White Cane Walk comes to Wichita Falls in support of National White Cane Safety Day

WICHITA FALLS, Texas (KAUZ) - National White Cane Day is here, and Beacon Lighthouse will hold its annual celebration next week for those in the visually impaired community.

Office administrator Blake Allen said that recognition began in 1964 when President Lyndon Johnson proclaimed Oct. 15th as National White Cane Safety Day. Across the country, schools and facilities that support the blind and visually impaired celebrate this day. Beacon Lighthouse commemorates the occasion with a white cane walk.

“Some of the schools will come for the event, and what it is -- we have a variety of canes set up, and people will have blind folds where they can be blind folded, so they can get the sensation of what it’s like to be able to use a white cane as a visually impaired or blind person,” Allen said. “they will be buddied up with a visual person; that way they are not running into curbs and potholes.”

Allen went on to say that for the visually impaired community, White Cane Day is a symbol of strength and freedom.

“The white cane...we use it as a symbol of empowerment where we try to be independent, we’re not relying on others -- we can actually get to a spot that we go,” he explained. “If we’re going out to shop or if we’re going to the bus stop or the work facility, then we use that white cane to maneuver through the obstacles that we have to overcome that we can’t see.”

Allen said that you have to learn how to use the white cane before attempting to actually put it to use. He said that the length of a cane is picked based on each user’s measurements, like their height. The canes come with various types of tips. Each one serves a different purpose.

“It’s very important that people who are visually impaired learn how to use the white cane just to get the proper training,” Allen said. “I did it as kind of preventative training because my eyesight is not going to get any better -- it’s always going to continue to get worse, so I wanted to be trained. When it comes time I can have use of the white cane and know how to use it properly.”

He said that the goal of the National White Cane Day event is to teach people about what visually impaired people go through on an everyday basis.

“We take it for granted that we can see -- we can get to a place without any problem, but those of us who are visually impaired rely on that cane to do the same,“ Allen said.

The event is free to the community, and takes place at 11 a.m. next Thursday, Oct. 23rd at the Beacon Lighthouse’s location at 300 7th St.