Area blind and visually impaired people hope their fellow community members will be mindful of the white cane

Area blind and visually impaired people hope their fellow community members will be mindful of the white cane. Several of them gathered at the American Legion Post #30 on Monday to mark White Cane Awareness Day, highlighting the importance of the simple tool that affords independence to the visually impaired and communicates caution to the people around them. Harriet Hall, of Newport, was there with assistance from her guide dog, Verdi. Those gathered are participants in the Vermont Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired Peer Assisted Learning and Support group. (PALS) Monday was the PALS regular monthly meeting, but it had extra significance happening the day after White Cane Awareness Day. The first widespread use of white canes dates back to the 1930s to a Lions Club in Illinois. A man named George A. Bonham, president of the Peoria Lions Club, introduced the idea of the white cane. He got the idea after watching a man who was blind try to cross a busy street using a black cane and recognized the need for increased visibility.” Acknowledgment of the white cane is mandated by law. All 50 states have it on the books that when a person is crossing the street with a white cane, or a service animal like a guide dog, that cars need to yield.”