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This article was published in the Preview section of U.S. 1 Newspaper on April 15, 1998. All rights reserved.

Recording’s 50th

At the Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic (RFB&D), headquartered

at 20 Roszel Road, the third National Record-A-Thon, April 19 through

25, also marks the organization’s 50th anniversary. Governor Christie

Whitman joins a nationwide effort to bring the magic of the printed

page to those who have lost their sight or who struggle with dyslexia

in the week-long recording intensive. While some books are recorded

for the listener’s pleasure, recorded textbooks for blind or learning-disabled

students has become a vital part of the current mission. Today the

organization provides taped and computerized texts to 43,000 members.

Whitman announced her intention to return to volunteer regularly for

RFB&D (last year she read "Goodnight Moon" at the Record-A-Thon)

in her 1998 inaugural address at the Statehouse. "As I make this

commitment," she said, "I recognize that it’s not much. But

it’s more than I am doing today. And I’m doing it not as governor

but as just one of the many faces of our one family."

RFB&D president Ritchie Geisel praised Governor Whitman for her support.

He may not have been as pleased, however, when Monica Lewinsky told

the press in March that she had attempted to offer her services as

a volunteer reader, but couldn’t get out of her Watergate apartment

building to do so.

Each year RFB&D uses the services of some 4,500 volunteers read, record,

and monitor educational textbooks at 31 studios in 17 states. During

this week’s volunteer intensive, the organization plans to add several

hundred new books to its library of 75,000 titles.