They’ve called or e-mailed us from near and far. Little old ladies with dwindling vision. Mothers seeking to help their children. Offspring desperate to find relief for their parents.
All reacting to “The Eyes Hav It: Beach man turns visual handicap into innovation to help others,” Monday’s Daily Break cover story by staff writer Roy Bahls.
He wrote about Brandon Edwards, a Virginia Beach school teacher who invented a Vision Enhancer that has helped many people to see clearly, thus regaining their independence and improving their daily lives.
Several readers called to ask how they can contact Edwards or to thank Bahls for writing the article.
“I really appreciate you putting it in print because many folks who have various eye diseases need to hear about these things,” said Charlie Jones.
“Can you have Mr. Edwards call me or how can I get his phone number?” asked a woman, echoing similar calls.
“If there’s anything that will help my son’s vision, you will be the first to know,” one caller told Bahls after getting Edwards’ phone number.
And so it went. Which gave Bahls a nice warm feeling, knowing he had not only told a good story, but had also provided much needed information to many Pilot readers.
A couple of overly enthusiastic callers even credited Bahls with inventing the Vision Enhancer. “I’ve even been blessed by more than a few callers for bringing this invention to light,’ Bahls said.
Which is just about as good as it gets for a writer.
Bahls, who’s with the paper’s Features Team, is an Old Dominion University graduate who started at The Pilot as a copy aide almost 25 years ago.
I wondered what turned Bahls onto the story.
About a year or so ago, he recalled, he was thumbing through a book, “Future Stuff,” about inventions that might affect lives in the future, when he “thought it would be great if there was a local inventor mentioned. . . . Sure enough, I found some info on Brandon Edwards and his invention.”
So Bahls called him and discovered that “a lot had happened in the decade since he was mentioned in that book. His invention had evolved and he was excited about some of his new ideas.”
But the story had to wait. Edwards had recently undergone surgery and needed time to recover. Sure, Bahls said. But please don’t give the story to anyone else, he begged. Edwards promised he wouldn’t.
Bahls said he set out to spread the word about Edwards’ work, and he’s convinced that’s exactly what he did because he’s been flooded with calls.
So has John Everly, the Virginia Beach optometrist who said in Bahls’ story that he had fitted about 100 patients with Edwards’ special glasses.
“It’s really rewarding to see the wonderful response we’ve gotten” from Bahls story, Everly said.
Since the story appeared, almost 300 individuals have inquired about the glasses. They’ve been mostly area residents. But calls have also come from West Virginia, Florida, Northern Virginia and Philadelphia.
Everly is especially elated in light of the “lukewarm interest” he said he has sometimes gotten from groups he has addressed. “Some doctors don’t appreciate what low vision specialists can do to help them,” Everly said.
“People are calling for more information about the glasses for themselves, their parents, aunts, children. . . , ” said Bahls of the calls he has gotten. “One lady said, `This is a ray of hope.’ Many say their parents aren’t able to drive any longer or even read the newspaper and maybe this might help them. Many of the calls have been very touching.”
Wrong info? Steve Bush e-mailed us to say “someone needs to tell Mr. Brantley Allen that he is giving incorrect information to his 12th grade class in reference to how much money the president of the United States makes each year.”
Bush referred to the Test Yourself feature on the Education page in the Hampton Roads section Monday that gave sample test questions asked of area summer school students.
Allen reportedly asked his 12th grade U.S. government class at Great Bridge High School how much the president makes today and indicated that the answer is $200,000. That’s incorrect. The president’s salary is $400,000 — effective January 2001.
Allen knows that, I’m told. He inadvertently gave an “old test” to a summer school administrative intern, who passed it to The Pilot.
That error got by us, but another didn’t. “Clankity, Clankity, Clankity, Clank!” is a sound that’s an example of onomatopoeia. But the indicated answer on the question, given by Hickory Middle School teacher SueAnn Bulak to her sixth-grade English class at Great Bridge, was a simile.
I’m told that Bulak submitted the question to the summer school office but not the possible answers. An intern indicated the incorrect answer on the information given us.
