Disability Voting Website

The Georgia Secretary of State, Karen Handel, has added a page to her website that deals specifically with voting procedures for the disabled. The page is accessible to screen readers and gives information about registering to vote, voting at polling places, voting by mail, assistance at polling places, and early/advance voting. You can visit this site at http://www.sos.ga.gov/Elections/disability_voting.htm

Talking Book Center Volunteers

Today's Athens-Banner Herald features a story about the huge impact volunteers have on the Athens-Clarke County Library. The Athens Regional Library system currently has about 200 volunteers, and the work they do is invaluable. Volunteers staff the Library Store, make displays in the Children's Area, work on research projects in the Heritage Room, repair books in Tech Services, and perform many other vital tasks.

The Talking Book Center has about 30 active volunteers, and they help us provide our services to 1500 patrons throughout northeast Georgia. We have volunteers who check in the daily mail - opening each of the incoming books and rewinding, inspecting, and restoring order to the tapes. We get over 1000 books turned in each week, so this is a big job!

We also have volunteers who clean and repair the tape players. As our machines age, this becomes a bigger and bigger job and we absolutely could not function without them! Another set of volunteers are our readers - those who lend their vocal talents to record the weekly newspapers and newsletters many of you receive.

Each month, our volunteers log over 100 hours of their time helping us serve our patrons. The staff of the Talking Book Center would like to take a moment to give them a big "THANK YOU!!" And don't forget to read the story in the Athens Banner-Herald...one of the volunteers featured is our own Corwin Mokler! www.onlineathens.com/stories/042509/new_432607086.shtml

Large Print books

Many patrons have mentioned on their patron surveys they wish we had large print books to send by mail. Unfortunately, the NLS program does not have any large print books in the collection.

However, many local libraries not only have large print, but may also have a homebound or outreach service. These services are designed to provide library materials for people who cannot get to the library easily. They may offer books by mail or as part of a Bookmobile schedule.

We urge you to contact your local library and ask about the availability of these services.

Great Article About Multiple Choices

The Athens-Banner Herald ran a great story recently about the Multiple Choices Center for Independent Living and their quest to find the funding to continue their mission. Multiple Choices helps "differently abled" people gain the skills necessary to live independently and find employment. Multiple Choices would also like to be able to grant small loans to its clients to help them start their own businesses.

To read the article, please visit www.onlineathens.com/stories/040809/new_426956916.shtml.

To contact Multiple Choices, you may call them at 706-549-1020 or 877-549-1020.

NFB-Newsline Goes Online!

The National Federation of the Blind announced that its Newsline service, which allows the blind to hear newspapers and TV listings over the telephone, has expanded to offer online and downloadable news as well. The following is the NFB press release:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT:
Chris Danielsen
Director of Public Relations
National Federation of the Blind
(410) 659-9314, extension 2330
(410) 262-1281 (Cell)
cdanielsen@nfb.org

National Federation of the Blind Enhances and Expands Newspaper
Service for the Blind
NFB-NEWSLINE(r)Online Offers Blind Individuals More Options for Accessing the News

Baltimore, Maryland (March 31, 2009): NFB-NEWSLINE(r), the largest electronic newspaper service in the world for blind and print-disabled Americans, is pleased to announce the launch of NFB-NEWSLINE(r) Online www.nfbnewslineonline.org/.

Through NFB-NEWSLINE(r) Online's groundbreaking features, subscribers can enjoy both an enhanced experience in reading the news and dramatically increased
flexibility in how they choose to access their favorite publication's content.

Dr. Marc Maurer, President of the National Federation of the Blind, said: "The NFB-NEWSLINE(r) service was created so that blind people could benefit from independent access to information on world news and hometown events in the same way that our sighted colleagues can. The new features offered by NFB-NEWSLINE(r) Online are an extension of this service's ability to allow independent and flexible access to news content by the blind. I am very proud of the increased choice and
convenience that initiatives like Web News on Demand and NFB-NEWSLINE(r)In Your Pocket provide to NFB-NEWSLINE(r) subscribers."

NFB-NEWSLINE(r), which began operation in 1995, offers over 275 newspapers and magazines as well as TV listings to over 65,000 subscribers through a standard touch-tone telephone. With the exciting launch of NFB-NEWSLINE(r) Online, subscribers also now have unequaled access and unrivaled flexibility in how they read their favorite publications. Two new initiatives have been designed to enhance the subscriber's experience: Web News on Demand and NFB-NEWSLINE(r) In Your Pocket.

Through the easy-to-use Web News on Demand feature, subscribers can, for the first time ever, visit a secure Web site that offers a customizable reading experience and the ability to send entire publications, particular sections, or single articles to their e-mail inbox. NFB-NEWSLINE(r) In Your Pocket is a dynamic software
application that a subscriber installs on his or her computer. Through an Internet connection, this software automatically downloads the publications of the subscriber's choice to his or her portable digital talking book player (such as the Victor Reader Stream or Icon/Braille+).

Jerry Moreno, a retired social worker from North Carolina, said: "I love being able to get my favorite papers onto my digital talking book player in such an easy and quick way! NFB-NEWSLINE(r) In Your Pocket does it all for me, so that I can go about my morning routine and by the time I'm done my papers are loaded and ready for me to read along with my cup of coffee."

David DeNotaris, director of Bureau of Blindness & Visual Services with the Pennsylvania Office of Vocational Rehabilitation, said: "As a husband, father, avid sports fan, and busy professional, I particularly appreciate the fact that Web News on Demand allows me to access relevant local, national, and international news quickly, simply, and independently."

To experience the groundbreaking features of NFB-NEWSLINE(r) Online, please
visit http://www.nfbnewslineonline.org/.

For further information please write to swhite@nfb.org or call (866) 504-7300.