KIM A. MILLER
FOUNDER BRAILLE BRANDS

WHO AM I

Come with me and you will see how Braille Brands and I came to be. Strength, determination and sheer will is the foundation on which the company is built.

To Yvonne and Michael came a little mite,
to their delight she was born with sight.
The future was bright and sure,
never did I imagine impairment with no cure.
Retinitis Pigmentosa is hereditary.
This legacy I share
my hook my life my cross to bear.
How do I continue, how do I go on
when all I see is darkness beyond.

On my journey I began.
I walked and sometimes ran,
to where I did not know
for I had no place to go.
I lost my job, car and home,
never had I been so alone.
With my misery and sorrow deep
under a tree in Central Park I did sleep.
My desperation kept pace
when to my horror I realized
all my worldly possession could fit into one red case.
I dragged it up and down around the town
to and fro and anyplace I did go.

This cannot go on I bawled,
so the Foundation Fighting Blindness I did call.
They had the answers,
I needed them all.
As I listened with head bowed, I vowed that day,
I would get my life back my way.

That application of mine was submitted
to The Commission for the Blind
and a counselor for me they did find.
Gentle and calm was she who stated
“Your vision I cannot change.
Share with me your strife and I can indeed
help you change your life”.

Unsure and scared I wanted to run,
but I placed my trust in her
and my training days had begun.
I stumbled, struggled, slipped and fell,
“I can’t do this” I screamed and yelled.
On perseverance I finally did land
when my mobility device became part of my hand.
Other lessons came on at a later date
when I learned Braille using a stylus and slate.

Frustration gave me my mission
when before my eyes all I saw were spots
each and every night as I lay on my cot.
There had to be others like me,
who were they and where could they be?
I had to find them and make them listen
to how my vision became my vision.

I have been down in the valley
and rose up to a peak,
so of blindness I know of what I speak,
I have no idea of tomorrow’s plans,
so today here I stand beside my company --
Braille Brands.

Seeing Through Touch —
About Braille Brands | Kim A. Miller

Kim MillerBraille Brands LLC in South Brunswick, NJ, announces a Blind Awareness Ribbon. In introducing the ribbon, company owner Kim Miller envisions the Blind Awareness Ribbon bringing public awareness to the needs of the visually impaired and blind across the country. The ribbon, which was designed and patented by Miller, also seeks to promote a better understanding of the visually impaired/blind and to introduce the concept of Braille literacy in the modern marketplace across the US.

Braille PinSet on a white background, two dimensional black dots represent the Braille code spelling out the word “Braille” in contracted Braille. “It is our vision that this ribbon will be the nationally recognized symbol for the blind,” said Miller, who began to lose her sight to Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP) in 2003. When asked how she thought of such a design she states:

“When I started losing sight, everything I saw was white with black dots all over”. Smiling and thinking back to that time of severe sight loss, she continues “I guess you could say my vision gave me my vision”!

Currently the Blind Awareness Ribbon is the only symbol representing the blind which takes an integrated approach to learning about Braille. By taking the Louis Braille code and transforming it for the 21st century market place it also includes readable Braille on the display hangtag. The contracted Braille can be read by both Braille and non Braille readers as the code is placed on top of large print making it accessible to all.

The ribbon is available for purchase on the Braille Brands website www.braillebrands.com for $4.99. Wholesale prices for quantities over 200 are available to organizations, corporations, schools and independent groups. A percentage of all ribbons sold are donated to charity.

Maryann Maysonett, Rehabilitation Counselor, The Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired based in Tom’s River New Jersey, Middlesex County states:

Lots of people are excited about the ribbon. The first instinct of non-Braille readers is to touch the Braille dots and ask if a message is conveyed! I am thrilled to share the vision and have a small part in the development of such a worthy cause that will ensure a better understanding of what blindness is!

Lauren Casey, Board Member, New Jersey Council of the Blind noted:

I wear my pin every chance I get.  I especially wear it to meetings I attend for boards and committees on disability issues. I bring attention to the pin and make these individuals aware of it since they are all disability advocates.