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'Bird Box' challenge prompts nonprofit to encourage blind awareness training

A nonprofit in Fort Worth sees the #birdboxchallenge as an opportunity for the public to see into a world that many of us don't have to think about.

FORT WORTH, Texas — This is not a story about the latest internet challenge which is dangerous by the way.

"First of all it's not safe to put yourself under a blindfold without knowing what your doing, it's dangerous out there," said Rebecca Smith of the Forth Worth nonprofit, Lighthouse for the Blind.

They see the #birdboxchallenge as an opportunity for the public to see into a world that many of us don't have to think about.

Andrew Bernet is an Orientation Mobility Specialist for the Light House for the Blind. "I think it was tougher on my family then it was for me," Bernet said.

At 22-years-old, a medical condition started to take Andrew Bernet's vision. A decade later, and it's totally gone. He teaches those with all ranges of vision lost on how to operate in a world where their eyes don't.

"You can just watch them go through this change where all of a sudden they just start to light up," Bernet said. "It's pretty cool to see that."

Birdbox, that Sandra Bullock, movie shows just that same process. An apocalyptic world where the main character is forced to fight for her life without her eyesight.

Lighthouse for the Blind Fort Worth is a nonprofit organization that provides training, employment and rehabilitation to the visually impaired. The organization decided the opportunity was too good to pass up. A now viral post on Facebook encourages people to visit them and take a free course they already offer.

"I keep having to tell myself to relax. That's normal," I said as Bernet guided me through a brief portion of his training.

For just a few minutes, I get a chance to experience the world like Andrew does. "It can be a really fun and rewarding experience if you have someone else guiding you through it," Bernet said.

Many of the people who Andrew trains have gone right to work in a manufacturing facility operated on location. The majority of the employees are visually impaired. One of the products they produce are glasses -- proving that just like in the movie sometimes in real life the blind help the rest of us see.

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