[Mt-blind] President Signs Coin Bill Honoring Legacy of Louis Braille

[Edward C Robbins]

This is great news.  I have been waiting for the news that the bill was
signed.
        I will wait now for the notice of availability of the coins.
Ted 
On Fri, 04 Aug 2006 21:51:42 -0500 David Andrews <dandrews at visi.com>
writes:
> 
> >
> >National Federation of the Blind Hails Passage of Bill
> >             to Help Fund Braille Literacy Campaign
> >
> >Washington, DC - On July 27, President George W.  Bush signed into 
> law
> >the Louis Braille Bicentennial--Braille Literacy Commemorative Coin 
> Act,
> >introduced by Representative Robert W. Ney (R-Ohio), Housing and
> >Community Opportunity Subcommittee Chairman.  H.R.  2872 
> commemorates
> >the 200th anniversary of the birth of Louis Braille, who created 
> the
> >raised-dot system of reading and writing for the blind that bears 
> his
> >name.  It calls for the Secretary of the Treasury to issue up to 
> 400,000
> >silver-dollar coins commemorating this bicentennial anniversary.  
> The
> >bill is part of a larger campaign initiated by the National 
> Federation
> >of the Blind (NFB) to encourage Braille literacy among blind 
> youth.
> >
> >Rep.  Ney said: Given the proper tools, humans can overcome 
> apparently
> >insurmountable obstacles and achieve great things. Louis Braille 
> did
> >just that and hundreds of thousands of blind Americans do so every 
> day.
> >Honoring Louis Braille and promoting literacy for the blind will 
> have
> >lasting value for our society and I am very pleased that the 
> President
> >signed this bill, which will help achieve both of these important 
> goals.
> >
> >A definite correlation exists between Braille literacy and 
> employment
> >rates among the blind, proving that Braille literacy is a vital 
> pathway
> >to success.  Over 80% of employed blind or visually impaired 
> adults
> >report using Braille every day, but the number of blind or 
> visually
> >impaired students learning Braille has been decreasing.  Today, 
> only 10%
> >of blind or visually impaired students learn to read and write 
> Braille.
> >
> >Dr.  Marc Maurer, president of the NFB, said: Louis Braille 
> recognized
> >long ago that the fact that a person is blind does not mean he or 
> she
> >must be limited in life.  He understood that providing the blind 
> with
> >practical, innovative solutions was key to their independence.  
> This
> >positive attitude towards blindness reflects the Federations 
> philosophy
> >as well.  The NFB applauds the signing of this bill, which will
> >ultimately result in an increase in Braille literacy as a result of 
> the
> >programs funded by the surcharge proceeds.
> >
> >Under the new legislation a $10 surcharge will be added to each 
> coin.
> >Money from coin sales goes to the NFB, which will then match the
> >proceeds dollar for dollar through other fundraising activities.  
> In
> >addition to projects submitted by NFB affiliates, the NFB will 
> invite
> >other organizations serving the blind to submit Braille literacy
> >projects to its planning committee for possible funding.  For 
> example,
> >the money will support NFB-approved Braille literacy initiatives, 
> such
> >as the NFBs Braille Readers Are Leaders Contest.  By offering 
> special
> >recognition and cash prizes for the number of pages read, this 
> national
> >Braille-reading competition encourages students from kindergarten
> >through twelfth grade to read books in their free time.  With 
> practice
> >in reading Braille, young people improve their reading skills and
> >develop a deep fondness for reading. As a result blind youth are 
> better
> >equipped for future successes in all areas of their lives.
> >
> >Hannah Weatherd, age 13, of Saratoga, Wyoming, who won this years
> >competition and can read Braille faster than most people can speak, 
> says
> >the program has dramatically improved her Braille-reading skills:  
> The
> >more I read, the faster I get.  I learn a lot about topics I didnt 
> know
> >much about before.  The more I read, the more I learn.  This will 
> help
> >me to become a teacher someday.  Braille has definitely made a 
> positive
> >difference in my life.
> >
> >The NFB fosters Braille literacy by offering mentoring programs in 
> which
> >experienced Braille readers teach and encourage beginners.  NFB 
> also
> >offers education for children, research in effective methods for
> >teaching and learning Braille, and formal instruction in its 
> residential
> >training centers.  The Federation emphasizes Braille literacy 
> throughout
> >its programs and services.
> >
> >Louis Braille, born in 1809 in France, was blinded as a young 
> child
> >during an accident in his fathers workshop.  His thirst for 
> knowledge
> >and love of reading fostered his determination to create an 
> efficient
> >reading system that could be inexpensively reproduced in book form. 
>  The
> >resulting Braille reading method used different formations of six
> >distinct raised dots to denote different letters.  Because of 
> Louis
> >Brailles contributions, Braille readers today can read up to 400 
> words
> >per minute, or more, comparable to the reading rates of most 
> sighted
> >people.
> >
> >The coins, which go on sale in 2009, will emphasize Braille 
> literacy by
> >featuring Louis Brailles image and raised dots that spell out Brl  
> the
> >Braille contraction for the word Braille.  This will be the first 
> coin
> >ever minted by the United States Treasury with a Braille symbol.  
> To
> >learn more about the Louis Braille commemorative coin, Braille 
> literacy
> >campaigns, or for general information, contact the NFB at (410)
> >659-9314, or visit http://www.nfb.org.
> 
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