Spring 2024

From our Board Chair, Brian Westerlind:

As many of you know, we suffered a tragic loss with the passing of our Executive Director, Barbara Loh, in February. Barbara's leadership took our organization to new heights in our mission to inform and connect the blind and reading-impaired community. Her contributions will forever be remembered.

I want to extend a heartfelt thank you to our dedicated staff — Harold, Diane, and Mary. Their commitment has ensured that our programming continues without interruption.

Additionally, our many dedicated readers deserve our deepest gratitude for making our mission possible.

Valley Eye Radio's Board of Directors is currently interviewing candidates to fill the Executive Director position. We are confident that we will identify the right person in the coming months.

To our entire community, thank you for your continued support. Your dedication to listening, volunteering, donating, and caring about our crucial mission keeps us going.

Although we will soon have a new leader, it is you who will truly propel us into the future. More to come.

● Valley Eye Radio is available to make personal and virtual presentations to your staff or community group to update them about our unique service of providing broadcast readings from local newspapers and other publications to those who cannot access this information for themselves.  Call us at (413) 747-7337 or contact us through our website www.valleyeyeradio.org to get more information.

● Thanks to our continuing collaboration with the World Affairs Council of Western Massachusetts, Valley Eye Radio was able to present the audio from their presentation about Foreign Influence on US Elections.

This informative event was part of their Instant Issues Lunchtime series and featured Arthur House, former Chief Cybersecurity Risk Officer for the State of Connecticut, on Foreign Influence on US Elections.

Our continued thanks to Baystate Health for providing us with their health webinars from various experts for the benefit of blind and visually impaired listeners.

The latest topics have included this update on COPD from Michele Hart, RN from Baystate Health.

● Did you know that Valley Eye Radio provides a service of veterans outreach in a number of ways?

Every day at 2:30 pm, Vet Minute broadcasts updates from various VA and military sources to try to keep our disabled veterans up to date on the latest news and information. Military history buffs can also listen to Vet Minute History every Saturday at 8:30 pm and, thanks to a collaboration with The Valley’s Classic Hits 97.7 FM / 1250 AM, Valley Eye Radio is able to rebroadcast an hour of information from local Veterans Service Officers every Sunday at 8:00 am.

Please have any visually or print impaired veteran that you know call us at (413) 747-7337 or contact us through our website www.valleyeyeradio.org to get more information on how to become a listener.

Happy Birthday to all of our dedicated volunteer readers who felt the love from friends and family on their special day in March:  Joel, Tony, Philippa, Joe O., Maureen P, Anurima and Maria.

Happy Birthday also to our valued volunteers who began another trip around the sun in April:  Joe G., Eddie, Perry, Elaine, Pat A., Martha, Jim M., Mary B., Jacqueline, Terry, Paul and Annie C.

and a rousing chorus of “Happy Birthday to You” to all of those in our volunteer reader family who enjoyed their cake and presents in May: Phil, Joan, Pat D., Kathy S., Bobby, Lorraine, Dick and Hannah.

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