Connect the Dots | Programs planned at Louisville libraries to educate public about blindness

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Louisville's American Printing House for the Blind is rolling out a new interactive experience ahead of its planned museum opening in 2025.

At a news conference on Thursday at Louisville's Northeast Regional Library, the APH said that the PNC Foundation is donating $100,000 toward a two-year educational program.

The grant will help fund Connect the Dots, which plans monthly family-friendly enrichment programs focused on educating the public about sight impairments being blind The first program is Saturday, Jan. 6 to mark World Braille Day.

The free activities for the monthly programs include learning how to use an abacus on a “life sized” abacus, interacting with braille with muffin tins, and understanding orientation and mobility with Tactile Town.

Bradley Wines, 8, is a student at the School for the Blind. "I’m excited to learn more about my disability and like how blind people can play games or work."

Here is the 2024 schedule for Connect the Dots, powered by PNC:

Sat., Jan. 6 - Happy Birthday Louis Braille at the Northeast Regional Library (15 Bellevoir Circle)
Sat., Feb. 17 - Light and Shadow at the Main Library(301 York St.)
Sat., March 30 - “How do people who are blind read?” at the Highlands Shelby Park Library (1250 Bardstown Road)
Sat., April 13 - Career: Sports at the Iroquois Library(601 W. Woodlawn Ave.)
Sat., May 18 - “How do people who are blind do math?” at the Main Library (301 York St.)
Sat., June 15 - Happy Birthday Helen Keller at the St. Matthews Library (3940 Grandview Ave.)
Sat., July 13 - Touch and Texture at the South Central Regional (7300 Jefferson Blvd.)
Sat., Aug. 3 - Career: Cooking at the Southwest Regional Library (9725 Dixie Highway)
Sat., Sept. 28 - “How do people who are blind navigate?” at Newburg Branch Library (4800 Exeter Ave.)
Sat., Oct. 19 - Sound and Vibration at Western Library (604 S. 10th St.)
Sat., Nov. 2 - Career: Science at South Central Regional Library (7300 Jefferson Blvd.)
Sat., Dec. 14 - “Happy Holidays Mary Ingalls!” at Jeffersontown Branch Library (10635 Watterson Trail)

Set to open in 2025, the new DOT Experience Museum will encompass 28,000 square feet, nearly five times the size of the existing museum on the campus of the Kentucky School for the Blind on Frankfort Avenue in Louisville.

The Dot name pays homage to braille, a series of six dots that are the backbone of communication for the visually impaired.

The APH Vice President of Advancement, Jo Haas, said they didn't want to wait another year to bring the museum exhibits to life.

"We're trying to create a more open minded society, so individuals living with disabilities like blindness are more fully integrated to our places of work, our homes, our schools," Haas said.

Fundraising continues for the museum. In total, the Dot Experience project will cost $55 million and include new additions including Stevie Wonder's piano, Helen Keller's desk and the stories of many visually impaired people throughout history, including NASA employee Denna Lambert, who was born with congenital cataracts.

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