Welcome to the home of the
Houston Area Visually Impaired Network (HAVIN).

 

HAVIN is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization comprised of various volunteer groups and organizations from across Houston that serve the information, resource, and support needs of the blind and visually impaired. Our vision is to educate, provide peer support, and unify the blind and visually impaired community in the Greater Houston area.

 

Our mission is to provide training, education, workshops, seminars, and mentorship to the blind and visually impaired Community,  providing skills and resources to help individuals live full and independent lives.

Because we are blind and visually impaired ourselves, we understand how large in area Houston is and the challenges this poses to the many people from across our great city who are also blind and visually impaired. Our goal when starting HAVIN was to try to make it a little smaller for us, at least once a year, for those of us who are blind and visually impaired. To do this, we bring together the various support groups and nonprofit organizations that serve the blind and visually impaired community and make up HAVIN to host at least one event a year, the annual Insight Expo. While its not practical to come to each of our group’s individual meetings, it is possible for us to come together for that one day a year and bring unity to our community.

 

That is how we started, but, we have grown to do so much more than that today. Read below for the latest news and information about HAVIN. There are also links to our “About Us” page above, and “Our Groups,” if you want to find out about our history, or to contact one of the groups that comprise HAVIN.

 

 

Make a Donation to HAVIN

 

Even though we are a dedicated group of volunteers working collectively to serve our community, we still have expenses and rely on the generosity of donors to help us meet our financial obligations. If you would like to make a tax-exempt donation to support the work of HAVIN, know that it is much appreciated.

Secure donations can be made  through Square using a debit or credit card at this link:

Donate to HAVIN

However, if Zelle, Paypal, or the Cash app are your preferred methods of donating, we also have accounts set up on each of those platforms to receive payments.

For Zelle and Paypal, send donations to

havin.tx@gmail.com

 

for the Cash app, our Cashtag is  $HAVINTX

 

HAVIN’s Previous Zoom Workshop: How Smart Are Your Glasses?

This was held on Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024 bringing together a handful of guest presenters from different parts of the technology world. We had Jessica Clark from Orcam and Bob Roehm from Envision Technologies, as well as Kyle Kiper, a VR Counselor at the Waco VA sharing about his experience using the Meta Ray Ban glasses.

 

If you missed it, here’s the link to the video on our YouTube channel.

 

 

HAVIN’s White Cane Drive

 

Do you have one or more old folding white canes sitting around the house that you no longer need? Maybe the elastic is broken, or one of the sections is broken, or maybe it needs a new tip, or you just have an extra cane that you no longer use.

 

As another way to serve our community, HAVIN is sponsoring a white cane drive and is asking each of our member organizations to have their members donate white canes for this. We have extended the timeline to culminate in October, to recognize White Cane Safety Day. Between now and then, we will collect used and broken folding white canes. The collected canes will be repaired and refurbished by HAVIN in June and donated to the You Cane Give initiative to further their work of providing white canes and Orientation & Mobility instruction to people internationally who do not have access to white canes or O&M training. This is serving a double function of clearing out your old canes and putting them to use in the hands of people who are in dire need of them.

 

So, if you have one or more folding white canes that you would like to donate, find out from your group or organization leader when and where they are collecting them. Your donations are greatly appreciated.

 

Latest News from HAVIN

 

We thank all of the presenters at our inaugural HAVIN Talent Showcase, which was held on Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024 at the Metropolitan Multi Service Center. This was a successful event highlighting the variety of talented individuals in our community. A special note of thanks to the Lighthouse Choir for their participation in this showcase. Additionally, we thank Comedian See No Evil for taking part in this endeavor with us.  We also would like to thank our friends at Vision Without Barriers for donating to help support the program.

 

HAVIN has a dedicated phone number. Contact us at (713) 570-6968.

Follow us on Social media – We’re on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter: @HAVINTX
Or through your local group or organization email list.

 

Recognizing our sponsors and supporters

 

We appreciate everybody who has donated to support HAVIN. In just the past year alone, there has been an abundant number of charitable donations to HAVIN, and we want you all to know how grateful we are for these. This includes several individuals, as well as businesses. If you are one of the many individuals who have donated to HAVIN, thank you.

 

We would like to acknowledge the official sponsor of our annual Insight Expo,

The University of Houston College of Optometry

who have been part of HAVIN since our launch and have graciously hosted all of our Insight Expos.

 

Additionally, we would like to thank the following sponsors for helping us through charitable grants.

Houston Delta Gamma Foundation

WalMart Local Community Grants Team and WalMart Facility # 3579  in Kingwood

 

 

And, finally, HAVIN would like to say thank you to the following businesses for supporting us as we have delivered our programming and as we have expanded our operations and service.

 

Cheniere

Christal Vision Inc.

Dreamhost

RGA Tech Solutions

Trader Joe’s

Vispero

 

Hear how we began

 

If you would like to learn more and hear our president telling more about the formation of HAVIN, check out this interview with Chelsea Nguyen at Sight Into Sound studios.

Follow HAVIN on Social Media

 

We are on Twitter and Instagram: @HAVINTX

 

Also be sure to follow us on Facebook: (20+) Houston Area Visually Impaired Network – HAVIN | Facebook