red, white, and blue star with initials B V A

On Thanksgiving Day, No Place Like Home—or the Military Dining Facility

Perhaps no other U.S. demographic can appreciate the Thanksgiving holiday as much as our nation’s veterans who have spent many a Thanksgiving far from family, friends, and football. Despite that premise, the Military has never ignored or disregarded Thanksgiving, not since the Civil War at least, and going back even further in many cases.  And, while culinary accomplishments of the Military are not typically associated with gourmet fare, the provisions themselves and the cooking performances […]

red, white, and blue star with initials B V A

BVA Happenings – November 9 

A Veterans Day Message from BVA Executive Director Donald D. Overton, Jr.  Veterans Day is a special day for all of us who have served our country on the battlefield. It is special to us also because of our affiliation with the Blinded Veterans Association (BVA).   No matter where I am each year on this day, I always contemplate the service and the sobering sacrifices of the veterans I have known personally. Last year, I […]

red, white, and blue star with initials B V A

Illinois BVA Member Now 109 Years Young, Louisiana-Mississippi Member Now 104

BVA National Headquarters joins the Illinois Regional Group in sending congratulations and best wishes to Navy veteran Eugene J. Baltes of River Forest, Illinois, on still another milestone birthday last Sunday. The regional group expresses gratitude for his service, longevity, and desire to affiliate with BVA. Gene was born on October 29, 1914, making this recent birthday his 109th. Although not surprising, it is still noteworthy that Gene is the oldest BVA member not only […]

red, white, and blue star with initials B V A

Virtual Meeting for Regional Group Chaplains to Address Spiritual Outreach

BVA’s regional group chaplains, either elected or appointed, are invited to attend an hour-long meeting via Zoom next Thursday, November 9, at 11:00am Eastern Time under the direction of National Chaplain Kennith Harvey and National President Paul Mimms. Attendees of the meeting will consider means for supporting and maintaining the development of religion as a visible component of the work of BVA in support of all religious beliefs and denominations. Read more. Please use the […]

red, white, and blue star with initials B V A

Netflix Limited Series Now Available for Viewing

All the Light We Cannot See, an American drama limited series developed for Netflix, was released yesterday. The four part-series, based on Anthony Doerr’s Pulitzer Prize winning, best-seller novel that carries the same name, follows the stories of two teenagers—a blind French girl named Marie-Laure and a German soldier named Werner—whose paths cross in enemy-occupied France during World War II.  The story behind All the Light We Cannot See has the blind Marie-Laure Leblanc (actress […]

red, white, and blue star with initials B V A

From Frustration to Jubilation:  The New VA Health and Benefits Mobile App

Perhaps like many of our blind and low vision veterans, I found it difficult and frustrating to use the much-heralded MyHealtheVet. However, there is a group of folks that works either for or at VA who have taken on the challenge of making accessibility a whole lot better. We met some of them at the recent convention in St. Louis while others have been involved in Beta Testing with the goal of developing a usable, […]

red, white, and blue star with initials B V A

Note Veterans Day Free Meals and Retail Discounts to Veterans

Business establishments throughout the country, especially restaurants, have traditionally chosen to recognize Veterans Day and honor military veterans by offering them entirely free meals all day on November 11. In other cases, deep discounts are available to veterans’ families or the party with which they may be dining. Several of the discounts are valid throughout the month of November and not just on Veterans Day. An extensive list of the discounts in several categories (not […]

red, white, and blue star with initials B V A

BVA HQ, Regional Groups, Members Prepare for Veterans Day Activities

Blinded Veterans Association members, their families, and their regional groups nationwide are encouraged to participate in a variety of local events and activities next week leading up to and including the November 11 Veterans Day holiday, which falls this year on a Saturday.  The Association’s National Headquarters will participate in the 70th annual National Veterans Day Observance at Arlington National Cemetery honoring the men and women who have served and continue to serve in the […]

red, white, and blue star with initials B V A

VetTech to Introduce Game-Changing Updates to Important Software Programs

Join BVA’s VetTech Team on Wednesday, November 8, at 2:00pm as we welcome Vispero’s Liz Whitaker to the Weekly Wednesday Webinar. Liz is Vispero’s Product Manager for User Education and Outreach. She will explore recent innovations to JAWS, Fusion, and ZoomText 2024 that naturally result in increased user friendliness and greater productivity. Key features include Face in View, the Early Adopter Program, and new views to quickly access text and content on the screen. In […]

red, white, and blue star with initials B V A

National Board Appoints New Directors for Districts 2 and 4

Mike Cook, Arkansas Regional Group, and Randy Cantrell, Spokane Inland Empire Regional Group, are the newly named Directors of Districts 2 and 4, respectively. District 2 is comprised of the following states: Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Michigan, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Wisconsin. District 4 includes: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Utah, New Mexico, Oregon, Texas, Washington, and Wyoming.  A Vietnam veteran of the U.S. Air Force, […]