About VIPS Louisville
Before 1985, children who were blind/visually impaired in Kentucky & Southern Indiana had no access to early intervention services for their vision-specific needs. That all changed when a group of concerned citizens, lead by Sharon Bensinger, formed the idea to start VIPS. Mrs. Bensinger had no personal connection to anyone who was blind, other than being employed by American Printing House for the Blind Research Department. However, it was in that job that she took countless numbers of phone calls from desperate parents looking for services for their blind child.
With $20,000 in startup grants from WHAS Crusade for Children and Metro United Way, VIPS was born! Mrs. Bensinger was the first employee and began with a caseload of 14 families. Since that time, VIPS has grown into an impactful agency, serving approximately 500 families a year across two states, with office locations in Louisville, Lexington, and Indianapolis. VIPS Louisville operates Kentucky’s only full-time preschool for children with visual impairments, a nationally accredited program and Jefferson County, KY’s first five-star rated child care facility.
Have a question?
Contact the VIPS Louisville office for more information!
Featured Grantor for VIPS Louisville
Louisville Downtown Lions Club
The Louisville Downtown Lions Club is a major supporter of VIPS-Louisville, having donated nearly $320,000 since the year 2000. These gifts have impacted VIPS families greatly, as they have funded our teachers to provide critical early intervention services. The Louisville Downtown Lions Club has also supported VIPS in the following ways:
• Presenting Sponsor of the Stampede for VIPS 5K
• Give For Good Louisville matching sponsor
• Capital Campaign donor
• Family Retreat
• VIPS mini bus contributor
The Louisville Downtown Lions Club is part of the world’s largest service club organization, which is comprised of 46,000 clubs and 1.4+ million members. Members do whatever is needed to help their local communities, with emphasis on vision issues. The Louisville Downtown Lions Club hosts its bi-monthly meetings at the VIPS office in Louisville.
Wish List
- Clorox Wipes
- Lysol Spray
- Hand Sanitizer
- Face Masks
- BlueTooth dual pairing Speaker set
- Cricut Maker Machine
- Cricut mats
- Self-Adhesive Laminating Sheets, 9" x 12”
- Astrobrights Cardstock, 8.5" x 11", 65 lb “Vintage" 5-Color Assortment
- All colors of cardstock especially white and black
- White construction paper
- Adhesive Hook and Loop Velcro, Black, 1-Inch x 10-Foot Industrial Grade and Wear and Tear Resistant
- Crayola Silly Scents Twistables Crayons, 24 Classic Crayola Colors Non-Toxic Art Tools for Kids 3 & Up, Scented Self-Sharpening No Mess Twist-Up Crayons
- Washable Glue
- Colored duct tape
- Elmer’s Jumbo Glue Sticks
- Dry Erase Markers (black) thick and thin
- Scented markers
- Play-doh (small containers)
- Large paint brushes (large handles)
- Washable paint
- Acrylic paint (all colors)
Recently Posted Articles
The Elsa Heisel Sule Foundation Awards Visually Impaired Preschool Services $5,000 Grant
Lexington, KY: Visually Impaired Preschool Services (VIPS) announced a $5000 grant from the Elsa Heisel Sule Foundation for the Early Childhood Intervention Program, which provides early intervention services to children, birth through age 5, who are blind or visually impaired in Boone, Campbell and Kenton counties. “This funding has a life-changing impact on children in…
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The Debut of Summer Short Course at VIPS Kids Town Preschool
By: Staci Maynard, VIPS Teacher of the Visually Impaired This summer, VIPS held its first summer short courses in Louisville. Familiesfrom across the state were invited to bring their child with a diagnosed visual impairmentto VIPS Kids Town Preschool for a three day session of activities, assessment, andobservations themed around favorite aspects of summer. The…
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A Mom on a Mission to Advocate for Her Daughter
Avelyn (Avy) lives in Southern Indiana, spending her days outside with her siblings along with her animals–a cat, a dog, and eight chickens. She is a bubbly, playful, animal-loving almost-three-year-old who currently receives services from VIPS due to her Cortical Visual Impairment (CVI), Anisometropia, and hypermetropia. Avy loves wearing her purple glasses as she works…
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