[NFBMO] If for some reason you aren't getting the Braille Monitor, this is some of what you are missing

[Gary Wunder]

Friendship in Action: Nyal McConoughey's Story

by Nichole Chrissis and Alison Tyler

>From the Editor: Nichole Chrissis, MA, is the archivist of the National
Federation of the Blind, and Alison Tyler is the project lead for the Museum
of the Blind People's Movement. Here is what they want to share with readers
about an exciting recent addition to the archives that sheds new light on
part of the history of our movement:

For the staff of the National Archives of the Blind People's Movement, a
program of the National Federation of the Blind, early June is often a
whirlwind before the storm of our annual National Convention-our own
sessions are planned, final Braille text is sent off for production,
artifacts are pulled from the shelves and carefully packed for
transportation, and any last-minute fact-checking and research for speeches
and awards looms. It was in June 2025 that Amy Porterfield of Arizona-based
SAAVI Services for the Blind made an introduction to her coworker, Reginald
Laister, sending us on a path through time and highlighting the depth of our
archives.

Reggie, who is SAAVI's Community Development Manager, had met a woman named
Jan E. through his work with the local Lions Club. Jan's father was a man
named Nyal McConoughey. Nyal, as we would come to learn, was the first blind
man to work in the United States foreign service as a civilian. He would
subsequently serve as the head of a printing reproduction shop at Tachikawa
Air Base in the Tokyo prefecture of Japan. Jan, we were told, still had a
number of items that had belonged to her late father that she was interested
in potentially sharing with us.

We were instantly hooked. Nyal's story was great on its own, but the thought
of having tangible artifacts that would help interpret his life was a dream
for people working with historic collections, and we were eager to speak
more about it. However, with the 2025 National Convention in New Orleans
just a few weeks away, we scheduled a call with Jan for mid-July.

Our first phone call with Jan lasted almost an hour and a half. We both left
with a page full of scribbled notes and promises to do additional research
on our end and get back in touch. One thing was clear, however: this was a
collection of items that would be beneficial to documenting the story of the
organized blind movement. And with that arose another question-did we have
anything in our existing collections related to Nyal McConoughey that would
help enhance the items Jan had just told us about? It wasn't a necessary
prerequisite, but it might be helpful to make the link back to the National
Federation of the Blind.

Typically, in terms of archival research, we are able to identify a range of
years and locations that then correspond to unique folders in our
collections, which might hold the content we're looking for after combing
through each individual page of print. Then again, of course, the search is
much simpler when your catalogs provide an entire folder dedicated solely to
your research subject. In this case, the Jacobus tenBroek Personal Papers
Collection, Box 66, Folder 34, "Nyal D. McConoughey, Ohio, Negotiations with
Air Force," told the following fascinating story.

"Not the Slightest Doubt"

In the fall of 1955, a recently blinded federal employee named Nyal
McConoughey reached out to the National Federation of the Blind. He
explained in a letter, "I am newly blind with a multiplicity of problems,
ambitions and frustrations." The previous year, while working for the US
government in Japan, McConoughey had lost his sight as the result of retinal
detachment and cataracts. He was facing additional surgeries and felt
uncertain about the future, but he expressed "hope that it may be possible
to resume my former occupation."

Jacobus tenBroek, President of the Federation, responded with a firm and
encouraging message. He urged McConoughey to "give serious thought to the
possibility of retaining your federal government job even assuming the
continuation of your blindness. There are not many jobs which cannot be
performed by blind persons. You would be much better off to continue at your
present work if that is at all possible." He asked McConoughey for more
details about his duties and assured him that the Federation stood ready to
help.

In January of 1956, McConoughey replied. He reported that he did not expect
to regain "useful eyesight," and so he had decided to "redouble my efforts
toward necessary adjustment to blindness." McConoughey had recently received
a letter from his employing agency suggesting that "it does not appear
certain that I would be considered acceptable" as a candidate in this role.
However, he explained that his job duties depended far more on planning,
coordination, and supervision than on visual inspection. Tasks requiring
sight had long been delegated to other staff. He believed that, with
reasonable adaptations, he could continue to perform effectively, and he
asked tenBroek for his opinion.

tenBroek's reply left no room for doubt. He insisted that McConoughey should
"do everything in [his] power" to regain his job. As tenBroek explained,
"There is not the slightest doubt but what you could continue the work. As a
matter of fact, for the general supervisory functions you carried on, sight
is not at all necessary." The Federation offered concrete assistance:
advocacy through its Washington office; a letter testifying to "the jobs
blind people are doing" and "the methods you would employ in doing your
work;" and guidance on obtaining training in travel methods and Braille.

McConoughey took tenBroek's words to heart. By early 1956, he was enrolled
in Braille classes, using a Braille writer, and preparing to travel to
Washington, DC, to make his case. He recognized that the greatest obstacle
was not his blindness but the lack of understanding about what blind people
could do. As he wrote, "The biggest problem, I feel, is to get a chance to
demonstrate the matter in which such little-understood abilities [as
Braille] could compensate [for] the loss of physical sight."

Securing McConoughey's job was not easy. According to an article in the
November 1957 issue of the
<https://nfb.org/sites/nfb.org/files/images/nfb/publications/bm/abm/bm1957/t
hebraillemonitornovember1957.html>  Braille Monitor, "McConoughey and
Federation representatives talked with the highest official in Washington in
charge of civilian personnel appointments for the Army-Air Force. This
official became convinced that McConoughey could do the work and should be
reinstated, but those in charge at Tachikawa [Air Base] were adamant in
their opposition." New job requirements were even written to require visual
inspection of work products, effectively excluding blind applicants.

Finally, as described in the Braille Monitor, "an agreement was reached that
McConoughey would be given the first possible job at Tachikawa Air Base in
Japan. On May 27, 1957, he was appointed administrative assistant to the
military officer in charge of all billeting arrangements on the entire air
base. He is now on the job and performing successfully." McConoughey became
the first blind person employed in a civilian federal position overseas.

More than a year later, writing again from Japan, McConoughey reported to
tenBroek that he was thriving. He explained that he was able to "keep ahead"
in his work, which was "quite often a surprise to my sighted counterparts."
Further, he said, "It has taken some time but, [I] can now report that I am
being taken at face value by the ordinary business contact." Along with his
letter, he sent a family photograph and warm holiday greetings.

A 1958
<https://nfb.org/sites/nfb.org/files/images/nfb/publications/bm/abm/bm1958/b
raillemonitorapril1958.html>  Braille Monitor article reported on letters of
commendation McConoughey received for his work. As McConoughey wrote in a
letter to tenBroek, "These letters indicate some pretty solid achievements
and I am grateful for the successes that I have had. Frankly, I do not see
how it would have been possible without the effective representation
provided by the Federation."

"With Respect and Dignity"

Nyal McConoughey's story reflects the stories of so many blind people, both
in the United States and around the world. His story of resilience and
perseverance, a desire to work and to provide for his family, was just as
relatable in the 1950s as it is in 2026. These are themes that are constant
in the Federation's archives. And while it is easy for us to explain these
ideas as concepts, they are so much more powerful and impactful when shown
through the actual writings, possessions, and photographs of people who have
lived and are living the philosophy of the National Federation of the Blind.

In November 2025, after much correspondence and quite a few phone calls with
Jan and Reggie, the National Archives of the Blind People's Movement
received its first shipment of five boxes of artifacts related to Nyal. A
precursory inventory was taken of the items, which include a flag flown over
the US Capitol; items with Japanese Braille; copies of the publication
"Friendship in Action" that Nyal managed; awards, photographs, and small
Braille writers; and a subsequent Deed of Gift sent to Jan to complete the
donation. As of January 2026, the items are in the legal possession of the
Federation and are in the process of being fully accessioned and cataloged
into the archives. This ensures not only the industry standard archival
preservation in the stewardship of the items, but the dedication of the
National Federation of the Blind to help interpret and make public the blind
people's movement. In one of our many phone calls, Jan said the following
regarding the donation of her father's items: "The goal was to hope to
inspire future blind and low-vision people with respect and dignity."

If you have items in your possession that you think might also help enhance
our ongoing documentation of the organized blind movement, please contact
our staff at 

 

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