Meet Maeve from the Foundation for Blind Children

June 22, 2026

Meet Maeve, a five year old student at the Foundation for Blind Children (FBC). The Arizona Leadership Foundation awarded a Disabled/Displaced scholarship to her, so that she could attend FBC. Her story was recently featured on 12News in Phoenix.

As you can see from Maeve’s red carpet debut at the Fashion Show for FBC, she is a true star!

Read her story here in their profile:

“The scholarship from the Arizona Leadership Foundation truly changed Maeve’s life. It gave her the opportunity to learn and grow in an environment that nurtures development in every area not just academically, but socially, physically, and emotionally as well.

When she started school last year, she was barely able to walk using a walker. By the time she graduated Pre-K, she was walking alongside her peers. She went from recognizing only a few letters to spelling her name and making clear, meaningful sounds. The progress she made in just one year has been nothing short of remarkable.

I am incredibly grateful for the support, encouragement, and dedication of everyone at the Foundation for Blind Children. Watching Maeve’s confidence and abilities grow has been amazing, and I can’t wait to see all that she accomplishes in the coming year.” – Maeve’s Mom, Rebecca.

From 12News: PHOENIX — White canes lean against the door. Braille labels mark cubbies and classroom signs. Textured pathways guide small hands from one activity to the next. It looks like any other preschool until those details come into focus. At the Foundation for Blind Children in Phoenix, the goal isn’t just early education, it’s independence.

“You really appreciate how much magic is happening here every day,” said Jared Kittelson, CEO of the Foundation for Blind Children.
The school serves visually impaired children and adults, preparing them with the skills they’ll need to learn alongside sighted peers, from reading Braille to navigating classrooms to building the confidence to dream big.

But Kittelson said the school’s most persistent challenge isn’t blindness itself. It’s the assumptions other people bring with them.
“That is our biggest Achilles’ heel,” he said. “Rafting the Grand Canyon is not cool for someone who’s visually impaired. It’s just cool.”
Maeve Gilman has been attending the Foundation for Blind Children since infancy, and her parents, Rebecca and Lionel Gilman, enrolled her in its pre-K program. When she first arrived, Maeve wasn’t walking. Her doctors said she might never.

“I was told… I would not anticipate her walking,” Rebecca Gilman said. “And we have proved them wrong.” Her first steps happened at the Foundation. Her parents say they cried. “Huge, huge milestone for us,” Lionel Gilman said.

Maeve’s vision loss is progressive, meaning it will worsen over time. For her family, the school’s emphasis on independence isn’t just helpful, it’s essential.
“We expect a lot from Maeve,” Rebecca Gilman said. “We want her to build her independence.”

That mindset is what the school is designed to reinforce. Kittelson put it plainly: “Start kindergarten ready to fly… instead of having to catch up.”
The Foundation for Blind Children works with 65 school districts and private schools across Arizona, providing support services for students transitioning out of the program. That support includes helping set up classrooms so a blind student can navigate them safely, training teachers to use more descriptive language in instruction, and even creating Braille name cards for every student in a class so no child is singled out.

And the school doesn’t shy away from proving what’s possible. Its students have rafted the Grand Canyon, camped for a week in the wilderness, and crossed open water. One student swam from Alcatraz Island. Another piloted a plane to Washington, D.C.

“The dreams don’t change just because of the diagnosis,” Kittelson said. “The path might change, but the dreams do not.”
For the Gilman family, that vision extends into everyday life. “Anything anybody else can do—they can do too,” Lionel Gilman said.

About Foundation for Blind Children (FBC):

Founded in 1952 by four determined families seeking a brighter future for their children with vision loss, Foundation for Blind Children (FBC) has grown into Arizona’s leading provider of services for individuals who are blind or visually impaired. Today, FBC serves more than 2,000 people annually, from infants to older adults, through educational, rehabilitation, employment, and family support programs. FBC’s mission is to empower individuals with vision loss to achieve their full potential by providing the tools, training, and support needed to live independently, pursue their goals, and thrive in their communities. For more information about the Foundation for Blind Children and to connect to its services, visit seeitourway.org.