Larry King and Laurie Rubin | JEWISH BRAILLE INSTITUTE
Services Costly To Produce
But Priceless If You Need It  T the 70th anniversary of JBI, which provides cultural services for the visually impaired, executive vice president Ellen Isler announced the establishment of a $1.2 million endowment for the Barbara and Stephen Friedman Talking Books Library.
Barbara Friedman, guest of honor and JBI president, is vice chair of the board of trustees at Cornell University, her alma mater. A former NYC public school teacher, she serves on the Qatar advisory committee of Weill Cornell Medical College. “JBI services,” Isler said, “are costly to produce but priceless to those who use them.” Larry King, the emcee at the gala held at New York’s Metropolitan Club, was proud that sister-in-law Ellen David is a JBI board member. Singer Laurie Rubin, who entertained along with Marvin Hamlisch, told how JBI provided her with Hebrew music in Braille when none was available. She was able to sing in Yiddish and Hebrew at different events in her native Los Angeles. In college she needed an Italian Braille book but was unable to afford the hefty $1,200 price. JBI got it for her for free. | 
