Category: Inspirational Stories

This week at work I received a call from an 87 year old man who wanted to get a second opinion on treatment for his advanced dry age related macular degeneration (AMD). He stated that he had been seeing a macular degeneration specialist who had told him that there was nothing more that he could offer him.

(continue reading…)

I am 59 years old and I developed Stargardt’s disease when I was 11 years old (even though they didn’t know what it was back then), and by the time I was 16, I was legally blind (20/200).  I worked for the National Park (continue reading…)

Claude Monet (1840-1926): (continue reading…)

Marla Runyan is an American woman who has made a name for herself as a successful professional distance runner in a variety of national track events, the Paralympics, marathons, and the Olympics.

At the age of nine, Marla was diagnosed with Stargardts disease, a juvenile form of macular degeneration. She became legally blind and now relies on various low vision aids for reading and tasks that require detail vision. Marla’s central vision is compromised, but she relies on peripheral vision when running and claims she has never had a collision that was due to her limited sight. (continue reading…)

The following story was submitted by one of our readers and I think we can all agree that Babe is a true inspiration and a perfect fit for this section. Our thanks go out to her son who was kind enough to share this with us.

“My mother will be 99 years young in September 2010. When she was 91 she had been reading (one of her most favorite things to do) and she suddenly felt a pain in her eye. She lost clarity and things became hazy to the point she could no longer read her book.” (continue reading…)

Reni Jackson lost much of his sight, but he never lost his competitiveness.

After his eyesight deteriorated when he was a teenager, the Louisville native continued to thrive in sports. He eventually became a star in the niche sport of goalball, which was created to aid the blind. (continue reading…)

A famous local artist, Virginia Doyle, has graciously lent her work to Benetech/Bookshare for display on conference room and hall walls.

The unique aspect of this display is that in 2002, Virginia was diagnosed with macular degeneration, a medical condition of the eye that makes it difficult or impossible to read or recognize faces.  This disease is a leading cause of blindness among older citizens due to the loss of light sensing cells in the retina. (continue reading…)

Brian McKeever never set out to be a trailblazer for elite athletes with a disability. The legally blind cross-country skier from Canmore, Alta., just wanted to push the limits of his own ability.

But when he tackles an Olympic cross-country trail in the Callaghan Valley in February against the world’s best endurance athletes, the man with just 10 per cent vision — all of it peripheral — will be pushing a clear vision of athletic excellence that is blind to limitation. (continue reading…)

Canadian cross-country skier Brian Mckeever is the first winter sports athlete to compete in the Olympics and Paralympics. mckeever, who is visually impaired, believes in the power of big dreams.