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Resources
DeafBlind-Focused Resources in
Non-Profits
agencies and providers included in this section voluntarily provided information to the Department of Human Services Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services Division. Unless otherwise noted, all resources listed provide services to deafblind people with additional disabilities. Please read our /Disclaimers.
Duluth Lighthouse for the Blind - Hearing and Vision Loss&;Program
Health and Wellness Program Serving Deaf and Hard of Hearing&;People
Metropolitan Center for Independent Living (MCIL) - Deaf IL&;Program
Individual Professionals
Sandra L. H. Davenport, MD, C.&;M.
State Offices
DHHSD DeafBlind Consumer Directed Services Grant&;Program
Commission Serving Deaf and Hard of Hearing People&;(MCDHH)
DeafBlind Technical Assistance&;Project
Department of Human Services - Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services&;Division
State Academy for the Blind&;(MSAB)
State Academy for the Deaf&;(MSAD)
State Services for the Blind&;(SSB)
Statewide Resource Center for the Blind/Visually&;Impaired
Statewide Resource Center for the Deaf/Hard of&;Hearing
Other Helpful Resources in
See also Consumer Advocacy Groups on our Tools for Independence page.
Fairview Medical Center - Chemical Dependency Program for Deaf and Hard of Hearing&;People
Resources in Other States
List of State DeafBlind Projects
Description: Links and contact information for every federally-funded DeafBlind Project in the U.S.
State Resource Fact Sheets
Description: Detailed listings of resource agencies and organizations for each state, compiled by DB-LINK.
Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired
Description: A very comprehensive site, with information about a wide variety of topics relating to blindness, visual impairment, deafblindness, and children with multiple disabilities.
See/Hear
Description: “a quarterly newsletter for families and professionals on visual impairments and deafblindness.” Complete online archive is available in English and Spanish, and in multiple file formats, including PDF format, text format, and grade two braille file.
Seattle Lighthouse for the Blind &; Deaf-Blind Program
Description: Seattle has perhaps the largest and most active DeafBlind community in the country. DeafBlind adults come from all over the U. S. every summer to experience camp at the Seabeck Retreat.
Ohio Center for DeafBlind Education
Description: provides services in Ohio for individuals, birth through 21 years, with combined visual and hearing losses, including free collaborative technical assistance to families, educational personnel and service providers through training and information dissemination. The OCDBE offers innovative approaches to the education of children and youth with deafblindness.
National Resources in the USA
American Association of the DeafBlind (AADB)
Description: “a national consumer advocacy organization for people who have combined hearing and vision impairments. AADB is open to all persons who are deaf-blind and individuals directly concerned with their well being, including spouses, children, friends, and health care professionals. Seeks to encourage independent living for individuals who are deaf-blind. Provides technical assistance to persons who are deaf-blind, families, educators, and service providers.”
Services: Training of Consumers, Info and Referral, Social/Recreational.
DB-LINK &; The National Information Clearinghouse on Children who are Deaf-Blind
Services for Children: Info and Referral, Serve DeafBlind people with additional disabilities.
DB-LINK State Resource Fact Sheets
DeafBlind Perspectives
Description: “a free publication, published three times a year by the Teaching Research Division of Western Oregon University&; DB-LINK and NTAC contribute staff and resources for content, editing, and publication.” An excellent, informative publication.
Hadley School for the Blind
Description: “Hadley has a course for you if you are a blind adult (14+ years of age), a parent or grandparent of a blind child, a family member of an adult who is blind, or a (para)professional in the blindness field. The Hadley School for the Blind offers more than 90 distance education courses to eligible students completely free of charge.” Current course listing is on the Hadley web site, and is also available by mail in alternate formats. Designed to focus blind and visually impaired people, but many of the courses can be helpful to DeafBlind people and their friends, families, and professionals.
Helen Keller National Center for DeafBlind Youth and Adults (HKNC)
Services for Adults: Advocacy/Support, Functional Assessments, Independent Living Training, Orientation & Mobility, Training of Consumers, Support Service Providers (SSPs), Info and Referral, Social/Recreational, Training of Professionals.
HKNC North Regional Office
Services for Adults: Info and Referral. North Regional Office serves Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, , Ohio, Wisconsin.
Katlyn&;s Hope
Services: Training of Consumers, Financial Assistance, Serve DeafBlind people with additional disabilities.
National Family Association for Deaf-Blind
Description: An aid for families/individuals as they begin their
search for resource referrals. Information is listed by state.
Services for Children: Training of Families, Info and Referral, Social/Recreational.
National Federation of the Blind &; Deaf-Blind Division
Description: “Deaf-blind persons working nationally to improve services, training, and independence for the deaf-blind. We offer personal contact with other deaf-blind individuals knowledgeable in advocacy, education, employment, technology, discrimination, and other issues surrounding deaf-blindness.”
NTAC &; National Technical Assistance Consortium for Children and Young Adults who are DeafBlind
Services for Children and Young Adults: Advocacy/Support, Training of Consumers, Info and Referral, Social/Recreational.
Resource Listings for Many Countries
A DeafBlindness Web Resource
Description: Maintained by deafblind Brit, James Gallagher, this text-only site provides links to a wealth of information on DeafBlindness and related topics from around the world, including terminology, internet resources, conferences and courses, journals and periodicals, videos, service providers, bibliographies, equipment, communication, internet access, accessible e-mail services, and accessible computer programming resources. See also “A-Z to Deafblindness,” which may have slightly more updated information.
A-Z to Deafblindness
Description: “My name is James Gallagher and I am deafblind myself. This site is here to try and offer some help to Blind or deaf people, and especially deafblind people, and those who provide specialised services for those who are deafblind. A-Z to Deafblindness is also here, to make people more aware about deafblindness.” Includes archives of info about deafblindness, and extensive resource lists of DeafBlind-related conferences, courses, mailing lists, newsletters, equipment, organizations, poetry, and videos for and about DeafBlind people from around the world.
Organizations for DeafBlind People Throughout the World
Description: An extensive list, organized by country/region
DeafBlind International (DbI)
Description: “As deafblindness is a low incidence disability the extent of activity in any one country will not be enough to maintain a distinct identity for this field. International networking and the sharing of information is essential to the development of the deafblind field and quality services for deafblind people. To learn from good practice we need to collaborate across national boundaries.”
DbI members/contacts &; lists contact information for Honorary Officers, Management Committee, Corporate Members, and information networks around the world.
DeafBlind Children Home Page
Description: “&;a resource for parents of deafblind children. We face many challenges in our everyday lives looking after and communicating with our deafblind children&; a place for parents to gain information, [and] talk with other parents who face the same unique challenges.”
Services: Listserv, Chat Room, Life Stories of DeafBlind children and the adults who care for them.
Sense
Description:The world&;s largest deafblind-focused organization. “Sense is the national [and international] voluntary organisation that works with and campaigns for the needs of children and adults who are both deaf and blind; providing advice, support, information and services for them, their families, carers and the professionals who work with them. In addition we work with many of the thousands of people who have a sight or hearing problem plus other disabilities.”
World Federation of the DeafBlind (WFDB)
WFDB can be reached through:
The Swedish Association of the Deafblind (FSDB)
Newsletter: To obtain the newsletter on the Internet from the server of the Swedish Deafblind Organisation FSDB, send an e mail to in the body of the e mail you have to write subscribe intndb-l
Newsletter Sample: http://www.wfdb.org/newsletter/News_2000_april.htm
Resources Specific to One Country
Australian DeafBlind Council
Description: “Objectives are to encourage self-organisation and self-determination by people who are deafblind, to serve as a national assembly for meetings, ommunication and interchange, to provide a forum for collective expression and discussion, to work for improvement throughout Australia in education, health, welfare, rehabilitation, employment and recreation for deafblind people, to cooperate with kindred organisations such as the NFBCA and the Deafness Forum, to disseminate information, to solicit support from government at various levels for people with deafblindness.”
Canadian Helen Keller Center
Description: “the first skills training centre in Canada where individuals who are Deaf-Blind can upgrade or gain independent living and technical skills.”
Canadian National Society of the DeafBlind
Description: “advocate for new and improved services&; promote public awareness of issues affecting persons who are Deaf-Blind,” and publish information about Intervenor services.
Deafblind New Zealand
Description: “DeafBlind New Zealand arose from the need seen in the NZ Foundation for the Blind, for a separate Society run by DeafBlind people themselves.”