NOTICE
Jan Shumway, left, and Mary Ann Strong read newspapers once a week for broadcast on the Kansas Audio-Reader Network. Both women have been Audio-Reader volunteers for 25 years.
Photo by Ryan Waggoner
Enriching Lives Through Sound
The Kansas Audio-Reader Network gives blind and visually impaired Kansans access to the world of print media
By Casey Miles editor@kansan.com
In an old building on the outskirts of campus, two women meet every Friday afternoon. The small upstairs room they use
is sparsely furnished and decorated. A large round table with a blue top dominates the space, accompanied by two chairs.
Armed with only red pens and a stack of newspapers, the women begin working 30 minutes early. They skim through newspapers, marking away,the shuffling of the newsprint interrupted by an occasional chuckle.
Eyes begin to flick toward the clock as the time closes in on 2 p.m. Water cups are filled, lozenges are unwrapped. The hour strikes, and their program begins with Carole Smith's voice.
"Good afternoon, and welcome to Newspapers of Central and Western Kansas. Today, Nancy Colyer and I will be reading..."
Volunteers at Audio-Reader offer a
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September 4,2008