Stories by Blake Herzog

People Who Care is a nonprofit that’s been serving Greater Prescott for 31 years by offering transportation to residents who can no longer drive due to visual impairment. It also offers periodic classes on topics related to living with low vision.

Thanks to volunteers with decades of experience living and working with the issue it’s now able to offer one-on-one consultations.

Tom Perski, 70, has lived with low vision since losing most of his eyesight to a rare genetic form of macular degeneration while he was in college. He regrouped and established a career developing and selling devices for people with impaired vision, rising to senior vice president for Chicago Lighthouse, renowned for serving the blind and visually impaired.

“It’s kind of the story of my life, the irony of losing your vision and then finding it’s an actually an advantage for working in this field. You have instant credibility,” he said.

He’s now available two days a week to offer training and consultation to people learning how to live with reduced vision, usually by learning how to use devices like magnifiers, auditory readers and even apps and features on their smartphones they aren’t aware of.

His wife Diane, who was the business manager at Chicago Lighthouse and ran the couple’s own low-vision service business in Tucson, creates a report of his evaluation and recommendations for each patient.

A year ago they began offering their services out of a room at People Who Care’s headquarters at 1580 Plaza West Drive in Prescott, which through grant money has been furnished with numerous visual aids their visitors can try out, including some of the most technically advanced.

Read more: Free Service Helps Those with Low Vision Thrive – Prescott LIVING Magazine

Source:Prescott LIVING Magazine