WASHINGTON, Jan. 29, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Following is the daily "Profile America" feature from the U.S. Census Bureau:

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-- Sunday, January 29th. The nation's first guide dog school -- the Seeing Eye --was founded on this date in 1929 in Nashville, Tennessee. The idea came from a magazine article by Dorothy Eustis about a guide dog program in Germany, and a response from Morris Frank, who was blind. Frank traveled around the U.S., demonstrating how guide dogs could free the blind to pursue a more active life. In the years since The Seeing Eye has matched more than 15,000 specially-bred and trained dogs to sightless people from the U.S. and Canada. It has not raised the price for its services since 1934, with most of the cost covered by charitable contributions each year. Across the U.S., there are 6.5 million people with vision difficulties, including those who are blind. is in its 15th year as a public service of the U.S. Census Bureau.

Sources: Chase's Calendar of Events 2012, p. 105The Seeing Eye OrganizationU.S. Census Bureau, Facts for Features, CB11-FF.14

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