LIGHTHOUSE OF COLLIER
Regaining Independence Everyday
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Independent Living Skills (O&M, Daily Skills, Vocational Rehab and Assistive Technoloy)
- Skills for safe independent navigation at home, work or in the community. - Skills to live independently and safely at home. Learn tactile medication labeling, cooking, money identification, grooming. How to use check/signature guides, talking watches, using a phone, safety tips and much more. - Use of assistive technology from large print displays and Braille, to accessing Email and Internet with talking PCs.
Orientation and Mobility
Learn skills for safe independent navigation at home, work, or in the community.
Daily Living Skills
Learn skills to live independently and safely at home, such as tactile medication labeling, cooking, safety, money identification, and grooming, using check and signature guides, talking watches, a phone, safety tips and much more.
Vocational Rehabilitation
Vocational Rehabilitation can include one or more of the programs services LOC provides.
• A vocational evaluation of the client will assist each individual in identifying suitable areas of employment and job training.
• Rehabilitation Computer Instruction involves the use of adaptive or assistive technology to help those who are blind or visually impaired to maintain their current employment or to obtain new employment. The client will learn how to perform typical computer operations and be trained in the use of adaptive software that will allow them to use the computer regardless of blindness or visual impairment. Students who enroll are interested in gaining computer skills that will increase their potential for employment or need the training for school or to update their knowledge of what hardware and software is currently available.
• O&M Instruction involves training on navigating to and from work and around the work place
• Other services necessary in order to gain, maintain or regain employment.
Assistive Technology
Learn how to use assistive technology, from large print displays and Braille, to accessing Email and Internet with talking PCs and using smart phones and tablets.
Children's Programs (Blind Babies, Children and Students)
What is known about congenitally blind and visually impaired children is that, unless skills such as orientation and mobility, social interaction and independent living are learned, these children are at high risk for lonely, isolated and unproductive lives. Accomplishments and joys such as shopping, dining, attending and participating in recreational activities are a right, not a privilege, for blind and visually impaired children.
With your support, our goal is to help these children learn socialization, educational and skill development while providing unique opportunities for them to have fun.
Early Intervention/Babies
Provide caregivers and infants/young children the skills needed to develop visual efficiency, school readiness, and to maximize physical, mental and social development.
Children’s Programs (all ages)
Monthly children's events and summer camp offer opportunities to learn. Activities include: day trips, picnics in the park, large print cards and board games. Learn about and play with magnifiers, CCTV’s, talking computers, and State of the Art computer equipment. Meet and make new friends!
Transition Program (ages 14 to 22)
Provides training skills for daily living, self- advocacy, communication, assistive technology, job-seeking, orientation and mobility, and more.
Where we work
Accreditations
National Accreditation Council for Agencies Serving the Blind and Visually Handicapped (NAC) - Accreditation 2015
Accreditation from the Association for Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impair 2023
Awards
Human Needs Award 2014
Jewish Federation of Collier County
Excellence in Industry Certificate of Recognition 2013
Greater Naples Chamber of Commerce
Heroes in Health Care 2015
Naples Daily News Choice Awards
Harvey Kapnick Award for Excellence 2019
Community Foundation of Collier County
External reviews
Photos
Videos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Number of people provided assistive technology
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
People with disabilities
Related Program
Independent Living Skills (O&M, Daily Skills, Vocational Rehab and Assistive Technoloy)
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Number of personal development plans in place
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
People with disabilities
Related Program
Independent Living Skills (O&M, Daily Skills, Vocational Rehab and Assistive Technoloy)
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Number of briefings or presentations held
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
People with disabilities
Related Program
Independent Living Skills (O&M, Daily Skills, Vocational Rehab and Assistive Technoloy)
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Number of community events or trainings held and attendance
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
People with disabilities
Related Program
Independent Living Skills (O&M, Daily Skills, Vocational Rehab and Assistive Technoloy)
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
Can you see to read this? Imagine going blind or having any vision loss. Who helps you learn how to socialize, navigate, communicate and feel safe in a sighted world? Who helps you cope and to feel confident that you can live a healthy and productive life? As the only Center for Blindness and Vision Loss in Collier County, Lighthouse of Collier helps the estimated 14,000 blind/vision impaired children and adults become independent. The mission of Lighthouse of Collier is to promote the development, implementation and on-going evaluation of programs and services which foster independence and enhance the quality of life for the blind, visually impaired and their caregivers. The vision of Lighthouse of Collier is to provide excellent rehabilitation training. The goal of Lighthouse of Collier is to help the blind/vision impaired live independently and engage in life. By 2016, Lighthouse of Collier will: 1. Identify the estimated 14,000 blind/vision impaired children and adults in Collier County and provide the appropriate rehabilitation services. 2. Develop a transition program, for ages 14-21 years, to assist in the transition process from high school to college or work place. 3. Bring awareness to the programs and services available to the blind/vision impaired community. The unmet community needs the Lighthouse of Collier programs will address for these children and adults is to help them learn how to socialize, navigate, communicate and feel safe in a sighted world. The unmet community needs of the families, parents, guardians and caregivers are paramount. Because of our programs, families and parents are now able to network, share experiences and not feel that their loved one is ""the only one.""
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
The following are strategies to based upon Lighthouse of Colliers goals: Partnering with The Collier County School system, Florida Division of Blind Services, United Way of Collier County and The Naples Children & Education Foundation-founders of The Naples Winter Wine Festival will allow Lighthouse of Collier to identify the unmet needs of the blind/vision impaired community. Collaborating with other non-profits and for profits will allow unique opportunities to outreach to the community at large. Outreaching through the medical community, online, social media, public service announcements, radio interviews and newspapers brings more awareness and potential clients that need services. Undertake a specific plan to reach out to the following in order to better educate the public on the services Lighthouse provides: Eye Care professionals, Collier County School ESE specialists, area clubs, organizations, adult communities to include Assisted Living and Adult Care and churches. Continue to host "Brown Bag Series" lunches for the community in order to further educate them on other services in the area that would be beneficial to the blind and visually impaired community. Continue to negotiate state contracts in order to gain funding for as many blind and visually impaired persons as needed for Adult Education, Vocational Rehabilitation, and the following programs not currently covered under contract with DBS: Babies programs, children's programs and Transition programs. -Develop program activities to include conducting classes at adult living facilities
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
Prior to the formation and operation of Lighthouse of Collier, Inc.(LOC), the blind and visually impaired population of Collier County, Florida had very little or no access to services during the prior 30 years. The nearest service provider was 40 miles from the Naples City limit and the outreach was virtually non-existent. As one of LOC's Clients so eloquently stated, ""You were my beacon in the night."" LOC's Board actively searches for qualified and dedicated individuals with strong community ties and a passion for LOC's Mission to serve on the Board. LOC also has a stable involvement of individuals that welcome new ideas and opportunities for growth and expansion. The accomplishments of LOC in such a brief history of operation cannot be ignored nor minimized. The personal involvement by individuals with expertise in the Medical, Financial, Marketing and Philanthropic industries are extraordinary for such a relatively small and new entity. LOC has the following legal qualifications, licenses, registrations, associations, etc. All are in good standing: Florida Corporation N09000004439 Federal 501 (c) (3) Corporation 27-0401702 Florida Sales Tax Exempt 85-8015210777C-7 State of Florida Vendor F270401702-001 Registered as a Charitable Organization in Florida under the Solicitation of Contributions Act CH32945 Registered in E-Verify Annual Audited Financial Statements Level II background checks on all Employees and Volunteers NAC Certification for Management, Rehabilitation Therapy, Low Vision Services, Orientation and Mobility, Technology Instruction, Vocational Rehabilitation Services, Outreach Services and consumer Standards Member of Florida Association of Agencies Serving the Blind Member of Vision Serve Alliance Member of Florida Diversity Council Member of Naples Area Chamber of Commerce United Way of Collier County Partner Partner with Naples Children & Education Foundation-founders of the Naples Winter Wine Festival Earned the Guidestar Exchange Seal-demonstrating transparency Lighthouse of Collier continues to collaborate with other local nonprofits, conduct outreach activities and work with the Department of Blind Services. We have on staff 6 employees to include the following areas of expertise:Certified |Vision Rehabilitation Therapist, Technology instructor of the blind and visually impaired, Orientation and Mobility Therapist, Case Manage, experienced former CFO and the Executive Director.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
During the past four years Lighthouse of Collier, Inc. (LOC) has pooled its resources and worked with other Agencies, the Division of Blind Services, local businesses and the community to serve over 825 persons of Collier County, Florida. The ability and willingness to do what is necessary to serve Collier County in spite of the many hurdles placed in front of a new organization in this specialized industry has taught LOC and its leaders many valuable lessons. Although LOC recognizes that there is still much to learn and much room to improve, the barriers and complications placed upon LOC have assisted greatly in the resolve to succeed and prosper in its stated Mission. Lighthouse of Collier's Children's programs (summer camp and monthly events) have grown by 800% as of 2013. The impact our programs have made on these children and their families have been significant. One of the children, Tommy (12 years old), describes his experience to Fox News: ""The camp is really special to me because people used to make fun of me. Here I feel like people really understand me."" Lighthouse of Collier continues to advocate for funding so that the blind/vision impaired children and adults receive the programs/services to help them socialize, navigate and feel safe in a sighted world. It has been very difficult to secure the additional funding due to the economy, donor fatigue and the amount of non-profits in Collier County. Additional funding is desired in order to responsibly expand our services and outreach to the additional children, adults and families that reside in Collier County, including of course those in lower income and eastern county areas of Golden Gate and Immokalee. Lighthouse of Collier seeks new partners, donors and foundations to assure the expansion of services to the blind/vision impaired. Lighthouse of Collier has not yet been awarded state contracts for the following programs: Blind Babies, Transitional Students.
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
LIGHTHOUSE OF COLLIER
Board of directorsas of 02/13/2024
Priscilla Grannis
Lighthouse of Collier
Term: 2024 - 2024
David Weigel
Collier County Government
Marv Lader
Community Volunteer
Allister Gibbons
Bascom Palmer Eye Institute
Priscilla Grannis
Community Volunteer
Todd Muller
Muller-Thompson Funeral Chapel
Mary Jo Chamberlin
Associate Realtor John R Woods
Sue Bookbinder
Retired Human Resource Director
Eloy Ricardo
North Collier Fire Control & Rescue District
Cynthia Eddy
Retired Gifted Support Teacher, K-12
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Transgender Identity
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
We do not display disability information for organizations with fewer than 15 staff.