There are a lot of exciting things happening at Inland Northwest Lighthouse (INL)!
We are pleased to have Shawn Dobbs join the INL team this past May as Development and Public Relations Director. A native of Indiana, Shawn graduated from the Indiana School for the Blind and Visually Impaired before receiving his Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from the University of Evansville. He then went on to attend Indiana University where he received a Master’s Degree in Social Work with a concentration in organizational leadership. Shawn comes to the Lighthouse from Bosma Enterprises where he worked as the Adjustment Counselor and Vocational Readiness Instructor.
The 2012 Spokane Braille Rally was held at INL on the second Saturday in June. In spite of the rain and chilly weather, the event was a huge success. A total of 16 teams comprised of sighted drivers paired with blind navigators took part in the Braille Rally. A new addition to this year’s festivities was the Hands-on Car Show for the Blind. Judges who are blind determined the winning car, based on touch and feel of each vehicle. Overall the 2012 Spokane Braille Rally raised $15,000 in support of programs and services at INL. To learn more about who won the rally and the sponsors who supported the event, please go to http://www.spokanebraillerally.com.
On June 25, Kirk Adams visited INL to announce that our Board of Trustees had approved an expansion of the INL facility. Once construction begins, the facility will almost double in size from 52,000 to approximately 100,000 square feet. Besides providing more warehouse space, the expansion will result in more employment opportunities for people who are blind, Deaf-Blind, or blind with other disabilities. The news of the expansion could not have come at a better time as it provided a great reason to celebrate later that evening at INL’s annual trip to the ballpark to watch a Spokane Indians baseball game.
It has been a great couple of months here in Spokane, and we are very excited about the future!
