APH Press Release
APH Hosts Free Event: This is Your Life, Louis Braille
January is National Braille Literacy Awareness Month
Louisville, KY – The Museum of the American Printing House for the Blind (APH), located at 1839 Frankfort Avenue will host a celebration in honor of Louis Braille on Saturday, January 25 from 10:30am until 12:30pm. Reservations are needed by January 23.
Attendees will celebrate the achievements and legacy of Louis Braille, the inventor of the code used worldwide by those who are blind to read and write.
This is Your Life, Louis Braille
The program is presented in interview format, similar to the TV show that started in the early ‘50s—but the questions and events portrayed disregard all limitations of time and space, covering Louis’s lifetime (1809-1852), and beyond. They begin with his childhood in Coupvray, France, and end with Louis discovering that his contribution to the betterment of humanity has been recognized by the French government in 1952 on the 100th anniversary of his death, when his body is reburied alongside French heroes and leaders in the Pantheon in Paris.
The people who have been “assembled” to surprise Louis with stories about special parts of his life include not only family and friends, but some who never met him, personally, but benefitted from his achievement.
Cast includes:
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• Louis Braille played by Alan Lovell
• Monique Braille, Louis’s mother, played by Pat Mohon
• Alexandre Francoise Rene Pignier, the director of Louis’s school, played by – Charlie Pooser
• Gabriel Gauthier, Louis’s friend and well-known organist and composer, played by Ben Wright
• Valentin Hauy, the founder of Louis’s school, played by Jack Francis
• Helen Keller, played by Barb Henning
Many of the performers are also braille readers, so they understand the significance of Louis’s work on a personal level.
About the Museum of the American Printing House for the Blind
The Museum, where visitors experience hands-on history, is open Monday through Saturday. It is located on the second floor of the American Printing House for the Blind, 1839 Frankfort Avenue, Louisville, Kentucky. Admission is free. Regular hours are 8:30am to 4:30pm, Monday-Friday and 10:00am to 3:00pm on Saturday. Visitors can write in braille, see the first book embossed for blind readers, created in France, in 1786, play a computer game designed for blind students, see the piano used by Stevie Wonder when he was a student at the Michigan School for the Blind, and much more. For more information, visit sites.aph.org/museum or call (502) 895-2405 ext. 365 or ext 213.
About the American Printing House for the Blind
The American Printing House for the Blind, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, is the world’s largest nonprofit company devoted solely to researching, developing, and manufacturing products for people who are blind or visually impaired. Founded in 1858, it is the oldest organization of its kind in the United States. Under the 1879 federal Act to Promote the Education of the Blind, APH is the official supplier of educational materials for visually impaired students in the U.S. who are working at less than college level.
APH manufactures textbooks and magazines in braille, large print, recorded, and digital formats. APH also manufactures hundreds of educational, recreational, and daily living products including computer software and other technology items. APH’s fully-accessible website features information about APH products and services, online ordering of products, and free information on a wide variety of blindness-related topics.
The American Printing House for the Blind, Inc. is located at 1839 Frankfort Avenue in Louisville, Kentucky. For more information, call (502) 895-2405 or log on to archive.aph.org
