The Center for Low Vision Rehabilitation
Henry Greene, O.D., FAAO
3115 Academy Road
Durham, NC 27707
800-942-1499 (Toll free)
919-493-7456
919-493-1718 (Fax)
Web site
E-mail contacts

The Center for Vision Rehabilitation specializes in providing low vision care for individuals who are visually impaired. Vision rehabilitation uses special methods of evaluation and treatment to determine methods to maximize vision for individuals whose vision is not adequate for their needs - such as reading, driving, reading signs, seeing the blackboard, and using the computer.

c/o James Benton
ABBA President
1209 Somerset Road
Raleigh, NC 27610
919-755-0700
www.abba1951.org
E-mail: president@abba1951.org  

Since the 1940s, the ABBA has enabled blind and visually impaired youths and adults to bowl alongside sighted friends and family. The development of special guide rails has made this possible.

The ABBA has over 2000 members in more than 125 leagues across the United States and Canada. ABBA sponsors blind bowling leagues for adults, an annual tournament, and publishes The Blind Bowler.

45-A South French Broad Avenue
Asheville, NC 28801
828-252-5706
E-mail: eyeclinic01@bellsouth.net
No web site at present

7730 North Point Boulevard
Winston-Salem, NC 27106
800-242-7726 (Toll free)
336-759-2257
336-245-0640 (Fax)
www.communitylowvision.com  

The Community Low Vision Center offers comprehensive resources for persons with low vision, and supports and teaches individuals to utilize their existing vision in order to maximize functional independence. This can be accomplished through the use of adaptive strategies including lighting, contrast, magnification, field enhancement, positioning, and with the aid of optical and non-optical devices.

Low Vision Services
DUMC Box 3802
Durham, NC 27710
800-422-1575 (Toll free)
919-684-0569 (Appointments)
Web site
E-mail: info@dukeeye.org

Duke offers comprehensive vision rehabilitation through a multi-disciplinary team of health care providers for patients who have lost vision to age-related macular degeneration, glaucoma, stroke, diabetes, and other eye diseases.

Services include a comprehensive visual function evaluation, technology assessment and training, and occupational therapy evaluation and training. Disability adjustment counseling services and support groups are also available for patients and their families.

Low Vision Rehabilitation Services
Stacy Levinson, O.D.
704-716-2020
www.eyeoptix.net  
E-mail: info@eyeoptix.net   
Office locations  

The low vision rehabilitation service begins with a thorough vision and ocular health evaluation. Spectacles, magnifiers, and other devices may be prescribed, based on specific goals. Training will be provided to ensure correct use and maximize success.

Low Vision Clinic
3333 Silas Creek Parkway
Winston-Salem, NC 27103
336-718-5780
336-718-9272 (Fax)
Low Vision Clinic web site

The Low Vision Clinic of Forsyth Medical Center is a program to evaluate and treat people with a visual impairment whose corrected vision provides some usable vision, but for whom poor vision still interferes with performance of activities of daily living.

Helen Keller National Center for Deaf-Blind Youths and Adults
National Office Headquarters:
141 Middle Neck Road
Sands Point, NY 11050-1218
Switchboard hours: 8 a.m. to 3:45 p.m.
516-944-8900 (Voice)
516-944-8908 (VP)
516-944-8637 (TTY)
516-944-7302 (Fax)
E-mail: hkncinfo@hknc.org

Regional Representative contact information: www.hknc.org/FieldServicesREGREPADD.htm

The Center provides services to youth and adults who are deaf-blind according to the definition of deaf-blindness in the Helen Keller Act. The national center in New York and regional offices that serve each state provide advocacy, support groups, information, and services to people who have both a vision and a hearing loss.

The mission of the Helen Keller National Center for Deaf-Blind Youths and Adults (HKNC) is to enable each person who is deaf-blind to live and work in his or her community of choice. Authorized by an Act of Congress in 1967, the Helen Keller National Center for Deaf-Blind Youths and Adults is a national rehabilitation program serving youth and adults who are deaf-blind.

914-920 West Lee Street
Greensboro, NC 37403
800-909-7086 (Customer service)
336-274-1591
336-544-3739 (Fax)
www.industriesoftheblind.com

The mission of Industries of the Blind (IOB) is "to enhance the opportunities for people who are blind to achieve greater vocational, personal, and economic independence."

IOB, Inc. employs over 100 employees in various manufacturing and service direct labor, supervisory, and management positions. From our very beginning, our directors have believed in reinvesting excess earnings in the purchase of new equipment, the development of new products, and the improvement of quality to create and sustain jobs for blind people. 

960 Corporate Drive, Suite 406
Hillsborough, NC 27278
919-643-7640
919-732-6624 (Fax)
www.invisionservices.info
E-mail: invision@mindspring.com

The mission of Invision Services is to help children and adults with vision loss to learn, function, and move as successfully and independently as possible within their homes, schools, and communities.

Invision provides the following services:

Special education and related services for visually impaired students in the public schools. Invision contracts with public school systems to provide professionals who work within their schools to meet the special education and related services needs of visually impaired students, Pre-Kindergarten through 12th Grade.

Vision-related rehabilitation services for a growing population of adults adapting to vision loss. We evaluate their visual and functional abilities and design instructional programs that fit their unique needs and daily living goals.

4126 Berkeley Avenue
Kinston, NC 28504
252-523-1019
252-523-7090 (Fax)
www.lionsindustries.org
E-mail contacts: www.lionsindustries.org/contact.htm

Lions Industries for the Blind, Inc. (LIB) provides employment opportunities for visually challenged individuals in a work setting that affords both income and dignity to the individual, with no compromise on the quality of the product.

Most products are sold to the Federal Government under the Javits-Wagner-O'Day Act. LIB also provides employment for people with other serious disabilities, such as deafness, retardation, diabetes, and orthopedic problems.

50 Doctors Drive, Suite 403
Asheville, NC 28801
828-213-4370
Low Vision Services web site
E-mail: sue.ponder@msj.org

Low Vision Services of Mission Hospitals is a resource for people with irreversible changes in vision that cannot be corrected by conventional eyeglasses. The goal of low vision is to help people make the best use of remaining sight and remain as independent as possible.

Additional services include instruction in independent living skills, support groups, information and community referrals, and occupational therapy for vision loss caused by stroke or brain injury.

704 Louise Avenue
Charlotte, NC 28204
704-372-3870
704-372-3872 (Fax)
www.mabnc.org
Contact Metrolina

Metrolina Association for the Blind (MAB) is a private non-profit agency that has provided services to blind and visually impaired people since 1934. Metrolina Association for the Blind became a member agency of United Way in 1938, an affiliation it continues to enjoy today.

Personal Adjustment and Rehabilitation Services (PAR) helps people who are blind and visually impaired learn techniques of daily living and ways to increase their independence. Rehabilitation specialists develop a personal relationship with every client in order to understand each person's unique needs and to implement a program tailored to the individual.

Accessible Braille Services includes Textbook Mastering and Copy Services; Statement Rendering Services, which transcribes monthly billing statements for visually impaired people into braille or large print; and Additional Transcription Services, which transcribes other items into braille and large print, including insurance policies, annual reports, legal documents, employee orientation materials, voter ballots, menus, and personal letters.

MAB also provides support services, such as an aids and appliances store, transportation, and a descriptive video library.

2601 Mail Services Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-2601
866-222-1546 (Toll free)
919-733-9822
919-733-9769 (Fax)
www.ncdhhs.gov/dsb
Contact information: Contact information 

Since 1935, the mission of the North Carolina Division of Services for the Blind has been to enable people who are blind or visually impaired to reach their goals of independence and employment.

Services include:

• Career Counseling
• Vocational Evaluation
• On-The-Job Training
• Vocational Training
• Supported Employment/Job Coaching
• Small Business Projects
• Job Placement
• Independent Living Skills
• Safe Travel Skills
• Adjustment To Vision Loss Training
• Technology Training
• Job Site Evaluation
• Low Vision Aids
• Eye-Related Surgery/Treatment

2801 Mail Services Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-2801
919-855-3500
919-855-3579 (TTY)
919-733-7968 (Fax)
dvr.dhhs.state.nc.us

3200 Bush Street
Raleigh, NC 27609
919-256-4220
919-850-9442 (Fax)
www.rlcb.net  
E-mail: hmiller@rlcb.net

The Raleigh Lions Clinic for the Blind is a private nonprofit rehabilitation facility. Since it was established in 1966, the Clinic has provided vocational evaluation, medical services, work adjustment training, and limited transitional employment for persons who are blind or visually impaired throughout North Carolina. The Raleigh (Host) Lions Club sponsors the Clinic in cooperation with the Division of Services for the Blind, a state agency.

205 West John Street
Mt. Olive, NC 28365-1634
919-635-1000
www.spokenwordministries.org
E-mail: info@spokenwordministries.org

Christian resources in braille, tape, and large print formats to serve the special needs of blind and visually impaired people throughout the world. Also offers personal ministry, prayer support, and information and referral services.

www.va.gov 
Contact the VA

The mission of the Veterans' Healthcare System (VHA) is to serve the needs of America's veterans by providing primary care, specialized care, and related medical and social support services. Approximately a quarter of the nation's population -- approximately 70 million people -- are potentially eligible for VA benefits and services because they are veterans, family members or survivors of veterans.

Facilities Locator Home Page: 
Use this search feature to locate VA facility-related information quickly and accurately.

Fact Sheets about VA Services:
Use this search feature to locate VA News Releases and Fact Sheets on topics that include health care and benefits.

Services for Blind and Visually Impaired Veterans:
The mission of the VA Blind Rehabilitation Service is to coordinate a healthcare service delivery system that provides a continuum of care for blinded veterans extending from their home environment to the local VA facility and to the appropriate rehabilitation setting.

Visual Impairment Service Team (VIST):
The Visual Impairment Service Team (VIST) Coordinator serves as the initial contact person for getting help with vision loss. VIST Coordinators are located at local VA Medical Centers across the country. They work to ensure that veterans with visual impairments receive appropriate benefits and services.

The VIST Coordinator is a case manager who has major responsibility for the coordination of all services for legally blind veterans and their families. Duties include providing and/or arranging for the provision of appropriate treatment plans and programs in order to enhance a blinded veteran's functioning level.

Other duties include identifying new cases of blindness, providing professional counseling, resolving problems, arranging annual healthcare reviews, and conducting education programs relating to blindness.

Services for blind and visually impaired veterans include:

• Orientation and Mobility
• Independent Living Skills
• Manual Skills
• Visual Skills and Low Vision Services
• Computer Access Training
• Physical Conditioning
• Recreation
• Adjustment to Blindness
• Family Program

School of Medicine, Dept. of Ophthalmology
The Kittner Eye Center
Low Vision Services
Ambulatory Care Center
Mason Farm Road
Chapel Hill, NC 27599
919-966-2061
919-966-5509 (Appointments)
www.med.unc.edu/ophth/clinical-specialties/low-vision

The Low Vision Service, headed by Henry Greene, O.D., participates in the evaluation and rehabilitation of patients with sub-normal vision. Faculty work with patients to maximize available vision, using optical and electronic devices to improve quality of life. Dr. Greene is a leader in the development of optical and non-optical devices, including the Autofocus low vision aid.

(located inside the Dorothy Gilmore Recreation Center)
1600 Purdue Drive
P.O. Box 87385
Fayetteville, NC 28304
www.visionresourcecentercc.org
Contact the Vision Resource Center

The Vision Resource Center enhances the lives of adults and children living in the Cape Fear Region who are blind or visually impaired by advocating for their needs; identifying and sharing information about community resources; providing education, skill development, and socialization opportunities.

7730 North Point Drive
Winston-Salem, NC 27106
800-242-7726 (Toll free)
336-759-0551
336-245-0640 (Fax)
www.wsifb.com  
E-mail: info@wsifb.com

Industries for the Blind (IFB) is the largest employer of blind people in North Carolina with over 300 workers and fills annual contracts for labor and services valued in excess of $80 million. Sites include Asheville Industries for the Blind and IFB Puerto Rico in Mayaguez.