In December 1967, a young soldier lay in a hospital bed after sustaining severe eye injuries from a land mine in Vietnam.
Tom Miller, now executive director of the Blinded Veterans Association (BVA) in Washington, D.C., was blind, and his mind raced over all of the things heād never be able to enjoy again.
āIāve spent the past 44-plus years erasing that list, or finding new things I can do.āMiller says he owes many thanks to theĀ talking-bookĀ program of the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (NLS), part of the Library of Congress.āThe program is a godsend,ā he says.Veteransāand any U.S. resident or citizen living abroadāare eligible to become NLS readers if they are blind, have low vision or have an illness or disability that prevents them from handling a book or printed material.According to a 2011 report by the National Alliance for Eye and Vision Research, 16 percent of the wounded soldiers evacuated from Iraq and Afghanistan battle zones have suffered eye injuriesāthe highest rate of eye injuries since the Civil War.
In responseāand in supportāNLS works with BVA rehabilitation staff, military hospitals and rehabilitation centers to offer digital talking-book players to eligible members of the military.
NLS director Karen Keninger says the hospital program is the most effective way to guarantee that blinded and disabled veterans who need access to books will have it.Audiobooks and players are delivered to NLS readers by mail at no charge through more than 100 cooperating state and local libraries.
NLS readers have access to bestsellers, biographies, self-help books, magazines and more.