Helping others see
When two surgeries failed to restore her vision, Margaret S. had to stop working at her administrative job. Her vision loss challenged other aspects of life, as well, from paying bills and cooking meals to walking around her busy Los Angeles neighborhood. The disruption she faced is common among those experiencing vision loss, which can result from injury, a medical condition, or aging.
Margaret was referred to Braille Institute by her ophthalmologist and met with a low-vision specialist, who provided an optical magnifier to help her read. Margaret also learned how to organize her home for safety and use a white cane. She enrolled in classes that taught her how to use assistive technology, which helped her to return to work.
“Whatever challenges come, I face them head-on,” she says.
Braille Institute has served Southern California communities since 1919. Its seven locations offer in-person classes and resources, and services include one-on-one assessments and personalized instruction.
Because of private funders’ generous donations, Braille Institute offers these services to its members like Margaret free of charge. As the organization looks toward the future with even greater numbers of people with low vision, it sees an opportunity to increase its service base and impact.
An aging population adds pressure
Studies predict U.S. cases of low vision or blindness will double by 2050, driven by aging-related conditions like macular degeneration, cataracts, and glaucoma.
Adults who encounter vision loss must relearn how to function in daily life without a sense they’ve long relied on.
For 105 years, Braille Institute’s mission has been to positively transform the lives of individuals with blindness and low vision. Yet it still battles misconceptions about what it does; the organization offers much more than braille instruction. People with any degree of vision loss can benefit from its in-person classes, social support, and enrichment.
Learning new skills opens doors to academic and employment success. Similarly, using assistive technology helps people living with blindness or low vision to retain their independence, mobility, and participation in society. These interventions require training and funding to be effective, which is why Braille Institute remains critical.
With such high demand for services, the organization found it challenging to add people into the system in a timely manner. Participants require a doctor’s referral to get access to services. Information must pass through several steps, and bottlenecks slow the process.
“We’ve needed to streamline our operational processes to make it easier and faster for new people to on-board and receive our services. We look at the workflow, technology and systems to improve the customer experience,” says Sandy Shin, vice president of marketing and communications at Braille Institute.
Data-rich insights
Braille Institute chose Bonterra to help manage workflows to get services delivered in a more efficient manner. It also uses its software to analyze data sets, gleaning important insights about how it can better serve its community. The product also makes it possible to provide more detailed reporting to donors.
“Our reporting accuracy and the precision of the data on the individuals we serve have significantly improved. This has been invaluable in allowing us to analyze data in various ways, as some funders require highly detailed datasets,” says Dave Shah, director of information technology at Braille Institute.
Bonterra’s case management software enables the organization to track referring optometrists and ophthalmologists, which offers insight into how people are finding the organization. Those rich data reports are also useful in reporting impact and planning for future demand.
A vision for growth
To serve the growing low vision population, Braille Institute aims to increase the number of people served by 10x in the next five years. That amounts to 200,000 people annually. In 2024, the organization relaunched its website, which can be translated into 12 languages and uses an accessible font (also created by the Braille Institute). It features free online classes, videos, and learning resources for members, caregivers, educators, and volunteers in California and beyond.
The organization is committed to making the latest technology available to advance accessibility and inclusivity. It has prioritized forming partnerships with other organizations to expand its base of students, patrons, and clients.
“The need for our service has never been greater,” says Sandy. “We have the resources and commitment to expand our capabilities to reach and serve more individuals.”
The goal is to continue building on its successes, one person at a time, starting with people like Barbara, who lost much of her vision, as well as her independence. “I learned so much about things that would help me,” she says. “It was amazing that after struggling with ‘I can’t’ for a couple of years, all of a sudden, there were things I could do to turn ‘I can’t’ into ‘I can.’”
If you’re interested in supporting the work of Braille Institute, you can donate today or make a planned gift.
