Fish Ladder Story: Brandon Werner
When Brandon Werner was born on January 26, 1992, everyone commented on “his beautiful blue eyes”. However, around 6 weeks of age, Brandon’s mother noticed jiggling of his eyes “in different directions”. After seeing several eye doctors, a retinal specialist in their area identified retinal hemorrhages in each eye. He immediately referred Brandon to Dr. Michael Trese at William Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak, Michigan. Dr. Trese felt that the bleeding was caused by a condition called Familial Exudative Vitreoretinopathy (FEVR).
FEVR is an inherited, progressive bleeding disorder of the retinal vessels characterized by abnormal growth of the blood vessels and ultimate retinal detachment. Many cases of FEVR respond to medical and surgical treatment resulting in variable degrees of visual function. However, in Brandon’s case, despite multiple surgeries and pharmacologic treatments, he became totally blind/no light perception in each eye by eight years of age.
Brandon’s mother, Alissa, made sure that he remained active in all areas. Brandon mastered Braille at a very young age, excelled in school, and became actively involved with sports for the visually impaired such as Beep Baseball, Goal Ball, and rock climbing. His mother organized a Goal Ball team which attracted visually impaired players from all over Michigan. Brandon and his family participated in every Visually Impaired Sports and Activity Day (VISD) held in Grand Rapids, Michigan, during the first week of June from 2001-2019. When in high school, Brandon traveled with the marching band to different venues including the state competition.
After high school, Brandon attended and graduated from Albion College. During this time, he worked many part time jobs including training blind teens how to use a global positioning system (GPS) while working for Leader Dogs for the Blind in Rochester, Michigan. He also worked as a clerical assistant for a Michigan Congressman and at the Defense Logistics Agency. Brandon always had an interest in mathematics and computers. He developed and instructed digital math programs to blind high school and college students.
One of the most difficult challenges that Brandon, and other visually impaired college students, faced during their education was gaining access to materials and information sources.
Brandon would ask other students that attended his classes, as well as his professors, to read things out loud and draw graphs so he could feel them. Networking with professors in this way was important, “as it provided opportunity for jobs”. This experience also helped Brandon understand the challenges of other visually impaired students following him. He worked diligently to develop different digital systems to help students gain access to material.
Despite his many skills and job experiences, Brandon was unable to secure employment after college, something that seems especially difficult for visually impaired college graduates trying to enter the work force. He went back to school to earn a Master’s degree in Vision Rehabilitation Therapy at Western Michigan University. While enrolled in the Master’s program, he continued his job search sending many applications and resumes.
Brandon’s work did not go unnoticed. He was offered a position at the University of Michigan and is currently working as an Accessibility Analyst focused on making websites and software easier to use and accessible for everyone at the University.
Brandon feels that the “mastery of technology is the key to a successful future”. The technology applies to teaching people how to perform a work assignment, travel from one place to another, or using the computer to develop free screen readers that have become available to lower barriers and provide access to work applications. Other tools like Voice Over on the I Phone make it possible to “perform tasks on the road, keeping a calendar, communicating electronically and accessing documents on the go”.
Brandon has never let his visual impairment keep him from “moving up the fish ladder of life”. He never stays at one level very long. He is proud of his accomplishments but most importantly, he is always looking for young fish behind him to get to the next level, whether it is by direct personal assistance or advising on the development of a phone applications, to help them be successful in a sighted world.
~ Patrick J. Droste MS, MD