National Braille Press Names Two New Trustees

National Braille Press (NBP) has announced the appointment of two new members to its Board of Trustees: Lisamaria Martinez and Matthew Richardson. Martinez, of Union City, California, is the Director of Community Services at the Lighthouse for the Blind in San Francisco. Richardson, of Andover, Mass., is a management and budget analyst for the Boston Housing Authority.

“Lisamaria and Matthew are both active members in the blind community, and they have demonstrated a real passion for our commitment to braille literacy at NBP.” said Brian MacDonald, President of the National Braille Press. “With their vast knowledge and experience in the field, they are sure to be excellent additions to the board and will contribute to our success.”

Prior to her current role, Martinez has spent seven years working at the Lighthouse for the Blind as a Technology Sales Associate, and a Donor Relations Coordinator. She also serves on various boards and committees such as National Federation of the Blind of California and the California School for the Blind Community Advisory Committee. She is a National Braille Press Literacy Champion donor, and a program advisor for the NBP’s Great Expectations project. Lisamaria ranked fourth in the world in 2007 and 2008 for the U.S. blind judo team. She is a graduate of University of California at Berkeley and received her master’s degree in Educational Psychology, Orientation and Mobility at Louisiana Tech University.

Richardson has participated in NBP volunteer projects since the late 1990’s, first through People Making a Difference and later with the Lions Clubs. With the Lions, Richardson has served in leadership roles

Serving as Cabinet Secretary-Treasurer, Vice District Governor and District Governor of the Massachusetts District 33K Lions. In addition, he served as a director on the governing board of Massachusetts Lions Eye Research Fund. His most recent activities have been with the Lions of Massachusetts as a member of the Boston Host Lions Clubs Richardson received an A.B from Hamilton College and a MBA from F.W. Olin School of Business.

National Braille Press also appointed three former trustees who are returning to the board: Paul Parravano of Arlington, Mass., Bill Raeder of Boston and Neil Rosen of Bellingham, Mass.

ABOUT NATIONAL BRAILLE PRESS

A non-profit braille publisher, National Braille Press promotes literacy for blind children through outreach programs and provides access to information by producing information in braille for blind children and adults. National Braille Press is the premier braille publisher in the US that specializes in producing original braille works written by blind authors expressly for blind people. www.nbp.org