Established 1936 – John A. Collins, President

EMBASSY SUITES BY HILTON, GRAND RAPIDS DOWNTOWN

Big E's Sports Grille

710 Monroe Avenue NW, Grand Rapids

WEDNESDAY, November 20, 2024 – 7:15 AM

One year after graduating from Wayne State University with a law degree, a young attorney had just taken employment in East Detroit where he and his wife were expecting a baby. That child's godmother, Deb Bonde, a certified Braille transcriber, became a close friend of the lawyer and his wife. When Ms. Bonde sought to start a small Braille printing operation in her basement in 1984, the lawyer's wife immediately accepted an invitation to serve on the board of her non-profit corporation. The lawyer even helped with the application for tax-exempt status. That business became Seedlings Braille Books for Children. Over the years, Ms Bonde's non-profit business grew and grew, and it continues to play a vital role in promoting literacy among children who are blind or visually impaired.

As for the young lawyer, he is our presenter. You all know him as Breakfast Club member, Vincent Schumacher. Vince will present on the amazing phenomenon of Seedlings Braille Books for Children, a world-wide supplier of Braille books for blind and visually impaired children for over four decades. 

Invocation: Eric Nelson
Introduction: Jeff Kissinger

Three Quotes from Louis Braille

1. "Live without seeing, but be what you are"
2. "We must be treated as equals - and communication is the way we can bring this about"
3. "Access to communication in the widest sense is access to knowledge, and that is vitally important for us if we are not to go on being despised or patronized by condescending sighted people"