Times Observer photo by Brian Ferry Finding and funding a Brailler — a Braille typewriter — like this one on display at White Cane Coffee, is the kind of thing the White Cane Foundation can do to help a family or individual in need of vision services.

When Erin Willman lost her sight at the age of 15, her parents didn’t know what to do.

But they knew they had to help her however they could. And now, they want to help individuals and families that are in similar situations.

“When Erin lost her vision, we, as parents, were lost,” Bob Willman said.

“One day your child can see… What do I do? Who do I call? What kinds of services will she need?”

Doctors did what they do. “Yes, your child is blind,” Willman said. They did not direct the family to every different provider they could need. “That’s not their job,” Willman said.

Erin and her family made it through those early painful times. “She runs a company, travels all over the world,” Bob Willman said. “She does everything she needs to do… just like everybody else.”

That company is White Cane Coffee. The company provides more than coffee, it provides jobs to people with disabilities.

In July, they started the White Cane Foundation to reach out even farther.

“We want to take stress off the families, because, right now, they’re stressing,” Willman, who is the president of the foundation board, said. “We don’t want families to have to go through what we went through. Google can do a lot… but only so much.”

“We want a place that’s a one-stop information place — someone that understands what you’re going through,” he said.

“Say your mom is getting older and she’s losing her visions — we want you to be able to come to the foundation. ‘Here’s who you can get in contact with.'”

Some families could use a Brailler — a Braille typewriter. How many people who don’t have blind family member even know that’s a thing? The most basic of Braillers runs $600 or more. “There are private grants available,” Willman said. “We know where they are.”

There are currency readers that help a person who can’t see the bill know its denomination.

White canes are one of the most basic first steps toward independence.

“We had a woman come in recently, she had lost her vision,” Willman said. “She had no idea how to get around. ‘Let’s get you a white cane and get you started with mobility training.'”

That cane arrived in days, not weeks. “We’re not waiting on Harrisburg or Washington to come riding in on a white horse,” Willman said.

“‘I’m fighting with Social Security and I need a lawyer. Which attorney does that?'” Willman said. “I know.”

“A lot of people do not have vision insurance,” he said. “There are agencies.”

“We have an aging population,” he said. “Diabetes is almost an epidemic. Children need vision services.

When someone is diagnosed with diabetes, “the doctor’s main concern is getting that sugar under control,” he said. Concerns about diabetic retinopathy – a leading cause of blindness — are secondary.

“These are the things we don’t think about,” Willman said. “This is why these services are so important. Let’s get people what they need. These aren’t wants.”

The foundation is about vision services, but sometimes it crosses outside of those boundaries. When the Warren County Children’s Advocacy Center was looking for a highly trained facility dog, the requirements lined up fairly well with the training for a seeing eye dog. Willman reached out to entities that train those dogs and those connections helped bring Tiger, a six-year-old black Lab, to the CAC.

“I keep lists and lists of people,” he said. “I’m going to get you to talk to somebody who specializes in what you need.”

“When Erin lost her vision, we were clueless,” he said. “You don’t have to sit there and say, ‘What do I do? Who do I call? What do I need?'”

“Take a little bit of stress off their lives,” Willman said. “You need that place you can go to. That’s the impact the White Cane Foundation can have.”

For now, the foundation shares space with White Cane Coffee at 2 1/2 E. Third Ave., Warren. The foundation can be reached at (814) 779-0621 or at thewhitecanefoundation.square.site.