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<DIV dir=ltr class=OutlookMessageHeader align=left><FONT size=2
face=Tahoma>-----Original Message-----<BR><B>From:</B> Freeh, Jessica
[mailto:JFreeh@nfb.org]<BR><B>Sent:</B> Monday, November 02, 2009 2:26
PM<BR><B>To:</B> Alpidio Rolon; Amy Buresh; Angela Wolf; Anil Lewis; Art
Schreiber; Beth Rival; Bob Kresmer; Carl Jacobsen; Cathy Jackson; Charlene
Smyth; Christine G. Hall; Dan Hicks; Daniel Burke; Don Galloway; Donna Wood;
Elsie Lamp; Frank Lee; Franklin Shiner; Fred Schroeder; Fred Wurtzel; Gary Ray;
Gary Wunder; J.W. Smith; James Antonacci; James Broadnax; Jennelle Bichler;
Jennifer Dunnam; Joe Ruffalo; John Batron; John Fritz; Joyce Scanlan; Ken
Rollman; Kevan Worley; Marie Johnson; Mary Willows; Matt Lyles; Matt Lyles;
Melissa Riccobono; Michael Barber; Michael Freeman; Mika Pyyhkala; Nani Fife;
Pam Allen; Parnell Diggs; Patti Chang; Richard Gaffney; Ron Brown; Ron Gardner;
Sam Gleese; Scott LaBarre; Selena Sundling-Crawford; Terri
Rupp<BR><B>Subject:</B> NFB President Marc Maurer to Receive Award from
University of Notre Dame<BR><BR></FONT></DIV>
<DIV align=left><FONT face=Garamond>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><FONT size=5><FONT face=Helvetica>FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE<o:p></o:p></FONT></FONT></B></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p><FONT
face=Helvetica> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></B></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><FONT
face=Helvetica>CONTACT:<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></B></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><FONT face=Helvetica>Chris
Danielsen<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><FONT face=Helvetica>Director of Public
Relations<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><FONT face=Helvetica>National Federation of the
Blind<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><FONT face=Helvetica>(410) 659-9314, extension
2330<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><FONT face=Helvetica>(410) 262-1281
(Cell)<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><A
href="mailto:cdanielsen@nfb.org"><FONT
face=Helvetica>cdanielsen@nfb.org</FONT></A><o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p><FONT face=Helvetica> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal
align=center><B style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
style="mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt"><FONT size=5><FONT face=Helvetica>NFB
President Marc Maurer to Receive Award <BR>from <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:PlaceType w:st="on">University</st1:PlaceType> of <st1:PlaceName
w:st="on">Notre</st1:PlaceName></st1:place>
Dame<o:p></o:p></FONT></FONT></SPAN></B></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal
align=center><B style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
style="mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt"><o:p><FONT size=5
face=Helvetica> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></B></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal
align=center><B style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><FONT
face=Helvetica>Award Honors Maurer’s Outstanding Contributions in Public
Service<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></I></B></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal
align=center><B style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p><FONT
face=Helvetica> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></I></B></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Notre Dame, Indiana (November 2,
2009): </SPAN></B><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">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 </SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN"
lang=EN><FONT face=Helvetica>Rev. John J. Cavanaugh, C.S.C., Award from the
<st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceType w:st="on">University</st1:PlaceType> of
<st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Notre Dame Alumni
Association</st1:PlaceName></st1:place> in a ceremony on November
5.</FONT></SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Maurer, a 1974 graduate from the
University of Notre Dame, will be honored for outstanding contributions in the
field of public service.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN><o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Maurer earned his law degree from <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Indiana</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType
w:st="on">University</st1:PlaceType></st1:place> in 1977 and began focusing on
representing blind individuals in the courts. <SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>A member of the Bar in <st1:State
w:st="on">Indiana</st1:State>, <st1:State w:st="on">Ohio</st1:State>, <st1:State
w:st="on">Iowa</st1:State>, <st1:State w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">Maryland</st1:place></st1:State>, 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.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>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. <SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>He has promoted new technology for the
blind, including the knfbReader <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">Mobile</st1:place></st1:City>, a revolutionary cell phone application
that scans and reads aloud most printed material, and the prototype vehicle for
the Blind Driver Challenge. <SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>He has
overseen the visionary expansion of the <SPAN class=caps>NFB</SPAN> Jernigan
Institute, the first training and research institute for the blind, led by the
blind. <SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>He has also previously
served as president of the North America/Caribbean Region of the World Blind
Union.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Dr. Marc Maurer, President of the
National Federation of the Blind, said: “I am honored to receive this award from
my alma mater.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>As president of the
largest organization of blind </SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">people in the <st1:country-region
w:st="on">United States</st1:country-region>, I have been fortunate to play a
role in many exciting and life-changing developments for blind people in
<st1:place w:st="on"><st1:country-region
w:st="on">America</st1:country-region></st1:place>.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>While we have made much progress, there
is still more to be done.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>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
<st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">United
States</st1:place></st1:country-region>.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN>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.”<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P
style="TEXT-INDENT: 0.5in; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-pagination: none; mso-layout-grid-align: none"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma"><o:p><FONT
size=5> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P
style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-pagination: none; mso-layout-grid-align: none"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">“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. <SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>“The Notre Dame Alumni Association is
pleased to honor Marc for his personal character and outstanding contributions
in public service. <SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>He is a living
example of the integrity and generosity of spirit that Notre Dame instills in
its graduates. <SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>His leadership of
the NFB has made the University proud.”<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P
style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-pagination: none; mso-layout-grid-align: none"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P
style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-pagination: none; mso-layout-grid-align: none"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">For more
information about the National Federation of the Blind, please visit <A
href="http://www.nfb.org/">www.nfb.org</A>.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P
style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-pagination: none; mso-layout-grid-align: none"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P
style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-pagination: none; mso-layout-grid-align: none"
class=MsoNormal align=center><B style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">###<o:p></o:p></SPAN></B></P></FONT></DIV>
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