White Canes Connect

Meet Cazerny Bussey

Cazerny Bussey is a recording artist, author, entrepreneur, speaker, advocate, and founder of Even Though I'm Blind. After losing his sight as a teenager, he continued pursuing music and eventually discovered a much larger community of blind people doing extraordinary t...

Every September, Philadelphia hosts more than 1,000 performances as part of the Philadelphia Fringe Festival, presented by FringeArts. In its 30^th year, the Philadelphia Fringe Festival "is a city-wide celebration of innovation and creativity in contemporary performance."

On this episode, we spotlight a multi-sensory experience called Lunar Retreat, which will be performed as part of this year's Fringe Festival!

Presen...

In episode 157 of White Canes Connect, the Pennsylvania Association of Blind Students takes the lead. PABS President Noor Khraisat, Vice President Leen Khraisat, Secretary Rose West, and Treasurer Dauad Yasar guide students through real-world scenarios they may encounter in college.

The conversation begins with an inaccessible pop quiz and what students can do when a professor unexpectedly uses technology that doesn't work with a s...

Summer is in full swing and what better time to take a trip! Join Simon Bonenfant in the virtual studio, as he sits down with Lynn Jensen, author of Best Kept Secrets for Travelers with Sight Loss.

Organized into 11 chapters and 6 appendices, topics include: traveling on a variety of transportation methods, packing and unpacking, orienting to a hotel, and much more!

Throughout the conversation, Lynn discusses her sight-loss journey...

In this episode, the Pennsylvania Association of Blind Students leads a Convention 101 conversation for anyone preparing to attend the NFB National Convention in Austin. The questions come from students and first-time attendees, while the answers come from leaders who have learned how to navigate the week through experience.

Lynn Heitz explains why National Convention is more than a conference. It is where blind people from across ...

In this episode of White Canes Connect, David Goldstein welcomes Rich Crawford for a wide-ranging conversation about blindness, independence, work, leadership, and the power of high expectations.

Rich became legally blind at age 10 due to retinitis pigmentosa. Rather than lowering expectations, his parents encouraged him to try things, work hard, and figure out alternative ways to g...

The blind and visually impaired community faces numerous considerations when undertaking a fitness program. From developing proper form to using equipment safely and more in between, Cane and Able Fitness has a solution for all your fitness goals.

Join Simon Bonenfant in the studio as he sits down with Cane and Able Fitness Founder Evan Schwerbrock. Schwerbrock discusses his vision-loss journey, fitness background, coaching model, ...

Freek van Welsenis, founder of Hable, joins the show to share how a simple idea—helping a blind grandfather use a smartphone—grew into a global company creating affordable assistive technology used in over 60 countries. With a background in engineering and a lifelong connection to disability through his family, Freek brings both technical insight and real-world empathy to everything Hable builds.

In this episode, we div...

In this episode of White Canes Connect, host David Goldstein speaks with Kaleigh Brendle, founder and president of Judy's League and a recent graduate of Villanova University preparing to begin law school. Kaleigh is a passionate disability rights advocate dedicated to protecting the civil rights of disabled Americans through education, outreach, and grassroots organizing.

Kaleigh joins the show to discuss Judy's League, a cro...

For over a decade, blind and visually impaired people throughout New York City have had the opportunity to play the game of tennis. Launched in 2015 and presented by Court 16, Sound of Tennis offers once-per-week sessions, enabling blind and visually impaired people to learn, practice, and play full games of tennis through sound.

Now, in 2026, Sound of Tennis partnered with a Court 16 location in Philadelphia, offering the same opp...

In this episode of White Canes Connect, David Goldstein sits down with Noor Krraisat, a national scholarship finalist and President of the Pennsylvania Association of Blind Students. Noor shares her journey as a blind college student, future law school applicant, and emerging leader within the National Federation of the Blind.

Noor walks us through the entire National Federation of the Blind scholarship experience—from applyi...

In episode 148 of White Canes Connect, we share the powerful General Sessions remarks of David DeNotaris from the 2025 National Federation of the Blind of Pennsylvania State Convention in Harrisburg.

Speaking from a lifetime of experience, David reflects on growing up with Braille, discovering the Federation, and the profound influence of Dr. Kenneth Jernigan on his understanding of blindness and self-respect. Through humor and dee...

White Canes Connect episode 147 features a powerful address from National Federation of the Blind President Mark Riccobono, delivered to the NFB of Pennsylvania State Convention in Harrisburg. Reflecting on the eve of the organization's 85th anniversary, President Riccobono shares his personal journey of discovering the Federation in 1996 and how the community transformed his understanding of blindness, leadership, and collective a...

In this episode of White Canes Connect, we share the 2025 NFB of Pennsylvania State Convention banquet keynote delivered by National Federation of the Blind Executive Director of Blindness Initiatives, Anil Lewis. With humor, honesty, and warmth, Anil traces his journey from sudden blindness and early misconceptions about rehabilitation to discovering the Federation's philosophy of high expectations, love, and accountability.

He re...

In Episode 145 of White Canes Connect, Lisa Bryant and David Goldstein welcome Patrick Long and Bryan Vuong, co-founders of InnoSearch.ai, a groundbreaking platform making online shopping accessible for blind and low-vision users. They built InnoSearch to serve as an accessibility layer—streamlined, screen-reader friendly, and simple to use. Beyond shopping, InnoSearch now offers flight booking and is expanding into food and ...

In episode 144 of White Canes Connect, Lisa Bryant and David Goldstein welcome an incredible team from the Library of Accessible Media for Pennsylvanians (LAMP) in Pittsburgh. Joining us are Mark Lee, Library Administrator; Mary Beth Parks, Patron Services Manager; Laura Hughes, Youth Services Librarian; and Jeff Wright, Manager of Technology and Materials Fulfillment.

The LAMP team shares how their mission to make reading and medi...

In episode 143 of White Canes Connect, hosts Lisa Bryant and David Goldstein welcome back Karthik Kannan, co-founder and CTO of Envision, for an exciting update on accessible technology. Karthik last joined the podcast four years ago to discuss Envision Glasses, then partnered with Google. Today, he returns to introduce the brand-new Ally Solos, a next-generation wearable that pushes accessibility to new heights.

Karthik explains h...

In episode 142 of White Canes Connect, Lisa Bryant takes the lead to interview co-host David Goldstein and NFB of PA President Lynn Heitz about our experiences at the 2025 NFB National Convention in New Orleans. We share highlights from Pennsylvania's strong showing — 56 attendees, 10 first-timers, four national scholarship finalists, and a Jernigan Leadership graduate. Lynn and David reflect on the energy of the general sess...

In episode 141 of White Canes Connect, hosts Lisa Bryant and David Goldstein speak with JP Williams, a blind mental health and life coach based in Nashville. Originally a successful country songwriter—co-writing the hit "Best Shot" by Jimmie Allen—JP shares how he transitioned from the music industry into coaching. After decades in music, a career pivot during the pandemic led him to become certified through the Interna...