Spring 2004

Message from the Chairman

Like any business enterprise, the board and staff of the Seattle Lighthouse must continually address the bottom line. But in our case we deal with what is known as a double bottom line. First and foremost, as always, is our mission: to create opportunities for blind people in our community to lead independent and self-sufficient lives. In order to do this we must always address the financial bottom line as well, managing a thriving, modern business providing customers with the highest quality products and services.

We are in fact a successful manufacturer committed to insuring that jobs throughout the organization are accessible for people with visual impairments.  

I am happy to report that the Seattle Lighthouse addressed both mission and business operations admirably in 2003.

Most importantly, in the face of some tough economic times and high unemployment rates, we hired twenty-two additional blind employees during the fiscal year. This means twenty-two more members of our community took advantage of opportunities available at the Lighthouse to earn a steady paycheck and become part of an organization doing great work for some very important customers. Thanks to growing community support and the Lighthouse endowment fund, we were also able to continue providing training and support services for our employees as well as blind and Deaf-Blind members of the larger community.

We created twenty-two new job positions by continuing to execute our business plan: maintaining strong relationships with customers and suppliers; developing new products, markets and distribution channels; and continually improving our processes. As you may recall, due to cutbacks in our contract with the Boeing Company, a major business partner for over fifty years, we experienced layoffs of approximately thirty blind and Deaf-Blind employees in 2002. Due to growth in other areas of our business this year we have been able to hire back 80% of those who were previously laid off.

In fact, congratulations are in order to everyone involved with the Lighthouse for chalking up record sales in 2003 of over $29,300,000.

 Several of our major customers and distribution channels are worthy of note:

The Defense Logistics Agency - over $5,700,000 in sales provide employment for thirty-five individuals who are blind, Deaf-Blind, and blind with developmental disabilities.

Other federal agencies - $5,700,000 in sales of products including business cards, rubber stamps, paper trimmers, and a line of communication boards and easels.

The Boeing Company - $5,700,000 in sales of high-quality aircraft parts made by blind and Deaf-Blind machinists in a state-of-the-art machine shop. A 99.9% acceptance rate of parts demonstrates the capabilities of blind people to excel in all types of employment.

Base Supply Centers - $8,400,000 in sales at our four supply centers located on U.S. military bases. These base stores not only provide direct employment for blind people in retail settings, but serve as major distribution channels for blind-made products from the Seattle Lighthouse and other nonprofit agencies across the country. This stands out as our fastest growing area of business.

 As you can see in this very brief summary of our activities, the Lighthouse again proves to be a mission-focused, resilient organization, continually overcoming significant obstacles by accepting challenges, finding answers, and implementing solutions. My hat goes off to Lighthouse staff for their committed and dedicated work.

At the same time, the members of the board, volunteering their time and expertise, have provided the leadership and guidance needed by the Lighthouse to move forward and carry out the mission of the organization. For this, I am especially appreciative.

 As I pass the board chair’s gavel into the capable hands of Doug Klan I am confident that the Seattle Lighthouse will continue to excel in the arduous task of effectively addressing the double bottom line, and certainly we will remain deeply committed to our mission of employing, training, and supporting blind people in our community so that they may have an opportunity to fully participate in society. Additionally, we will continue to address the overall financial health and capacity of the organization by developing new products, finding new customers and distribution channels, building philanthropic support from the community, and always delivering the highest quality products and services to all of our customers.

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