ATHENS, WV (WVNS) — A White Cane Awareness Day event will be held at Concord University on October 18, 2023.

The event, organized by event founder Cole Sweeney, will be held in the Student Center Ballroom on Wednesday, October 18, 2023, from 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m.

White Cane Awareness Day is an annual event that promotes education about the blind and visually impaired. The day is nationally recognized and celebrates the independence of those who are blind or visually impaired.

Activities at the event will let participants understand what it can be like for those who are visually impaired. Participants will be seeing blind during the event, as there will be blindness simulation technology, blindness trivia, a white cane obstacle course, and demonstrations of accessible technology.

Resources will be provided for Concord University students by local agencies from Beckley including the Appalachian Regional Hospital, FMRS Health Systems, and the West Virginia Division of Rehabilitation Services.

The best way to understand something is through experience, so this event seeks to do just that!

Cole Sweeney | Concord University student

As someone who is visually impaired, Concord University student, Cole Sweeney, of Beckley, is passionate about using education to advocate for the blind community and promoting social justice to fill in the gaps in knowledge about blindness.