Louie Gohmert: “It is an honor to stand here and congratulate the National Industries for the Blind, that is the NIB, on their 75th…”

“It is an honor to stand here and congratulate the National Industries for the Blind, that is the NIB, on their 75th anniversary and the great work they do for Texas' First Congressional District. NIB's mission is to ``enhance opportunities for economic and personal independence of persons who are blind, primarily through creating, sustaining, and improving employment.'' Unfortunately, 70 percent of working-age Americans who are blind are unemployed. However, the NIB is trying to reverse those upsetting trends by providing more employment opportunities for people who are blind through their more than 250 locations across the United States. Horizon Industries, which is a division of the East Texas Lighthouse for the Blind, is located in Tyler, Texas, and currently employs 70 blind and visually impaired individuals. When I visit Horizon Industries, East Texas Lighthouse for the Blind, I am overwhelmed with amazement and appreciation for the dedication, the ability, the desire, and the outright help that these visually impaired American wonders are working with. Horizon, one of their jobs, they convert paper products into industrial cleaning cloths for the General Services Administration and its customers. These incredible employees have also manufactured 35,661 miles of parachute cord for the Department of Defense, much of which was shipped directly to our troops who are deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan.…”