Working Together Toward a Common Goal
People in the Chicago area are fortunate to have two world-class resources to help them with their low vision needs. For more than 70 years, The Chicago Lighthouse has been a leader in providing low-vision diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation (and, more recently, assistive technology sales and training). Meanwhile, in Winnetka, Hadley has been assisting individuals–particularly older adults–who are blind or visually impaired with both practical and social/emotional assistance, including Braille instruction and strategies to help adjust to the psychological impacts of vision loss.
This fall, the two organizations announced a partnership that combines their respective areas of expertise through the creation of two video series geared toward older adults experiencing vision loss. The video series will offer access to the organizations’ knowledge, training and resources for those experiencing vision loss, but do not live within our geographic reach.
The first series, “Adjusting and Coping Together,” will be created by Hadley and address topics such as grief and loss, isolation and loneliness, asking for help, and self-esteem. The second series, “Living Well with Vision Loss,” will be developed by The Chicago Lighthouse and will address the various ways in which assistive technology can help build confidence and independence for those experiencing vision loss. Both video series will promote The Chicago Lighthouse’s online assistive technology store (Mytoolsforliving.com), which provides access to a large variety of products to facilitate activities like reading, cooking and other hobbies and encourage independence.
In the following Q&A, John Roselli, The Chicago Lighthouse’s Chief Innovation Officer, explains the partnership.
How did this partnership come together?
Both Hadley and The Chicago Lighthouse are fortunate to have Sandy Forsythe as an active member of their boards. Sandy, who is President of the Forsythe Family Foundation, is very passionate about helping people who have low vision find the resources they need to be successful in all aspects of their life. Her husband, Rick, had macular degeneration, and was greatly helped by our two organizations’ programs. She thought it would be great if we could find a way to work together to help even more people, particularly those who aren’t fortunate enough to live in our area and have personal access to our Tools for Living stores and assistive technology counselors.
What issue does this partnership address?
The number of people who are experiencing vision loss is increasing dramatically as our population ages, and for many of them, that experience can be psychologically traumatic and isolating. Hadley’s videos have already demonstrated great success in helping people come to terms with their vision loss, find community among others with vision loss and learn some functional skills – like learning Braille – to address some of the practical challenges of their new realities.
One of the pieces that was missing, however, was to provide their community members with assistive devices that can drastically improve their independence and empower them to continue to do the activities they have loved to do throughout their lives. That’s where The Lighthouse comes in. We have the Mytoolsforliving.com website, which offers an extensive catalog of assistive technology products, and experts on staff who can help guide individuals to find the right devices to fit their needs.
Best of all, because all of these videos will be hosted online, anyone, anywhere in the world, will be able to benefit from these resources, as long as they have an internet connection. They will be able to watch and experience the Adjusting and Coping Together series to help build community and confidence with the overall message: “You are not alone,” and they will get practical information about assistive technology solutions from the “Living Well with Vision Loss” video series. These videos and Mytoolsforliving.com will work together to provide complete solutions for older adults experiencing vision loss.
How will those experiencing vision loss learn about this video series?
Our partnership includes a marketing plan, which will help us reach individuals throughout the country in need of our services. Our teams will work together to coordinate messaging across our existing databases to spread the word among our clients and partners. In addition, we will work with Hadley on targeted outreach and some paid media opportunities.
