Lions Bob Reddick, left, and Jim McGlade spent a morning increasing awareness and collecting money for sight-conservation programs on International White Cane Day. Photo Credit: Pat Reddick
Westport Lions Roar
By Lion Bob Reddick
“White Cane Day (also known as White Cane Safety Day or White Cane Awareness Day) is observed annually on October 15 to celebrate the achievements of people who are blind or visually impaired and to honour the white cane as a powerful symbol of independence, confidence, and self-reliance.” (National Federation of the Blind) The white cane acts as a safety measure, alerting motorists and universally acknowledging the user as visually impaired. Today, white cane laws and regulations exist in multiple countries around the world, providing visually impaired individuals a legal status in traffic.
The history of the White Cane began in 1921 when James Biggs, a blind photographer from England, painted his walking stick white to make it more visible to traffic. In 1930, George A. Bonham, president of the Peoria Lions Club in Illinois, introduced the white cane with a red band/strip for contrast after watching a blind man struggle to cross a street with his black guide stick. News of the Peoria Lions making and distributing white canes spread quickly to other Lion clubs. In 1931, Lions Clubs International officially launched a global program to distribute and promote white canes. In Canada, the white cane movement and Lions Clubs are closely tied to White Cane Week, established in 1946, through a partnership between the Canadian Council of the Blind (CCB) and the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB). In time, the overwhelming acceptance of the white cane by the blind and sighted made it ubiquitous.
Different cane designs help signal specific visual or hearing needs. For example, an all-white cane indicates that the user is completely blind. A white cane with a red bottom signifies the user has some usable vision, and a white and red striped cane shows the user is both blind and deaf. (Rick Hansen Foundation)
Don’t forget to mark Nov. 28 on your calendar for the annual Westport Lions Santa Claus Parade starting at 2:00 p.m.