I have never met bigger supporters of Braille than Erica and Heidi Musser.
They do more than criticise others for not having it.  They create options
locally for Braille readers here in the Chicago area.  Who are Erica and
Heidi Musser?  Read anearly all to the end to find out.

kelly




Chicago Tribune
May 17, 2001


Library adds Braille to stacks

By Jon Anderson

  "It's way cool to have bumpy books at the library," one youngster
murmured Wednesday, as he fingered his way through the Skokie Public
Library's new selection of children's books in Braille.

It was a morning of considerable festivity.

    "You like Dr. Seuss, hon?" teacher Paula Sprecher asked pupil
Michael Lowery, leading him toward dozens of thick, white-papered
books with spiral bindings. Nearby, Giovanni Bahena rested his white
cane against a shelf of fresh titles, pulled out an edition of "The
Mouse & The Motorcycle" and took it to the checkout counter.

Later, there were speeches and cookies.

The cause of all the hoopla was the inauguration of the Jeanne and
Paul Simon Braille Book Collection, the starter pile for what the
library hopes will be an expanding service to the visually impaired in
the Chicago area.

It was also a time to say a few words in favor of Braille, a system of
printing and writing using a six-dot code in various combinations and
named for French educator Louis Braille. In the early 1800s, at the
age of 3, Braille was blinded in an accident that occurred while he
was playing with tools in his father's harness shop.

Despite the handicap, he went on to become an accomplished organist
and cellist, then worked out his system of messages coded in dots and
embossed on cardboard to meet the needs of the sightless.

"Unfortunately, these days, it's too easy to use books on tape," said
Simon, the retired U.S. senator whose sighted grandmother spent her
retirement years transcribing books into Braille. Audio materials are
fine for recreational listening, Simon said, "but you can't get
instruction manuals on tape, to learn how to do things."

"It's worth noting that 91 percent of blind people who seek jobs and
can read Braille are employed," he said. "If you don't have the
ability to use Braille, you have far fewer chances."

The Skokie Public Library's Board of Trustees decided to name the
collection for Simon and his late wife, Jeanne, "in honor of their
commitment to serving people with disabilities and promoting literacy
for all," said the board's president John Graham. During his time in
the Senate, Simon wrote the National Literacy Act, Graham noted.

Mrs. Simon was a constant advocate for libraries. Though books in
Braille can be borrowed, by mail, from the Library of Congress, the
Skokie collection gives visually impaired children the chance to
browse in a library, sample and choose what they want to read.

As often happens, the collection came about because of the passion of
a few people, notably Heidi Musser and her mother, Erika. "We are
grateful to Erika Musser. She initiated the program, she was the
driving force," Simon said.

Now 34, Heidi Musser was born without sight. Despite the disability,
she graduated from college, became a triathlete and, since then, has
spent much time tutoring Akash Patel, a blind 4th-grade pupil at Hynes
Elementary School in Morton Grove, teaching him to swim, sing--and
read Braille.

Frustrated by a shortage of Braille books available locally, Heidi
Musser put Akash Patel's case to Lands' End, a clothing retailer. Its
program, "Born Heroes," makes awards of $5,000 to children between the
ages of 6 and 12 "who strive to solve some of the world's most
daunting problems." A month later, the company sent a check to
Seedlings Braille Books for Children, a not-for-profit transcribing
service in Livonia, Mich.

Seedlings came through with 112 volumes, including such popular
favorites as "Amelia Bedelia," "Curious George" and Harry Potter, as
well as classics by Dr. Seuss, Beverly Cleary, Roald Dahl and Judy
Blume.

"This is very exciting," said Debbie Worman of the Hadley School for
the Blind who, among other duties, teaches Braille to sighted parents.
"Children who are learning Braille love to find mom and dad's
mistakes," she reported.

"It's just marvelous, this collection," added Alice Post, manager of
the Illinois Instructional Materials Center for Visual Disabilities, a
state agency. "It's hard to buy books in Braille. But having them in
libraries can really help.

"With books in Braille and computer programs and Braille note-takers,
and all the other new advances in technology, there is no limit to
what visually impaired kids can do today."


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