IHU‘E — Representatives of the National Federation of the Blind’s Kaua‘i Chapter and the state’s Department of Human Services Division of Vocational Rehabilitation and Services for the Blind will be on hand Oct. 7 at Kukui Grove Center. That date
IHU‘E — Representatives of the National Federation of the Blind’s Kaua‘i Chapter and the state’s Department of Human Services Division of Vocational Rehabilitation and Services for the Blind will be on hand Oct. 7 at Kukui Grove Center.
That date is designated as White Cane Safety Awareness Day on Kaua‘i and will feature a walk around the mall starting at 10 a.m.
This year’s National White Cane Safety Day will be celebrated Oct. 15 with activities planned for different cities around the country to increase public awareness about the meaning of the white cane with red tips and travel safety needs for blind citizens.
The public is invited to join the white cane users in promoting pedestrian safety and a greater awareness of the white cane and its significance of freedom, independence and empowerment for persons who are blind and visually impaired.
Kaua‘i Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr. is also expected to present a proclamation to the NFB representatives who will be on hand at the mall until around 2 p.m.
Also scheduled during the event is a KNFB Reader Mobile demonstration by Stan Young.
In 1921, James Biggs, a photographer from Bristol, England, became blind following an accident, according to a history of the white cane on the Lions Club website.
Because he was feeling uncomfortable with the amount of traffic around his home, he painted his walking stick white to be more easily visible.
In 1930, the late George Bonham, president of the Peoria Lions Club in Illinois, introduced the idea of using the white cane with a red band as a means of assisting the blind and visually impaired in independent mobility.
The Peoria Lions Club approved the idea, white canes were made and distributed, the Peoria City Council adopting an ordinance giving the bearers the right-of-way to cross streets.
This news quickly spread to other Lions Clubs across the country and their visually handicapped friends experimented with white canes.
Overwhelming acceptance of the white cane idea by the blind and sighted gave cane users a unique method of identifying their special need for travel consideration among their sighted counterparts.
To make the American people more fully aware of the meaning of the white cane and of the need for motorists to exercise special care for the blind or visually impaired person who carries it, Congress on Oct. 6, 1964, approved a resolution authorizing the president to annually issue a proclamation designating Oct. 15 as National White Cane Safety Day.
The NFB, a leading organization for the blind, has established the third week in May as “White Cane Week” when special concentration of efforts to educate the public concerning the hopes and aspirations of the blind is emphasized.
Call 274-3333 for more information about program services for persons who are blind and visually impaired.
• Dennis Fujimoto, staff writer and photographer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 253) or dfujimoto@kauaipubco.com.
