[Ohio-talk] Vehicle donation Program

Wed Mar 20 12:03:55 UTC 2013

Through the years the NFB has tried repeatedly to get Heritage  for the
Blind out of business. They are legal, and they only make claims that in
some small way they can defend. Cheryl's experience is exactly what is
happening all over the country every day. The disgusting thing is that I
seem to remember that one or two of the principals of the organization are
blind themselves. They clearly are blind people who are being very
handsomely benefited by the charity. The most recent time we tried to shut
them down was within the past couple of years. Charlie Brown concluded that
they really are untouchable because of their care to stay within the law.
The only possible way to attack them would be to buy time to attach them.
Then we would be open to the accusation of picking on a blindness charity.
It is a no-win situation.

Barbara

-----Original Message-----
From: Ohio-talk [mailto:ohio-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Cheryl
Fischer
Sent: Tuesday, March 19, 2013 3:57 PM
To: 'NFB of Ohio Announcement and Discussion List'
Subject: Re: [Ohio-talk] Vehicle donation Program

I'm assuming you're speaking about Heritage for the Blind. I've been hearing
their radio ads out of Michigan for about 15 years. They started on
Cleveland and Akron Ohio stations at least ten years ago. I've heard that
they have been collecting money in New York State for decades prior to that.

I've called their toll free number for donating a car or boat or whatever
three or four times over the years. I asked them what they do for blind
people. The first time, they said they provide brochures in Braille. I asked
what brochures they had to offer. They said they don't provide a list of
their brochures and they wouldn't read even a small portion of the list to
me. They said if I wanted a brochure on a certain topic, I should ask, and
then they would check to see if they have one on that topic. 

Another time I called they did not mention brochures, but said they help
blind people sometimes, if requested. I finally dragged an example out of
the man I was talking to. He said that a man had lost his glasses. They paid
either for some new frames or the prescription lens. For some reason, they
couldn't pay for both parts of the glasses. I asked if they could help me by
buying me a new white cane as mine is old and bent and I really have no
money for a new one. He said, "No. That's not something we do."  

The last time I called, they said they were a referral service. If someone
calls them for help, they put "blind services" and your zip code onto an
internet search engine and tell you what is available to help you. I told
him my zip code and he told me the name and phone number of the Cleveland
Sight Center. 

About a year ago, I called the Akron radio station where I heard the ad for
Heritage for the Blind and reported that their ad was false advertisement
because they claimed to help the blind and visually impaired. I recounted
what I've written above and encouraged them to call themselves posing as a
person who is blind and needs help. The Heritage for the Blind ads
disappeared for about a month from that radio station, but then came back
with a new ad that does not claim to help the blind, though it still implies
it. It just says "Heritage for the Blind reminds you to be kind." Call...
This revised ad appears now in Cleveland, too.  

I'm sure they're getting plenty of money from donated cars and boats, etc.
using blind people to do so. I've often wondered why the NFB doesn't do
anything about this. 

Cheryl

-----Original Message-----
From: Ohio-talk [mailto:ohio-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Marianne
Denning
Sent: Tuesday, March 19, 2013 2:46 PM
To: NFB of Ohio Announcement and Discussion List
Subject: Re: [Ohio-talk] Vehicle donation Program

I went there after your response.  It doesn't sound like they really do
anything much.  They seem to be a referral agency so why do they need all
that money?  AFB, NFB, and other national organizations don't advertise
because it is very expensive.  I think they undo much of the hard work done
by NFB to change what it means to be blind.  Sorry, just venting.

On Tue, Mar 19, 2013 at 2:24 PM, Kaiti Shelton
<kaiti.shelton at gmail.com>wrote:

> Marianne,
>
> I have heard those commercials once or twice too.  I looked the 
> organization up and according to what I found on a company profile 
> they're a non-profit company who provides individual and family 
> services to visually impaired people/families coping with finding out 
> about a member's visual impairment.
> It sounds like it's aimed more towards adults who start losing vision 
> later in life, but their services sound like they're legitimate.  I'm 
> not sure if this is the same web page you found for them as a few 
> showed up in google for me, but this is the one that looks pretty normal.
>
> http://www.hftb.org/
>
> Although they look okay based on this, I'm wondering why they have 
> advertisements in Cincinnati.  The company profile I found said 
> they're based out of Brooklyn NY, so unless they're a nationwide 
> non-profit I don't quite understand why they'd take car donations in 
> Cincinnati.  However it says the company has been around since 95 and 
> they do offer a link to nationwide resources on the particular site I 
> linked to in this email, so maybe they are a reliable source.
>
> Kaiti Shelton
> University of Dayton---2016
> Music Therapy Major, Psychology Minor, Clarinet Secretary, Ohio 
> Association of Blind Students (OABS)-NFB Member of Alpha Phi 
> Omega-Alpha Gamma Xi Chapter
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Ohio-talk [mailto:ohio-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of 
> Marianne Denning
> Sent: Tuesday, March 19, 2013 1:51 PM
> To: NFB of Ohio Announcement and Discussion List
> Subject: Re: [Ohio-talk] Vehicle donation Program
>
> Has anyone heard the advertisement for vehicle donations for "Heritage 
> for the Blind??  I have recently heard them in the Cincinnati area and 
> I am worried it is a scam.  I went to the website and could not find 
> anything telling me what this organization does.  I know this is off 
> topic but I am always concerned about things like this.
>
> On Tue, Mar 19, 2013 at 12:01 PM, Cheryl Fields
> <cherylelaine1957 at gmail.com>wrote:
>
> > Hi, this is a really great idea and should be profitable. Is it 
> > possible for someone to develop a email flyer for us print and 
> > forward to our friends and family.
> >
> > Blessings,
> > Cheryl Fields
> >
> > On 3/19/13, Eric Duffy <eduffy at deltav.org> wrote:
> > > I am posting in part a message from Joanne Wilson in our national
> office.
> > > Please do what you can to help.
> > >
> > > The National Federation of the Blind has launched a vehicle 
> > > donation program. The vehicle donation program allows us to accept 
> > > car donations anywhere in the United States. Our national office 
> > > and our affiliates
> > have
> > > been turning car donations away because we have not had an 
> > > effective program for managing these donations and turning them 
> > > into cash for the organization. We have now solved this problem 
> > > and we need your help to
> > take
> > > advantage of this opportunity.
> > >
> > > After extensive research, the Federation has made an agreement 
> > > with Vehicles for Charity to process our car donations. Besides 
> > > cars, we also accept vans, RVs, motorcycles, dirt bikes, boats, 
> > > trucks, and tractors.  However, it
> > is
> > > up to us to capture the donors by promoting the fact that we can 
> > > accept vehicle donations and finding creative ways to get the word
out.
> > > Please Spread the word that the NFB is now accepting vehicle
donations.
> > > Encourage members to send all referrals to the page on our website 
> > > www.nfb.org/vehicledonations or to our toll free vehicle donation 
> > > number 855-659-9314.
> > >
> > > It is important that we all do what we can to help spread the word 
> > > about this new program.
> > >
> > > Thanks.
> > >
> > > Eric
> > >
> > >
> > > _______________________________________________
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> > >
> >
> >
> > --
> > Peace
> >
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> >
>
>
>
> --
> Marianne Denning, TVI, MA
> Teacher of students who are blind or visually impaired
> (513) 607-6053
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--
Marianne Denning, TVI, MA
Teacher of students who are blind or visually impaired
(513) 607-6053
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