St Louis Society for the Blind and Visually Impaired

09/19/2026

It’s a beautiful morning and today Society is at Creve Coeur Lake Memorial Park for the annual
Foundation Fighting Blindness Vision Walk. Our table is next to our partners in “good trouble” Missouri School for the Blind and DGCKids working to help end vision loss.

09/18/2026

Tune your radios to WSIE 88.7 The Sound on Sunday morning, September 20 at 9:30 a.m. to hear an interview with Society's President and CEO, Sharon Mertzlufft. In a pre-recorded interview, Sharon talks about our services and programs with Robyn Boyce, on-air personality and Associate Director of Underwriting. Get your coffee ready and turn on 88.7 FM at 9:30 a.m. on Sunday!

(The logo for radio station 88.7 WSIE, "The Sound," set against a solid black background. The logo features a prominent, jagged red waveform graphic on the left that resembles a heart monitor pulse. Text includes 88.7 WSIE in white font and The Sound in orange, all capitals font.)

09/18/2026

The Society is grateful to be part of a network of more than 150 local organizations supported by the United Way of Greater St. Louis that make a lasting difference across our region. The Society provides low vision medical care, rehabilitation, transportation, and a broad range of community experiences and resources to more than 1,200 people each year. Through services that range from assistive technology training for Beverley to Kay and Mary’s trip to Missouri Botanical Garden, the Society’s work is centered around providing support for adults with vision loss to realize independent function and overall wellbeing throughout our region.

The United Way of Greater St. Louis Community Campaign has launched, and the Society’s employees are participating because we recognize the importance of giving back to the community that also believes in us.

09/17/2026

Just seven months away! Please save the date and plan to join us for the Visionary Gala on April 17, 2027.

(Promotional graphic on a solid black background. The top half of the image features the words "Visionary Gala" written in large, elegant white cursive script. The bottom left corner displays the SLSBVI logo. The bottom right corner lists the event details in a clean, white sans-serif font: Saturday, April 17, 2027, 5:30 p.m., Hilton St. Louis Frontenac.)

09/17/2026

Today’s Enriching Our Lives Together peer group is canceled. The next meeting will be on October 15, 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. and the items on today’s agenda will be discussed then. 

09/16/2026

Society welcomes Karen Paxson, our new Administrative Assistant and Data Management specialist. With over 30 years of experience in payroll, she said, "I retired earlier this year in March, but I felt like I wanted to keep busy, so that's why I'm here with the Society. I'm very excited about the opportunity to be here. I think it's a great organization that provides wonderful resources to the community."

Karen has one son and two grandchildren, ages 15 and 13. She enjoys volunteering at her church, reading, and helping her 87-year-old mother, who has macular degeneration and is interested in visiting the Society's Sight Solutions Shop.

Welcome to SLSBVI, Karen, and we welcome your mom anytime she'd like to visit!

(A woman poses for the camera in front of a blue wall. She has shoulder length, blonde hair and is wearing black frame glasses, and a white sweater over a yellow, print shirt.)

09/11/2026

The Society has had the pleasure of hosting Nic Laird, Occupational Therapy Student (OTS) for his 12-week fieldwork rotation. Nic is a student at Maryville University and has completed all his coursework. Now that he is finished here at Society, he will complete a second rotation with Washington University this fall. He graduates in January and will get ready to take his boards.

Nick said, "I chose this particular internship because it has an emphasis on assistive technology with low vision and I knew I'd find a great deal of passion in that."

He emphasized how much he has learned, not only about low vision and assistive technology, but also from having the opportunity to work alongside all our OT team members in the Drews Low Vision Clinic.

"I am extremely grateful for the experiences, knowledge, and connections I have gained during my time at SLSBVI. I will definitely carry what I have learned here with me as I continue through my fieldwork experiences and into my professional career."

All the best to you, Nic!

From l-r: Nic Laird, OTS, Mariko Lighthart, OT, and Dr. Jen Lauer, OT and Director of Adult Services.
(Three people pose for a photo against a blue wall under gold, 3-D letters that spell out The Leslie & Robert Drews Low Vision Clinic.)

09/09/2026

BATTER UP! UNITED WAY NIGHT AT THE BALLPARK!
The Society is treating up to twenty clients, plus one guest to the ballpark when the Cardinals host the San Francisco Giants.

Tuesday, September 15, 2026 at 6:45 p.m. - Busch Stadium
Grab a jumbo hot dog and soda (included with the ticket) and get ready for the action.

Please call Carlos to reserve your seats at 314-968-9000.
More information will be provided once ticket requests have been confirmed.

Clients will be responsible for their transportation and can choose to utilize the third-party transportation reimbursement option. PLEASE CALL AND RSVP TODAY!

(Logo of the St. Louis Cardinals baseball team, featuring a stylized red cardinal bird perched on a yellow baseball bat. The bat hooks into the cursive, red script text that reads "Cardinals".)

09/04/2026

Do you labor on Labor Day? Neither do we!
The Society will be closed on Monday, September 7 for the holiday. See you on Tuesday!
(A white box contains the words Happy Labor Day in blue and red colors. Five blue stars in a straight line are featured at the bottom.)

08/31/2026

The Saint Louis Zoo and The Sight Collective present: "See Like Me"
A Day at the Zoo for the Blind and Visually Impaired
Thursday, September 3 - 10:00 a.m. to 2:00pm
FREE EVENT

If you are an individual who is blind or visually impaired and you want to experience the special sensory experiences with Zoo staff which include feeding the giraffes OR feeding the flamingos, plus private tours of Penguin and Puffin Cove and The Stingray Experience, we strongly encourage you to register. Event registration is specifically for the person who is visually impaired.

To register, follow this link: https://thesightcollective.org/see-like-me/
Please register by September 2. Society clients, if you need transportation to the Zoo, please use the third party transportation reimbursement program.

(An artistic, multicolored logo featuring a stylized eye at its center. The eye is surrounded by a circular border with text: "THE SIGHT COLLECTIVE" is written along the top arch, and "ROUNDTABLE" is written along the bottom arch. The iris of the eye is divided into vibrant, geometric segments of blue, green, and yellow.)

See Like Me is a welcoming space for families, advocates, professionals, and community members who want to connect around accessibility, storytelling, and