User:Nytellie/Ligue Braille

The Ligue Braille is a Belgian non-profit association. Founded in 1922, its aim is to help blind and partially-sighted people.

History
The Ligue Braille dates back to 1920. Elisa Michiels and Lambertine Bonjean, both blind, set out to create a library for the visually impaired. They set up a committee to transcribe texts into Braille. The Ligue Braille was then set up as a non-profit association, and its articles of association were published on September 22, 1922. They were revised in 1948, and the definitive name was adopted: Ligue Braille - Institution nationale pour le bien des aveugles.

The Ligue Braille set itself the goal of helping all blind people, regardless of race, language or opinion, in all circumstances and by all available means. Gradually, the League embarked on a number of awareness-raising campaigns to encourage public and private authorities to take greater account of the specific abilities and needs of blind and partially-sighted people. In 1930, blind people were granted discounts on public transport. In 1948, the Ligue Braille launched the "Semaine de l'aveugle", now known as "Semaine de la Ligue Braille", to inform the public.

Workshops were set up, the first in 1929 being a caning, brushing, basket-making and wood-cutting workshop. Emphasis was placed on greater autonomy for visually impaired people: a guide dog section was set up in 1933, and a social service in 1936 to support and inform them. In the 1960s, the League developed training services: Vocational Guidance and Training Service in 1961, and French- and Dutch-speaking training and placement centers in 1969.

Initially relying solely on donations, the Ligue Braille launched an annual tombola in 1951. In 1990, profits from the Tombola enabled the establishment of the first Braille Club, designed to promote integration through leisure activities. Various cultural activities are offered once a month. In 1953, Queen Elizabeth recognized the national character of the organization by granting it her patronage.

In 2006, a foundation was created to support the League's activities. The Ligue Braille Foundation was recognized as being of public utility by Royal Decree on April 19, 2006. Its aims are much the same as those of the Ligue Braille, with the addition of a concern for prevention and support for ophthalmological research. Every year, the Foundation, backed by a scientific committee made up of professors from the country's 7 university ophthalmology centers, awards prizes to support the research work of young ophthalmologists.

Organization
The Ligue Braille's head office is in Brussels (rue d'Angleterre no. 57), and it is also present in Ath, Charleroi, Libramont, Liège, Namur, Antwerpen, Geel, Gent, Hasselt, Kortrijk and Leuven. Over a hundred staff (social workers, occupational therapists, psychologists, orthoptists, animators, trainers, librarians, etc.) and several hundred volunteers from the Ligue Braille help more than 15,000 visually impaired people.

The League is managed by an 11-member Board of Directors (in 2018). The League's various successive presidents were Elisa Michiels (1920-1926), Cécile Douard (1926-1937), Henri Kleefeld (1937-1940), Gérard Borré (1940-1957), Achile Dyckmans (1957-1976), Jean-Paul Herbecq (1976-2002), Marc Giboux (2002-2011), Thierry Van Boxmeer (2011-2014) and Michel Berlo since 2014. Five of the nine were blind. In 2022, donations and legacies accounted for 71% of the Ligue Braille's needs, its own activities for 9%, and Tombola proceeds for 3%. Government subsidies accounted for 17%.