FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Nicole Ducouer nducouer@ifbsolutions.org, M 304-685-2393

IFB Solutions Receives $25,000 Grant from the Truist Foundation

Nonprofit will use grant to bridge existing gaps in low vision services in the Triad

WINSTON-SALEM, NC (Dec. 1, 2021) – Local nonprofit IFB Solutions, the largest employer of people who are blind in the country, announced today that it has received a $25,000 grant from the Truist Foundation to help people who are low vision connect with IFB’s services and resources.

 

As part of its mission of employment, training and services for people who are blind or low vision, IFB operates Community Low Vision Centers open to the public at its manufacturing campuses in Winston-Salem, N.C., Asheville, N.C., and Little Rock, Ark. The Truist Foundation grant will help IFB launch a new initiative to increase awareness for its low vision services starting with a focused community effort in the Triad.

 

Low vision is defined as vision that cannot be corrected with glasses or contacts. Low vision occurs in people of all ages and is more common in people over 65. In the Triad, the estimated number of people over 65 with vision challenges is 32,200, and those numbers are projected to increase as the youngest baby boomers hit 65 in 2029.

 

“Our Community Low Vision Centers are unique resources for people who are low vision and their families,” said Chris Flynt, Director of Programs and Community Low Vision Centers at IFB Solutions. “We have a wide variety of assistive tools and technologies available for people to try out, including a space that’s designed to mimic how people would use the products at their own homes. And our Center staff members are low vision themselves, so they bring invaluable personal insights to the experience.”

 

The IFB Community Low Vision Centers offer these assistive tools and technologies for sale as well as low vision exams, and a portion of the grant will be used to provide financial assistance for these products and services to customers who qualify.

 

The primary focus of the Truist Foundation grant will be a broad community awareness program with a long-term goal of serving 3,000 additional individuals who are low vision each year.

 

“The commitment of IFB Solutions to employ, serve and support residents of the Triad embodies Truist’s purpose to inspire and build better lives and communities,” said Cantey Alexander, Triad regional president for Truist, speaking on behalf of Truist Foundation. “With this grant, IFB Solutions will reach more members of our community and have a greater positive impact on the lives of those who are blind and low vision, and their families.”

 

IFB Solutions is hiring a Low Vision Outreach Coordinator to lead the awareness and community engagement efforts. Those efforts will include developing relationships with local eye care professionals, retirement communities and other long-term care facilities to make them aware of IFB’s low vision services.

 

“With low vision, it is common for people to give up on hobbies and activities that they previously enjoyed or that gave them independence,” said Flynt. “What’s exciting for us is the opportunity to show people that there are easy-to-use tools and technologies available at our Centers that will help them maintain their independence and quality of life.”

 

To learn more about the IFB Community Low Vision Center or to book an appointment with a low vision specialist, visit the website at https://communitylowvision.org/

 

ABOUT IFB SOLUTIONS IFB Solutions is a nonprofit corporation founded in 1936 that provides employment, training and services for people who are blind or visually impaired. As the largest employer of people who are blind in the United States, IFB operates manufacturing facilities in Winston-Salem, N.C., Asheville, N.C., and Little Rock, Ark., in addition to operating nearly 20 office supply stores across the country and producing mattresses. IFB produces eyewear under its Twenty200 brand at its Winston-Salem lab and operates a retail location in Winston-Salem. IFB Solutions funds employee training and services as well as community programs through grants and private donations, making possible summer camps, afterschool programs and activities for children who are blind, and Community Low Vision services through its low-vision Centers across North Carolina and in Little Rock, Ark. ifbsolutions.org

 

ABOUT TRUIST FOUNDATION

The Truist Foundation is committed to Truist Financial Corporation’s (NYSE: TFC) purpose to inspire and build better lives and communities. Established in 2020, the foundation makes strategic investments in nonprofit organizations to help ensure the communities it serves have more opportunities for a better quality of life. The Truist Foundation’s grants and activities focus on building career pathways to economic mobility and strengthening small businesses. Learn more at Truist.com/Foundation.

 

 

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Nicole Ducouer, IFB Solutions nducouer@ifbsolutions.org or 304-685-2393

KENNETH FUENTES JOINS IFB SOLUTIONS AS INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERING TECHNICIAN
WINSTON-SALEM, NC (Nov. 17, 2021) – IFB Solutions, a non-profit organization based in Winston-Salem and the largest employer of people who are blind or visually impaired in the country, announces the hiring of Kenneth Fuentes as Industrial Engineering Technician.

Fuentes will work with IFB’s engineering team in the Winston-Salem manufacturing facility to convert
operations previously limited to sighted employees into opportunities for employees who are blind or
visually impaired. Additionally, he’ll be identifying new avenues for production efficiencies across the
organization.

“With our diverse manufacturing portfolio, it’s important that we continuously improve our processes and leverage our unique engineering expertise in converting operations from sighted to blind,” said Silas
Martin, chief operating officer for IFB Solutions. Fuentes is a graduate of North Carolina A&T State University with a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering. He is a member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. Prior to joining IFB, Fuentes worked at Leidos, a FORTUNE® 500 technology, engineering and science solutions and services leader.

 

ABOUT IFB SOLUTIONS
IFB Solutions is a nonprofit corporation founded in 1936 that provides employment, training and services for people who are blind or visually impaired. As the largest employer of people who are blind in the United States, IFB operates manufacturing facilities in Winston-Salem, N.C., Asheville, N.C., and Little Rock, Ark., in addition to operating nearly 20 office supply stores across the country and producing mattresses. IFB produces eyewear under its Twenty200 brand at its Winston-Salem lab and operates a retail location in Winston-Salem. IFB Solutions funds employee training and services as well as community programs through grants and private donations, making possible summer camps, afterschool programs and activities for children who are blind, and Community Low Vision services through its low-vision Centers across North Carolina and in Little Rock, Ark. ifbsolutions.org\

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Nicole Ducouer, IFB Solutions nducouer@ifbsolutions.org or 304-685-2393

The transaction adds jobs and revenues to help people who are blind

WINSTON-SALEM, NC (October 20, 2021)—IFB Solutions, a nonprofit that is the largest employer of people who are blind in the country, recently acquired the assets of Pinnacle Mercantile. Pinnacle Mercantile is a reseller and manufacturer of products for the home, kitchen, garden and landscape. These products, primarily made in the U.S., are sold and distributed through the Amazon marketplace.

“With this acquisition, we continue to strategically expand our footprint to serve new commercial business channels,” said Dan Kelly, Executive Vice President of Strategy and Programs at IFB Solutions. “There is a strong potential for revenue growth that will allow us to add additional jobs for people who are blind as sales increase.”

For IFB’s fiscal 2022, the Pinnacle Mercantile business is expected to bring in more than $8 million in revenues and create more than 10 jobs for people who are blind while also sustaining jobs from pandemic-driven downturns in other areas of the business.

IFB Solutions is also partnering with local small business suppliers of raw materials and coating needed to manufacture and package finished goods. Pinnacle Mercantile’s diverse product line includes metal garden stakes, plastic spray and squeeze bottles, drawstring bags for ice and wood smoking pellets for barbecuing.

Brooke Brown, a five-year IFB employee, now works on Pinnacle Mercantile products making sure the lines are running smoothly. Brooke has diabetic retinopathy and is visually impaired. At one point she was totally blind, but she regained some sight after what she and her doctor call a miracle. Brooke calls her vision a superpower—not a disability.

“I love that IFB is always looking to create new opportunities to challenge people who are blind or visually impaired. I have a voice here. People hear me and listen to me and there are lots of resources,” said Brown.

Pinnacle Mercantile, originally based in Kansas and co-founded by Frank Andra and Robert Biles, is an established Amazon account with a decade of experience in the consumer marketplace. “We are incredibly grateful to everyone on the Pinnacle Mercantile team for trusting us to take over a business that was built from the ground up,” said Kelly.

With the acquisition of Pinnacle Mercantile’s assets, IFB is moving all inventory and operations to its Winston-Salem manufacturing facility and expanding its warehouse footprint in Clemmons. The Pinnacle Mercantile line can be found on the Amazon Marketplace at https://amzn.to/3ujMrz5.

“It is very appropriate that we announce the Pinnacle Mercantile acquisition during National Disability Employment Awareness Month which reminds us that it continues to be incredibly challenging for people who are blind to find jobs,” said Kelly. “Growing a commercial business opportunity like Pinnacle Mercantile helps us establish new jobs here in Winston-Salem. And it’s a great way to build awareness for our mission of creating life-changing opportunities for people who are blind as every sale through our Pinnacle Mercantile store on Amazon makes a difference.”

IFB worked with several local partners to complete the asset acquisition including Womble Bond Dickinson (US) LLP, Dixon Hughes Goodman LLP, and Truist Financial Corporation. Additionally, IFB worked with The DVS Group in Kansas City on the acquisition of Pinnacle Mercantile.

 

ABOUT IFB SOLUTIONS IFB Solutions is a nonprofit corporation founded in 1936 that provides employment, training and services for people who are blind or visually impaired. As the largest employer of people who are blind in the United States, IFB operates manufacturing facilities in Winston-Salem, N.C., Asheville, N.C., and Little Rock, Ark., in addition to operating nearly 20 office supply stores across the country and producing mattresses. IFB produces eyewear under its Twenty200 brand at its Winston-Salem lab and operates a retail location in Winston-Salem. IFB Solutions funds employee training and services as well as community programs through grants and private donations, making possible summer camps, afterschool programs and activities for children who are blind, and Community Low Vision services through its low-vision Centers across North Carolina and in Little Rock, Ark. ifbsolutions.org

 

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