August 4, 2023
In June, 15-year-old MaKenzie Love, of Commercial Point, Ohio, had the opportunity to participate in the National Braille Challenge Finals in Los Angeles, California. This was her second time participating in the Varsity category and she was among 50 students (10 in each category) from the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom.
“Everyone at the National Braille Challenge Finals was so talented and smart, “ said Love. “It was great to compete with them.”
Love, who was born blind, was the Varsity winner at the Ohio Regional Braille Challenge hosted by Clovernook Center for the Blind & Visually Impaired in February. During that competition, students who are blind or visually impaired in first through 12th grade were divided into five categories and tested on fundamental braille skills such as reading comprehension, spelling, speed and accuracy, proofreading, and charts and graphs. In the finals, Love was tested on those same categories but there was twice as much material than in the regional challenge. While Love didn’t place in the top three in the Varsity category, she was still thrilled to participate at the national level.
“I was excited to return and gain more experience in competing at the national level.”
In her spare time, Love enjoys reading Harry Potter books, playing piano, listening to music, attending musicals, traveling, playing percussion in her school’s marching band and spending time with her family and friends.
“I was honored to be given the opportunity to participate in the finals and be in the top 10 in my category.”
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