Submitted by Senator Michael Barrett
Amid a driving sleet storm on Tuesday of last week, State Sen. Mike Barrett gathered with blind advocates and constituents at the State House. Recently appointed Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Children, Families and Persons with Disabilities, Barrett has made it a priority to reach out to groups that fall under its purview.
“The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission tells us that in the next 30 years the number of adults with vision difficulties will double,” Barrett said. “It has to do with us aging baby boomers, and the problem is real.”
Barrett met with Bob Hachey of Waltham and his guide dog Xane, and then spoke to workers from Watertown’s Perkins School for the Blind, which serves many residents in Barrett’s district. The Senator, a health care IT specialist by profession, also talked with representatives from the National Braille Press. They told him about products developed at their Center for Innovation, including a new mobile device for Braille.
Glad to see Mike reaching out. Too often when politicians are elected you don’t hear from them for months. I’m glad I supported Mike.