A pastor's search for braille resources for a man blinded in a construction accident resulted in the founding of the Lutheran Library for the Blind, now the largest Christian library serving blind people in North America. The library has 4,000 braille, large-type and audiocassette books, which it loans free of charge through the mail.

Financial gifts, prayer, and the work of 800 volunteers in 60 work centers support this mission. Each month volunteers distribute 2,000 braille magazines, 6,500 large-type publications and 1,200 cassettes. They also provide religious-education materials, including VBS resources. All materials let blind and visually impaired people read about and share the light of salvation in Jesus Christ.

In 1994, blind Christians organized the Lutheran Blind Mission Society (LBMS) to encourage, train and support blind people as they share Jesus. Later they established a Christian Blind Institute in 1999 to train blind leaders and missionaries for Jesus. Training happens in local churches or Outreach Centers.

Pastor Dave Andrus coordinates these efforts. He became blind at age 11 from a rare disease. He works to encourage and recruit volunteers, publicize the mission, help develop Outreach Centers, lead the Christian Blind Institute and train leaders.

Blind Mission, front view

Library for the Blind