By Larry Belote
The first question I was asked this past week was: “How was it in D.C.?”
On Veterans Day, I was able to go to the White House and to Arlington National Cemetery. The ceremony at Arlington, including the laying of a BVA wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns, was very inspiring. Such an event rededicates one to the mission of serving veterans. I will also soon have a picture of myself shaking hands with the President.
This is pretty overpowering stuff for an East Texas boy who grew up in Lufkin. People wondered if this was the most important thing I had ever done in my life. Although it is easy to get swept up in this type of environment, the response to that inquiry is pretty simple: No, it was not the most important thing I have ever done in my life. Furthermore, the experience is not even what my job as the national president of the Blinded Veterans Association, or as a VIST Coordinator, is really all about.
The most important thing I have ever accomplished has to do with the veterans I serve, and I have been fortunate enough to accomplish this one feat many times (with much help, of course).
Let me explain: When I meet newly blinded or visually impaired veterans with residual vision, I want them to regain the ability to read. I want this to happen quickly, and I want them to retain this ability for the rest of their life, provided they maintain usable vision. There is nothing worse for a blind or low-vision individual than sitting around, isolated and without the ability to do things. I have gone through that myself and I did not like it. Such a situation is an open invitation for a feeling of hopelessness and depression.
To me, regaining the ability to read quickly means that veterans receive low-vision exams as soon as possible in order to restore visual functioning. I want this to happen in a matter of weeks, not month or years. In our society, reading is a key to independence.
I have not forgotten that some individuals do not have enough vision to read with low-vision aids. If veterans cannot read visually, they can use an optical character reading machine (OCR). They can also work with programs and devices such as ScripTalk to assist with the reading of medication labels.
There was once a fear, which at some point turned into a myth, that if we got blinded veterans back to reading through local rehab services, no one would need to attend a residential VA Blind Rehabilitation Center. I would like to dispel that myth. Such a belief paints a very shallow image of the depth and diversity of programs a blind center has to offer.
So, as important as reading is and as important as it has been to me in my work with blinded veterans, I know there is more to blind rehabilitation. There needs to be many levels of vision rehabilitation services, including the continuum of services at strong local facilities. Also important are the excellent residential programs for veterans who need them and who are able to attend the VA blind centers.
What is the role of BVA in these services? We have actively advocated and fought to retain the VIST Coordinators, Blind Rehabilitation Outpatient Specialists (BROS), and blind centers that we now have.
Director of Government Relations Tom Zampieri has worked tirelessly on a project that would see Congress expand the number of BROS over the next three years. The project is underway during a time of budget crunching when it is not easy for something like this to happen. We continue to work to make sure that new devices such as ScripTalk are available. We periodically “pester” officials at VA Blind Rehabilitation Service in order to keep them on their toes. They have been very good about including us as partners on many projects.
So what did I think while I was having breakfast at the White House and standing behind the Vice President at Arlington National Cemetery? Was it the highlight of my career?
I will answer that question by saying that I am pretty happy and very comfortable being back at my desk in San Antonio. Yes, the phone rings constantly, I am behind in my paperwork, and people are always coming by my office. But that is the way I like it.
Maybe this feeling has to do with being from East Texas, or maybe it is just the way I am personally. Faced with a choice, I would choose a phone call from a blind or visually impaired veteran, telling me in an emotional voice that he/she just read the newspaper again using a CCTV. I would choose this experience over a picture on the wall any day of the week. |
