‘Friends of Hadley’ Help Katrina Victim

Winnetka, IL? When The Hadley School for the Blind student Lisa A. Batist-
Mayfield, formerly of New Orleans, La., lost everything in Hurricane Katrina she 
lost more than her belongings ? she lost a way to make a living. 

All of her cherished mementos, her belongings and her home were washed away 
forcing her to find a new job, new home and begin again. But before Lisa, who is 
visually impaired, could return to work she needed a Closed Circuit TV (or CCTV) 
to magnify paper documents in order to read them.

When the Friends of Hadley, a group founded in 1974, heard about Lisa’s personal 
losses, they contributed a basic computer, a screen reader, magnification software 
and a CCTV that was essential for Lisa to return to work and regain her 
independence. 

“It is our mission to be of service to individuals in the Hadley family who have 
special needs,” said Patti Willian, Friends of Hadley Chairwoman.

“When Hadley said they were going to give me a CCTV I thought it was going to be 
one of those things that took six months or didn’t come true,” Lisa said. “When it 
did come true, it was like gold to me; otherwise I wouldn’t be able to work. I just 
knew at that point that everything was going to be okay.”

In a letter Lisa wrote to the Friends of Hadley, she thanked them for their donation. 
“I hope one day I can give the gift of hope and promise that you all have given me,” 
she wrote.

Since the Hurricane Katrina disaster, Lisa has relocated to Houston, Texas, where 
she works at Corinthian College as a career services representative. Meanwhile, she 
plans to continue her education with Hadley and hopes to enroll in more classes 
soon.

“Everything is replaceable except for life,” Lisa said. “It just depends on how you 
look at it.”

The Hadley School for the Blind was founded in 1920 and offers tuition-free 
distance education courses for people who are blind, their family members and 
service professionals. For more information about The Hadley School for the Blind 
and its services and programs, please visit www.hadley.edu or call 800-323-4238.