by Carly Eden Stokes | May 9, 2021 | Blog
VLANJ annually serves 1200 people with vision loss and their families.
We provided 871 instructional hours of service through 26 class offerings in 2020.
VLANJ program participants report a 95% satisfaction rate for our virtual classes.
VLANJ was able to translate our live programs and create virtual classes within two weeks of being closed by the Covid-19 Pandemic.
Did you know people with vision loss and blindness can use a smart phone or computer completely independently with the aid of magnification or built-in screen reading technology?
by Carly Eden Stokes | May 9, 2021 | Blog
2020 was a year like no other. We are grateful to our donors who continued to support our mission. VLANJ provided virtual support to help our program participants feel connected during an uncertain time. We received over $7000,000 in 2020, an 18% increase over last year, and were able to offer our virtual programs free of charge. We hope the accomplishments of VLANJ this past year are a source of pride for our donors who made this possible.
A special thank you to our Giving Circles donors. Your gifts had a significant impact on our programs! And to our new donors in 2020, welcome and thank you for choosing to support VLANJ!
2020 Giving Circles
2020 Presidents Circle 14 Gifts of $5,000 or more
2020 Benefactors Circle 7 Gifts of $2,500-$4,999
2020 Patrons Circle 17 Gifts of $1,000- $2499
2020 Friends Circle 37 Gifts of $500- $999
2020 Loyalty Circle 155 Gifts of 5 years of consecutive giving
by Carly Eden Stokes | May 9, 2021 | Blog, News
Ming Wu
VLANJ Board Member Ming Wu.
Ming has spent most of her career working in business development and marketing in the legal sector. She has worked for international law firms in the UK and in Hong Kong. She has a BSc (Hons) Psychology from the University of Leeds. Originally from the UK, Ming now lives in New Jersey. In recent years Ming has volunteered for UK based non-profits, The Royal National Institute for the Blind and Wakefield District Sight Aid. Ming has a passion for improving the lives of people living with sight loss and raising awareness of related topics, which she writes about on her blog.
Frank Mortimer
VLANJ Board Member Frank Mortimer.
Frank worked in higher education publishing for over twenty-five years. He was the Director of Marketing, Higher Education, North America at Oxford University Press, a not-for-profit, mission-driven
institution, where he was responsible for all facets of their marketing operations for a $54 million portfolio of print and digital products across the United States and Canada. Frank is currently an adjunct instructor at the Cornell University Master Beekeeping Program, Vice President of the New Jersey State Beekeepers Association, and a Certified Master Beekeeper. Frank is the author of Bee People and the Bugs They Love, (Kensington Publishing, March 2021), which was reviewed by the New York Times, and
he has written multiple articles featured in the widely circulated Bee Culture Magazine. Frank also serves on Ridgewood, New Jersey’s Parks, Recreation and Conservation Board. Frank is married and lives in Ridgewood with his wife and three children.
Dora Meler
VLANJ Board Member Dora Meler
Dora has more than 37 years’ experience in the IT field implementing and running technology and product solutions for financial services firms. After earning a B.S. Degree in Computer Science from Queens College in New York, she enjoyed a full career within the global investment banking industry, working most recently as Vice President/Senior Technology Project Manager at Barclays in NYC before retiring in 2018. Despite being diagnosed with glaucoma in her late 20s and experiencing a slow, steady loss of vision in the years that followed, she has continued to pursue her many interests. These include world travel, learning new language and musical instrument skills, and enjoying the outdoors through camping, hiking, tandem cycling and cross-country skiing, all while following a healthy lifestyle including practicing daily meditation.
by Carly Eden Stokes | May 9, 2021 | Blog, News
Dear Friend,
Kris Marino smiles into the camera.
March 17, 2020 marked the last day VLANJ met in person before New Jersey went into lockdown. We had no idea how long the COVID-19 crisis would last, only that we had to keep our community supported and together. I’d always wanted to offer programs online, and the pandemic became a catalyst. Within two weeks, we pivoted to virtual classes over Zoom.
Over the months, we added programs and enrollment tripled. We now have more students attending weekly than ever before. Virtual programming transcends one of the biggest obstacles people with vision loss face: a lack of transportation options. We continue to develop new programming and prepare for the time we can safely restart in-person gatherings.
As I look back on my 6 ½ years at the helm of this wonderful organization, I am proud of the strides we’ve made. I oversaw the nonprofit’s transition from NJ Foundation for the Blind to VLANJ in 2016, as we stabilized our finances and created more skills-based programming. We hosted nonprofit summits to find solutions to shared challenges. We added occupational therapy and negotiated with Medicare and private insurers to cover the services. And we launched the Technology Learning Lab, planting seeds for more employment-geared training in the future.
My decision to relocate was not an easy one. I am sad to be leaving people who are dear to me, who inspire me daily. I remember touring the nonprofit as part of Leadership Morris years ago. I was so impressed that I applied for the top job as soon as it opened.
I leave VLANJ on a high note, confident my successor will build on the foundation we created. The hardest thing is not getting to say goodbye in person. So here, I bid adieu to everyone in our VLANJ community, and wish you all good health and good fortune. Always remember, we’re the little engine that could.
Sincerely,
Kris Marino
VLANJ President and CEO
by Carly Eden Stokes | May 9, 2021 | Blog, News
It’s 2021 and over a year since New Jersey ordered the closure of businesses, including
nonprofits. Remember those first weeks of the pandemic? Frightening daily news accounts of mounting COVID-19 cases. Empty shelves and long lines at grocery stores. The Zoom learning curve. Fear of other people, yet a longing for human contact.
VLANJ students attend a virtual class.
Now imagine, if you will, what the pandemic has been like for people with vision loss, who
uniquely rely on touch and proximity to others to navigate and communicate. Public
transportation options cancelled. An inability to see 6 feet means you cannot maintain mandated
social distances, and rules are listed on signs you cannot read. You struggle to use online
shopping apps and virtual conferencing platforms that were not designed with vision impairment
in mind.
“A lot of our participants stayed home because they weren’t able to navigate the COVID-
pandemic world, and that heightened isolation. We looked for solutions that brought people
back together in a virtual environment,” said Vision Loss Alliance of New Jersey Program
Director Elsa Zavoda.
In response to the closure order, VLANJ quickly pivoted to online wellness classes, skills
training, and enrichment opportunities for adults with vision loss. We started by offering classes
in using the Zoom video conferencing platform and how to access various shopping apps to help
people obtain necessities such as food and prescriptions. We then moved to classes that helped
participants stay connected, share advice, and give one another support. Transportation was no
longer a barrier to participation.
Through these efforts, VLANJ’s enrollment increased three-fold in 2020, as people from across
the state and beyond logged in or called in to a growing list of virtual programs. About 200
people signed up for at least one offering — and most for two or more — over the winter
session.
Delores ‘Dee’ Eliassen had only recently given up driving before the pandemic, so she was
grateful when VLANJ went virtual. Dee states “Why it has been wonderful! The changes and
isolation that came in the last year from COVID have been incredibly stressful. It’s wonderful
that virtual learning has allowed me to do more than I was ever able to in the program. Now I
participate daily. I exercise, do Yoga, have organized my kitchen for safety and easy cooking,
and even meditate. Of course, I miss friends and the staff, but the Zoom meetings bring everyone
together and without the stress of transportation – there is so much I can do.”
Through VLANJ’s pivot to virtual programming, individuals with vision loss have sought and
found a community of support, education, and skills development. What we have seen in their
efforts to address COVID restrictions was a tremendous resiliency and a flexibility to embrace
new strategies to achieve their goals.
