. True VanAkkeren Family Trust Elizabeth M. Warner Earnest Williamson A. Charles/Marilyn Wise Rev. Trust In Memory of Elizabeth Kenney Donald Natzke & Erica Weise In Memory of Robert & Elaine Orgas Ed & Linda Wagner Award in honor of Audrey Hemmer Nonprofit Center of Milwaukee In Honor of Cheryl Orgas Dr. Don & Marian Yoder In honor of Matt Scholtes Thomas Gauthier Gretchen Kapperman Matthew Scholtes Peg Scholtes David & Felicia Vastalo Siewert Donations through United Way of Greater Milwaukee Anonymous Enid J. Gruszka Mary Ann Hand Alisa & Michael Wimmer Wells Fargo Advisors Jeans Day Event William & Jeannie Berrall Jill V. Cody Jeffrey & Marnie Demichiel James P. Dunn Joni K. Nelson Michael & Lisa Schiek James Van De Ven $10,000 and up Forest County Potawatomi Foundation Industries for the Blind Inc. Greater Milwaukee Foundation: Spirit Gifts-SMS Fund (GMF) $5,000 - $9,999 The Marjorie L. Christiansen Foundation Mae E. Demmer Charitable Trust Melitta S. Pick Charitable Trust Stackner Family Foundation $1,000 - $4,999 Dyar Foundation Dr. Harry J. Heeb Foundation Vilter Foundation Inc. Alisa & Michael Wimmer $500 - $999 Adonai Employment Inc. Greendale Lions Club Inc. Cheri McGrath Nonprofit Center of Milwaukee Michael & Lisa Schiek Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Wisconsin Energy Foundation $100 - $499 Karl & Ginny Abendroth Barbara & Henry Althoen Fall 2011 On-Site Page 7 Thank you to more of our generous donors! $100 - $499, continued Richard & Roanne Barnes John W. Daniels Jr. & Irma H. Daniels Kris & Rick Drollinger James P. Dunn Thomas Gauthier Frank & Susan Gedelman Nancy Rottier & Gary Goyke Mary Ann Hand IndependenceFirst Herbert H. Kohl Charities Inc. Waukesha Evening Lions Club Harold & Leann Mester Network For Good William Meeker & Cheryl Orgas Ritz Holman LLP David & Felicia Vastalo Siewert James Van De Ven Patricia & Michael Vastalo Ed & Linda Wagner Elizabeth Waterfall Robert C. & Jenny Watson A Charles/Marilyn Wise Rev. Trust Wisconsin Talking Book and Braille Library Dr. Don & Marian Yoder Up to $99 Anonymous Adaptive Technology Resources Michael J. Adrian Saint Agnes Convent Bonnie Andrews Hazel L. Barnett William & Jeannie Berrall Helen & Gary Brashear Jill V. Cody Alice & Jerry Davis Jeffrey & Marnie Demichiel Helen J. Driver Doris L. Eaton Judith Ebel Diana Egner Joanne Gerszewski Nancy Gill Jon & Nancy Gilmore Amy L. & Michael A. Gorgen Enid J. Gruszka Hahn Revocable Trust Darlene Hall Marilyn & Dan Harmon Jack & Mary Jean Harris Mary L. McCormick & Timothy Hawks Eleanor Hoehn Gretchen Kapperman Gary Kendziorski Christine & John Kitchener Joan Syner Lareau & Robert A. Lareau Mary E. & Dean R. Lederer Jane Lundberg Virginia K. Mago Karen & Barry Mazin Thomas A. & Mary E. Mitchell Phyllis C. Mittelstadt Bonita Mohrhusen Donald Natzke & Erica Weise Joni K. Nelson Betty Jane Orgas Janet & Randall Peterson Diana & Richard Pine Constance Pirtle Planning Council for Health & Human Services Inc. Richard B. & Roberta M. Protzmann Joaileen E. Prouty Quarles & Brady LLP Della A. Rose Margit Schatzman Betty Lou A. Schmidt Matthew Scholtes Peg Scholtes Marjorie & Edward Seigworth Lenore Tesch Kathleen S. True Bret Tuveson VanAkkeren Family Trust Doris Wadzinski Elizabeth M. Warner Carolyn Kott Washburne Earnest Williamson In-Kind donations Eppstein Uhen, Architects: In-Kind donation of 7 Dell Computers Lenore Tesch: In-kind donations of office supplies, baked goods, parking, a book purchase, etc. ABLE participates in United Way’s Community Campaign Donor Choice program. Thank you to our United Way donors. We also thank those who made their online purchases or did web searches using GoodSearch and GoodShop. For more information, please see our website: www.ablenow.org. Fall 2011 On-Site Page 7 Like ABLE on FaceBook www.facebook.com/ablenow.org Our Board of Directors ABLE is so very fortunate to have a board of directors that is engaged, involved and committed to our mission. Thank you, each of you! Barbara Althoen, President Retired Nurse. ABLE Volunteer and Certified Braille Transcriber. Harold Mester, Vice President Public Information Manager, Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors. Thomas Gauthier, Secretary President, Adonai Employment, Inc. Robert Watson, Treasurer Partner, James L. Mohr & Associates LLP. Richard Barnes Professor, Concordia University Wisconsin. Kris Drollinger Medical Transcriptionist, Aurora Health Care, ABLE volunteer. Frank Gedelman Senior Executive Consultant. Gordon Leech Attorney/Managing Member, Consumer & Employment Law Center of Wisconsin. Cheri McGrath Retired Milwaukee Public School Teacher. ABLE Volunteer and Certified Braille Transcriber. Diana Pine Administrative Assistant, The Cathedral Center (CCI). ABLE Audio Volunteer. David Siewert Vice President of Regional Development, HealthTeacher, Inc. Jeffrey M. Speller Operations Manager, Boyle Fredrickson, S.C. Linda Vincent Management Librarian, Wisconsin Talking Book and Braille Library. Ex-Officio board member. Audio & Braille Literacy Enhancement, Inc. Central Library Building 803 W. Wells St. Milwaukee, WI 53233-1436 Printed on 100% Post-Consumer Recycled Paper