January 2020 - Lutheran Braille Workers
Post date: Dec 30, 2019 5:43:21 PM
Lutheran Braille Workers
With a dedicated mission heart, Helene Loewe Koehler responded to a plea from Mr. Fred Graepp for Braille Bibles for blind pastors in Germany. As a result, Lutheran Braille Workers (LBW) was founded in 1943. Helene learned Braille from Mr. Graepp by correspondence, keeping them and her Braille manuscripts in a shoe box under her bed. Helene’s brother, Norman Loeber, created a Braille press using rollers from their mother’s ringer washer. Helene sought the assistance of the Ladies Aid Society of Trinity Lutheran Church, and this became the first of nearly 200 Braille and Large Print Work Centers.
Providing the Word of God freely to people who are blind or visually impaired has been the focus of Lutheran Braille Workers since it was founded in 1943. The work has grown from producing titles in a single language to 30 languages, and the volunteer work force has grown from one volunteer working out of a shoebox in her home to more than 3000 volunteers in about 170 work centers across the United States!