Here at Howell Mobility Products we have recently acquired a nifty little item called the mobility mitten. The mobility mit was designed by Pam Liu at the Maryland School for the Blind and is sold to finance orientation and mobility lessons for blind children. Since we like the mit and think their cause is a worthy one we decided to produce this short explanation of what the mit is and how to get it. Let me add that Howell Mobility Products doesn't sell this item nor do we derive any proceeds from the sale of the mit. We wish The Maryland school great success in the sale of this product.
What is the Mobility Mit? Have you ever wished, as you tried to controll a white cane while using thick gloves, that you could hold your cane in your bear hand and still wear your glove to keep your hand warm, well now you can by using the mobility mit.
The mit is oval shaped with a small sleeve at one end and a glove cuff at the other. The sleeve is just big enough to slide the tip of a cane through. The mit is then pulled up so that the sleeve rests on the cane shaft just below the cane handle. There is a slit just below the mit cuff which allows the cane handle to protrude out of the wrist of the mit so the cane can be pivoted from side to side as one walks along.
With the mit installed on the cane, he user can simply put their hand in to the mit and hold the cane handle with their bear hand. The knitted mits come in various colors and several adult and children's sizes. At the time of this writing the cost of the mit was $5.00 and the school charged $1.00 for shipping. When ordering please be sure to make the check out to O&M Department, The Maryland School for the Blind. If you do not specifically put that department on the check, the money goes to the school's general fund and can not be used for O&M lessons.
If you would like to order their mittens or find out more information, please contact Mr. Jim Keim at
(410) 444-5000 ext 321. or e-mail him at JimK@mdschblind.org.
The address of the school is:
Orientation and Mobility Department
The Maryland School for the Blind
3501 Taylor Avenue
Baltimore, MD 21236
I would like to thank Colleen R Calhoon and Dona Sauerburger for their messages posted to the orientation and mobility list which I drew from in writing this information.