Florida Senate - 2012             (Corrected Copy)(NP)    SR 890
       
       
       
       By Senator Margolis
       
       
       
       
       35-00773A-12                                           2012890__
    1                          Senate Resolution                        
    2         A resolution recognizing the outstanding
    3         accomplishments of Miami Lighthouse for the Blind and
    4         Visually Impaired, Inc., and its extraordinary efforts
    5         on behalf of individuals and families whose lives are
    6         touched by vision impairment.
    7  
    8         WHEREAS, in 1931, Dolly Gamble, inspired and encouraged by
    9  Helen Keller, established the Florida Association of Workers for
   10  the Blind, Inc., in a 900-square-foot bungalow in what is now
   11  East Little Havana in Miami, and
   12         WHEREAS, through the 1940s, the organization, then known as
   13  Miami Lighthouse, served the blind community in Miami as a
   14  sheltered workshop, the accepted practice at that time, offering
   15  chair caning, basketry, and other crafts, and
   16         WHEREAS, when the University of Miami envisioned creation
   17  of a state-of-the-art institute for diseases and disorders
   18  affecting vision, Miami Lighthouse donated $500,000 as seed
   19  money for the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute and donated land to
   20  the University of Miami School of Medicine, and
   21         WHEREAS, in the 1970s, Miami Lighthouse changed its model
   22  to one centered on rehabilitation services that enable blind and
   23  visually impaired individuals to achieve independence, and
   24         WHEREAS, in 1978, Miami Lighthouse received accreditation
   25  from an organization created by Congress and now known as the
   26  National Accreditation Council for Blind and Low Vision
   27  Services, and has continuously met the council’s rigorous
   28  accreditation standards ever since, and
   29         WHEREAS, in 2001, a public capital campaign made possible a
   30  major expansion to the original facility, which added a second
   31  floor wing that houses computer laboratories, space for
   32  vocational training, and a sensory and tactile garden area, and
   33         WHEREAS, in 2003, the organization changed its corporate
   34  name to Miami Lighthouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired,
   35  Inc., to reflect the services it provides to individuals
   36  affected by uncorrectable low vision, and
   37         WHEREAS, in 2005, Virginia A. Jacko, an experienced
   38  business executive who was losing her sight to retinitis
   39  pigmentosa, was selected president and CEO, and, under her
   40  leadership, many innovative programs have been launched, and
   41         WHEREAS, in 2007, the Dr. Bruce Heiken Memorial Fund merged
   42  with the Miami Lighthouse to create the Heiken Children’s Vision
   43  Program, and Miami Lighthouse began providing free eye
   44  examinations and prescription glasses to low-income children in
   45  Miami-Dade County, and
   46         WHEREAS, in 2008, Miami Lighthouse for the Blind and
   47  Visually Impaired, Inc., was one of 50 institutions in the
   48  nation to receive the Healthy Vision Community Award from the
   49  National Eye Institute, and, in 2010 won the award a second
   50  time, and
   51         WHEREAS, in 2010, the Florida Heiken Children’s Vision
   52  Program, LLC, was incorporated as a division of Miami
   53  Lighthouse, expanding the provision of free eye examinations and
   54  prescription glasses to low-income schoolchildren in 42 Florida
   55  counties, with 7,950 children receiving exams and 5,963
   56  receiving prescription eyeglasses during the 2010-2011 school
   57  year, and
   58         WHEREAS, that same year, Miami Lighthouse for the Blind and
   59  Visually Impaired, Inc., received the Diamond Award from the
   60  Coral Gables Chamber of Commerce for excellence and commitment
   61  to the community, and
   62         WHEREAS, Miami Lighthouse for the Blind and Visually
   63  Impaired, Inc., is enriching the lives of countless Floridians,
   64  from babies to seniors, championing programs in Braille
   65  literacy, music, and the arts, and ensuring that schoolchildren
   66  statewide have access to high-quality vision services, NOW,
   67  THEREFORE,
   68  
   69  Be It Resolved by the Senate of the State of Florida:
   70  
   71         That the Florida Senate recognizes the outstanding
   72  achievements of Miami Lighthouse for the Blind and Visually
   73  Impaired, Inc., and its extraordinary efforts on behalf of
   74  individuals and families whose lives are touched by vision
   75  impairment.
   76         BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this resolution, with
   77  the Seal of the Senate affixed, be presented to the Miami
   78  Lighthouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired, Inc., as a
   79  tangible token of the sentiments of the Florida Senate.