<div dir="ltr"><br>Sharing from our community partner! <div><br></div><div>Ash<br><div class="gmail_quote"><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_attr">---------- Forwarded message ---------<br>From: <strong class="gmail_sendername" dir="auto">Joseph Lovett</strong> <span dir="auto"><<a href="mailto:lovett@lovettproductions.com">lovett@lovettproductions.com</a>></span><br>Date: Thu, Oct 7, 2021 at 5:02 PM<br>Subject: Stream GOING BLIND for Free, World Glaucoma Week 2021<br>To: Ashley Biggs <<a href="mailto:ashley.biggs1@maryland.gov">ashley.biggs1@maryland.gov</a>><br></div><br><br><div><div style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif">
<div><img alt="A Closer Look logo" src="https://content.delivra.com/etapcontent//ACloserLook/ACloserLook_2020_Setup_Banner_A_Web.png" style="display:block;margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto" title="A Closer Look logo" width="350"></div>
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<div><span style="font-weight:400;font-size:16pt">Dear Friends,</span></div>
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<div><span style="font-size:16pt"><span style="font-weight:400">World Sight Day, Thursday, October 14th, is the annual day of awareness that aims to focus global attention on vision impairment and blindness. The </span><strong><a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/blindness-and-visual-impairment" target="_blank">World Health Organization</a></strong><span style="font-weight:400"> reports that at least 2.2 billion people have a near or distance vision impairment globally, and in at least 1 billion of these cases, vision impairment could have been prevented or has yet to be addressed.</span></span></div>
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<div><span style="font-size:16pt"><span style="font-weight:400">In honor of World Sight Day, and October being World Blind Awareness Month, A Closer Look is offering free streaming of </span><a href="https://goingblindmovie.com/" target="_blank"><strong><em>Going Blind: Coming Out of the Dark About Vision Loss</em></strong></a><span style="font-weight:400"> through October 31st. </span><strong><em>Going Blind</em></strong><span style="font-weight:400"> tells the stories of everyday people and the adaptations they make to live in today’s world with vision loss. Director Joseph Lovett tells this story with a very personal appeal as he reveals his diagnosis of glaucoma, a disease that robs 4.5 million people worldwide of their vision.</span></span></div>
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<div><span style="font-weight:400;font-size:16pt">Please share this information with anyone who may benefit from the film: those living with visual impairment, their families, those who care for them, and members of the medical community. </span></div>
<div><span style="font-size:16pt"><strong><strong> </strong></strong></span></div>
<div><span style="font-size:16pt"><span style="font-weight:400">To watch the film for free during the month of October, please visit our </span><strong><a href="https://goingblindmovie.com/film/" target="_blank">website</a></strong><span style="font-weight:400"> and choose from one of the three yellow button options to stream one of three versions of </span><strong><em>Going Blind</em></strong><span style="font-weight:400">: Standard, Audio-Described, or Captioned. </span></span></div>
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<div><span style="font-size:16pt"><span style="font-weight:400">Tax deductible donations to help us continue our outreach mission are welcomed and greatly appreciated! Visit our </span><strong><a href="https://goingblindmovie.com/donate/" target="_blank">donation page here</a></strong><span style="font-weight:400">. </span></span></div>
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<div><span style="font-size:14pt"><span style="font-weight:400"> </span></span></div>
<div><span style="font-size:16pt"><strong>Some background about our organizations: </strong><strong><em>Lovett Stories + Strategies and A Closer Look, Inc.</em></strong></span></div>
<div style="text-align:center"><span style="font-size:16pt"><strong><strong> </strong></strong></span></div>
<div><span style="font-weight:400;font-size:16pt">In 1989, with a Peabody Award and an Emmy nomination, Joseph Lovett founded Lovett Stories + Strategies to share more narratives that might otherwise be overlooked. Teaming up with nonprofits, government agencies, and Fortune 500 companies, Lovett Stories + Strategies has created films that dive into the heart of complex issues helping to liberate people from fear and shame. </span></div>
<div style="text-align:center"><span style="font-size:16pt"><strong><strong> </strong></strong></span></div>
<div><span style="font-weight:400;font-size:16pt">In 2015, Lovett founded A Closer Look, Inc. to educate the public by sharing stories that change lives, promoting films that demystify taboos and build community. A 501(C)(3) non-profit organization, A Closer Look, Inc. supports Lovett’s production and distribution, working toward a culture of growing inclusivity and mutual respect. </span></div>
<div style="text-align:center"><span style="font-size:16pt"><strong><strong> </strong></strong></span></div>
<div><span style="font-size:16pt"><span style="font-weight:400">With the continued enthusiasm for using our film </span><strong><em>Going Blind: Coming out of the Dark about Vision Loss</em></strong><span style="font-weight:400"> and its educational outreach </span><strong>Going Blind and Going Forward,</strong><span style="font-weight:400"> combined with the excitement that our latest film</span> <strong><em><a href="https://childrenoftheinquisition.com/" rel="" target="_blank">Children of the Inquisition</a></em></strong><span style="font-weight:400"> has engendered for educational programs, A Closer Look, Inc. has taken over the outreach and distribution of our films. </span></span></div>
<div style="text-align:center"><span style="font-size:16pt"><strong><strong> </strong></strong></span></div>
<div><span style="font-size:16pt"><span style="font-weight:400">Like so many others, we have learned that with online screenings and hosting Q&A sessions with video conferencing, there is no limit to the participants we can bring in to engage the audiences we serve. As a result, many of the organizations with which we had scheduled screenings of </span><strong><em>Going Blind</em></strong><span style="font-weight:400"> and </span><strong><em>Children of the Inquisition </em></strong><span style="font-weight:400">have now decided to organize virtual gatherings to continue to build community.</span></span></div>
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<div><span style="font-size:16pt"><span style="font-weight:400">Please take a look at our <a href="https://goingblindmovie.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/06/goingblind-outreachtoolkit.pdf" rel="" target="_blank">Outreach Toolkit</a> to help set up a screening of <strong><em>Going Blind</em></strong> with your local community. C</span><span style="font-weight:400">ontact us if you are interested in hosting a virtual screening and talkback of </span><strong style="font-size:16pt"><em>Going Blind</em></strong><span style="font-weight:400"> or </span><strong style="font-size:16pt"><em>Children of the Inquisition</em></strong> with your local community service or faith-based organization, <span style="font-weight:400">or with any other questions about our work. </span></span></div>
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<div><span style="font-weight:400;font-size:16pt">Thank you!</span></div>
<div style="text-align:center"><span style="font-size:16pt"><strong><strong><br><br></strong></strong></span></div>
<div><span style="font-weight:400;font-size:16pt">Sincerely,</span></div>
<div style="text-align:center"><span style="font-size:16pt"><strong><strong> </strong></strong></span></div>
<div><span style="font-weight:400;font-size:16pt">Jordan Noël Hawkes</span></div>
<div><span style="font-weight:400;font-size:16pt">Outreach Director</span></div>
<div><span style="font-weight:400;font-size:16pt">Lovett Stories & A Closer Look, Inc.</span></div>
<div><span style="font-weight:400;font-size:16pt">T: +1.323.574.6657 | E: <a href="mailto:jordan@lovettproductions.com" target="_blank">jordan@lovettproductions.com</a></span></div>
<div><span style="font-size:16pt"><a href="https://lovettproductions.com/" title="lovettproductios" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight:400">www.lovettproductions.com</span></a><span style="font-weight:400"> | </span><a href="http://www.acloserlook.org" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight:400">www.acloserlook.org</span></a></span></div>
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<div>A Closer Look</div>
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</div></div></div></div><br clear="all"><div><br></div>-- <br><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_signature" data-smartmail="gmail_signature"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" style="background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-repeat:initial;border-collapse:collapse">
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<p style="margin-bottom:0.0001pt;line-height:normal"><span style="font-size:9.5pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif"> <span><img src="http://doit.maryland.gov/webcom/Documents/changingMD.png" width="95" height="96"></span><span></span></span></p>
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<p style="line-height:normal"><b><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif">Ashley M. Biggs</span></b><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif"><br>
<i>Marketing & Outreach Librarian</i><br>Maryland State Library for the Blind and Print Disabled<br>Maryland State Library<br>415 Park Avenue<br>Baltimore, Maryland 21201-3603<br>
<br>410-230-2430 (office) | 667-209-1563 (cell) | 410-333-2095 (fax)<br>
</span><a href="mailto:ashley.biggs1@maryland.gov" target="_blank"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(17,85,204)">ashley.biggs1@maryland.gov</span></a><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif"></span></p>
<p style="line-height:normal"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(17,85,204)"><a href="http://www.lbph.maryland.gov/" target="_blank">http://www.lbph.maryland.gov</a></span><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif"></span></p><p style="line-height:normal"><br></p><p style="line-height:normal"><a href="https://www.doit.state.md.us/selectsurvey/TakeSurvey.aspx?agencycode=MSL&SurveyID=86M2956" style="color:rgb(17,85,204)" target="_blank"><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-repeat:initial">Click here</span></a><span style="font-size:10pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:black;background-image:initial;background-position:initial;background-repeat:initial"> to complete a three-question customer experience survey.</span><br></p>
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