BOSTON (WBZ-AM) -- Each month, “WBZ Cares” highlights a worthy non-profit organization and tells the story of what that organization does for the community. This month WBZ is profiling The Carroll Center for the Blind in Newton, empowering those who are blind and visually impaired to achieve independence and lead a fulfilling life.
The Carroll Center was founded in 1936 and President and CEO Greg Donnelly says Father Thomas Carroll is the one who moved the Center forward.
“Father Carroll’s passion for helping those with blindness, after seeing the needs that the veterans, the blinded vets needed, he was really dedicated to spreading the word and the mission of our organization to serve the blind and the vision impaired and to empower them to lead a self-fulfilled and independent life,” Donnelly outlined.
Chief Program Officer Dina Rosenbaum says The Carroll Center was one of the first to establish a vision rehabilitation program for adults.
“We teach skills, but a lot of what we do is the psychological adjustment to vision loss and a lot of our classes are not just how you pour a cup of coffee but it’s how you organize your life and giving you the confidence that you can do those things. You can go back to work. You can have your role in your family and friends circle again,” stated Rosenbaum.
Brian Charlson is the Director of Technology. He is blind and learned a special talent at The Carroll Center.
“For the sake of those who aren’t used to listening to things at fast speed, I’m going to adjust the speed…now it’s at normal, 50%. But a blind person, just like a sighted person learns to speed read if their occupation or activity requires it, they cover a lot of information, we learn to speed listen. I don’t think I’ve listened to things at normal speed for years,” Charlson outlined.
WBZ NewsRadio1030's Doug Cope Reports