Blind Babies Foundation in the News

Click the link below to view a recent ABC7 News special report on BBF services and the 60th Anniversary Gala!

ABC7 News - Blind Babies Foundation


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Celebrating 60 Years of Service!

Blind Babies Foundation was founded in 1949 in response to an epidemic of blindness among premature infants. Members of the Variety Club of Northern California saw the need for services for very young children who were blind. They developed a home-based program to keep families intact. Children raised in their own homes with good family support-and with training in developmental skills-have the best chance to be successful in life.

Click here to learn more about the need for our services and how we put donations to use



Overview

Blind Babies Foundation (BBF) has been providing critical early intervention and education services to infants and preschoolers who are blind or visually impaired for more than 58 years. Our family-centered services are provided in the home environment and encourage every child’s development to the fullest degree possible with careful attention to their individual abilities and needs. These intensive services can help to stimulate and enhance available vision, often preventing a further decline of visual acuity or total vision loss. As soon as a visual impairment is detected, BBF is there to help families move from crisis to understanding and self-sufficiency.

Through our Off to a Good Start program, our Vision Impairment Specialists help nearly 500 children each year in 14 central and northern California counties at no cost to families.  BBF provides services to children under six years of age who have a visual impairment regardless of economic status, ethnicity, gender, country of origin or any other criteria. The only time BBF screens a child and decides not to provide services is when the diagnosis is that of a condition easily corrected through surgery, medication or corrective lenses. Even in these cases, our specialists often act as advisors. Taking into account all of the family members, medical professionals, caregivers and teachers we advise, train and collaborate with, we estimate that more than 4000 people benefit from our services every year.

Services

Our Services
At a time when families are in crisis, Blind Babies Foundation provides critical early intervention and education services through our Off to a Good Start program. Support, expertise and resources are offered free of charge to all families.

Home Visits
The home visit model is the heart of our Off to a Good Start program. We provide early response services in the family home that will enhance and stimulate available vision and encourage the development of other faculties and skills.

Our Vision Impairment Specialists spent more than 11,000 hours on home visits in 2006.

Access to Quality Medical Care
Using our strong network of relationships with medical professionals our specialists help families navigate the health care system and get the best possible care for their children.

Our specialists attended 280 medical visits in 2006.

Access to Education
We help families secure the services their children need from school districts and educators. We work creatively with early childhood programs to adapt the learning environment to accommodate the child’s needs.

Our specialists provided 347 program consultations in 2006.

Community Events
Each year we host several community events that provide opportunities for families to meet one another, exchange ideas, and just relax and have fun in a positive, inclusive environment.

Blind Babies Foundation facilitated 12 events for families in 2006.

Outcomes

Positive Outcomes

  • Increased opportunities for visually impaired children to develop faculties and skills that will enable them to achieve more advanced educational goals, increased social  interaction and full community participation;
  • Early identification, diagnosis and treatment for specific visual impairments, which can result in considerable vision being saved that might otherwise be lost;
  • Greatly reduced risk of depression and isolation for parents and family members;
  • Reduced dependence on public sector health and social service agencies; and
  • Educated parents who can replicate what we teach them and act as advocates for their child, substantially reducing future dependence on public sector resources.

Our Staff

Through our professional staff of 17 Vision Impairment Specialists (VIS), services are delivered on a regular basis throughout 14 California counties. Together, our Vision Impairment Specialists have years of experience in early childhood development, education of the visually impaired, early orientation and mobility, and other specialties.


Service Delivery by County:

Alameda; Contra Costa; Kings; Marin; Monterey; Napa; San Benito; San Francisco; San Mateo; Santa Clara; Santa Cruz; Solano; Sonoma; Tulare


OFFICE STAFF


Julie Bernas-Pierce
Executive Director

Kiara Wilder/Gail Calvello
Program Directors

Lucy Seligman
Development Director

Lee Brown
Grants & Communications Manager

Michael McFarland
Program Associate

Sheryl "Neo" Cowan
Human Resource and Office Manager

Marjorie Williams-Jones
Accounting Manager

Janel McCoy
Bookkeeper

Suzette Davidson
Development Assistant

If you would like to join our team, please take a look at the list of our Open Positions  or send an e-mail to bbfinfo@blindbabies.org.

 

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Officers

Dottie Bridge - President 

Sharon Sacks, Ph.D.- 1st Vice President

Clare Friedman, Ph.D. - 2nd Vice President

Kevin Dorwin-Treasurer

Dan Sillin, CPA - Secretary


Members

Donna Andrews, CFP

Amir Atashi Rang, Esq.

Kathy Canata

Deborah Faryniarz, M.D.

Mark Hernandez

Beverly Libaire

Tarak D. Mody, Ph.D.
Jim Taylor


Emeritus Board Members

Robert C. Aregger Owner, Aregger and Associates

William V. Good, M.D. Pediatric Ophthalmology & Strabismus

Creig S. Hoyt, M.D. Professor of Ophthalmology-UCSF Dept. of Ophthalmology

William Kartozian Owner, Regency Enterprises

Harold Williams Chief Operation Officer (retired) Children's Hospital Oakland


Honorary Board Member

Corinne Grousbeck Marketing Professional

Financial Information

The Blind Babies Foundation was established in 1949 as a private non-profit organization under section 501(c)(3) of the IRS code.

Our Federal Tax ID Number is 94-1156630.

BBF provides early intervention services to infant and preschool children who are visually impaired and their families, all at no cost to the families. On average, BBF's early intervention program costs about $5,000 per child, and we are currently providing services to about 400 young children in over 14 Northern California Counties.

If you would like a copy of our audited financial statement, or need further information about BBF finances, please contact BBF:

Phone: (510) 446-BABY (446-2229)
Fax: (510) 446-2262
e-mail: bbfinfo@blindbabies.org

Blind Babies Foundation
1814 Franklin Street
11th Floor
Oakland, California  94612 

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