<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN">
<HTML><HEAD>
<META content="text/html; charset=US-ASCII" http-equiv=Content-Type>
<META name=GENERATOR content="MSHTML 8.00.6001.18828"></HEAD>
<BODY style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; COLOR: #000000; FONT-SIZE: 10pt" id=role_body
bottomMargin=7 leftMargin=7 rightMargin=7 topMargin=7><FONT id=role_document
color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE
style="BORDER-LEFT: blue 2px solid; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px"><FONT
style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT
color=black size=2 face=arial><BR><BR>
<DIV
style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #fff; MARGIN: 0px; FONT-FAMILY: Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, Sans-Serif; COLOR: #000; FONT-SIZE: 12px"
id=AOLMsgPart_0_c30fd82c-2c12-4679-9739-6f07a1c3ce36>FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE <BR> <BR> <BR>CONTACT: <BR> <BR>Chris
Danielsen <BR> <BR>Director of Public
Relations <BR> <BR>National Federation of the
Blind <BR> <BR>(410) 659-9314, extension
2330 <BR> <BR>(410) 262-1281 (Cell) <BR> <BR><<A
title="mailto:cdanielsen@nfb.org>cdanielsen@nfb.org?"
href="mailto:cdanielsen@nfb.org%3Ecdanielsen@nfb.org?">mailto:cdanielsen@nfb.org>cdanielsen@nfb.org</A> <BR> <BR> <BR>NFB
President Marc Maurer to Receive Award <BR>from University of Notre
Dame <BR> <BR> <BR>Award Honors Maurer's Outstanding
Contributions in Public Service <BR> <BR> <BR>Notre Dame,
Indiana (November 2, 2009): The National Federation of the Blind (NFB), the
largest organization of blind people in the United States, today announced
that its president, Dr. Marc Maurer, will be presented the Rev. John J.
Cavanaugh, C.S.C., Award from the University of Notre Dame Alumni Association
in a ceremony on November 5. Maurer, a 1974 graduate from the University of
Notre Dame, will be honored for outstanding contributions in the field of
public service. <BR> <BR>Maurer earned his law degree from Indiana
University in 1977 and began focusing on representing blind individuals in the
courts. A member of the Bar in Indiana, Ohio, Iowa, Maryland, and the Bar of
the Supreme Court, Maurer is one of the most experienced lawyers in the field
of civil rights and discrimination against the
blind. <BR> <BR>Maurer has been president of the National Federation
of the Blind since 1986. In that capacity, he has joined President George W.
Bush in the Oval Office in 2001 to celebrate the organization's Everest
Expedition, and was present for Bush's signing into law the Help America Vote
Act of 2002. He has promoted new technology for the blind, including the
knfbReader Mobile, a revolutionary cell phone application that scans and reads
aloud most printed material, and the prototype vehicle for the Blind Driver
Challenge. He has overseen the visionary expansion of the NFB Jernigan
Institute, the first training and research institute for the blind, led by the
blind. He has also previously served as president of the North
America/Caribbean Region of the World Blind Union. <BR> <BR>Dr. Marc
Maurer, President of the National Federation of the Blind, said: "I am honored
to receive this award from my alma mater. As president of the largest
organization of blind people in the United States, I have been fortunate to
play a role in many exciting and life-changing developments for blind people
in America. While we have made much progress, there is still more to be done.
Only 10 percent of blind children are learning Braille in this country, and
this directly contributes to a 70 percent unemployment rate among blind people
in the United States. I humbly accept this award on behalf of blind Americans
and pledge to work harder than ever to ensure that the blind are not left
behind in today's society." <BR> <BR> <BR>"In his role as
president of the National Federation of the Blind, Marc Maurer continually
demonstrates unwavering determination in his effort to better the lives of the
world's blind through innovative technologies and services that support their
independence," said Charles F. Lennon Jr., executive director of the Notre
Dame Alumni Association and associate vice president for University Relations.
"The Notre Dame Alumni Association is pleased to honor Marc for his personal
character and outstanding contributions in public service. He is a living
example of the integrity and generosity of spirit that Notre Dame instills in
its graduates. His leadership of the NFB has made the University
proud." <BR> <BR> <BR>For more information about the National
Federation of the Blind, please visit <<A
title="http://www.nfb.org/>www.nfb.org"
href="http://www.nfb.org/%3Ewww.nfb.org"
target=_blank>http://www.nfb.org/>www.nfb.org</A>. <BR> <BR> <BR>### <BR> <BR>_______________________________________________ <BR>Nfbf-l
mailing list <BR><A title=mailto:Nfbf-l@nfbnet.org
href="mailto:Nfbf-l@nfbnet.org">Nfbf-l@nfbnet.org</A> <BR><A
title=http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfbf-l_nfbnet.org
href="http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfbf-l_nfbnet.org"
target=_blank>http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfbf-l_nfbnet.org</A> <BR>To
unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
Nfbf-l: <BR><A
title=http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nfbf-l_nfbnet.org/bluegolfshoes@aol.com
href="http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nfbf-l_nfbnet.org/bluegolfshoes%40aol.com"
target=_blank>http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nfbf-l_nfbnet.org/bluegolfshoes%40aol.com</A> <BR></DIV></FONT></FONT></BLOCKQUOTE></DIV></FONT></BODY></HTML>