Teaching Visually Impaired Children

Smartphone for the visually impaired

2011-01-01T22:32:00.002-06:00

VOIM is the brand for the a Smartphone intended to be used by people who are visually impaired. Using the special camera embedded in the Smartphone enables the person using it to identify the object. The information is then shared by translating it into Braille. The visually impaired person can then read it by touch and listening to it. There is a connection for an earpiece that can be used, enabling privacy.

This device can be worn around the neck, using a strap. This helps the visually impaired person to view obstacles ahead of them, in their path. This device will prove to be very practical. It will also increase the safety of the person using it, as well as their level of independence.

This is another great technological tool that can be used by visually impaired people. Here is a link where you can view this device.

Smartphone VOIM

New non-profit hotel targets the need of the visually impaired!

2010-06-27T14:41:00.000-05:00

A new not-for-profit hotel group has been launched to specialise in accessible travel. Rebranded as Vision Hotels, the group’s four AA three-star hotels are run by national charity Action for Blind People and are already equipped with all the needs for disabled guests, as well as families and couples. As a not-for-profit group, all the money is ploughed back into the hotels. “The charity has operated the hotels for many years and some time ago we wanted to market them to people with disabilities, so we rebranded” Head of Vision Hotels Paul Morrison told Travel Daily.

“Because our hotels have the facilities and are fully-accessible it makes commercial sense to market them this way”. Although the group is not exclusive to accessible tourism, each hotel features a range of facilities for different guests. “If you benchmark our facilities to other accessible hotels then they are the same, including flat level access and wide-fitting doors,” said Morrison. “We are different because as Heritage properties, we have tonal contrasts between the walls and floors, which is more pleasing for visually impaired guests. There is also special tactile flooring so people can feel the difference underfoot.” Other facilities include liquid level indicators, information in various formats and a place for pet and guide dogs. However, the group has also launched a new website, which was custom-built to help visually-impaired users. “Lots of leading hotels have websites that are not DDA (Disability Discrimination Act) certified and these are not suitable for some users,” said Morrison.

“We have set up our website from scratch which meets the criteria and we have invested in online booking solutions to meet our client base.” Through the new booking system, users can change the size of font or background colours to their needs. Looking towards the future, Morrison said the group has no plans to acquire new properties yet as a lot of money has been invested into the website and rebranding. However, it is looking to train agents in accessible tourism and build its available resources. “We work with Creative Travel in Devon and all its staff has gone through visual awareness training so they can manage clients needs better,” he revealed. “We feel we have a lot of information to give the industry so we will be looking to develop those.”

A mother's courage!

2010-06-27T14:13:00.000-05:00

While roller skating at a friend's birthday party, my 7-year-old, Emma, wiped out.

One leg twisted behind her, another bent in front and both arms splayed.

"Are you all right?" I gasped.

"Just practicing a yoga move," she said, and might've pulled off the cool-girl act had she not found herself to be hilarious. "I crack myself up, just like an egg!"

My kids definitely get their sense of humor from their father. Jon can make me laugh in even the toughest situations.

When Emma was just a baby, a doctor told us she was visually impaired. Later that same day, I snickered through tears -- and knew we'd all be OK -- as Jon blithely told Emma about the "Three Visually Impaired Mice."

Benny, our 3 year old, has his own standup routine. "I'm an old lady!" he croaks as he walks around the house stooped over. "Want to see my slow run?" Then he launches into a slow motion jog in place, complete with exaggerated wiping of his brow.

These jokes were deliberate, but there are just as many times when the children are unintentionally funny. Having entertaining kids is a blessing, but trying to keep it together when the laughter would be "at" rather than "with" is tough.

I can't begin to count the number of times Jon and I have had to turn our backs to the children's wrath to choke back our laughter. There is just something so funny about half-pint brimming over with fury after walking full force into a sliding glass door.

But that would be laughing at instead of with, so we try to restrain.

A friend who is the mom of an 8-year-old girl told me about fighting back laughter during her daughter's first time chewing gum. "Today," the serious-minded girl said, "my goal is to chew gum and walk at the same time. Do you think I can do it? OK, here goes."

And then there are the times as a parent where you either have to laugh or cry.

Such as while I was interviewing someone for a York Daily Record/Sunday News article.

"I have to make an important phone call while you watch 'Sesame Street,'" I told Benny. "I need you to be very polite while I'm on the phone."

To me, this meant he shouldn't demand snacks and sing along to "Elmo's World."

To Benny, it meant leaning into the phone about five minutes later and politely stating: "In a minute, I'm going to need you to wipe my butt."

Total silence on the other end of phone. "Um, excuse me while I help my son with something," I muttered.

As soon as possible, I picked up the phone. "Sorry about that," I said in my best professional voice, just in time for Benny to call out, "I'm not wearing any pants!"

Laugh or cry? I had to laugh.

Again, I chose laughter when Emma scolded me for calling our dog a "dummy."

Jasper had taken a flying leap off a small walking bridge to chase a butterfly, landing in thick mud that he proceeded to shake over all of us.

"It's not nice to say 'dummy,'" Emma said with as much righteousness a mud-streaked 7-year-old can wield. "When I'm angry with someone, I just think 'dummy' in my head."

Then she glared at me so I would know exactly what she thinking about me just then.

And I turned my head, hoping she wouldn't see my shoulders shaking.

Beth Vrabel lives in West Manchester Township with her daughter, Emma, 7, and son, Benny, 3. For more Smart Mama columns visit www.smartmamapa.com.

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The courage of a visually impaired little boy!

2010-06-27T14:07:00.000-05:00

The Iraqi child doesn’t remember color or light.

He was blinded before he arrived in America, the victim of a horrific attack when he was 2.

Now 7, Muhammed “Hamoody” Jauda might change his name to something more American. He uses his legal guardians’ last name – Smith – but is far from settled on a first. He kind of likes Simon.

“We’re waiting, because we want to make sure he makes a good decision, what he really wants,” Julie Robinett Smith said. “He was telling me last year it was Dylan.”

In many ways, Hamoody has become a typical American boy since arriving in Snohomish, Wash., in 2006. He just finished first grade at Riverview Elementary, loves shooting Nerf guns, goes to church at Bethany Christian Assembly in Everett and keeps a baseball glove draped from his bedpost.

But he also makes calls home to Iraq, keeping in touch with his Shiite family. He hopes one day to go to Kuwait to visit them, but he said he has no intention of going back to Iraq itself.

“I don’t want to remember all the bad times,” he said.

“There wasn’t a lot of bad times,” Robinett Smith said. “Just one.”

The attack happened in 2005. Sunni insurgents shot his mother, killed his uncle and turned a gun on Hamoody at close range.

His right eye was a complete loss. He now keeps the empty socket covered with a flesh-toned bandage. He lost vision in his left eye. It was replaced with a brown lifelike prosthetic.

He came to the Smiths through Healing the Children, a Spokane-based international aid group that provides medical treatment to children from poor countries. His stay lengthened from one year to three as doctors rebuilt his face.

By the time he turned 6, the Smiths were as attached to him as he was to them.

Randy and Julie Robinett Smith won approval from his Iraqi family to become his legal guardians. All agreed he would have a better chance of survival here. In 2008, the U.S. government granted him asylum.

He now calls the Smiths Mom and Dad and wants to become a U.S. citizen after he turns 18.

“I just thought it would be a little bit cooler,” he said.

Hamoody also has adapted to life as a blind child.

He runs upstairs to his room and can walk straight down aisles at Fred Meyer, barely using his cane as he makes a beeline to the toy section.

Mary Ann Graham helped him develop those abilities through her role as a Snohomish School District teacher for visually impaired children.

Now about to retire, she has taught him how to navigate the world.

She calls him “exceptional.”

She showed him how to buy groceries and read Braille. He’s at 60 words per minute, reading above a third-grade level. She also helped him develop a sense of echolocation. He uses sound like a bat, identifying large objects – people, cars, pillars.

Graham said she’s not sure what would have happened if Hamoody had stayed in Iraq.

“He would not have had the opportunity for the schooling, and to develop the skills” that he has, she said.

Graham and the Smiths agree the boy still faces challenges. He is scheduled for more surgery in July, to keep damaged nasal passages open.

Someday, he also will have to convince people that he can cope in a sighted world.

Julie Robinett Smith said Hamoody is up to the task, happy and fierce in his approach to life.

And he’s ready to take risks. It’s OK if he gets hurt, Hamoody said.

“I just tough it out.”

Courageous visually impaired girl competes in Braille challenge!

2010-06-27T13:55:00.000-05:00

Before she was 2, Annette Lamas had undergone 10 operations on her eyes.

Born with congenital glaucoma that left her with a prothesis in her left eye and severely impaired vision in her right, she was so sensitive to light that she and her family had to live in darkness, curtains drawn throughout the house, for a year.

``I was very insecure not knowing what the future held,'' said Annette's mother, Ivette Moreno.

But the future seems bright for 7-year-old Annette.

On Saturday, the Miramar girl will join 56 competitors, ages 5 to 19, in the Braille Institute of America's 10th annual Braille Challenge in Los Angeles. The only South Floridian, Annette is one of 12 finalists in her age group.

The competition, which brings together winners of regional preliminaries held throughout the United States and Canada, is often described as the National Spelling Bee for the blind.

``It's meant to motivate children to take Braille seriously, to encourage them to work hard,'' said Nancy Niebrugge, Braille Challenge director. ``It's the one area these kids can truly compete in with no extra accommodations. It's a means of pride.''

The competition consists of five tests: reading comprehension, proofreading, spelling, speed and accuracy and chart and graph reading.

Annette began learning Braille when she was 3.

``She's picked it up super amazing. She's quite smart,'' Moreno said of her daughter, who is now reading at a fourth-grade level.

``Mom, you're talking for me,'' Annette interjected from a yellow swivel chair in the playroom of the family's Miramar home.

The second grader reads her favorite Junie B. Jones books in Braille by tracing over the bumps with her right hand, reading the words aloud and using her left hand to catch mistakes.

To write, she uses a Perkins Brailler, which looks like an old-fashioned typewriter, and a Braille note taker, a lighter, faster and more sophisticated device that stores files and can search the Web. Each machine has six keys for the six dots that form a two-column cell of raised dot combinations to represent letters and words.

Annette and her mother work on homework together for five or six hours each night, and she practices the violin daily. She is a proficient violinist who learned by ear and likes playing Spanish pop songs she hears on the radio more than Mozart.

Since the school year ended, mother and daughter have devoted themselves to preparing for the Challenge.

``Her mom works with her so hard,'' said Karen Tardif, Annette's teacher at Silver Shores Elementary, who added that Annette's skills go beyond the norm.

``She knows a lot about life. She's not quiet. She voices her opinions,'' Tardif said. ``[She has] such high self-confidence and makes jokes about herself.''

While there are other visually impaired students at the school, Annette is the only one who is legally blind. A vision teacher works alongside Tardif to transcribe or collect materials in Braille. Annette used to have a mobility teacher, but she's mastered her two-story school and maneuvers ``excellently'' through the hallways, Tardif said.

``She's very open and conscious of her condition,'' said her mother, noting that Annette gave a presentation to a cousin's 10th grade class about what it is like to be visually impaired.

``She's 7 going on 30,'' Moreno said with a laugh as she brushed Annette's bangs to the side of her forehead.

``Mom, I like them long,'' Annette protested. ``I'm growing them out.''

The vision in Annette's right eye is about 40/200. The glaucoma produces a far-sighted effect that forces her to sit extremely close to a television or computer screen to read large fonts and distinguish colors.

But Annette makes do. In fact, she loves playing computer games.

``If it was up to her, she would stay at home on the computer all day,'' her mother said.

The Braille Institute is paying for the family's room and meals at the Hilton Universal in Los Angeles, where the awards ceremony will be held Saturday night. The top prize in Annette's division is a PAC Mate similar to her Braille note taker and a $1,000 savings bond.

``No, I'm not nervous,'' she said. ``We're going to try to win.''

Visually impaired man hit by a car dies of injuries

2010-03-27T15:11:00.001-05:00

A visually impaired man who was struck by a car while walking to work last week has died, police said yesterday.

Kurt Vaughn Bellingrath, 57, was struck March 18 while walking from his apartment at Crowne Oaks to his job at Industries for the Blind off North Point Boulevard.

He died Thursday at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center.

Bellingrath was crossing the street at the intersection at Bethabara Road and North Point Boulevard about 7:30 a.m.

Carolyn Mickey Adkins, 59, of King was driving west on North Point Boulevard when she came to the intersection and struck Bellingrath, according to a police report. No charges have been filed against Adkins.

Winston-Salem police Sgt. Keith Redmon said witnesses told police that Bellingrath was in the median and was crossing the street diagonally, not straight across.

Adkins had a green light when she came to the intersection, police said.

After being struck, Bellingrath was taken to Wake Forest Baptist.

His death was the third traffic fatality of the year.

Bellingrath moved here from New Jersey in April to take a job at the Industries for the Blind, said Annette Clinard, the director of work-force development.

Clinard said that Bellingrath was visually impaired but not completely blind.

He worked in the optical lab, where he made eyeglasses for veterans, Clinard said.

She said that Bellingrath enjoyed doing a job that made a difference in peoples' lives.

"He was very valued by all of us, and we are saddened by the whole situation," she said. "We cared about Kurt, and he did a good job for us."

pgarber@wsjournal.com | 727-7327

Charity event raised funds for the visually impaired!

2010-03-27T15:08:00.000-05:00

SINGAPORE: About 500 people attended a charity gala dinner on Friday night to raise funds for the Singapore Association of the Visually Handicapped.

Among them were President S R Nathan and his wife.

It was even more special for Mrs Nathan when she met three former students who are visually impaired.

She was their teacher at the Johor Convent School in 1965.

The evening also showcased the special talents of the visually-impaired through performances and their artwork.

The association is raising funds to serve its 3,100 visually-impaired clients who require rehabilitation and aftercare services.

The national voluntary welfare organisation, which provides such services in Singapore, needs S$150,000 monthly to run its programmes.

Egg hunt for visually impaired children

2010-03-27T15:05:00.001-05:00

VIRGINIA BEACH

Children with impaired vision will have the chance to participate in an Easter egg hunt today.

They can hunt for 100 eggs that emit a beeping sound at Bayville Farms Park this afternoon, according to a news release from the police department. The plastic eggs can then be traded for a treat.

The event will start at 3 p.m. at Shelter #1 and continue until 5 p.m., according to the release. The park is located at 4132 First Court Road.

The International Association of Bomb Technicians and Investigators and the Hampton Roads Regional Metropolitan Bomb Squad are hosting the event in support of the Hampton Roads Chapter of the Virginia Association of Parents of the Vision Impaired, according to the release.

To participate, call Irene Conlin of the parents association at (757) 495-8995 or Lee Ann Armbruster at (757) 523-2708. The siblings of children with visual impairments may also participate.

The visually impaired can now experience driving on tracks

2010-03-27T14:57:00.000-05:00

BLIND and partially-sighted drivers will be able to get behind the wheel of a car and put their foot down in an annual challenge.

The fifth annual Guide Dog’s Blind Drive Challenge takes place at the Nissan factory on Wearside on June 6.

The event allows visually impaired drivers to try out the test track with the help of BSM driving instructors in dual control cars.

In previous years, some drivers have reached speeds of more than 90mph during the event, which aims to raise around £14,000 for charity.

Sighted drivers can also try out the track while wearing a blindfold.

The event is thought to be unique and gives people with vision problems the chance to drive again or even for the first time.

Claire Devine, district fundraiser for Guide Dogs in Northumberland and Tyne and Wear said: "This is a unique and exciting event which is a fantastic experience for both visually impaired and sighted participants.

"Guide Dogs receives no funding other than that provided by donations and legacies so every penny raised is vital in maintaining the independence and confidence a guide dog affords their visually impaired owner."

Participants, who must be over the age of 14, are asked to raise a minimum of £50 sponsorship.

To book a place, contact Claire Devine at claire.devine@guidedogs.org.uk or 07990 540176.

Computer training now available for the visually impaired

2010-03-27T14:56:00.001-05:00

COMPUTER training is being provided for visually-impaired people in Chester and Ellesmere Port.

Sessions run by the Chester & District Federation of the Blind are taking place at The Hope Centre in Western Avenue, Blacon, Chester on Tuesday afternoons but groups also meet at Ellesmere Port and Neston.

The IT sessions are provided in collaboration with West Cheshire College. Various social clubs are also affiliated to The Federation and provide activities in line with the wishes of the members like walks and trips.

The charity, which was only set up recently, hopes to open a charity shop in Ellesmere Port in the near future to help finance its services.

More than £1,000 was raised during a recent street collection in Chester and other fund-raising events are planned.

Secretary Mike Fair, who used to work for the Vision Support charity in Chester, said the two groups may be able to collaborate in future.

He said: “At the end of the day we are both providing services for people who have got no sight or very little sight.”

To find out about the group’s activities and for more information contact Mike, who is also a trustee of the charity, on: 07804 855 834.

Newly improved Reality smartphone application is great for the visually impaired

2010-03-27T14:28:00.003-05:00

Two mobile solutions companies, Ipplex and LinkMe Mobile, have partnered to create mobile applications for elderly and vision-impaired consumers.

The companies unveiled their first augmented reality application, LookTel, at the CTIA Wireless conference in Las Vegas.

"LookTel allows users to instantly interact with their world through their mobile phone - recognizing everyday objects such as text, money, packaged goods, CDs or medication bottles, even signs and landmarks," explained Ipplex in a March 24 press release.

"The app combines precision image recognition technology with text reader capabilities using full featured Optical Character Recognition (OCR). By simply pointing the mobile device at what the user wishes to 'see,' LookTel pronounces the name of the object or reads text in clear and easy to understand speech."

The application also provides additional support to the vision-impaired by way of live video, audio chat, push-to-talk audio, and GPS-tracking data.

Their groundbreaking application was selected as a finalist in the CTIA Wireless Emerging Technology Awards Healthcare/Public Safety/Transportation Category in 2010.

Augmented reality-like technology has previously been used to help vision-impaired and blind people see with their ears. Almost 10 years ago, a senior scientist at Philips Research Laboratories in the Netherlands developed a "seeing" system called The vOICe.

The vision technology offered totally blind users a sonic representation of visual sensations by way of image-to-sound renderings. The technology is now available as an Android application from the Seeing With Sound website, http://www.seeingwithsound.com/.

A video of the LookTel technology in action can be viewed here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lf-0Dj95SgY&feature=player_embedded

More information about LookTel can be found on the LookTel website, located at: http://www.looktel.com

Special computer to meet the special needs of the visually impaired

2010-03-07T14:41:00.000-06:00

The Vadodara-based Society for Training and Vocational Rehabilitation of the Disabled has become the first institution in the state and one of the four in the country to have a specially developed computer system for the visually-impaired people.

The project has been initiated by the Information and Technology Department, New Delhi and IT company Webel Mediatronics Ltd has been assigned the job to develop the computer system.

Around 60 institutions for the visually-impaired people across the country will be supplied with the new systems. Purshottam Panchal, the president of the Vadodara institute said, “We had been training the visually-impaired for last many years and our students have won several state and national awards for their extraordinary achievements.”

The new computer systems were handed over to the students by well-known kathakaar Rameshbhai Oza at the Seva Tirth campus located on the outskirts of the city.

“The new computer system will bring a big change in the way visually-impaired use a computer as it includes not only voice mechanism but also a special software which will even have a special keyboard in Braille. Even the printouts will be in Braille,” said Panchal.

Oza, who inaugurated the training centre for the visually-impaired, said: “It is an irony in the society that there are people who are physically fit but into bad habits and on the other hand we have physically-challenged people who are setting examples for all of us by becoming earning members of their families without anybody’s help. In today’s world, where computers have become a must, such initiatives will go a long way.”

Braille provides independence to the visually impaired!

2010-03-07T14:28:00.001-06:00

I've taken a lot for granted in my life, but never my sight. Born with a crossed eye, a condition known as strabismus, I started wearing eyeglasses at the age of 20 months, had surgery on my right eye at the tender age of 4 and spent countless hours in therapy, trying to combat what became my lazy eye, a condition known as amblyopia in which the brain for some mysterious reason doesn’t fully acknowledge images seen by the amblyopic eye.

The result has been a life with left-eye-dominated vision and a right eye that would be defined as legally blind if not for the miracle of prescription eyeglasses, which bring the eye back to 20-60 vision.

But if something ever were to happen to my left eye, I would be in deep visual trouble.

I don’t think about it all that much these days, but I did for two reasons last week. First, I spent a few hours with some of the 25 visually impaired people who gathered Tuesday in the state Legislative Building to celebrate Braille Awareness Day.

Did you know that Louis Braille, the French inventor of the pathway to literacy for the visually impaired, was born the same year (1809) as Abraham Lincoln, the 16th U.S. president, and Charles Darwin, the English naturalist and father of the theories of evolution and natural selection?

Or how about this: Blinded by an eye infection at age 3, Braille by age 15 had invented the Braille alphabet and the raised-dot reading system that fits letters under a fingertip.

But he wasn’t recognized for his achievement until two years after he died from tuberculosis at age 43.

This and so much more information about his incredible life is on public display on the Legislative Building’s third floor through March 15 as part of the National Braille Press’ Louis Braille traveling exhibit, hosted in part in this state by the Washington Talking Book & Braille Library, an arm of the Washington State Library.

The 20-panel display in print and Braille touches on the highlights of Braille’s life and reminds us why Braille remains important in today’s high-tech information age.

The National Federation of the Blind issued a report last year on the 200th anniversary of Braille’s birth that said more than 70 percent of blind Americans of working age are unemployed. But more than 80 percent of the blind people who are employed read Braille.

Reading Braille gives a visually impaired person a better chance of finding a job and pursuing a college education, said Danielle Miller, program manager for the Talking Book and Braille Library.

“It’s the key to literacy for blind people – that’s all,” said Alan Bentson, a visually impaired employee at the Talking Book and Braille Library in Seattle who attended the Olympia ceremony honoring Louis Braille.

Sitting at a table next to the exhibit, Bentson was reading a Braille edition of an autobiography of Louis Braille at a rate of about 200 words a minute, about one-half to one-third the speed of a sighted person reading a book.

“It’s not speed reading, no doubt about it,” Bentson quipped.

The NFB report also states that only 10 percent of America’s blind children today are taught Braille, compared with 50 percent in the 1960s.

Reasons for the decline include a lack of teachers and the public perception that Braille is obsolete.

As Secretary of State Sam Reed stood by the Braille exhibit and read to the gathering some of Braille’s life story, the rounds of cheers and applause that echoed through the Capitol Rotunda convinced me Braille’s path to literacy should be fostered, not forgotten.

The day after Braille Awareness Day happened to be the date for my biennial eye exam. Brian Sullivan, my optometrist at Olympia Eye Clinic, ran me through the paces and proclaimed that my eyes were disease-free. There was more good news: I don’t need a new, stronger prescription for my eyeglasses.

More than 60 years after being born with defective eyesight, I’m blessed to simply be visually impaired.

John Dodge: 360-754-5444

jdodge@theolympian.com

www.theolympian.com/soundings

Visually impaired skier inspires people!

2010-03-07T14:17:00.002-06:00

This isn't a sad story. It isn't. It isn't one of those stories, one of the stories that are supposed to mean something, to say something, to show something bigger and grander about "sports and the society we live in." No unthinkable tragedy occurs in this story. No one dies here.

It's just a story about a girl who likes to ski.

The girl's name is Lexie Jordan. A few months ago Lexie was having lunch with her dad after finishing a run during a junior ski team event at Sundown mountain up near Hartford, Conn. Lexie is 12, lives in North Salem and skis for the Thunder Ridge team, and she had been the first racer down the course that day because she always is the first racer down the course. It is one of the only concessions the racing tour makes to the fact that Lexie is legally blind.

Understand, she doesn't want your pity. This isn't about that. Lexie was born with albinism, a genetic anomaly that affects about 1 in 20,000 newborns. Because of it, her skin is pale, her hair is milky and her vision is in the neighborhood of 20/400 (meaning that what a full-sighted person sees at 20 feet she sees as being more than a football field away). Most skiers are taught to look four or five gates ahead during a race; Lexie struggles to make out one or two. By rule, she is allowed to follow another skier down the hill and track their path; she's not interested. She could also compete in events with other visually impaired athletes; she'd rather not.

"I know it might sound crazy," Lexie says, "but I like my vision. I was raised to accept who I am. I'm not angry, I'm not mad. I've got a great life. And I want to compete here."

She started skiing seriously about a year ago, and this was her first season with Thunder Ridge. The team competed in a series of regional events all over the Northeast, and Lexie's goal was simple: Don't finish last. At each event, the skiers compete in the Giant Slalom (where the gates are spaced farther apart) and the slalom (where tighter turns are required); Lexie posted better times than other racers on several occasions but was rarely able to make it through both events without missing at least one gate, meaning that, technically, she was disqualified.
"I only fell down one time all season, though," she says cheerily. "I thought I'd fall a lot more, and other kids definitely fall, but I only went down once. That's pretty good!"

For most of the season, her visual impairment wasn't known by racers and parents from the other teams; she was just another kid wearing ski suits and snow pants and goggles. But Jenna Pogozelski did know. She had heard another skier talking about it and watched Lexie ski a run at Thunder Ridge with tears in her eyes.

Jenna is a few years older than Lexie, a freshman at Cheshire High School in Connecticut. She is arguably the best skier on the junior circuit. "She has so many medals," says Lexie's brother, Liam. "She wins everything."

Jenna skis for the Sundown team, and so, on the day that the tour was at her home mountain, she walked through the cafeteria looking for Lexie. "I actually sort of followed her for a little bit," Jenna says, "because I wanted to get myself together and make sure I knew what I wanted to say. I went past her a few times. It probably looked weird."

A few moments after Lexie and her father had sat down to eat, Jenna approached. She introduced herself — "I mean, I knew who she was," Lexie says — and then she held out a medal. It was a silver medal from a race that Jenna had won at Thunder Ridge — Lexie's home mountain — back in January.

"I'm totally inspired by what you're doing," Jenna, her lip quivering, told Lexie. "And I think you deserve this medal more than I do."

The fear, says Karen Jordan, is exactly what you would expect. As a mother, Karen worried that her daughter would always be seen as different. That people wouldn't be able to get past her skin and her hair and her need to have reading assignments blown up to size 26 font. That was the fear. The reality, Karen says, isn't anything close. Lexie has friends. Lexie acts in school plays (she just did "Oliver"). Lexie used to be a cheerleader. "She isn't an outcast at all," Karen says. "And a lot of it is because of who she is. Her attitude, her personality."

It's "an incredible perspective," her dad, Chris, says, that allows Lexie — at age 12 — to be realistic about what matters. "How many 12-year-olds do you know who wouldn't care about winning a race?" Chris says. "She doesn't want to beat everyone. She just wants to beat someone. She knows what is important to her."

Ask Lexie if she ever gets angry about being visually impaired, and she laughs and says, "Angry? Why would I be?"

Ask Lexie what her dream is, and she says, matter-of-factly, that she's "given this a lot of thought: I want to go to Georgetown and become a lawyer, because I think I'm pretty persuasive."

Ask Lexie if she ever thinks about dying her hair as a way to make it less noticeable, and her eyes go wide. "Oh, no," she says. "I love my hair! People come up to me all the time and tell me how much they love it."

Then she mentions that, nowadays, you see rock stars and celebrities dying their hair to get it the color of Lexie's. Singer Gwen Stefani, for example. "I would never dye my hair," Lexie says. "I mean, never."

Earlier this winter, the Jordans were on a family ski trip at Stratton Mountain in Vermont. There was heavy snow falling, and it was a "whiteout," with so much precipitation that it was almost impossible for anyone to see.

Because of the conditions, Karen told Lexie that it would probably be better if she didn't ski that day; it was too dangerous. "She wasn't interested in that," Karen says. "She knew she'd be careful and she knew she'd be fine. And you know what? She was. It was a reminder that I need to back off sometimes. She's fine. She really is."

That is what Lexie wants, what she focuses on. There are actually benefits, she says, that come with having one of the body's senses lessened and others heightened; her memory, for example, is nearly photographic. "I once forgot my math homework at home," she says, "but I was able to prove to my teacher that I'd done it because I remembered all of the answers. So I just said them out loud."

She laughs then. "Not bad, right?" she says, and then she laughs again.

"She just has fun with everything," Liam says.

It is something to admire. There is no time for sorrow with Lexie, no time for frustration. She's just a girl who likes to do things, to try things, to experience things. She's just a girl who likes to ski.

Ask Lexie if she ever gets angry about being visually impaired, and she laughs and says, "Angry? Why would I be?"

Ask Lexie what her dream is, and she says, matter-of-factly, that she's "given this a lot of thought: I want to go to Georgetown and become a lawyer, because I think I'm pretty persuasive."

She laughs then. "Not bad, right?" she says, and then she laughs again.

"She just has fun with everything," Liam says.

Reach Sam Borden at sborden@lohud.com.

Premature babies can be visually impaired

2010-01-22T20:51:00.000-06:00

Cynthia Romero Torres scoots around the room, chasing brightly colored balls. She grabs a black crayon, then a chunk of neon orange Play-Doh.

Everyday stuff for an 18-month-old.

But for Cynthia, these simple tasks mean major progress. She was born at just 25 weeks' gestation, weighing 1 pound. Her eyes were so underdeveloped at birth, she's had seven surgeries.

Now an otherwise healthy toddler, Cynthia illustrates a double-edged trend: While survival rates of extremely preterm babies are rising, so is the incidence of vision problems related to prematurity, including blindness.

Eye doctors and others who serve the needs of the visually impaired worry that they won't be able to handle this new wave.

"We're not equipped," Pinellas ophthalmologist Dr. Jeffrey Schwartz said. The technology exists to help children like Cynthia, but costs are high, the number of specialists is limited and many mothers who have preterm babies don't have health insurance, he says.

"The issue is access," adds Dr. Jonathan Mines of Bay Area Retina Consultants. "There are patients that get through the cracks because they are indigent and don't have appropriate care."

And Dan Mann, president and CEO of the nonprofit Lighthouse of Pinellas, worries whether groups like his — which rely on government money — will be able to provide training and therapy to the growing visually impaired population, particularly now as the state wrestles with a budget deficit.

"Across the board I'm concerned," Mann said.

• • •

Advances in neonatal care have helped doctors save more tiny babies than ever before. A 2009 study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association showed markedly higher one-year survival rates for infants born at less than 27 weeks between 2004 and 2007 compared with similar babies born between 1990 and 1992. (Full term is considered to be about 40 weeks.)

But early preterm infants, those born before 27 or 28 weeks, are at greater risk of many medical problems, including hearing loss, cerebral palsy and vision impairment.

A Swedish study found a higher incidence of retinal damage, called retinopathy of prematurity, in babies born before 27 weeks. These babies also are at greater risk of glaucoma and amblyopia, more commonly known as lazy eye.

Much of the eyes' development takes place in the last 12 weeks of a 40-week gestation. So in cases of preterm babies, "the retina hasn't had time to develop," Schwartz said.

Retinopathy of prematurity is the abnormal development of blood vessels in the retina, which is the tissue that lines the back of the eye. Retinopathy can occur when a preterm birth halts the normal growth of blood vessels to the edges of the retina.

The disorder is treated by using laser therapy or cryotherapy to destroy the outside of the retina, which will slow or reverse the abnormal growth of blood vessels.

Essentially, the smaller a baby is at birth, the more likely the baby will develop vision problems. Of the approximately 28,000 babies born each year that weigh 2¾ pounds or less, more than half have some degree of retinopathy. Some cases are mild and require no treatment, but others require surgery, and about 400 to 600 infants each year become legally blind from the disorder.

What's more, the number of children born preterm is increasing. Nearly 13 percent of all U.S. births are preterm, compared with 11 percent 15 years ago.

Babies arrive too soon and too small for many reasons. But Schwartz says proper prenatal care is key to helping more babies make it to full term and lessen the chances of visual impairment.

"If you're born before you're fully developed, you may not fully develop," he said.

• • •

Doctors say the earlier the eye disorder is diagnosed, the better the child's visual prognosis.

Marisol Torres, 30, said her daughter faced many medical challenges when she was born extremely preterm at Bayfront Medical Center in St. Petersburg. Cynthia was bleeding from her heart and lungs, and Torres said doctors told her the baby had little chance to survive.

But she did, and when Cynthia was 1 month old, doctors discovered she had retinopathy of prematurity in both eyes. She has since had seven surgeries to treat the disorder. Though her vision is good now, it's uncertain whether she'll need eyeglasses or have substantial vision loss in the future.

"The doctor says there's a big chance she will not be totally blind," Torres, a Clearwater resident who is from Mexico, said through a translator.

Cynthia and other visually impaired children get aid from agencies such as Lighthouse of Pinellas, which works with them in developing cognitive skills, motor skills and speech.

Lighthouse serves about 30 to 40 children a year, and Mann expects that number to grow as the visually impaired population increases.

Anna Kiefriter has been using Lighthouse services for much of her son Nicholas' life. Nicholas was born at Bayfront when Kiefriter, who experienced complications through her pregnancy, was only 24 weeks along. Doctors soon learned Nicholas had retinopathy of prematurity.

Now two months shy of his sixth birthday, Nicholas is a kindergartener at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic School in Dunedin, where his mother is a music teacher.

Nicholas is legally blind in his right eye, and his left eye is only slightly better. He has limited peripheral vision, caused by the damage to the outer portions of his retina.

He has had surgery, and has worn glasses since he was 10 months old. Kiefriter says she has lost count of how many pairs he has gone through.

But, she says, he never takes them off. Even when he sleeps.

"He always wants to see," Kiefriter said.

Richard Martin can be reached at rmartin@sptimes.com or (727) 893-8330

New portable phone for the visually impaired

2010-01-02T18:42:00.001-06:00

Squibble is a portable device concept that provides tactile audio and high contrast visual feedback for the visually impaired. It also features a braille reader. There are 779 ultrasonic motors used to generate the tactile feedback! Other features include Bluetooth connectivity.

Apart from the fact that this is intended to help the impaired, this phone is quite a stunner. Definetly thicker than most phones but has got the looks to kill. Feels like it’s taken from a Sci-Fi movie. What are your thoughts?

Can Braille be now listened to?

2010-01-02T14:53:00.001-06:00

AT 4 O’CLOCK each morning, Laura J. Sloate begins her daily reading. She calls a phone service that reads newspapers aloud in a synthetic voice, and she listens to The Wall Street Journal at 300 words a minute, which is nearly twice the average pace of speech. Later, an assistant reads The Financial Times to her while she uses her computer’s text-to-speech system to play The Economist aloud. She devotes one ear to the paper and the other to the magazine. The managing director of a Wall Street investment management firm, Sloate has been blind since age 6, and although she reads constantly, poring over the news and the economic reports for several hours every morning, she does not use Braille. “Knowledge goes from my ears to my brain, not from my finger to my brain,” she says. As a child she learned how the letters of the alphabet sounded, not how they appeared or felt on the page. She doesn’t think of a comma in terms of its written form but rather as “a stop on the way before continuing.” This, she says, is the future of reading for the blind. “Literacy evolves,” she told me. “When Braille was invented, in the 19th century, we had nothing else. We didn’t even have radio. At that time, blindness was a disability. Now it’s just a minor, minor impairment.”

A few decades ago, commentators predicted that the electronic age would create a postliterate generation as new forms of media eclipsed the written word. Marshall McLuhan claimed that Western culture would return to the “tribal and oral pattern.” But the decline of written language has become a reality for only the blind. Although Sloate does regret not spending more time learning to spell in her youth — she writes by dictation — she says she thinks that using Braille would have only isolated her from her sighted peers. “It’s an arcane means of communication, which for the most part should be abolished,” she told me. “It’s just not needed today.”

Braille books are expensive and cumbersome, requiring reams of thick, oversize paper. The National Braille Press, an 83-year-old publishing house in Boston, printed the Harry Potter series on its Heidelberg cylinder; the final product was 56 volumes, each nearly a foot tall. Because a single textbook can cost more than $1,000 and there’s a shortage of Braille teachers in public schools, visually impaired students often read using MP3 players, audiobooks and computer-screen-reading software.

A report released last year by the National Federation of the Blind, an advocacy group with 50,000 members, said that less than 10 percent of the 1.3 million legally blind Americans read Braille. Whereas roughly half of all blind children learned Braille in the 1950s, today that number is as low as 1 in 10, according to the report. The figures are controversial because there is debate about when a child with residual vision has “too much sight” for Braille and because the causes of blindness have changed over the decades — in recent years more blind children have multiple disabilities, because of premature births. It is clear, though, that Braille literacy has been waning for some time, even among the most intellectually capable, and the report has inspired a fervent movement to change the way blind people read. “What we’re finding are students who are very smart, very verbally able — and illiterate,” Jim Marks, a board member for the past five years of the Association on Higher Education and Disability, told me. “We stopped teaching our nation’s blind children how to read and write. We put a tape player, then a computer, on their desks. Now their writing is phonetic and butchered. They never got to learn the beauty and shape and structure of language.”

For much of the past century, blind children attended residential institutions where they learned to read by touching the words. Today, visually impaired children can be well versed in literature without knowing how to read; computer-screen-reading software will even break down each word and read the individual letters aloud. Literacy has become much harder to define, even for educators.

“If all you have in the world is what you hear people say, then your mind is limited,” Darrell Shandrow, who runs a blog called Blind Access Journal, told me. “You need written symbols to organize your mind. If you can’t feel or see the word, what does it mean? The substance is gone.” Like many Braille readers, Shandrow says that new computers, which form a single line of Braille cells at a time, will revive the code of bumps, but these devices are still extremely costly and not yet widely used. Shandrow views the decline in Braille literacy as a sign of regression, not progress: “This is like going back to the 1400s, before Gutenberg’s printing press came on the scene,” he said. “Only the scholars and monks knew how to read and write. And then there were the illiterate masses, the peasants.”

UNTIL THE 19TH CENTURY, blind people were confined to an oral culture. Some tried to read letters carved in wood or wax, formed by wire or outlined in felt with pins. Dissatisfied with such makeshift methods, Louis Braille, a student at the Royal Institute for Blind Youth in Paris, began studying a cipher language of bumps, called night writing, developed by a French Army officer so soldiers could send messages in the dark. Braille modified the code so that it could be read more efficiently — each letter or punctuation symbol is represented by a pattern of one to six dots on a matrix of three rows and two columns — and added abbreviations for commonly used words like “knowledge,” “people” and “Lord.” Endowed with a reliable method of written communication for the first time in history, blind people had a significant rise in social status, and Louis Braille was embraced as a kind of liberator and spiritual savior. With his “godlike courage,” Helen Keller wrote, Braille built a “firm stairway for millions of sense-crippled human beings to climb from hopeless darkness to the Mind Eternal.”

At the time, blindness was viewed not just as the absence of sight but also as a condition that created a separate kind of species, more innocent and malleable, not fully formed. Some scholars said that blind people spoke a different sort of language, disconnected from visual experience. In his 1933 book, “The Blind in School and Society,” the psychologist Thomas Cutsforth, who lost his sight at age 11, warned that students who were too rapidly assimilated into the sighted world would become lost in “verbal unreality.” At some residential schools, teachers avoided words that referenced color or light because, they said, students might stretch the meanings beyond sense. These theories have since been discredited, and studies have shown that blind children as young as 4 understand the difference in meaning between words like “look,” “touch” and “see.” And yet Cutsforth was not entirely misguided in his argument that sensory deprivation restructures the mind. In the 1990s, a series of brain-imaging studies revealed that the visual cortices of the blind are not rendered useless, as previously assumed. When test subjects swept their fingers over a line of Braille, they showed intense activation in the parts of the brain that typically process visual input.

These imaging studies have been cited by some educators as proof that Braille is essential for blind children’s cognitive development, as the visual cortex takes more than 20 percent of the brain. Given the brain’s plasticity, it is difficult to make the argument that one kind of reading — whether the information is absorbed by ear, finger or retina — is inherently better than another, at least with regard to cognitive function. The architecture of the brain is not fixed, and without images to process, the visual cortex can reorganize for new functions. A 2003 study in Nature Neuroscience found that blind subjects consistently surpassed sighted ones on tests of verbal memory, and their superior performance was caused, the authors suggested, by the extra processing that took place in the visual regions of their brains.

Learning to read is so entwined in the normal course of child development that it is easy to assume that our brains are naturally wired for print literacy. But humans have been reading for fewer than 6,000 years (and literacy has been widespread for no more than a century and a half). The activity of reading itself alters the anatomy of the brain. In a report released in 2009 in the journal Nature, the neuroscientist Manuel Carreiras studies illiterate former guerrillas in Colombia who, after years of combat, had abandoned their weapons, left the jungle and rejoined civilization. Carreiras compares 20 adults who had recently completed a literacy program with 22 people who had not yet begun it. In M.R.I. scans of their brains, the newly literate subjects showed more gray matter in their angular gyri, an area crucial for language processing, and more white matter in part of the corpus callosum, which links the two hemispheres. Deficiencies in these regions were previously observed in dyslexics, and the study suggests that those brain patterns weren’t the cause of their illiteracy, as had been hypothesized, but a result.

There is no doubt that literacy changes brain circuitry, but how this reorganization affects our capacity for language is still a matter of debate. In moving from written to spoken language, the greatest consequences for blind people may not be cognitive but cultural — a loss much harder to avoid. In one of the few studies of blind people’s prose, Doug Brent, a professor of communication at the University of Calgary, and his wife, Diana Brent, a teacher of visually impaired students, analyzed stories by students who didn’t use Braille but rather composed on a regular keyboard and edited by listening to their words played aloud. One 16-year-old wrote a fictional story about a character named Mark who had “sleep bombs”:

He looked in the house windo that was his da windo his dad was walking around with a mask on he took it off he opend the windo and fell on his bed sleeping mark took two bombs and tosed them in the windo the popt his dad lept up but before he could grab the mask it explodedhe fell down asleep.

In describing this story and others like it, the Brents invoked the literary scholar Walter Ong, who argued that members of literate societies think differently than members of oral societies. The act of writing, Ong said — the ability to revisit your ideas and, in the process, refine them — transformed the shape of thought. The Brents characterized the writing of many audio-only readers as disorganized, “as if all of their ideas are crammed into a container, shaken and thrown randomly onto a sheet of paper like dice onto a table.” The beginnings and endings of sentences seem arbitrary, one thought emerging in the midst of another with a kind of breathless energy. The authors concluded, “It just doesn’t seem to reflect the qualities of organized sequence and complex thought that we value in a literate society.”

OUR DEFINITION of a literate society inevitably shifts as our tools for reading and writing evolve, but the brief history of literacy for blind people makes the prospect of change particularly fraught. Since the 1820s, when Louis Braille invented his writing system — so that blind people would no longer be “despised or patronized by condescending sighted people,” as he put it — there has always been, among blind people, a political and even moral dimension to learning to read. Braille is viewed by many as a mark of independence, a sign that blind people have moved away from an oral culture seen as primitive and isolating. In recent years, however, this narrative has been complicated. Schoolchildren in developed countries, like the U.S. and Britain, are now thought to have lower Braille literacy than those in developing ones, like Indonesia and Botswana, where there are few alternatives to Braille. Tim Connell, the managing director of an assistive-technology company in Australia, told me that he has heard this described as “one of the advantages of being poor.”

Braille readers do not deny that new reading technology has been transformative, but Braille looms so large in the mythology of blindness that it has assumed a kind of talismanic status. Those who have residual vision and still try to read print — very slowly or by holding the page an inch or two from their faces — are generally frowned upon by the National Federation of the Blind, which fashions itself as the leader of a civil rights movement for the blind. Its president, Marc Maurer, a voracious reader, compares Louis Braille to Abraham Lincoln. At the annual convention for the federation, held at a Detroit Marriott last July, I heard the mantra “listening is not literacy” repeated everywhere, from panels on the Braille crisis to conversations among middle-school girls. Horror stories circulating around the convention featured children who don’t know what a paragraph is or why we capitalize letters or that “happily ever after” is made up of three separate words.

Declaring your own illiteracy seemed to be a rite of passage. A vice president of the federation, Fredric Schroeder, served as commissioner of the Rehabilitation Services Administration under President Clinton and relies primarily on audio technologies. He was openly repentant about his lack of reading skills. “I am now over 50 years old, and it wasn’t until two months ago that I realized that ‘dissent,’ to disagree, is different than ‘descent,’ to lower something,” he told me. “I’m functionally illiterate. People say, ‘Oh, no, you’re not.’ Yes, I am. I’m sorry about it, but I’m not embarrassed to admit it.”

While people like Laura Sloate or the governor of New York, David A. Paterson, who also reads by listening, may be able to achieve without the help of Braille, their success requires accommodations that many cannot afford. Like Sloate, Paterson dictates his memos, and his staff members select pertinent newspaper articles for him and read them aloud on his voice mail every morning. (He calls himself “overassimilated” and told me that as a child he was “mainstreamed so much that I psychologically got the message that I’m not really supposed to be blind.”) Among people with fewer resources, Braille-readers tend to form the blind elite, in part because it is more plausible for a blind person to find work doing intellectual rather than manual labor.

A 1996 study showed that of a sample of visually impaired adults, those who learned Braille as children were more than twice as likely to be employed as those who had not. At the convention this statistic was frequently cited with pride, so much so that those who didn’t know Braille were sometimes made to feel like outsiders. “There is definitely a sense of peer pressure from the older guard,” James Brown, a 35-year-old who reads using text-to-speech software, told me. “If we could live in our own little Braille world, then that’d be perfect,” he added. “But we live in a visual world.”

When deaf people began getting cochlear implants in the late 1980s, many in the deaf community felt betrayed. The new technology pushed people to think of the disability in a new way — as an identity and a culture. Technology has changed the nature of many disabilities, lifting the burdens but also complicating people’s sense of what is physically natural, because bodies can so often be tweaked until “fixed.” Arielle Silverman, a graduate student at the convention who has been blind since birth, told me that if she had the choice to have vision, she was not sure she would take it. Recently she purchased a pocket-size reading machine that takes photographs of text and then reads the words aloud, and she said she thought of vision like that, as “just another piece of technology.”

The modern history of blind people is in many ways a history of reading, with the scope of the disability — the extent to which you are viewed as ignorant or civilized, helpless or independent — determined largely by your ability to access the printed word. For 150 years, Braille books were designed to function as much as possible like print books. But now the computer has essentially done away with the limits of form, because information, once it has been digitized, can be conveyed through sound or touch. For sighted people, the transition from print to digital text has been relatively subtle, but for many blind people the shift to computerized speech is an unwelcome and uncharted experiment. In grappling with what has been lost, several federation members recited to me various takes on the classic expression Scripta manent, verba volant: What is written remains, what is spoken vanishes into air.

World Disability Day

2009-12-13T18:11:00.000-06:00

On World Disability Day, physically and mentally challenged students from across the district participated in a sport's event at Dadoji Konddeo Stadium. The event, which was graced by civic dignitaries, the district collector and other important persons, saw 651 students participating.

The events ranged from a 400-metre race to a chess competition, where visually impaired individuals participated. The enthusiasm of the students was overwhelming and those who witnessed the event were moved with the never-say-die spirit of the participants.

"The students set an example for all of us. Apart from the students from the schools, there were also several adults with disabilities who showed us that despite their difficulties, they are as good as anyone else. We were overwhelmed with the response as there were participants that had come from Dahanu as well," said Mary Ann Scott, one of the organisers of the event.

Scott adds that the TMC offered them the stadium as there were several participants. "The civic commissioner was very supportive of our endeavour and provided us the stadium for the day," she said.

In all, 16 schools for the mentally challenged, 18 schools for hearing impaired, two visually impaired schools and one physically handicapped school participated in the event.

The event opened with a march, which was followed with the singing of the National Anthem. Following this, the athletes took an oath before competing against each other.

Talking books may soon be a thing of the past

2009-11-19T18:59:00.000-06:00

A group of young adults make books accessible to visually impaired, but copyright law poses hurdle

When copyright lawyer Rahul Cherian was recovering from cancer and had to use a wheelchair, he was in for a shock. There were no provisions for the physically challenged at the hospital. There were no ramps and no post-trauma counseling while the visually impaired patients were completely excluded.

“There were no large print books, Braille or audio books for the convalescing patients,” Cherian says. “Since there are 40 million blind people in the country who cannot read print, I couldn’t understand this.”

Cherian, along with best friend Rubin Jacob and Sachin Malhan, then started a venture, Bookbol or talking books.

This online, outreach organisation, allows visually impaired people to share scanned educational material, research papers and e-books through software like screen reader. Part of a larger organisation called People Inclusive Planet, this site has had over a 1,000 uses and over 10,000 hits.

Bookbol was just gaining steam when the new stringent copyright law intruded — it disallows any unauthorised translations, whether it’s Braille or audio books, or just online files that can be decoded by a screen-reading software.

“I can share my collage notes, since there is no copyright law on that, but it will become hard to share books and other material that requires legal approval,” says Abdul Razique Khan, 20, who is doing BBA at Symbiosis University in Pune.

Cherian, who was in Delhi for a meet with the director-general of World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), says the best way to tackle this is through the legal system. “It is our fundamental right to be able to read,” he says, “so we have drafted an international treaty on the copyright law. It will be presented before the Human Rights Development Ministry after it is approved by a panel of retired judges, and organisations like WIPO.”

He says, “We have started a nationwide campaign to win back our constitutional rights, to read and be educated. We are also holding seminars at colleges, like Loyola, and are coming to Delhi in December with the same purpose.”

The organisation works through a network of individuals and groups like international groups like BLAFT and Right to Read, who share audio and Braille books online. Booboo has translated books in Tamil, Bangla and English in accessible mediums.

The organisation is funded by corporates.

Twelve visually impaired students carried the Olympic torch

2009-11-14T23:54:00.000-06:00

Twelve visually impaired students from across Toronto have been selected to carry the Olympic Flame through the city's east end. The group gathered along with their supporters at Hollywood Public School on Tuesday, Nov. 10, to receive their official Olympic blue scarves and get a chance to hold a replica Olympic Torch for the first time.

The students were selected to carry the torch by RBC through the Canadian Olympic School Program.

They submitted a team pledge package to the national competition outlining how their participation in the torch relay would foster understanding of people with disabilities in their communities. A key part of their submission was an essay titled Let's Find Common Ground, written by Winston Churchill Collegiate student Ramya Amuthan.

"When you think of someone carrying the torch for the Olympics, the first person to come to mind isn't a person with a visual impairment or with a cane or in a wheelchair," said Ramya, who has been affected since birth by a genetic visual impairment called Leber's Congenital Amaurosis.

"The chances of this are like being stuck by lightning and it's something we will remember forever."

Along with the 11 other students and eight teachers scheduled to carry to torch in Scarborough, Ramya hopes people will become more focused on similarities rather than the differences of people with physical disabilities.

The Blue Scarf Ceremony was hosted by RBC, which brought long-time Canadian Olympic basketball and former West Hill Collegiate player Rowan Barrett to speak to the crowd. He congratulated the team on their accomplishment and encouraged them to persevere down the difficult path that was in front of them.

"I remember when I was sitting in your chairs and listening to other Olympians speak," said Barrett. "Now you guys have the same opportunity...it's something much greater than you can imagine."

The Vision Program currently helps over 400 students in the public and Catholic school boards, bringing specialized teachers to their home schools.

Robin Stewart is one of these teachers who took the lead in organizing the team's Olympic dreams.

"This is an exceptional experience that these kids will have which many of their peers won't," said Stewart. "More often that not, it's our students who are dealing with what their peers can do that they can't, so it's a bit of a flip to that."

She had been spending much of her personal time coordinating the efforts of students across the city into a cohesive pledge application, but being able to experience her kids officially recognized as Olympic Torchbearers was worth it. She gives full credit to the students for their outstanding work.

"What's so beautiful is that they earned it," said Stewart. "They were awarded it not because of their visual impairment, but rather because of what they do with their visual impairment and what they do with themselves. I think that's really important."

The exact details of where the Olympic Flame relay will take place are still undecided, but more details will be available in the coming weeks.

List of student torchbearers

Luis Santiago-Gonsalves - St. Patrick Catholic Secondary School - East York

George Quarcoo - Western Technical-Commercial School - Bloor West

Nicholas Rastasulozas - West Toronto Collegiate Institute - Bloor West

Ramya Amuthan - Winston Churchill Collegiate Institute - Scarborough

Runa Patel - Woburn Collegiate Institiue - Scarborough

Hassan Malik - Frank Oke Secondary School - York

Cameron Knox - Bloordale Middle School - Etobicoke

Kelsey Quesnelle - Silverthron Collegiate Institute - Etobicoke

Andrew Isaacson - Newtonbrook Secondary School - North York

Brittany Kolenberg - Newtonbrook Secondary School - North York

Hussain Jasim - St. Andrew's Junior High School - North York

Sarah Patel - Marc Garneau Collegiate Institute - East York

Charity dinner provide blindfolded guests with unique experience

2009-11-14T14:40:00.002-06:00

Ernie Mastroianni

Tia Lancaster, Teri Newport and her husband, Dean Newport, try to identify their food Sunday while Dining in the Dark at Bacchus. Proceeds from the event were to go to the Badger Association and the Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired Children.

enlarge photo

Ernie Mastroianni

Chris Stone of Milwaukee feels to see if the food is on her fork during the Dining in the Dark fundraising event Sunday at Bacchus restaurant. Next to her is Larry Presberg, also of Milwaukee.

There's a saying in the culinary world: First, you eat with your eyes. Diners at Bacchus on Sunday night moved on to other senses for a high-end meal that they could only imagine. They dined with blindfolds on for a charitable event that wedded a pop-culture phenomenon, dining in darkness, with a cause - organizations that serve the blind and visually impaired.

It wasn't easy, and it wasn't pretty. One man put his blindfold on upside down. Gone were the visual cues that drive conversation - a raised eyebrow, a nod. The room's noise level rose as diners lost the ability to gauge how far they were seated from each other.

That's what dinner was supposed to feel like at Dining in the Dark, a $250-a-head fund-raiser for the Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired Children and Badger Association. Dining in the dark originated a decade ago in Switzerland. The Milwaukee event was billed as a chance to put vision aside "for a new, deeper understanding of what it's like to be blind."

Two reporters set out to experience what was billed as Milwaukee's first dark dining event - one as a diner, one as an observer.

Bacchus' James Beard Award-winning chef, Adam Siegel, created what likely was a visually stunning menu: Seared sea scallops with butternut squash flan; roasted beet salad with Camembert cheese and lemon-honey vinaigrette; braised short ribs in red wine sauce; apple tart topped with cranberry jam. He went for a variety of textures, he said, and something "a bit challenging to eat for someone with a blindfold."

More than 100 diners were game, for the most part. Bobbie Mendelsohn of Fox Point admitted she was just a bit nervous about wearing a blindfold through a four-course meal; her friend Jan Singer, also of Fox Point, had no reservations. "I go Class-5 whitewater rafting, so I'm not scared of falling off the chair."

She didn't.

Lights were dimmed every seven minutes during cocktails to illustrate the point that every seven minutes someone in America loses their vision. Finally, blindfolds went on at 6 p.m., submerging diners in a dark world where food would challenge, surprise, delight, frustrate.

Diner Cory Ballard, visually impaired for more than a decade, understood immediately and offered a bit of advice. Listen to the room, he said. You can tell by the sounds it's a big room.

Knowing the location of silverware was another battle. Once it's in hand, one of two things can happen - either you get too much food on your fork (which over the years has learned its pathway to your mouth, so no worries about that), or you can have none.

Ballard had advice for that, too: "Either way, you eat it. I figure if I put it back on my plate, I'll never find it again."

By now, the technique was clear: Stab, chase, round up food in the center of the plate.

The potential for a big mess was huge. A pair of glasses laid on the table before the blindfolds went on ended up with salad on it.

Even if they couldn't see the main course, diners were tantalized by it. Beef! The bold aroma moved through the dining room.

Ballard was happy it came in a bowl. Wouldn't it be great if all food came in bowls?

"I'm going to start a restaurant called Bowl," he said.

By Jan Uebelherr and Kathy Flanigan of the Journal Sentinel

Students experienced visual impairments and the daily challenges caused by them

2009-11-14T14:21:00.001-06:00

On Monday, some students learned what it's like to be visually impaired. It was Blind Awareness Day at the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired.

The 13 students who attend TSBVI's dual enrollment program usually spend half their day at McCallum High School taking classes in English, chemistry, and history.

They spend the other half of the day at the school for the blind. There, they they take classes in Braille, algebra, and orientation and mobility exercises that have been adapted for students with visual impairments.


	Students had their vision blocked so they could experience blindness.

On Monday, the McCallum students got to experience first hand how their classmates spend their time away from the high school.

They were blindfolded as they rode tandem bicycles, wrestled, played goal ball, and learned to navigate with a cane.

The Austin Independent School District said the program, which is in its third year, is a way for seeing and blind students to better understand each other.

Intel created new device to help the visually impaired

2009-11-14T14:17:00.000-06:00

On Tuesday, Intel will start selling a nifty new e-reader that can snap pictures of books and newspapers and then read them back to people who have a hard time reading the printed page.

Called the Intel Reader, the US$1,499 device assists people who are blind, dyslexic or have weak vision, said Ben Foss, the director of access technology with Intel's Digital Health Group, who came up with the idea for the reader. "It's designed to give them independence and access to reading."

Intel estimates that there are as many as 55 million people in the U.S. who could use its device. Foss says that the Reader will give many of them a new freedom to read books, magazines and newspapers that would otherwise be inaccessible. Users simply hold the Reader a few feet above the paper they want to read; it snaps a photo, and within seconds converts the page to text, which it can then display in a large font or read out loud.

"We're excited by this and we think it will really make a difference for millions of people with disabilities," said James Wendorf, executive director of the National Center for Learning Disabilities, speaking at a Monday press conference where the device was unveiled.

Sold by resellers such as CTL, Howard Technology Solutions and HumanWare, the paperback-sized device combines a 5-megapixel camera with a Linux-powered, optical character-recognition system and software that converts text into the spoken word. With 2GB of storage, it can store about 600 snapshots of scanned pages -- at two pages per snapshot that would represent a 1,200-page paperback novel.

The device can play back scanned items, but it also supports MP3s, WAV files, text files and the DAISY (Digital Accessible Information System) format, used to publish books for people with reading problems. The battery can power about four hours of playback between charges.

The reader has a special user interface designed for people who have a hard time reading, and it can play back audio at varying speeds. Foss likes to hear playback at the almost comically high-pitched speed of 200 words per minutes, which he likens to speed-reading.

Intel also makes a briefcase-sized docking station that can hold and power the reader while it's being used to scan a large number of pages. The company will introduce a U.K. version of the Reader in a few days and plans to roll it out in other countries as well, Foss said.

The device represents a sleeker alternative to more cumbersome reading aides such as text magnifiers, which cost around $3,000 each, and Braille readers, which can cost between $7,000 and $10,000, Foss said.

With Amazon's Kindle, the e-reader market has taken off in recent years, but until now, nobody has built one for people with diminished eyesight that can scan and replay anything on paper, said Dorrie Rush, director of marketing with Lighthouse International, a nonprofit group that helps people suffering from vision loss.

Rush, who has lost vision because of an eye disorder called Stargardt's disease, can barely read the headlines from the New York Times while holding the paper about 4 inches from her face. She has tried out Intel's device and she loves it. "Intel has really done their homework and created something that does good and looks good."

Intel's Foss has a personal connection to the project. Diagnosed with dyslexia in elementary school, he spent hours during his college years faxing papers to his mother, who would then read them back to him over the phone.

Now he hopes that the device he helped create will help other students in his shoes. "Ultimately we're trying to give people access to hope and to self-respect."

Company provides Braille calendars for visually impaired customers

2009-11-14T14:10:00.002-06:00

Hanwha Group will continue its tradition of giving free braille calendars to the visually impaired this year. The company said yesterday that it plans to distribute 50,000 braille calendars. Hanwha has been distributing the calendars since 2000, after Hanwha Chairman Kim Seung-youn received an e-mail from a visually-impaired person asking for help. In the first year Hanwha printed 5,000 braille calendars.

The company increased that number to 10,000 in 2001 and 20,000 in 2002. Hanwha has distributed 30,000 calendars from 2003 until this year. The Korean conglomerate will be taking orders for the calendars at its Web site, www.hanwha.co.kr, as well its social welfare Web site at welfare.hanwha.co.kr between Nov. 9 and Nov. 27. The calendars will be delivered next month. “Hanwha’s social contribution emphasizes sincerity,” said Chang Il-hyung, vice president of public relations at Hanwha Group.

Visually impaired students do well in Martial Arts

2009-11-07T16:02:00.000-06:00

SAFFIRE Engineering Ltd is marking one year since the company began sponsoring judo training for visually impaired students at the Santa Cruz School for Blind Children.

The classes are conducted by Sensei Master Linus Browne (3rd degree Black Belt Judo and 4th Taekwondo), in conjunction with The Judo Association.

Judo is one of the very few sports in which the visually impaired can compete against the seeing on an equal basis. This martial art does not rely on sight but largely on one’s senses of feel and touch; movement; balance and timing.

The visually impaired are ideally suited to judo since they have a great sense of touch and perfect ability to concentrate on almost imperceptible moves.

They are intent listeners who will visualise what is being communicated through the other senses, and are not easily distracted.

Judo does not involve any punching or kicking. The students initiate by feel, holding on the “Gi” (specially designed uniforms) of their opponent, and are thus in constant contact. Throws, grappling and locking techniques are then used to gain the opponent’s submission.

From the first training session the students at the institute have fallen in love with Judo as they soon realise its other, immense advantages. Being able to take part on an equal basis has helped to develop their self- confidence, character and independence in life. They learn the importance of balance and how to fall. They are involved in a safe physical exercise and it encourages them to persevere and reach their full potential.

There are 14 students ranging in age from eight to 17 years. They are trained by Sensei Brown on Thursdays starting at 3 pm at the school. The “Gi” for the students are supplied by the Ministry of Sports and Youth Affairs through the Judo Association.

The Managing-Director of Saffire Engineering Ltd, is Vishnu Tewari, who has been a student of the martial arts for over 30 years. For the past seven years Tewari has been a student of Sensei Brown in the field of self-defence which comprises judo, taekwondo, hapkido and aikido.

For more information please contact: Vishnu Tewari 680-7563; Sensei Linus Brown 755-7564; School for Blind Children 676-8718.

Visually impaired voters stripped of privacy right

2009-11-07T15:55:00.001-06:00

A requirement to have a city council representative present with visually impaired persons in the voting booth is a breach of the UN convention

A new directive from the Interior and Social Ministry that visually impaired voters must have a council representative present with them in the voting booth has raised the ire of human rights groups.

Moreover, the new requirement is in violation of both the constitution and the United Nations’ Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, reports public broadcaster DR.

The rule states that ‘the visually impaired person may themselves choose to have a helper with them in the voting booth, so long as there is also a council representative assisting’.

But the constitution ensures the right of all citizens to secrecy during the voting process. And, according to the new requirement, the visually impaired voter must verbally tell the council representative for whom they are casting their ballot.

‘This means the government is violating the UN Convention regarding citizens’ rights,’ said Jose Doria, law secretary for the United Nations’ human rights committee.

But Karen Ellemann, the interior and social minister, defended the move, saying it was done to ensure that the voter wasn’t pressured by their helper into voting for a certain candidate.

Ellemann said, however, that she would look into the matter and is taking the UN’s criticism of the new ordinance ‘very seriously’.

Although a special ballot for the blind has been proposed as a solution to the problem, visually impaired persons must still have a helper with them at the upcoming local and regional elections on 17 November.

NASA space camp provides the experience of a lifetime to visually impaired students

2009-11-07T15:52:00.001-06:00

Sitou Agbakpem admits that he often becomes depressed thinking about his future and how he will cope with his life.

His fears are understandable. In three to five years, he's going to be blind.

The Pattonville High School junior suffers from retinitis pigmentosa, a degenerative nerve disease that he has had since childhood. Now, the disease is advancing at a faster rate.

"I cannot say that I'm not scared," Sitou, 16, said. "I get depressed and worried about my life."

However, for one week in October, Sitou received some reassurance from other teenagers from around the world.

He and 15 other visually-impaired students from Missouri attended NASA's Space Camp in Huntsville, Ala.

At the camp, he met hundreds of students with the same medical concerns. They came from Canada, Ireland, Australia, Dominica, Oklahoma, West Virginia, South Carolina and Utah.

Sitou is from West Togo, Africa. He lives with his mother and both hope to become United States citizens.

As one of two visually-impaired Pattonville High students, he was happy to talk with other students and found they had similar worries and fears.

"It was a great experience for me," Sitou said. "We talked about our futures and how we take care of our lives. The trip gave me a positive outlook. We exchanged shirt pins and our telephone numbers."

The camp also was a lot of fun. The participants had medical problems, but they still had a teenager's love of fun.

They met an astronaut, constructed and launched rockets, learned about space history and experienced weightlessness with simulators. The campers also listened to a blind NASA engineer who talked about his life and the obstacles he overcame to reach his position.

The free trip was sponsored by the Lighthouse for the Blind in St. Louis.

"The kids love it," said Angie Yorke, manager of the Lighthouse's Blind Community Enrichment Programs. "The best thing they come away with is new friendships," she said. "It does them a lot of good to meet other kids from around the world. They try and stay in touch with each other."

Sitou was accompanied by Alexis Moore, who specializes in teaching the visually impaired at Pattonville High. Seven chaperones went with the Missouri contingent.

"Actually, we didn't have a lot to do," Moore said. "None of us were involved in the activities. The camp staff had their own counselors for the kids. The atmosphere was great, though. The kids had a good time. Sitou really enjoyed himself."

The teacher is no stranger to Space Camp. She has accompanied other students for several years. She believes in its value.

"Sitou and I are going back next year," she said. "This will be advanced Space Camp. We're both looking forward to it."

Previously, Sitou showed no particular interest in outer space. However, the NASA Space Camp intrigued him when he first heard about it.

"Now, I'm excited about outer space," he said. "I'm thinking about why they go to space and what they are going to do when they get there."

If NASA sends people to Mars, Sitou will be one of the first.

However, for college, he is interested in studying a different kind of science.

"I want to study political science," Sitou said. "That is a different kind of thing."

Handheld Braille printer for the visually impaired

2009-11-07T15:19:00.001-06:00

Braille definitely has given a new dimension to the life of the visually impaired; still they have to rely on the others to fulfill their day-to-day needs, for differentiation between identical objects often becomes difficult for the sight-impaired. Enhancing the value of Braille, Chinese designer Danni Luo has designed a printing device to create special embossed labels, so the visually impaired could also distinguish products with similar characteristics, such as pill bottles, CDs, files, etc., effortlessly without seeking help from others.

Dubbed the “Embossing Braille Printer,” the hand-held label printer lets the users install the name or brief information of the particular product onto a 25mm x 50mm label with embossed Braille characters via a voice-recognition recorder, so the sight-impaired could avoid misidentification of analogous objects, which often leads to grave consequences.

Visually impaired speedskater makes it to the Paralympic Games in Russia

2009-11-07T15:02:00.000-06:00

Orléans deaf-blind speedskater Kevin Frost has his flight booked and will be heading to Chelyabinsk, Russia for the Paralympic Open Blind Cup Nov. 23-25 – the first time he’ll get to race against fellow visually-impaired speedskaters.

Frost has been working for seven years to foster interest in that type of event – with his end goal to see speedskating included in the Paralympic Games – but his participation in the competition was initially up in the air due to fundraising problems.

“I only need to raise another $1,000 and I’m sure I can make it happen,” Frost said in an e-mail to the Orléans Star, noting he received a big surprise last week when Speedskating Canada told him they’d like him to wear Canadian colours officially on behalf of their organization. “What an honour to represent Canada – I was caught off-guard when they asked me.”

The 42-year-old who suffers from Usher’s Syndrome – a degenerative condition that gradually reduces his sight and hearing – first heard about the competition in Chelyabinsk when he met a Russian coach last year in Vancouver for an international Masters event.

The coach explained that they would be holding a national championship for visually-impaired speed skaters – with 50 to 60 entrants – and would love for Frost to join them.

The idea was for the event to continue for the next three years with the end goal of being included in the 2014 Paralympic Winter Games in Sochi as a demonstration sport – which doesn’t require the same stringent standards on international participation as a full-medal Paralympic sport since the organizing committee can stage whichever events it wishes.

“I’ve been trying for the last seven years to get this event and now all the pieces are starting to fit together now,” Frost noted in a previous interview with the Star. “It’ll be awesome. It’ll be nice to know who else is in the same boat, what they do for their training, and where I am world ranking-wise. Who knows? I might go there and be the slowest, or I might go there and be the world record breaker.”

Disney parks offer special services for their visually impaired guests

2009-11-07T14:56:00.001-06:00

After becoming legally blind at age 30, Brenda Woodrum missed seeing the details of one of her favorite Disneyland rides, Pirates of the Caribbean.

So, Woodrum teared up when she heard a description of cannons shooting from pirate ships on the ride using a new listening device that just became available at Disney parks.

“It was really an emotional experience,” said Woodrum, 47, of Fullerton. “I remembered what was there, but sometimes I’d ride it and not know what was there. I had kind of a sense of loss.”

Starting Sunday, Disneyland and Disney’s California Adventure for the first time began offering hand-held devices that give audio descriptions of scenes in 19 attractions for visually impaired guests.Disney parks are believed to be the first ones to offer such a service, Disney officials said. Knott’s Berry Farm does not have a similar service.

Five devices are available at each Disney park, said Mark Jones, manager of Disney domestic services for guests with disabilities. Guests must give a $100 refundable deposit to use the “audio-description service” devices. In March, Walt Disney World parks began providing the service, now available at 30 locations.

Disney added the audio service to its devices that already provide assistance for guests with hearing disabilities, which were introduced in 2002, Jones said.

Visitors pick up the devices at guest-relations offices at both parks, choosing either two-ear or one-ear headsets.

Upon entering an attraction, the devices trigger emitters within the ride that begin the audio description. It’s designed so that guests should have to do no more than adjust the volume, Jones said.

On the pirates ride, the audio description begins as soon as guests walk in the building and enter the queue.

As the ride starts, the narrator talks about sparkling fireflies, lily pads and a man smoking a pipe. He warns that the boat will plunge down a waterfall. Later, the narrator continues to describe the liquor pouring down a bony frame of a pirate skeleton, Captain Jack Sparrow popping up, a “stout” lady up for sale and the mayor dunking in a well.

The explanation pauses for songs and audio from the story plot.

As a member of a Disney group for disabled employees, Woodrum, a reservation sales agent for Walt Disney Travel Co., gave input about the devices as Disney developed them. The group is called CastABLE.

Woodrum first tried out the devices last year, eventually trying them out on six rides. She gave feedback on the timing of some of the descriptions, but otherwise, she enjoyed them right away.

“It’s an incredible experience,” said Woodrum, who visits Disney parks about once a month. “There’s so much detail there. You get full immersion into the attraction.”

The number of Disneyland Resort guests who have used the devices so far was unavailable Monday.

Disney first hoped to buy already existing devices, Jones said. But when officials couldn’t find what they wanted, Disney engineers designed them in house. They hired an outside manufacturer, Softeq, to put them together. WGBH, a PBS producer, provided the audio content, Jones said. Officials declined to release the cost of the product.

Disney hopes to add the service to other attractions in the future, possibly starting with shows.

Attractions with the service at Disneyland:

Enchanted Tiki Room
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
Alice in Wonderland
it’s a small world
Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride
Peter Pan’s Flight
Pinocchio’s Daring Journey
Snow White’s Scary Adventures
Storybook Land Canal Boats
Disneyland Railroad
Haunted Mansion
Pirates of the Caribbean
Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage
Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters
“Honey I Shrunk the Audience” movie

Attractions with the service at Disney’s California Adeventure:

It’s Tough to be a Bug!
Turtle Talk with Crush
Monsters, Inc. Mike and Sulley to the Rescue!
Muppet*Vision 3D

Principal of visually impaired school resigned!

2009-11-07T14:38:00.000-06:00

The state is investigating an alleged inappropriate sexual incident between students Wednesday at the Louisiana School for the Visually Impaired that led to the school’s director resigning after she was placed on leave.

State Superintendent of Education Paul Pastorek said Monday that he is also concerned about — and is conducting his own investigation into — allegations that there has not been an “open atmosphere” at the school for the blind for adults who work there to report allegations of sexual misconduct.

“This is a very recent allegation,” Pastorek said. “We can’t and won’t tolerate an atmosphere where people feel like they can’t report these kinds of sexual incidents.”

The state Department of Education found out last week from a teacher that two students “went off together and had inappropriate contact on Wednesday,” Pastorek said.

The state immediately launched an investigation and Janet Ford, the director of the school, was placed on non-disciplinary leave Thursday pending the investigation’s outcome, said Rene Greer, communications director for the state Department of Education.

But Ford resigned Friday and did not tell the state why, Greer said. “She had planned on resigning, but not until the end of the 2009-2010 school year,” Greer said.

Greer said the state is also investigating another alleged inappropriate sexual incident between students that apparently occurred in May.

“We’re investigating it and trying to confirm the details,” Greer said.

Pastorek said the state is approaching the problems at the school for the blind “in an appropriate but aggressive and proactive manner.”

“We know the adults have the responsibility to maintain proper supervision over the students,” he said. “But it appears as though we weren’t able to maintain that.”

The school for the blind moved onto the 116-acre campus of the Louisiana School for the Deaf on Brightside Lane in July as a cost-saving measure for the state. As of July, the two schools had a combined student population of 250.

The two schools are maintaining separate identities but are sharing some key services such as security, human resources, food services and maintenance.

The school for the deaf was closed temporarily a year ago after there were allegations of sexual misconduct on the campus, including the rape of a 6-year-old girl.

Security at the campus was beefed up, including the installation of security cameras.

Pastorek said the state has also worked on raising students expectations of themselves.

“Where you have a history of inappropriate sexual behaviors you have to work pretty hard to create a new culture,” he said. “We have made significant gains.”

The school for the blind has about 85 students in pre-kindergarten through 12th grade. Some live in dorms on campus while others commute daily to the school, Greer said.

Managing such residential schools is complex, Pastorek said, but he plans to be as open as possible about the investigation.

“We have to be candid about what’s going on,” he said. “Parents are expecting us to keep their kids as safe as we can. The only way that can happen is for the adults who are at the school to feel open to report these kinds of things.”

Pastorek said he is most concerned about complaints that there has not been such an atmosphere at the school and he will conduct his own investigation to find out whether that’s true.

“It’s sort of a ‘come what may’ kind of thing,” he said. “It’s never pleasant but it’s what we must do.”

Greer said the state reported the alleged incident between the two students to the Office of Community Services. OCS is also expected to conduct an investigation separate from the one that the state Department of Education is conducting.

Greer said that at this point the state has not reported the alleged incident to law enforcement authorities because no obvious laws appear to be broken. However, Greer did say that the OCS can also report the allegations to authorities.

The visually impaired now have access to God's Word in Ukraine

2009-11-07T14:32:00.000-06:00

On the shores of the Sea of Azov in the Ukraine, digital players with God's Word in Russian are helping to deepen spiritual relationships in a group of blind and visually impaired people.

A team from the Revival Slavic Baptist Church in Washington State contacted Audio Scripture Ministries. Interest grew when they discovered that God's Word was available in audio for their friends and family in the Ukraine.

ASM has received at least 2 more orders of Russian New Testament digital Scripture players. At a camp conducted by the team this past June, leaders report that 8 people made profession of faith in Jesus Christ.

A recent note from the church tells of growing interest in getting the players for others still waiting in the Ukraine. This small project made a huge life impact. Now, many more doors are open for God's people to place God's Word in audio where others do not or cannot read.

Pray that God's Word touches hearts and that many will come to Christ.

Special devices helps the visually impaired

2009-11-07T14:27:00.001-06:00

An estimated 18 million Americans are either blind or visually impaired, and in San Diego County that number is around 105,000. Now, a local company's special device is helping improve sight for many visually impaired people, including a teacher in Imperial Beach, 10 News reported. Watching her move around the classroom at Imperial Beach Elementary School, one would never know Erin Goodwin-Allen is visually impaired. She has had retinitis pigmentosa since birth."It's a challenging disease because I look completely normal," said Goodwin-Allen.

She sees her third-grade class through a narrow field of vision, a kind of tunnel vision. She recognizes her students by where they sit."My desks are very specific where they are also because if one desk is moved, I'll run into it," said Goodwin-Allen.Goodwin-Allen now uses a new tool called FarView, which is developed by San Diego-based Optelec. For a spelling test, it magnifies the words dramatically and it can save up to 100 images and magnify up to 50 times.Users can snap photos with the FarView and store text. It also has an automatic scrolling feature that allows people to read documents with ease.The FarView comes in a compact mini version, which is easier to carry around. It magnifies text, and with the push of a button it changes the background and the color to make it easier to read.Goodwin-Allen, a wife and mother of two, uses it at home when paying bills."I'm really independent and so I don't have to rely on anybody else. I can use that to pay bills and that's been the biggest godsend," said Goodwin-Allen.

The FarView can be used for distances as well. Users can freeze images and then zoom in to see it clearly.Goodwin-Allen said, "It's just been amazing."For now, it's a valuable tool for Goodwin-Allen at school and home. Soon she plans on going to a restaurant and reading the menu by herself.Optelec has teamed with the Foundation Fighting Blindness, and they are partners in the VisionWalk on Nov. 8 to help raise money for research on retinal diseases.Goodwin-Allen will not only be walking, she is the even chair.For more information on the VisionWalk, click here.

Visually impaired teenagers live an active lifestyle!

2009-11-07T14:02:00.000-06:00

The remarkable achievements of six blind or visually impaired Christchurch youngsters will receive royal recognition today.

They have climbed trees, taken to the slopes on skis, gone tramping and even taken on mountain-biking in pursuit of a Duke of Edinburgh Hillary award.

Tamara Nolan, 16, Emma Jenkins, 16, Shari Whittaker-Tyro, 15, Dylan Neale, 17, Malcolm Harding, 16, and Rhea Smithson, 20, will receive their awards from Prince Edward at Linwood College, along with 58 other young people.

Five of the recipients achieved their silver award after Elmwood Visual Resource Centre teachers Jenny Healey and Glenda Atkins took time off work to take the youngsters on a camp to Hanmer Springs.

Healey and Atkins have supervised award programme participants for four years.

Healey said she had enjoyed seeing the young people's confidence and self-esteem grow.

If the Duke of Edinburgh award was not available to visually impaired youngsters, there was a danger they would sit at home and do nothing, Healey said. "This gets them out meeting different people. They make great friends."

The Duke of Edinburgh award programme offers a personal challenge.

Participants must complete an adventurous journey, do some physical recreation, help the community and master a skill.

Some aspects of the programme were adapted to the individual needs, Healey said.

Smithson said she had skied with someone in front of her.

"We challenge ourselves, even though it's hard," Tamara, of Marian College, said.

Prince William will open the New Zealand Supreme Court building in January, Prime Minister John Key announced yesterday. He will be in the country from January 17 to 19. The prince last visited in 2005 when he followed the British Lions' rugby tour.

Perkins School and the visually impaired

2009-09-19T22:18:00.002-05:00

The Perkins School for the Blind board of trustees voted Thursday to proceed with a $30 million renovate its 100-year old Lower School facility, including building a new schoolhouse. The project is intended to prepare Perkins students for the future and the new school is expected to give those young children a solid educational foundation.

Shawmut Design and Construction will be the construction manager for the project and Miller Dyer Spears is the architect.

Today, approximately 60 percent of all children who are blind have additional physical or cognitive challenges, according to Perkins Many use wheelchairs or walk with supports. Some need complex medical devices to manage their days. Most benefit from adaptive technology. The population of students with multiple disabilities is expected to grow in coming years, requiring more adaptable, accessible facilities. While the number of students at Perkins is not expected to increase, their needs will be greater

Perkins School for the Blind, the nation’s first school for the visually impaired, provides education and services to help build productive lives for more than 94,000 children and adults who are blind, deaf and blind or visually impaired with or without other disabilities in the U.S. and more than 63 countries worldwide.

New system for the visually impaired

2009-09-19T22:13:00.001-05:00

The artificial intelligence group at Freie Universität Berlin, under the direction of the computer science professor Raúl Rojas, has developed a new type of information system for blind and visually impaired individuals. Field trials are being carried out to optimize the device for future users. During the next six months it will be tested by 25 persons. The artificial intelligence group at Freie Universität is collaborating with a research group at the Telekom Laboratories headed by Dr. Pablo Vidales and the Berlin Association for the Education of the Blind and Visually Impaired e.V. The joint project is called InformA. After completion of the field trials, it will receive funding from the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research through its EXIST seed funding program for university-based business start-ups. In addition, IBM Germany is providing funding for further development of the device at Freie Universität.

"InformA" is a small computer that is connected wirelessly to the Internet. The device is operated like a radio. The user can choose between different information channels. By pressing a button, the time or the weather will be announced, but there are also current newspapers available as audio files (currently Tagesspiegel and taz).

In addition, e-mails can be read aloud by the device. The user can answer e-mails by dictating a message. An integrated camera makes it possible to have printed documents such as letters or package information leaflets read aloud fully automatically. In more complicated cases - such as a statement of account for a heating bill - the user of the device can take a photo of the document and send it to a call center. Persons doing community service instead of military service who work for the Berlin Association for the Education of the Blind and Visually Impaired e.V. then provide further assistance. "Through the wealth of information provided by InformA, the device can also be of interest for older people without previous experience with computers, who until now have not had access to information offered through the Internet," according to the project leader, Raúl Rojas.

Twenty-five individuals have already volunteered for the field trials. In a second phase, another 25 will be added. In order to optimize the device, the participants will be interviewed during the course of the trials, about how they cope with the device. There is no charge for participating in the field trials.

Dr. Armgard von Reden, who is the director of governmental programs at IBM and who signed the cooperation agreement between Freie Universität and IBM, stated, "The integration of persons with disabilities has a long history at IBM. That applies to our products, where we are constantly working to provide barrier-free access to the information society. But it also applies to the nearly century-old tradition of employing people with disabilities at IBM."

InformA is an example of an information appliance. Even in the age of the Internet, it is not always necessary to use a fully equipped computer for online communications. Specialized equipment, such as internet radios, can cover specific needs, if the equipment is small, portable, and easy to use.

German Telecom is providing 50 DSL lines and just as many InformA information devices for the participants in the field trials. After the field trials IBM Germany will be supporting the project at Freie Universität Berlin as part of its diversity program. IBM will provide funding for student asistants and computers.

http://www.fu-berlin.de/en/

The visually impaired now benefit from the use of audio books

2009-09-19T22:05:00.000-05:00

If you want to talk about technology creating a feel good humanitarian story, then look no further than audio books for the blind.

Our society has always been visual and is becoming increasingly so: from newspapers and books to computer screens, blind people have faced the struggle of accessing information that is readily available to most other people. The ability to read a book or newspaper is taken for granted by many of us, but it is a pleasure that is often denied the blind.

Additionally, using a computer and the internet to obtain information is much more difficult for visually impaired people. While it’s true that Braille is one method for visually impaired people to enjoy the written word and gain knowledge, conventional feel-reading can be expensive and, therefore, not very helpful to many blind people.

Finally, though, a technological advance for blind and visually impaired people was developed. Audio books for blind people allow many more people to easily obtain information, hear stories, and stay current with the world’s news.

For the first time, visually impaired people could go online and download their choice of books. The mass production of audio books for the blind, the opportunity came to learn in a way that had never been available before. In addition, the audio books were inexpensive or even free, making them accessible to most blind people.

Technology really can help improve and enhance people’s lives: in the case of audio books, it has helped blind and visually impaired individuals obtain knowledge in a way that they couldn’t just five or ten years previous.

The scope of audio books for the blind is unlimited, giving visually impaired people the ability to enjoy subjects like art, music, drama, history, economics, geography, literature, and more. This would have been unimaginable - or at least a dream - even a few years ago.

Great advances that have been made in blind education through audio books in the core areas of reading, writing, mathematics and science, and as a result, blind people are able to easily access educational audio books.

Audio books for the blind can also be obtained simply for the pleasure of reading a story. There are thousands of books available in audio formats that can be easily accessed for enjoyment by visually impaired people, and this includes popular and contemporary authors, fiction books of all genres, and non-fiction works as well.

With all the technological advancements being made, it is easy to forget the people that are an integral part of the equation. Audio books for the blind are an example of technology at its best and most helpful.

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Visually impaired Judo contestant heads to US Competition

2009-09-19T21:52:00.000-05:00

A Billings man who cannot see will compete in the U.S. Open Judo competition in California later this month.

Robert Deese, 47, lost his vision to congenital glaucoma, an inherited condition that has affected him since birth.

Deese took up judo about 10 years ago. The martial art pits competitors, called judokas, against each other on a mat.

It requires strength, balance, self-confidence and self-discipline.

"Out of all the sports, judo is one where you don't need sight," Deese said. "It's nothing but hands-on."

"I'm not going to lie. Having sight has its advantages," he said. "But it also has its disadvantages."

Deese earned a slot at the Sept. 25 competition in San Jose, Calif., after taking third in his division at the International Judo Tournament in Germany earlier this year.

"I was kind of shocked," the father of six said. "I thought I was going to have to work my way up the ladder."

Although judo rules allow Deese to compete against sighted judokas, he has so far only entered matches against other visually impaired athletes.

He recently trained with a team of visually impaired judokas at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo. The team competes in the Paralympics Games.

In Billings, Deese trains three times a week at Park's Martial Arts Academy.

He would like to open his own dojo, or judo school.

"I want to introduce blind people, people with hearing impairments or people with minor physical disabilities to competition judo," Deese said. "You don't need to see to teach."

Contact Diane Cochran at dcochran@billingsgazette.com or 657-1287.

Women launch braille watches in India

2009-07-31T23:32:00.000-05:00

The Bangalore-based Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT) in collaboration with the National Association of Blind (NAB) unveiled a range of Braille watches exclusively for visually impaired women in Mumbai on Friday.

The Braille watches would now enable visually impaired women in the country to have better and cheaper options to know the time and keep pace with it.

These watches were distributed to a group of blind women students at the launch ceremony.

Movie actor, Gauri Karnik, who was the star attraction at the event said that more corporate organisations should come forward for such a social cause.

It's fabulous. One has to because you know just because you don't have sensory power doesn't mean you should be kept away from living a normal life. And having a watch is a primary necessity. So anybody can look in and continue their life very well. So it's a fabulous initiative and I feel more people and more companies should come up with more initiatives like this, said Karnik.

The watches, which have raised patterns on the dial or Braille numbers, make it easy for a visually impaired person to sense the time.

The watches are the same like any other mechanical watches. The mechanism is the same. The difference is only on the dial which has got the projections which the blind people will sense. They feel it and then understand the time, said S Paulraj, Managing Director of HMT.

Until the launch of this watch by the HMT, the Braille watches available in the Indian market were of foreign make and expensive too.

However, the HMT watches with a price tag of Rs 400 would be sold on a no profit and no loss basis to NGOs, vocational and educational institutions working for the visually impaired persons.

The story of visually impaired girl proved to be inspiring

2009-07-31T21:39:00.000-05:00

The story of a girl who lost her eyesight at the age of six but never let go of hope through the years that saw her getting enrolled at the prestigious St. Xavier’s College in Mumbai so moved President Pratibha Patil that she decided she must meet this brave young woman.

Hailing her as a brave girl who fought her problems like a warrior — she lost her eyesight due to medical negligence — the President on Tuesday received the first copy of book What am I? that is based on the life of Siddhi Desai. The book is written by Vrinda Bhargava, a college teacher in Nashik.

“Earlier as the Social Welfare minister I had the opportunity to meet so many people in difficult situations, including many visually impaired persons, and that really made me wonder how these people managed. I even decided to blindfold myself for a day to feel what it must be for them and I could not manage beyond an hour. Imagine, how people without eyesight manage, what courage and hope reside in them. This girl and her mother’s incomparable and unflinching support is inspirational and I hope all girls and boys grow up with her kind of ambition, courage and hope. This girl may not have eyesight but she has vision and self-knowledge that many with eyesight lack. I am moved by her story,” President Patil said on the occasion. Siddhi Desai, who was also present on the occasion, doesn’t feel impaired by the loss of eyesight.

Tiny telescope improves vision for the visually impaired

2009-07-31T21:23:00.001-05:00

Left, VisionCare; Right, James Gilman

A tiny telescope, already approved for use in Europe, can be implanted in one eye to help people with an advanced form of macular degeneration. The device takes the place of the natural lens.

A TINY glass telescope, the size of a pea, has been successfully implanted in the eyes of people with severely damaged retinas, helping them to read, watch television and better see familiar faces.

The new device is for people with an irreversible, advanced form of macular degeneration in which a blind spot develops in the central vision of both eyes.

In a brief, outpatient procedure, a corneal specialist implants the mini-telescope in one eye in place of its natural lens. The telescope magnifies images on the retina, extending them so they fall on healthy cells outside the damaged macula, said Allen W. Hill, chief executive of VisionCare Ophthalmic Technologies in Saratoga, Calif., the implant’s maker.

In March, an advisory panel to the Food and Drug Administration unanimously recommended approval of the device. VisionCare says it expects the F.D.A. to give its O.K. later this year. The device has already been approved for use in Europe.

The implanted telescope holds much promise for patients, typically elderly, who suffer from end-stage, age-related macular degeneration, or A.M.D., said Janet P. Szlyk, a member of the advisory panel. Dr. Szlyk is executive director of the Chicago Lighthouse for People Who Are Blind or Visually Impaired, a social services agency.

The device does not cure the disease, but it does improve visual acuity, she said. For example, a person who might usually see a blur when looking at a friend’s face might, with the help of the magnified image, see a blur only in the area of the person’s nose or mouth.

“People can use it to recognize faces in a social setting,” she said. ‘That’s a huge advance.”

The telescope is implanted in one eye for jobs like reading and facial recognition. The other eye, unaltered, is used for peripheral vision during other activities like walking. After implantation, extensive therapy is crucial, she said, to learn to deal with the different abilities of the eyes.

Ruth A. Boocks, 86, of Alpharetta, Ga., who received an implant of the device in March 2003 during clinical trials, said her brain learned to adapt quickly. Mrs. Boocks uses her new visual abilities in various ways — for instance, to read e-mail and the messages that scroll across the bottom of the screen when she’s watching television. “My goal was to read to the bottom of the eye charts,” she said. “But I didn’t quite make it.” (She has gotten to the third line from the bottom.)

“I feel like a young woman,” she added. “It’s opened a lot of opportunities for me.”

Henry L. Hudson, a retina specialist in Tucson, Ariz., and lead author of two papers on the telescope published in peer-reviewed journals, said the device was not for everyone with A.M.D. “Maybe only 20 out of every 100 candidates will get the telescope,” he said. “They may not be eligible because of the shape of their eyes,” or they may have another problem, like maintaining balance, that precludes their selection, he added.

After F.D.A. approval, VisionCare will apply to Medicare to cover the device, Mr. Hill said. “We anticipate that it will be seen as a covered benefit for the improvement of visual acuity,” he said.

The price of the device has not been set. Current tools for ameliorating low-vision problems, like glasses fitted with telescopes or reading machines, are typically not covered by insurance.

Dr. Bruce P. Rosenthal is chief of low-vision programs at Lighthouse International in New York City, where telescopes mounted on eyeglass frames, for instance, might be prescribed for people with A.M.D. to help them watch a sports event. He said that patients might be as well served by these glasses as by the new implants, and that he hoped long-term studies would compare the benefits of the two approaches.

“Even though studies on the implants have reported minimal complications, there can be complications when you are inserting anything in the eye,” he said. “Even routine cataract surgery can lead to loss of vision.”

Dr. Rosenthal said the implanted telescope might be beneficial for some patients, “especially if they don’t want other people to know they are visually impaired.” Telescopes mounted on eyeglasses bulge outward, often extending an inch or so beyond the frames.

But he is concerned that people using implants might have trouble with balance. “There is a potential for falling when a person has a big image from one eye and a normal-sized image from the other,” he said.

DURING trials of the device, there was no increase in the incidence of falls among participants, Dr. Hudson said. More than 200 patients received implants in the study, and the effects have been tracked in the group for the past five years.

“The vast majority of the patients have been able to adapt to the new state,” using one eye for ambulating and the other for reading, facial recognition and similar chores, he said. “The average patient goes from legally blind to being able to read large-print books.”

E-mail: novelties@nytimes.com.

A car for the visually impaired?

2009-07-31T20:49:00.001-05:00

Mark Riccobono takes a test drive. Credit: Steven Mackay

This story begins in 2006, when the Blind Driver’s Challenge was initiated at Virginia Tech in response to a proposal made by the Jernigan Institute, a part of the National Federation of the Blind. This month, members of the Robotics and Mechanisms Laboratory have made previously impossible dream possible: giving the blind an opportunity to drive.

The VT team has created a cutting-edge four-wheel dirt buggy, one that employs a whole range of technical gadgets to help a visually impaired person to navigate a closed driving course. The car has ‘eyes’ made of laser range finders that work as fast-paced sonar, relaying data on the distance to obstacles. There are voice commands coupled with a vibrating vest to aid in stopping, turning, and accelerating. And said voice commands are rigorous and detailed.

Wes Majerus, of the Jernigan Institute, the first blind person to drive the buggy, stated, "As far as the differences between human instructions and those given by the voice in the Blind Driver Challenge car, the car's instructions are very precise. You use the technology to act on the environment -- the driving course -- in a very orderly manner. In some cases, the human passenger will be vague, "turn left" -- does that mean just a small turn to the left, or are we going for large amounts of turn?"

Wesley Majerus after testing out the VT car. Credit: Steven Mackay

There was an interesting observation during the tests: the blind did better than the sighted. "There wasn't a moment's hesitation with any of our blind drivers, whereas blind-folded sighted drivers weren't as quick to let go of their preconceptions," said Greg Jannaman, who led the Virginia Tech student team in his senior year and graduated in May. "The blind drivers actually performed better than their sighted counterparts."

The lab tackling the project is composed of undergraduate students as well as researchers. Though it has been a long road from the inception of the project in 2006, the Robotics and Mechanisms Laboratory found the experience well worth the struggle. "I thought it would be a very rewarding project, helping the blind," said Dennis Hong, the current faculty adviser on the project. "We are not only excited about the vehicle itself, but more than that, we are excited about the potential of the many spin-off technologies from this project that can be used for helping the blind in so many ways."

Later this month, they will take the buggy to the National Federation of the Blind's Youth Slam summer camp at College Park, Maryland, where blind teens who should be obtaining their driver’s licenses will have the rare opportunity to drive. There is hope that with so many test drivers, the VT team will be able to create an even better version of the buggy in future years, including to an improvement in the laser range sensors, which need to be fast and accurate. The current driving test lead to the additions of “a click counter steering wheel with audio cues, spoken commands for directional feedback, and a unique tactile map interface that utilizes compressed air to provide information about the road and obstacles surrounding the vehicle.”

This is the first working model of a car to aid visually impaired people. While there have been mock-ups in the past, none actually allowed for a true driving experience. Mark Riccobono, the executive director of the Jernigan Institute, also took a spin behind the wheel. “He called his test drive historic. ‘This is sort of our going to the moon project,’ he said. "

Special camp keeps visually impaired kids active

2009-07-31T20:44:00.000-05:00

Kids from across the state took part in a special camp for the visually impaired Wednesday.

It's called Camp Ability and is meant to help blind kids stay active.

Camp counselors help them feel their way around the court. Kids try sports they may not otherwise attempt, like swimming or track running.

The camp runs through the end of the week.

Preschool includes visually impaired students within a regular classroom

2009-07-22T22:25:00.005-05:00

Five-year-old Iliana is visually impaired, but when she has trouble, her preschool classmate Lulu is there to help. "I like to come with Iliana because I want to help her," Lulu said. "I hold her hand because sometimes, sometimes she needs help."

Iliana and Lulu's simple camaraderie, perhaps uncommon at most schools, is normal at the Lighthouse International preschool in New York City, where several blind students are taught alongside sighted students.

The school is part of Lighthouse International's nonprofit mission to prevent blindness and to provide services for those already living with visual impairment.

"The kids that are visually impaired, they're getting a regular preschool experience just like every other child should get," Lighthouse International School principal Gregory Santamoor told "Good Morning America."

Santamoor said the preschool runs with a "little extra adaptation" for the students with visual impairment.

The paper the kids use is raised so the students can actually feel their work. Every book the school has in print, they also have in braille. Whatever the sighted students learn, the visually impaired students learn right along with them.

"We have the letters of the week. So, as the children are learning their print letter of the week, the child who is blind is learning their braille letter of the week," teacher Regina D'Ambrosio explained.

The school has six integrated classrooms with kids ages 3 to 5. All of them follow a standard preschool curriculum.

Some parents, like Lulu's father Rocky Kenworthy, were hesitant about enrolling their child in a school that makes a point to teach all children as similarly as possible.

"In the beginning, I was thinking, 'Is she not going to get the attention she might get at another school even if it were a little bigger classroom because of the special needs that these children might need," Kenworthy said.

But with 12 kids and three teachers in each class, the kids do not want for attention and Kenworthy said the school also teaches an early lesson in compassion.

"They learn that it's good to be kind," D'Ambrosio said. "It's good to help people and help your friends, and then they get exposed to that at a very young age... It's a life lesson learned."

The visually impaired also benefit from the joint education, according to a small study published in the Journal of Visual Impairment and Blindness in 2002, which said it helps blind children be more social.

Maribel Montes, mother of John, who has limited vision, said she can see the difference in her son.

"When he first started, he was socially withdrawn and not as confident," Montes said. "But now, he has tons of friends. He knows all the staff. His confidence has built incredibly."

But according to D'Ambrosio, the greatest advantage to the school is that the kids lose sight of their differences.

"They'll never say, 'Iliana, my friend who is blind.' It's 'Iliana, my friend,'" she said.

Quiz was a hit with the visually impaired!

2009-07-11T22:23:00.001-05:00

The Blind Peoples Association experimented for the first time with a quiz for mentally challenged children as well as children with multiple disabilities on Friday. A wave of enthusiasm was seen among the 45 participants in the ages between 5 and 18 years.

There were nine teams each with five members. Questions were read out loud for those children who could hear and see. For those who could neither speak nor see, tactile stimulation was used. There were three rounds in all. The first round consisted of questions that were related to their curriculum, the second of general knowledge questions while the third on the monsoon season.

"Our main focus was to make these children realise they too, like any other normal child, can participate in a quiz and the response among them was amazing," says Vimal Thawani the organiser. "Making them participate in the quiz gives them a chance to feel important as well as focuses on how much the child knows," says Thawani.

The winners of the competition were Alay Patel, Mrunal Patel, Deep Trivedi and Hemang Mehta. Hemang says, "I had a lot of fun while taking part in the quiz, I found the questions very easy and I'm really glad my team won."

Junior Miss Garner 2009 fights for the rights of the visually impaired

2009-07-09T23:45:00.001-05:00

Rachel Elizabeth Petherbridge, Junior Miss Garner 2009, attended an ice cream social Saturday, June 14 with the N.C. Association for Parents of Children with Visual Impairments.

Rachel Petherbridge. DONNA PETHERBRIDGE, CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

A lifelong resident of Garner, Rachel, 12, was diagnosed at an early age with ocular albinism, nystagmus and exotropia, a combination of visual impairments that are not completely correctable with glasses (though surgery has mostly resolved the exotropia).

A regular volunteer at the SPCA, a violinist, dancer and singer at the Garner Center Stage School of Performing Arts, Rachel hopes to inspire others with physical challenges to participate in regular activities to the fullest extent they possibly can.

Rachel met some amazing children at this event who enjoy the same things that all kids do: playing games, hanging out with their friends and even learning to play musical instruments. Many of these children now attend regular public schools thanks to early intervention, including the preschool program at the Governor Morehead School for the blind. Unfortunately, current state budget cuts include a proposal to close the Governor Morehead School, a very real concern for the visually impaired community.

“I hope they really think about the kids before they do this,” Rachel said of the proposal. “When a child is visually impaired, sometimes parents don’t know what to do and will need help.”

Rachel’s mother, Donna Petherbridge, agrees with her daughter, noting that parents of children with disabilities often struggle to understand what their child’s abilities and limitations are and how to best support them.

“We are fortunate that we’ve had excellent support from the schools and various organizations to assist Rachel - from vision, orientation and mobility specialists that have helped Rachel use low-vision aids in both schoolwork and in the community to organizations such as the N.C. Library for the Blind where we can obtain large print books,” Donna said.

“The partnerships [the Governor Morehead School] has made with the community result in an important awareness of the needs of visually impaired persons and training and outreach for the teachers that have worked with students such as Rachel.”

Budget cut discussions aside, Rachel simply hopes when people come across children with disabilities, they will focus on what these children can do, rather than on what they can’t.

“If you just look with your eyes, you might think that someone can’t do something because you can see they have a disability,” Rachel said. “But you can’t always depend on your eyes. I would know. You have to see with your heart.”

Submitted by Donna Petherbridge

Club VIBES teach special skills to the visually impaired

2009-07-09T22:59:00.001-05:00

Photo by Briana ScrogginsNews Sentinel

Sue Buckley, second from right, teaches kitchen skills to visually impaired students, from left, Sarah Holloway, Erin Moore and Nicole Anderson at Buckley’s West Knoxville home. Buckley is helping the young women become more independent through an organization called Club VIBES, a mentoring program.

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The lesson plans at Club VIBES include how-to's on flirting, cooking, socializing and even reading mail, all of which pose a unique challenge for the club's members.

Club VIBES, which stands for Visually Impaired and Blind Enhanced Services, is a mentoring program in Knoxville designed to help blind or visually impaired teens transition from high school to the work force or college.

Knoxville couple John and Sue Buckley spearheaded the program with the help of area vision teachers and some of the blind youth in the community.

Both John and Sue are blind themselves.

"John's been visually impaired his whole life," Sue Buckley said.

John Buckley was born with glaucoma and cataracts. By age 17, his vision was almost completely gone.

Sue Buckley's vision didn't completely disappear until she was 33.

The couple have learned to live life without sight. The pair can't drive, but they do just about everything else. They cook, clean, shop, manage a household and work. Sue Buckley even competes in triathlons. She placed third and second in her age division in her first two triathlons and was the only blind person to compete.

The Buckleys will pass the life skills they've learned over the years to the new members of Club VIBES. The group already has 15 members, more than John and Sue expected. The young men and women, most of whom are between ages 21 and 24, meet once a month.

During the meetings, the Buckleys said, they address members' concerns about finding employment, arranging transportation and living independently.

The Buckleys want to pick up where the school systems left off.

"The schools just don't have the time to keep up with all of the skills a blind or visually impaired person needs to know," Sue Buckley said.

On a recent afternoon, Nicole Anderson, Sarah Holloway and Erin Moore, all members of Club VIBES, met at the Buckley residence to cook.

The three girls sat around the table as Sue Buckley retrieved a large knife - just what she needed to show the girls how to cut a watermelon. One by one, the girls stepped up to the counter and placed their hands over Sue's to feel how Sue positioned the knife and guided it through the fruit.

"Teachable moments" - that's what Sue Buckley calls them.

The girls said they like to learn these various life skills, but they also value Club VIBES for another reason.

"I am just excited to be able to get together with other visually impaired people," Anderson said.

The group has loftier goals, though. The club's members will pass what they learn to younger children who are in a similar situation.

"Right now, the group has to learn to gel, but eventually we want them to do outreach in the schools," Sue Buckley said.

Lindsey Ziliak can be reached at 865-342-6336.

Autism Family Night welcomes special needs guests, including the visually impaired, at Long Beach Aquarium

2009-07-09T21:59:00.001-05:00

Looking for a peaceful and relaxing night for your family? The Long Beach Aquarium of the Pacific is hostlng a special Autism Families Night on Tuesday, June 23, 2009. This event is only open to those with autism, either adults or children. Admission is $11.95. Members and children under three are, as always, free.

Families can enter the Aquairum after 5:00 p.m. and enjoy all attractions (except Lorikeet Forest, their bird exhibit) until 9:00 p.m. The Aquarium is one of the largest of its kind in the United States. It contains more than 500 species with 19 major habitats and 32 focus exhibits showcasing three regions of the Pacific Ocean: Southern California/Baja, Tropical Pacific and Northern Pacific.

The Aquarium is celebrating their 10 year anniversary this year, and offers several touch pools, where guests can get up close and personal with rays, sea cucumbers and starfish. There are also stations located throughout the Aquarium where children can stamp their visitor's guides and learn more about the inhabitants and take home a record of their visit.

The Aquarium of the Pacific accomodates all abilities. Service dogs are welcome, wheelchairs are available as well as audio programs for visually impaired visitors. Show scripts are available for the hearing impaired. Visit the Information Desk for more information.

Memberships are available, so consider joining this non-profit attraction if you enjoy your visit. A membership is a great way to be able to return at your convenience and avoid crowds. it also lessens the pressure to see everything, since you can come back anytime you like.

Autism Family Night requires an advance reservation, so make sure you call before Friday, June 19th to guarantee your spot.

(562) 590-3100

Aquarium of the Pacific
100 Aquarium Way
Long Beach, CA 90802

For more information:

Aquarium of the Pacific

photo of sea dragon, copyright voxluna, used under cc

Service helps visually impaired priest to complete his duties

2009-07-03T23:42:00.000-05:00

Father John Groner’s service dog, Lilly, accompanies him everywhere.

His life depends on it, and so does his ministry.

“She has given me a way to remain an active parish priest, and that has meant everything to me,” said Father Groner, pastor of St. Robert Bellarmine in St. Robert and St. Jude in Richland.

The priest has Type I diabetes, which occasionally causes his blood-sugar level to fall to a dangerous level. Without treatment, that could lead to seizures and other health emergencies.

The human body gives off a slightly different smell when a person’s blood sugar is low. People don’t notice the change. But Lilly, trained since birth to be Father Groner’s service dog, knows the difference immediately.

The yellow Labrador-Brittany mix also is tuned in to changes in Father Groner’s behavior that might suggest low blood sugar.

She licks his face to tell him he needs to take a sugar pill so his brain gets the glucose it needs to function properly. Otherwise, he could black out.

“They would probably find me dead in a ditch with my car wrapped around me,” he told The Catholic Missourian, Jefferson City’s diocesan newspaper. “That’s the difference Lilly makes.”

The priest did black out on several occasions before he got Lilly and his housekeeper had to come to his rescue. “It was getting to where I could no longer function in active ministry,” the priest said, but he didn’t want to give up the priesthood or his role as pastor.

Michele Reinkemeyer, founder and executive director of Heaven Scent Paws in St. Elizabeth, helped Father Groner train Lilly, using a program she and her husband had developed to help their own children.

Their training techniques turned out to be an answer to Father Groner’s prayers, too.

The priest introduced the dog to his parishioners when she was just a puppy.

“I said, ‘She is not trained yet, but I want you all to meet my service dog,’” he said. “So I walked up the aisle, and she just followed me all the way up to the altar. I put her in my palm and held her up and showed her to everybody.

“That was her first time in church, and she’s been in church with me ever since then,” he said.

Under federal and state law, Father Groner may bring his service dog with him to any public setting.

He said children like to watch her at Mass because he thinks they feel a closeness to her.

Similarly, some of the men on a recent Residents Encounter Christ weekend at the Algoa Correctional Center in Jefferson City were drawn to Father Groner’s preaching and counseling after first being drawn to Lilly.

“I do think she helped them feel more comfortable around me,” he said. “Besides, some of these guys haven’t seen a dog up close in many, many years. And dogs are very loving. They accept you unconditionally. That’s one of their great qualities.”

Lilly is now as familiar a sight in St. Robert Bellarmine and St. Jude churches as the cantors and sacristans. At the chrism Mass each year, she joins Father Groner and all the other concelebrating priests in the sanctuary of the Cathedral of St. Joseph in Jefferson City.

She’s used to the crowds and commotion and knows how to keep a low profile.

“She’s grown up around the church,” said Father Groner. “She has no trouble with sitting off to the side until Mass is over. People are used to seeing her. They know she’s going to be on the sanctuary and doesn’t mess anything up. She’s very well-behaved and doesn’t cause any problems.

“She’s a good girl,” he added. “I thank God that I have her.”

More information about Heaven Scent Paws can be found on the Internet at www.heavenscentpaws.com.

Korea: Visually impaired mothers a cooking up a storm!

2009-07-03T23:38:00.001-05:00

Kim Sun-mi, 33, the mother of two children, learns baking once a week at the Korean Red Cross' Nowon branch in northern Seoul. "Children like my bread more than that of a bakery. It's more delicious because I make it with good materials and my whole heart," she said.

Kim may be one among a growing number of Korean mothers who became interested in home cooking after some food safety-related scandals, such as the latest Chinese melamine-containing snacks, happened here in recent months.

But Kim and other women who attended the baking class on last Thursday were special -- they are visually impaired.

The blind mothers have participated in a three-month baking program from early April that is sponsored by the Ministry of Gender Equality and the Korea Blind Union which support similar programs for people with disabilities.

"For the last three years, our programs have gained great response from blind mothers," said Hong Eun-yeo, a social worker at the union for the blind.

"We conducted a survey in preparation for this year's programs and a lot of responding women showed their great interests in the current well-being trend. So, we launched a baking class helping them make both delicious and nutritious snacks for their children."

It may seem unthinkable for people to cook without being able to see. But most of the blind mothers cook for themselves, sometimes helped by family members or volunteers.

"Except for some complicated cooking skills such as frying with a lot of oil, blind mothers can cook after being trained briefly and becoming accustomed to it," said Hong, who is also visually impaired.

The scene at the baking class was not very different from those of other cooking classes. Most mothers, excluding some with severe visual disability, participated in every process in the class, including preparing the necessary materials, kneading dough, decorating the surface of the bread and arranging tools.

The only difference was the presence of the volunteers. They helped the mothers by letting them touch the materials and sometimes intervening in the most difficult tasks. They also took care of some dangerous things, such as the knives and push sticks for the safety of attending mothers.

Lee Hye-sung has been working as a volunteer worker at the charity for more than 11 years. "Blind mothers may feel some difficulties, but it's nothing difficult for me to help them. I am thankful for the job as I can help others while learning the new field of baking," she said.

For most of the mothers, attending the class is more than learning something new.

For Koh So-hyun, the more than one-hour way from Gwanak-gu where she lives to the charity center is not a big deal to catch the rare opportunity. Even though it was raining, all the registered members, except one, attended the class in the day.

"Actually I don't like cooking," she said with smile. "But this is a rare opportunity for us to learn something, so I'm enjoying the class. My fussy husband also likes bread that I make."

Cho Eun-hee, 40, said she was "a little nervous" when she tried to cook something complicated.

"But now I feel confidence," she said. "My child waits for me to cook and that encourages me a lot."

According to the government's survey of the disabled last year, there were some 220,000 visually impaired people accounting for 10 percent of the total 1.7 million people with disabilities.

In the survey, they pointed out cultural and leisure opportunities are most needed in their daily life along with job training programs and medical supports.

The organizers of the program also offer them chances to help others as they donate their bread to shelters for single mothers once a month.

"We, the visually disable, hardly have a social life," said Kim. "But through this opportunity I can spend my spare time more meaningfully and feel a great achievement."

(jylee@heraldm.com)

By Lee Ji-yoon

Talking computers to help visually impaired students

2009-07-01T21:29:00.001-05:00

Delhi University (DU) has installed talking computers to assist the visually impaired students taking admission for the 2009 session. Seema M Parihar, Deputy Dean Students' Welfare, said that talking computers were introduced in the admission process this year, after it was realized, during last year's admissions, that many visually-impaired candidates were unable to read Braille.

DU reserves 3% seats in all its affiliated colleges for the differently abled. Last year, the university introduced Braille form for the visually impaired students. Now, with the added facility of talking computers, DU aims to make the entire admission procedure more convenient for the visually impaired. Moreover, they would be guided by counselor in filling up the forms. As per the records, thirty three visually impaired students have already registered themselves for admission to DU this year.

Teenage crook who took advantage of a visually impaired clerk got caught!

2009-07-01T20:42:00.000-05:00

The voice and the Doritos gave him away.

At the same time, they helped lift the spirits of a visually impaired snack-bar operator targeted four times in one day with customers paying with counterfeit $100 bills.

It happened this week, in of all places, the Summit County Courthouse.

Laura Kolb, 34, whose vision has been diminished since birth, has operated the downtown Akron courthouse snack bar for less than two months.

She has battled sight issues, cancer, an arsonist for a neighbor and bankruptcy in her 34 years.

And when her husband, David, called from the bank Tuesday, she was ready to chuck her new business and head into solitude.

During the course of business Monday — selling the daily lunch specials, coffee, soda and chips — Kolb was paid four times with fake $100 bills.

To her, it was like being kicked in the stomach and pocketbook at the same time.

''This isn't some big money-making place. That $400 is a big part of the week's profits,'' she said from the snack-bar register Thursday.

''So, I was just flipping out when my husband called me. My God, I was depressed. I just stood here crying, thinking of all the bad luck I've had in my life.''

Kolb, a mother of four, said she thought about giving up the business opportunity from the Society of the Blind, which staffs courthouse snack bars throughout Ohio.

Then she changed her mind and decided to play detective using one of her greatest senses: her ears.

She remembered the voice of one of the $100 customers; a soft-spoken, younger man who ordered only a bag of Doritos.

She told snack bar worker Bruce Golomboski on Wednesday that she would signal him if the customer was brazen enough to return.

Sure enough, he did.

And her plan worked.

''I got a bag of Doritos, and here's a $100 bill,'' the voice said.

Kolb yelled to Golomboski, who is also visually impaired. That customer's voice was stuck in her head.

''Hey, Bruce, can you get me some 20s from the safe?'' she asked.

There is no safe behind the counter. The phrase was her cue for Golomboski to call the cops.

''When I reached for the bill, I was having a hard time keeping my hand from shaking; I was so nervous and excited,'' Kolb said. ''I really wanted to catch him because whoever it was kept coming back again and again, probably because I'm visually impaired. They must have thought I was stupid or something.''

As the customer sensed trouble, he began to walk away, leaving his $100 bill in Kolb's hand. Law enforcement, naturally, wasn't far behind in a courthouse.

The 16-year-old boy was detained by an Akron police officer near the snack bar and passed over to a sheriff's deputy, who was also nearby.

''I would imagine some people think the blind make easy targets,'' said sheriff's Lt. Kandy Fatheree, who supervises courthouse security. ''But in this case, [Kolb] may have lost one sense, but with the other senses she has, she was able to pick him out right away.''

David Lee, resident agent in charge of the U.S. Secret Service Office in Akron, said counterfeiting is a constant battle for law enforcement, only made tougher by modern technology.

He said the counterfeit-detecting pen, like the one that failed Kolb four times Monday, is not endorsed by the federal government and is not 100 percent reliable.

The bogus bills handed to Kolb were $5 and $10 bills manipulated to look and feel like a $100 bill. Business owners and consumers, if possible, must look closely at large bills being passed, he said.

''[Counterfeit bills are] out there because technology has made it relatively easy to do,'' Lee said. ''Fortunately, most of the citizens, the business people in this community, the people that deal with currency, the financial institutions, do a good job of a picking the currency out when it's attempting to be passed.''

Kolb said she hopes her actions will help other businesses be aware. She also said she has a new policy at the snack bar: no bills larger than $20.

In the meantime, authorities are searching for other suspects from Monday and to determine if the teen is part of a larger group of adult counterfeiters circulating bills to area businesses.

''I feel good about this child being caught,'' Kolb said. ''But I'm also sad because he is so young and he's being used by somebody older. He just doesn't have positive goals.''

Phil Trexler can be reached at 330-996-3717 or ptrexler@thebeaconjournal.com.

L'Oréal behind grooming classes for the visually impaired

2009-06-14T20:29:00.001-05:00

Academy-award winning actress, Sophia Lauren once said that nothing makes a woman more beautiful than the belief that she is beautiful.

Helping to firm up this belief among the most vulnerable and forgotten local communities across the globe is L’Oréal, as it marks its 100th anniversary as an occasion that is geared towards making the world a more beautiful place.

So 100 charity projects in 100 countries were launched in a declaration of L’Oréal’s commitment to solidarity.

At home, L’Oréal Singapore partnered Lighthouse School and the Singapore Association of the Visually Handicapped (SAVH) on Thursday to launch the Touching Colours project.

The project aims to impart independent life skills in the area of personal grooming to visually impaired individuals through customised skin care, make-up, hair care and hair styling workshops.

As teaching the visually handicapped requires specific skills, L’Oréal experts have trained the Special Education Teachers of the Lighthouse School who will impart the grooming skills to the participants of the Touching Colours project.

The modular workshop programme for students from Lighthouse School and adult clients of SAVH will focus on skincare, make-up and hairstyling.

Under the skincare module, students will be taught about understanding skin and different skin types, the importance of personal hygiene and grooming, and how to address various common skin problems.

For the make-up module, they will learn more about the bone structure, colour symbolism, how to use make-up to enhance features, make-up techniques and tips for the visually impaired.

And for the last module on haircare and styling, they will learn to understand different scalp and hair types and how to care for them, exploring different styles that suit different face shapes, how to choose from a wide range of styling products and how to create the desired effect.

Principal of Lighthouse School, Mr. Koh Poh Kwang, said: “Even though my students are visually handicapped, they too want to look good and feel good, and to be accepted. I believe that knowing how to take care of their appearances can only help them to boost their self-confidence. In addition, I believe that they will enjoy these workshops and benefit from them.”

The workshop kits, sponsored by L’Oréal Singapore will be made accessible to the participants in Braille.

S$40,000 which was raised through the efforts of L’Oréal employees in various internal activities will be used to kick-start the Touching Colours project.

New Delhi recently introduced read-aloud software for the visually impaired

2009-06-14T19:39:00.000-05:00

The Equal Opportunity Cell of Delhi University registered 13 physically challenged (PH) students on Monday. For the first time, the forms were read out to visually impaired students through JAWS software. Deputy Dean of Students Welfare Seema Parihar said the forms had to be filled up manually. She added that the number of seats for PH students had been increased to more than 1,500 this year, but like past years, there might not be enough students to fill all up. Handbooks for PH students have also been introduced this year.

Japan: Visually impaired man voted member of assembly!

2009-06-14T19:23:00.000-05:00

A visually impaired independent won election as a municipal assembly member here on Sunday. Shoichi Ochino, 61, will apparently be the first visually challenged candidate to become a representative of a local authority in Hokkaido, according to the Hokkaido federation of the blind.

Ochino, a manager of an acupuncture and massage clinic, was born in Chitose and lost his eyesight at the age of 9. He started his own clinic in 1973, and gained qualification as a care manager in 1998, becoming the first person in Hokkaido to pass the test in Braille. Ochino decided to file his candidacy based on the belief that "there must be particular needs only known by the visually impaired."

A total of 29 candidates ran in the city assembly election. Ochino also staged a street campaign, giving speeches as he was driven around in a campaign car. Based on his experience as a health care manager, Ochino won public support after pledging to enhance the city's assistance to patients with dementia and seniors living alone.

"The applause and cheers I received from supporters encouraged me. I want to take initiatives to solve the problems seniors and the disabled are facing," Ochino enthusiastically said.

Crossing difficult for visually impaired pedestrians

2009-05-31T14:04:00.000-05:00

THE PROBLEM: Few pedestrian signals allow people crossing a street to dawdle. The symbol of a walking person illuminates for just seconds before the orange, upraised hand flashes, warning others not to leave the curb.

At an intersection in Spring Valley, Elsie Luranc knows two people who have trouble moving quickly enough.

One is a woman who uses a wheelchair, and the other is a blind man. They both traverse the T intersection at Broadway, Spring Street and Campo Road almost daily, but Luranc said the timing of the signal keeps them apprehensive. With five lanes of traffic to cross, a longer interval would make the busy street feel safer, she said.

Luranc wasn't sure whom to ask about the possibility of adjusting the signal.

STATUS: Just Fix It checked and found the walk signal goes for about six seconds before flashing orange. The flashing-orange cycle lasted about 20 seconds more. Pedestrians had just a few more seconds before lights turned green in the opposite direction, allowing cross-traffic through, so total crossing time was 30 or 31 seconds.

Michael Robinson, deputy director of the county transportation division, said timing of the Spring Street signal is controlled by Caltrans because of its proximity to ramps serving state Routes 94 and 125. Signals typically give pedestrians about one second per four feet, Robinson said, and the timing at Spring sounded about right to him.

Robinson noted a delay of even a few seconds could cause backups for vehicles using the two freeways, but he has put Luranc in touch with a traffic signal program coordinator who will investigate the matter further, possibly installing a chirping signal to guide visually impaired pedestrians.

WHO'S RESPONSIBLE: Michael Robinson, who can be reached at michael.robinson@sdcounty.ca.gov , or (858) 874-4040 for public road issues in unincorporated portions of San Diego County.

NEED A PROBLEM SOLVED: Is there a problem that government hasn't taken care of despite your complaints? Whether it's a sidewalk obstruction or vast pothole anywhere in San Diego County, Just Fix It might be able to help.

Complaint forms are at justfixit.uniontrib.com, or call (800) 820-8714.

Jeff Ristine: (800) 820-8714;

Event set up for the visually impaired

2009-05-31T13:58:00.002-05:00

The fifth annual Woof to Woof is fast approaching and organizers are seeking more vendors, as well as Lassie look-alikes, for the June 6 event.

"We will have John Provost, the actor, director and author who most people know as Timmy' for the show Lassie," said Nels Westman, event organizer. "He will judge the Lassie look-alike contest."

Admission, parking and entry into various dog-centric events, such as the Lassie look-alike contest, are free. The event aims to raise money for the Vista Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired in Santa Cruz, Westman said.

There also will be demonstrations by the Canine Companions for Independence, Guide Dogs for the Blind, Dogs4Diabetes and more, said Westman. The assistant dog shows are new to the five-year-old event.

"Money for the center will be raised from revenues from the retail sales and vendor space rentals, as well as a raffle, silent auction, food concessions and corporate sponsors," Westman said. "We'll also have donation boxes all around for people to drop money in."

So far, the event has about 40 dog-specific vendors, including groomers, the SPCA, and others who seek to show off their services and wares, Westman said.

Located on Laurel Street, Vista Center plans to use the funds to serve the more than 1,900 clients that seek assistance annually.

"Most of our services are done on sliding scale fee because Medicare and Medi-Cal don't pay for exams and optical aids," said Briya Serrano, program assistant.

For 22 years, the center has been providing clients with vision exams and the skills they need to function at home and in public, Serrano said.

"We help people sort out their laundry, how to set up a kitchen so they can cook their meals and how to use canes because there's a different method for indoors and outdoors," she added.

Sounds give vision to visually impaired artist

2009-05-31T13:36:00.001-05:00

Ashley Spurgeon is one of several blind participants who collaborated with Rich Curtis on an award-winning painting.

The work, "Sight Unseen," brought together blind residents across the state who, under Curtis' direction, painted white canvases with thick black paint that becomes raised when dry.

The neophyte artists produced their work in response to five pieces of music that ranged from Blue Man percussion to upright bass solos to Tuvan throat singing.

The resultant work of 20 canvases was meant to be not only seen, but felt by the blind and sighted.

For the work, Curtis won the Helen Keller International Prize, named after the deaf and blind Tuscumbia woman who was born in 1880 and became a world-recognized advocate for the rights of people with disabilities.

The competition, held in Glasgow, Scotland, attracted 200 artists worldwide. In abstentia, Curtis accepted the award along with a $2,224.17 prize and trophy.

The entire collection, including more than 50 drawings, will be on exhibit at the Tennessee Valley Museum of Art in Florence on June 22-28 during the Helen Keller Festival.

Four judges unanimously chose Curtis' work.

"It was vibrant and interesting, worked on different levels for sighted and non-sighted audiences and had an oomph about it we all loved," stated Pauline McLean, a competition judge. "With a lovely twist, the winner turned out to be from Helen Keller's home town."

Helen Keller, with her teacher and companion Anne Sullivan, visited Scotland in 1933 as part of a worldwide awareness tour. The visit helped to plant the seed for Sense Scotland, an advocacy and charitable organization started by parents of deaf/blind children. The group sponsored the competition.

During Keller's Glasgow visit, she established a trust fund for other deaf/blind people, a trust taken over by Sense Scotland in 1989 that transformed into an international essay competition, then a biennial art competition open to professional and amateur artists.

The project started about a year ago when Curtis contacted the Alabama Institute for the Deaf and Blind. His original idea was to shadow someone visually impaired to navigate through their day.

"That would be interesting," Spurgeon said.

Because of feasibility problems, Curtis changed the project into how sound plays a role in how we navigate the world and the body's response to sound.

"I wanted to know what part vision played in the interpretation of sound," Curtis said.

Spurgeon was born four months prematurely and developed retinopathy of prematurity because incubator oxygen damaged her retinas.

Her parents have told her there are baby pictures of her focusing on objects.

"I don't remember seeing, which is probably better for me -- I'd rather not know what I'm missing out on," she said with her guide dog, Ireland, at her side.

Most of the blind artists who collaborated with Curtis were found with the assistance of Alabama Institute for the Deaf and Blind sites, including Talladega, Mobile, Huntsville and Birmingham.

Curtis found Spurgeon through the University of North Alabama's development services office.

Spurgeon moved from Washington state with her husband in 2007 and is a junior at UNA studying elementary education.

As she sat on the veranda in front of the UNA student center, a drum circle's steady rhythm acted as a sonic backdrop.

When asked about her participation in the art, Spurgeon said, "I don't know if it means anything -- it was fun."

She mainly thought about "how weird the music was most of the time."

She uses echolocation -- sounds as a way to orient herself, such as the distant sound of water from UNA's main fountain.

"If I walk by a tree, I hear the tree," she said. "If there's too much sound, I get really disoriented."

The intersection of visual art and blindness isn't unprecedented. Spurgeon recalled tactile picture books for the blind when she grew up. The books had raised line drawings and thick plastic shapes.

During a visit to London, Spurgeon got to touch the wax sculptures at Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum. Sighted visitors are not allowed to touch the figures.

In the future, Curtis said he hopes to find participants on a national scale.

Plus, "I would like to revisit many of the participants to see if they got anything out of it," Curtis said.

Touch phone in the future to help the visually impaired

2009-04-03T14:49:00.002-05:00

Scientists from the University of Tampere, Finland in collaboration with the Stanford University US, have managed to develop a new technology that will bring touchscreen phones to the realm of visually impaired users.

While blind users were bereft of using the cellphone like other folks do, the new technology will create an opportunity for them to actually interact with the mobile phone instead just limiting them to receiving and making calls. The researchers used a Nokia 770 Internet Tablet, which has a piezoelectric material built into the touch screen that vibrates when an electric signal is applied to it.

The researchers tried to represent Braille dots on the device and adopted two methods to do so. For starters, Braille uses a two by three-matrix format to display characters that are identified by different configurations of raised and absent dots at the six points of the matrix. Finally, after integrating the Braille language in the device, volunteers were asked to read things on the phone screen. Although they started off slowly, they were able to speed up gradually and were able to read a character in about 1.25 seconds.

As of now, efforts are being made to present entire words and not just single characters onscreen.

Visually impaired children experience parasailing!

2009-04-03T14:29:00.001-05:00

“We experienced the freedom of birds flying in the sky.” It was how Nagesh Netke and Sushama Pawar, two visually-impaired children from the Poona School and Home for the Blind, Kothrud, described their experience after attempting to set a Limca world record — as the first pair of blind children to parasail at a height of 100 feet at Bavdhan Hill here on Thursday.

Nagesh Netke was the first to take to the air. “It was a thrilling experience. I was apprehensive initially but once I took off, the feeling was magical. I felt like a bird. I am on the ground everyday. It felt nice to be high in the air for a change,” the 19-year-old said. Netke hails from Ahmednagar and lived with his parents in Mumbai before shifting to the Poona School and Home for the Blind in 1997. A district champion in chess, he has a keen interest in politics and aims at becoming a lawyer.

Next, it was Sushama Pawar’s turn. Even after three days of theoretical preparation, she was anxious. “I was very scared before the flight and did not know what to expect. But once my feet were off the ground, I experienced the freedom of a bird,” she said. Pawar is from Baramati and has been with the institute for the past 10 years. She is also interested in other sporting events — running, swimming and throwball. Dancing is her another passion.

Anand Munje, head of the parasailing school at Bavdhan, spoke about the difficulty he faced in explaining the details of the sport to the children. “We had to give a detailed explanation of the entire process, right from the parachute to the harness. Taking off was not a problem... but landing was a major concern as they will have no guide with them and will have to do it on their own. But after three days of training, we knew these children were ready to attempt this feat. We are glad it went off successfully,” said Munje.

The principal of the girls’ section, Sulabha Pujari, feels this will motivate other wards from her school to be more active. “These kids learn more when they experience things rather than hearing about it. This will motivate other children to take part in such activities. They will be determined to look past their disabilities and achieve the impossible.”

Incidentally, Pune is home to two national record holders in parasailing. In February last year, Kedar Munje set a record for using the longest towing rope (565 feet) for a parasail. In May 2008, N K Mahajan, then 88, became the oldest parasailor to take flight.

Visually impaired to enjoy Easter eggs hunt!

2009-04-01T23:06:00.000-05:00

An Easter Egg hunt for visually impaired children will be held Wednesday at Watson Park.

The hunt, sponsored by the city of Wichita's Park and Recreation Department and AT&T Pioneers, will be held from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. Watson Park is at 3022 S. McLean Blvd.

Specially designed beeping eggs will be used during the hunt, which children can then exchange for prizes and candy, said Larry Foos, superintendent of park and recreation.

Staff and volunteers will assist the children in locating the eggs. Other activities at the event will include games, pony rides, train rides, story time, snacks and a special visit from the Easter Bunny.

Preregistration is requested by calling 316-268-4361.

Reach Stan Finger at 316-268-6437 or sfinger@wichitaeagle.com.

Cuba: Rehabilitation Program for the visually impaired

2009-04-01T21:00:00.001-05:00

The number of the visually impaired people rehabilitated in Cuba has risen to 18,000, since the creation of the National Association for the Blind (ANCI) a little over three decades ago.

Among the aspects included in their training are the learning of Braille reading and writing, orientation in space and the use of canes, daily life activities, and occupational therapy.

ANCI has a National Rehabilitation Center -now about to undergo refurbishing-, in which over 1,600 people have studied.

Elementary rehabilitation areas and circles of areas of interest are also working in other territories, where the blind can learn basic techniques for their incorporation into society.

Likewise, the creation of rehab centers in communities in eastern Villa Clara and Santiago de Cuba provinces, financed by the Foundation for Latin America of the National Organization of Spanish Blind People has been planned.

Visually impaired singer asks for help!

2009-04-01T20:56:00.000-05:00

Anna Fiki is not an ordinary musician. The woman possesses a golden voice that many artistes can only dream of. So talented is the visually impaired vocalist that many are often left in tears after they have attended her solo performances.

It is incomprehensible that such a gifted musicians who started singing to the public years before our country could have any recording artists, still remains in the background while many average musicians have made it big in this industry.

"I am appealing to people to help me because I have always wanted to be a professional musician but I have not met the right people who can help me rise and realise my full potential," she told Showtime.

Fiki started out as a lead vocalist and keyboard player for Pudulogong Rehabilitation Centre music band back in the late 80s, the same institution that groomed Donald Botshelo.

While Fiki, who originates from Mabule but now resides in Pitsane, has been left in the cold, Botshelo is a celebrity musician who has posted hit after hit and continues to make more hits.

The woman popularly known for her song Mpolelle Re Babedi has gone through many tough roads trying to carve a career out of her talent but she says all she got was disappointment.

"I have met people from way back in the 90s who always promised to push my career to greater heights but none has fulfilled those promises.

It is hard for me because as a person who has lost her sight I can rely on my vocal talent for survival," Fiki said.

One of the promoters who worked with her needed to be pushed to do the job, according to the musician. The two had agreed to cut 200 cassets from Mpolelle Re Babedi, which was recorded in 2004 but only 100 copies were made and that after some persistence from the musician.

Family members, according to her, have done little to help her find the right people to help, she said.

"I have always expressed my displeasure to those close to me about the way people were treating me in the music industry but no none has heeded my call and try to arrange anything. I do not blame them anyway because music might not be their passion.

Fiki thought the dreams would turn into reality last year after a rehabilitation officer based in Goodhope managed to source funds for her to reproduce her master CD but her world came crashing when the said officer went for further studies abroad.

She has appealed to producers and record company executives to give her a chance as she believes that she could easily penetrate the market.

"I have accepted my disability, it is my friend and people should not worry about it. My voice is perfect it has not been affected by this disability," she said.

She told Showtime that she had tried hard to market herself, but those with the resources have shown no or little interest in her talents.

"My performances in front of shops are not necessarily meant for the few thebes that people throw in my cup. I normally do these hoping to impress sponsors or record companies to snap me up," she said.

Visually impaired are amongst the athletes!

2009-03-15T17:39:00.001-05:00

Sunday February 22nd saw 22 racers with a disability compete in the Vancouver Island Society for Adaptive Snowsport's (VISAS) 2009 Recreational 'Glalom' Race.

The event was run by VISAS and the Mount Washington Ski Club in partnership with the Disabled Skiers Association of BC, (DSABC).

The conditions were tough due to the new and continued snowfall and the competition was fierce! The athletes competed in the categories of visually impaired, sitting, standing and cognitive.

There was large turn out from VISAS's own race team as well as the team from the Vancouver Adaptive Snowsports Society, one new athlete from the Whistler Adaptive Sports Program and members from the BC Disabled Alpine Ski Team, (BCDAST).

The day prior to the race the athletes took part in a race development clinic run by Provincial Team Coaches.

These included Phil Chew, Head Coach of the BCDAST, himself a Paralympian.

Local female skiers that secured podium finishes were visually impaired skier Tamara St Denis and her guide Jen Bowlby who were awarded gold in the visually impaired category; Kristy Tymos received a gold in the women's sitting; new comer Rheanne McLaughin raced to gold medal position with just 12 days of skiing to date and Meghan Williams won gold in the cognitive division.

Local male skiers swept the medals in the men's standing division with Andreas Ratthiewicz winning gold and Braydon Luscombe silver, (both skiers are members of the BC Disabled Alpine Ski Team). However it was the Vancouver Mainland that swept the medals in the men's cognitive division with Mark Hopkins, (gold), Jesse Price, (silver) and Cory Duhaine, (bronze).

For full results visit www.disablesdskiingbc.com

This is the first race in a brand new Provincial recreational race series supported by DSABC as part of its 'Building our Best' program.

The high performance program was initiated in 2003 in response to the recognized gap in athlete development between the recreational skier and the high performance athlete. DSABC also wanted to address the need to provide more support to athletes who then wanted to take part in racing on a recreational basis.

Visually impaired artists

2009-03-14T16:35:00.001-05:00

They are artists, but for this group of individuals, there is one distinct difference between them and others: they each have some form of vision impairment. An exhibition is being showcased at the Horton Gallery from Feb. 26 to Mar. 26, with pieces of art created by individuals from the visually impaired community.

The show, named Creative Vision: An Exhibition on Vision and Perception, was accompanied with a panel and luncheon of some of the artists was held before the public opening.

Artists present were: Scott Nelson, Charles Blackwell, Pete Eckert, Alice Wingwall, and Kurt Weston.

Nelson, discusses differences of perception; one person with sight would perceive only what they see, but someone else would be able to see with thought: the idea of what something is.

One of Nelson's work, entitled Eyenatomy of a Defect, is the readout of Nelson's eyes that show the damaged and healthy areas of his vision. Along with the diagram are depictions of possible accidents related to vision impairment. He explains that this is a way of conveying his condition and how he had a fear of vision related accidents.

Nelson states the purpose of his work as a curator and artist as "A remedy to correct the misperceptions about the visually impaired."?

Jan Marlese, Horton Gallery curator, and Nelson had met 20 years ago when the artist was discussing his Art of the Eye show, and became the catalyst that helped Marlese change her major from psychology to Art Administration. Marlese was finally able to parallel her own version of Nelson's show by bringing these artists together.

Pete Eckert, a photographer who has complete vision loss, described how perceptual vision, and how subjects can be misinterpreted or mismatched, and how he prefers to be the optimist.

"I don't give up." stated Eckert, "Just because you hit something that's hard, don't give up. There's always a way around anything."

Charles Blackwell, who contributed 3 pieces of ink on paper work, is also a poet. He described one of his influences as being jazz music, an interest that has been in his life since he was young. ?

Blackwell attended jazz shows, and using what he remembers from those shows and the sound from the music, and created the pieces on display. The shadowed figures and vibrancy of colors emulate the sound that Blackwell heard and conveyed what he saw in his mind to his viewers.

Alice Wingwall, who contributed mixed media pieces as well as drawings, does not see visual impairment as a negative. Like everyone on the panel, she is an optimist, and sees this as a way to create the work showcased. She described when she lost her sight, she gained vision, and she doesn't want to stop.

Wingwall states that, "The camera is now my eye, and the film is in much better shape than my retina." noting her transition from one eye to another.

Wingwall's 3-D mixed media entitled Framing by Word and by Chair and Aileron: Dog on the Wing have elements of both the English language and Braille. This is so that both the visually impaired and the physical sight community can both enjoy the pieces, but in different perspectives.

Kurt Weston, a photographer produced a series of self-portraits encompassing the different losses one must face with visual impairment.

He says that even though he has a disability, it frees up limits and helps illustrate personal vision.

Weston stressed the importance of community, and how being associated with groups gives support for each other.

Marlese states that, "Vision exists beyond physical capability to see." Meaning that the visually impaired can still make art.

Those visiting the exhibition will be impressed and inspired of this triumph over physical adversity, and that all it takes is to have the drive.

Visually impaired man to represent the USA at Sailing Championship in New Zealand

2009-03-14T16:15:00.002-05:00

Despite losing his vision, Jason Wallenstein never stopped sailing.

This past weekend, the Sharon native left for the Bay of Plenty in Rotorua, New Zealand, for the 2½-week Blind Sailing World Championships.

Wallenstein’s team of four visually impaired sailors from the Carroll Center for the Blind in Newton will represent the United States along with a team from California.

“I’ve been sailing all my life, since I was 4 years old,” said Wallenstein, who began losing his vision in 2001 because of diabetes.

When Wallenstein began going to the Carroll Center for rehabilitation in 2004, he discovered the center’s recreational and competitive sailing programs.

“I never raced in my life until I got to the Carroll Center,” he said. “It came quite easily, actually.”

He is racing in the B3 division, for those who are least visually impaired.

Wallenstein’s crew will compete in Noelex 25 sailboats, which Wallenstein described as “little Lamborghinis on the water.”

“They’re fast, very agile and they really do move,” he said. “They just accelerate so quickly. If you’re not paying attention, they can get out of control.”

Sailing without seeing the waves, land or other boats can be difficult, Wallenstein said.

“Getting disoriented is easy, but knowing where the wind is coming from is not so easy, because you can’t see telltales (wind indicators),” he said.

Each team of four sailors is accompanied by four sighted guides, but the guides are not allowed to touch the sails or the tiller unless the boat is about to flip over or collide with something.

“It’s great that all these people out there are willing to help us become accomplished in doing what we love,” Wallenstein said.

More information and race results are available at carroll.org.

Visually impaired athlete shines at the Para-Nordic World Cup

2009-03-14T16:10:00.000-05:00

As he watched another parade of Russians posing between two Mounties while clutching their flowers and native carvings from the Para-Nordic World Cup awards ceremony, team leader Andrei Shubkov bluntly stated his country's advantage.

"I think 3,000 or 4,000 athletes all over Russia," the cherubic-faced Shubkov said in heavily accented English when asked how many para-nordic skiers there were in the country.

"They train so much and they would like to get more medals, not only this year but also next year in the Vancouver Paralympics."

If not for their pesky neighbours to the west, Ukraine, and Canada's Brian McKeever, they might just take them all.

Now that might be overstating the Russian dominance just a bit, but after four days of biathlon and cross-country events in the Callaghan Valley, the Russians (12) and Ukraine (8) combined to take 20 of the 24 gold medals. The Russians also claimed nearly half of the 72 total medals with 33. Ukraine was next best with 16.

"The Russians are obviously very strong the last three years. We just have to crack at 'em a little bit here and there," says Kaspar Wirz, head coach of the Canadian team.

Canada won two gold, both by the visually impaired McKeever, who skied cross-country last week only to stay fresh for this week's national able-bodied championships, and a gift bronze for visually impaired Robbi Weldon, who moved to third in Saturday's cross-country sprint when a Russian skier was disqualified for skate skiing.

Canada might have only 100 or so para-nordic athletes, and many of its national team members are getting closer to senior discounts than the podium.

Sit skier Collette Bourgonje, who won two silver medals in Nagano and two bronze in Turin, will be 48 in 2010. Shauna Maria Whyte, who competes in the same class, is 41.

And four of five members of the development team, all of them who came to the sport in the last few years, are in their 40s.

While both the standing class for athletes with missing or non-functioning arms or who ski with prosthetic legs and the men's sit-ski class can have fields as deep as 25 to 30, the women's sit-ski and visually impaired classes at this World Cup had fewer than 10 competitors. In one of the biathlon events, only four female sit-skiers took part.

"The women's category is really suffering," says Canadian team leader Bjorn Taylor.

"It's a really tough sport. Beyond our national team, there might be half a dozen female sit-skiers. And there's maybe 10 men I can think of.

"It's not an easy sport. It's outdoors. It can be cold and it's very technical."

Paraplegics are more likely to try summer sports like wheelchair racing, hand cycling and wheelchair basketball, Taylor says.

"And in winter, a lot of amps and paras are going to sledge hockey,'' says Taylor. "Obviously, I'm biased. I think this is a more rewarding sport, but it's certainly more challenging in terms of access and everything else."

The Russians, who are gearing up for the 2014 Games in Sochi, debuted several visually impaired skiers in the last couple of years.

In fact, in the four women's races last week, there were five Russians in fields that ranged from just eight to 10, depending on the discipline. They swept gold and silver each time.

Weldon, a 33-year-old mother of two, who has only about six per cent vision due to Stargardt's disease, a genetic disorder affecting central vision, started cross-country skiing a few years ago and is in her third season on the World Cup.

"I've been putting in over 500 to 600 hours of training in a year to get myself up to the Russians," says Weldon, a former soccer player and triathlete.

The para-nordic athletes head to Mt. Washington this week for the World Cup finals.

Glass blowing workshop for the visually impaired

2009-03-07T21:04:00.001-06:00

The Belmont Arts and Cultural Center is hosting a glass blowing workshop for several blind and visually impaired teenagers from Independence for the Blind of West Florida Saturday February 28 from 1:30-4:30pm. The group will be learning about the art of glass blowing. Each student will create 2 glass art pieces: the students will create one for themselves to keep, and the second piece will be auctioned off at the 2009 Eyeball on Saturday March 7.

The teens, including several Santa Rosa County residents, are participants in IB West’s Transition Program, funded in part by the Florida Department of Education, Division of Blind Services. The Transition Program prepares visually impaired high school students for college and the workforce through training in several areas: computer and adaptive software, socialization and recreation, vocational training such as resume writing, interviewing skills, and career exploration.

The Belmont Arts and Cultural Center is located in the historic Belmont-Devilliers community and offers classes in pottery wheel throwing, glass bead making, glass blowing, and sponsors the Belmont Youth Band. To learn more about what the Belmont Arts and Cultural Center offers, visit their website at www.belmontartscenter.com.

For more information on IB West or the 2009 Eyeball, call 850-477-2663.

Some of the best piano technicians are visually impaired

2009-03-07T18:02:00.001-06:00

To most of us, the piano is some kind of magical mystery box. You sit down and play, and what comes out represents perfect precision in sound.

Each key does exactly what it's supposed to do, sounds exactly the way it's supposed to sound in relation to its neighbors, and the whole is a thing of mathematical beauty (skill of the player notwithstanding, of course).

Piano technicians know differently.

"People think you just sit down and make music," said Mark Burbey, a student at the School of Piano Technology for the Blind in Vancouver's Hudson's Bay neighborhood.

"But there are literally thousands of parts that have to work together."

Said student Robert Giles, "I have learned more about pianos in the past six months than I ever thought possible."

Giles has always been mechanically inclined, but he's not a musician. Burbey is.

Mechanical skills

According to school executive director Len Leger, mechanical aptitude probably outweighs musical talent when it comes to learning to be a piano tech.

What Burbey and Giles do share is reliance on their hands and their ears.

All eight students, three instructors and Leger, the school's president, have some level of visual impairment, from progressive glaucoma to total blindness from birth.

The chief mission of the school is to equip its students for productive, lucrative careers tuning and repairing America's 18 million pianos, Leger said.

"It's hard for blind people to find work," said Leger. "Fifty to 60 percent of blind people are unemployed. But 80 to 90 percent of our graduates are employed."

Sometimes it's a university with a lot of practice instruments that take a daily beating, he said. Sometimes it's a musical-instrument shop that needs to keep its stock ready to sell.

And often, Leger said, it's a student who starts a business as a tuner.

Out of the school's more than 300 graduates, Leger said, more than 200 have gone into business for themselves.

"We've been incubating small businesses for 60 years," he said recently, recognizing the school's anniversary in February.

The first blind piano tuner is thought to be a man named Claude Montal, who attended the Royal Institution for Blind Youth in Paris, France, in the 1830s.

He proved to a skeptical world that blind people could do the job, Leger said.

In 1949, Emil Fries (pronounced "frees") set up his private nonprofit school in Vancouver after the Washington State School for the Blind eliminated vocational education in favor of academics alone, Leger said.

Fries, who thought vocational education was crucial, quit his teaching post and mortgaged everything he owned to start his school.

"He was legally blind himself," said Leger. And, it must be confessed, he's another legendary piano man who didn't play the piano.

Unique school

But he saw a need. He said his school remains the only private, nonprofit, vocational piano technology school for the blind in the world.

Students take a two-year, full-time course of study — putting in 2,800 clock hours of training time and mastering 343 individual tasks.

"Not everybody masters everything," Leger said. "Everybody learns at a different rate."

Graduates must be ready to perform normal home repairs and tune the instrument in "a commercially acceptable time."

Students start out taking hundreds of hours to tune one instrument, he said. They end up, if all goes well, ready to tune a couple per day.

Not everybody makes it, he said. Some "heavy testing" of hearing and other skills is a prerequisite for entering the school.

The myth that blind people have extra sharp hearing is a stereotype that turns out often to be true, he said.

"Brain research has demonstrated the plasticity of the brain. If you lose one sense, your brain can rewire itself to compensate."

Fries — who wrote a book called "But You Can Feel It," which is what his mother said to him when he complained about being sightless — died in 1997.

His school has had its ups and downs, Leger said, but today it's going strong.

It's commonly known as a "piano hospital" because it repairs and sells donated pianos to support its educational mission.

The school recruits heavily via the Internet, and students have come from 36 states and 14 countries.

"Big bucks" goal

Wilson Charles, 29, is a native of Haiti. He was majoring in political science at the University of Pennsylvania, he said, when he realized he needed a marketable skill. The classical pianist and singer decided to take a break from university and take the piano school's two-year course so he can make "big bucks," he said.

Those bucks will help him finish his college education and head for law school, he said.

Giles, who came from South Carolina, said a friend suggested he put his mechanical aptitude to use — he used to pull apart and rebuild computers for fun, he said — after he burned out on customer service.

"My wife and I sold the mobile home, and here we are," he said.

Visually impaired students bake cookies for U.S. Troops

2009-02-28T22:56:00.000-06:00

The School for the Visually Impaired in Jacksonville bake cookies Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2009, to be distributed in care packages to U.S. troops overseas by the Franklin/Waverly Military Support Group.

Orientation to Family and Food Sciences will make the cookies through next week. They have a lot of things done for them," teacher Barbara Strang said. "But they also like to do things for other people." The School for the Visually Impaired has about 65 students from all over Illinois who live part-time on the campus and are either totally or partially impaired.

Visually impaired hairstylist still does a great job

2009-02-28T22:28:00.000-06:00

Cathy Steed has learned during her 50 years of life that people see with more than their eyes.

Steed has macular degeneration, a condition that affects her central vision.

Although the condition has left her legally blind and unable to drive, Steed has enjoyed a 27-year career as a hairstylist and for the past five years has operated Cathy's Beauty Barn at 16. E. Jackson St.

"I had large-printed books but I was kind of determined not to use 'em, so I stuck my nose down to the book when nobody was looking," Steed says of her school girl days. "I didn't want people to know. I really had a real rough time with people knowing I couldn't see good, but at 50 years old, you look back that it's nothing to be ashamed of. Having a disability is nothing to be ashamed of. Basically, you just learn other ways of coping with it. Really, everybody has a disability in their own way."

Dr. Winston C. May, a 65-year-old retired optometrist who practiced for 33 years in Manassas and specialized in treating patients with low vision, recalls seeing Steed at Optometric Associates PC, which still exists and carries on his work.

Macular degeneration is being treated with some success with very recent medical advances.

May says he's not surprised that Steed has enjoyed a successful career as a hairstylist, "just because of the adaptation of the other senses, and that's extremely important for anybody that's visually impaired. They utilize their other senses to compensate for their loss."

Steed says she always wanted to become a hairstylist and learned the trade at the Front Royal Beauty School. She says she explains to customers who ask her about her disability how she overcomes it.

"Like being able to feel the texture of the hair," she says. "Touching the hair and those kind of things are just as important, but people usually who can see, usually they kind of do it by seeing. I do it by more like feeling it, texturizing it, things like that. It's just a different way."

Steed has a monitor that helps her read small print on items that she uses in styling hair.

"Anything you put under it, it magnifies it and it's like a bright light behind it," she says. "It can be a bottle or anything. It just comes out flat, and it comes up on the screen so you can read it. A lot of things I can't do, but you just gotta find another way of doing 'em."

Steed says she especially enjoys working with cancer patients who have lost their hair and helping them with their appearance. Both of her parents died with cancer, Steed says.

"I can probably relate to [cancer patients] better because basically I can kind of see that if their hair is real important to 'em and basically it's like I can tell that they're real down and things like that. I know how you can feel when your appearance looks bad and you know just by fixing 'em up and explaining to 'em even though they might not ever get their hair back completely, there's lots of things they can do that make 'em look really good. There's lots of people [who] wear extensions or add-ons or anything that completely make 'em look better than before."

Steed has had her share of adversity in life, including the loss of her husband, Clark Steed, who died four years ago at the age of 46 as the result of multiple sclerosis. The Steeds have two children, Travis, 23, and Charity, 18. She has two grandchildren.

"It's very hard for some people to realize that in life the most important things are right around us," Steed says. "I told my son when he went in the Navy, I said, there's certain things you just can't buy. It's sort of around us what really makes us happy, but we just don't see it till we lose it."

Steed says when her husband died, her son asked her why.

"I said, well you gotta feel lucky because all the years that you did have him because some people never have that," Steed says. "My husband was a good husband and some people never find that, so I feel lucky that I found it for that many years. Just like seeing things, some people don't see right what's in front of 'em."

Steed says she is grateful for her family and her extended family of customers. She says in its own way, her beauty shop is kind of like the one in the hit movie, "Steel Magnolias," which revolved around the lives of women associated with a small Southern beauty shop.

"Yeah, cause they all hang out here Friday night," Steed says. "We have quite a few ladies just come in. Sometimes we get pizza. It's almost like family if they come in and they become your friends. It's like you do their hair, but yet you know all about their life. It's like if the husband comes in or the wife comes in, you hear all what's going on in their family and stuff."

Steed tries to maintain a youthful appearance and doesn't feel sorry for herself because of her lack of vision. The thing she wishes she could do most is drive.

"I don't look at it like, what's gonna happen to me," she says. "None of us know what's gonna happen. I just look at it like something in time will fix the problem."

Charity Steed says her mother is like most moms.

"Yeah, she was pretty much like the basic average mom," she says. "We had to help her a little bit with different things that she couldn't do. But other than that, I mean I wouldn't trade her for nobody else."

And neither would Steed's customers.

"I have some customers that's been with me since I got out of beauty school," Steed says.

Vickie Wright, 44, of Front Royal, says Steed has been doing her hair for 15 to 20 years.

"She's pretty patient with the clientele," Wright says. "If have any I doubts, if I think there's a piece that's not right, 90 percent of the time I'm wrong. She's pretty good. I've had other people cut my hair, and she's done just as well as a person with vision. In my opinion, it takes a brave person to try to come out and do something like that who has a disability of that nature. Who would ever think somebody would cut hair who couldn't see? It really is inspiring. That's one person who really is amazing in my opinion. I've seen Cathy for years and she really is good."

Mary Potter, 65, of Linden, agrees.

"She's just a very pleasant person," Potter says. "I like the way she cuts my hair. We discuss hairstyles and what would be good and what would not be good. She makes you feel good. She makes you feel like family."

* Contact Ben Orcutt at borcutt@nvdaily.com

Circus makes changes to allow visually impaired children to enjoy the show!

2009-02-28T22:23:00.002-06:00

An enormous Asian elephant stepped out from behind a big red curtain at the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus in Atlanta, Georgia.

Eli Hummer, 3, gets to try out an oversized motorbike at the circus.

An audience of 20 pre-schoolers clapped and squealed as the elephant was handed a tiny harmonica and started playing.

But, instead of sitting far away in the stands, the children, all visually impaired, were just a few feet away from the action.

Among them was 3-year-old Eli Hummer.

"He doesn't see, so to learn about it, he has to touch it and be close to it," explained his mother, Martha Hummer.

She said being able to use the sense of smell, touch and sound helps her son understand the concept of a circus.

Every year as it tours the country, Ringling Brothers sponsors a "Blind-Touch Tour" in about a dozen cities.

During a stop in Atlanta, Georgia, children from the Center for the Visually Impaired got more than a front row seat. After the show, they were invited into the circus ring to interact with performers and try out some of their props.

Eight stations were set up where children could touch and try on circus costumes, play with giant umbrellas and butterfly wings and sit on an oversized motorcycle.

Clowns roamed the ring juggling and trying to make the children laugh.

One clown dressed in a polka dot shirt and checkered pants took Eli's little hand and asked the boy if he wanted to touch the red clown nose.

Eli responded by trying to pull off the ball-like prop.

His teacher, Joyce Burnett, who is also visually impaired, spent two weeks before the circus visit preparing the kids in the classroom for the unique experience.

"We had clown shoes, a nose and a wig and we tried all of those on," Burnett said.

She said the students also listened to elephant sounds and drew the outline of the animals with chalk.

"Eighty to 90 percent of early learning comes through vision," Burnett said. "Our children are not using vision or (have) very little vision, so all of the other senses will make their world real."

Michelle Singleton, mother of 4-year-old Miya, said the experience is something the kids can't get anywhere else.

"The fact that she's on the floor now, she is really excited. She wanted to see the elephants so she's happy now," Singleton said.

Four-year-old Kristina Masta was fascinated with a trapeze swing that was hanging low to the ground.

One of the performers helped the girl climb on while her mother, Michelle Masta, stood nearby.

"Because of her visual impairment anything that is highly tactile and brightly colored helps out a lot," Masta said.

Her daughter weighed 1 pound, 1 ounce at birth and suffers from retinopathy of prematurity, a disease in which the small blood vessels in the back of the eye grow abnormally.

Masta said other people may not realize the limitations and challenges of having a visually impaired child.

"Everything is ten times harder," she said.

Masta smiled as her daughter handed her a rainbow-colored lollypop to unwrap.

"The kids feel special because they get to actually do something that the other kids don't do, and it is a real treat," Masta said.

England: Talking lamp post are installed to help the visually impaired

2009-02-28T16:45:00.001-06:00

IF YOU heard a lamp-post talking, you might think you were going mad.

But speaking signs have been springing up to help blind and partially-sighted people.

Newcastle is one of the first places in the UK to pilot the RNIB React Talking Sign System, which aims to help visually impaired folk get around.

Speaker units can be fixed to lamp-posts on popular routes and are triggered by an electronic fob which users carry.

When the speaker is activated, it tells the user where they are and what is around them, helping them decide where to go next. And it talks in a North East accent.

Emily Clark of Sight Service, a Gateshead-based charity supporting visually impaired people, said: “It can give people confidence knowing they are in the right place. For someone who doesn’t know the town centre, I would say it’s particularly useful.

“I would imagine it’s quite surprising for people who hear it, because the speakers make these announcements to the whole street. Most people probably don’t understand why they suddenly start talking.”

The speakers have an 8m range, and the technology can tell from which direction people are approaching the speakers and give them the right information.

When a user approaches they will hear a short description of where they are, followed by a “bing-bong” noise, before a longer announcement of what is around them.

The pilot scheme began last year and has been well received by users so far.

The React system can also be linked to information boards in train and bus stations and at bus stops. Work is being done to find out whether this could be possible in Newcastle

There are some speakers in Monument and Haymarket Metro stations to help partially-sighted passengers find their way to the right train.

More are on lamp-posts on Northumberland Street, Blackett Street, Percy Street and on the way to Newcastle’s Royal Victoria Infirmary on Queen Victoria Road, where the city’s eye clinic is held.

Forty have been installed altogether.

Coun David Faulkner, the city council’s deputy leader, said: “React is a very good system and I think people will find it a very helpful navigational tool. This is just one of the extensions to our services to help visually impaired people.”

The speakers have a vandal-proof casing and can go high up on walls or lamp-posts to stop them being damaged.

The units can handle up to 16 messages of varying lengths and in any language.

The scheme will be officially launched on March 11.

Training dogs for the visually impaired!

2009-02-28T16:45:00.000-06:00

Two Clifton Park families are training the first dogs in the Capital Region that they hope someday will help disabled people lead normal lives.

Lee Sheldon of Jonesville said she has raised three other puppies over the years as part of program to train dogs to be guide dogs for the blind.

“We had two successes and one flunk-out, but they were all great dogs and my family and I wanted to do it again,” she said.

But, the puppy that couldn't meet the exacting standards required for a guide dog could easily have been shifted into specific training for the National Education for Assistance Dog Service, which trains the dogs to serve deaf or otherwise disabled children and adults.

Leslie Neely of Clifton Park is also raising and training a Labrador retriever puppy for NEADS. She said each dog has its own personality and that personality must match with the job it will be assigned.

“A guiding eyes dog must be ready to step out and lead without any distraction,” Neely said. “A NEADS dog may be trained to fetch a phone or pick something off the ground if it is dropped by a person in a wheelchair, which is less restrictive.”

She said other tasks performed by the dogs include alerting a deaf owner to a phone ringing or someone at the door.

Dr. Richard Germano, medical director of the Animal Health Center in Clifton Park, has donated his services to neuter the dogs for the program.

He said Labrador retrievers are often used as service dogs because they are normally even-tempered and quite easily trained.

The breed is loyal and motivated to please so they train readily, he said.

Germano said he agreed to help with medical care for the NEADS dogs because he and his wife, Christy Ann Coppola, had recently spent two years raising a puppy for the Guiding Eyes for the Blind, the nonprofit guide dog school in Westchester County that provides the blind and visually impaired with guide dogs, training and lifetime support services.

He said although he loved the dog, named Darren, and misses him still, he feels a sense of pride that he participated in helping a blind person to gain some independence.

“If Darren were to fail in school, we would want him back,” he said.

Sheldon said she doesn’t want the lifetime commitment of owning a pet, but she does like to have a dog in the house and to help in its training.

Her 6-month-old trainee, Willow, runs through the house and last week spent an hour playing with Neely’s puppy, Jerri.

The women said training the NEADS dogs includes playtime and games like hide-and-seek with people or objects.

“You can teach commands with the games,” she said. “I will hide, and then I say my name until Willow finds me.”

Sheldon is the coordinator for NEADS in New York, and she and Neely have the first dogs in the program locally.

She said there are also NEADS programs in Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine and Massachusetts.

An orientation class is held at the NEADS headquarters in Princeton, Mass., before people and dogs are matched for the initial training program, which lasts about one year, Sheldon said.

“When you get a dog, NEADS pays for everything from the food to the medical bills,” she said, adding that donated medical services are sought whenever possible.

“The dogs and their costs are also tax deductible,” she said. “If you take them in the car for a doctor’s appointment, that mileage is deductible.”

Besides looking for families and individuals who are interested in a full-time training situation, NEADS also needs backup families to take dogs and continue the discipline and training when the main family is on vacation or otherwise unable to care for the dog.

She said anyone interested in participating in the program may write to her by e-mail to: lsheldo1@nycap.rr.com and she will respond with the program’s expectations and opportunities.

School for the visually impaired are forced to sell part of their land to pay for renovations

2009-02-28T16:23:00.002-06:00

THE Drumcondra-based St Joseph’s Centre for the Visually Impaired has been forced to sell part of its land to fund a much-needed refurbishment project after Government cash promises failed to materialise.

A new National Centre for the Visually Impaired was earmarked for funding as part of the 2002 Programme for Government.

But after seven years of fruitless waiting, officials at St Joseph’s have finally run out of patience and have decided to try and raise the money by selling part of their land.

Northside People has learned that the centre is now preparing to lodge an application for planning permission with Dublin City Council as part of the move to sell off over seven acres of its 25-acre site.

Brian Allen, CEO of St Joseph’s, explained why the centre is vital to the future of the facility.
“The centre was purpose built in the 19th century; it’s institutional and a totally unsuitable environment for the children,” he told Northside People .

“More and more we are working with people with multiple disabilities with specific health-care requirements. Very often these barriers are now health driven, for example the need for walkers or toilet training. Our current classroom space and learning facilities don’t provide adequately for the children and are hampering the education process.

“We need new premises so we can provide the right environment for learning – it’s our job to ensure these children reach their full potential. The new centre will more adequately provide the visually impaired of Ireland with appropriate accommodation for the current and future delivery of services.”
He added: “The new centre will also mean that we can aid parents in their assessment of a child from as young as six-months.”

A planning application for the 7.5-acre plot includes the proposal to build 356 residential units, a crèche, a public park and the new Centre for the Visually Impaired.

The Rosminian Fathers, who own the site, have commissioned Coady Architects to work on the project and it is expected that the application will be lodged with the council in the coming weeks.
St Joseph’s currently caters for 110 children with visual impairment on a pre-school, primary, secondary and vocational level.

The centre also currently operates the National Large Print and Braille Production Centre as well as providing training for those in direct contact with people who suffer from visual impairment in Ireland.

Local councillor Aodhan O’Riordain (Lab) launched a scathing attack on the Department of Environment for the situation St Joseph’s now finds itself in.

“Despite the fact that St Joseph's serves some of the most vulnerable children in the State, the department has repeatedly frustrated the management board's attempts to redevelop the schools and they have now been forced to turn to the property market in order to provide the kind of service they feel their students deserve,” he said.

“It is an absolute scandal that some of the most needy children in the country cannot have their needs directly met by the State.

“What message does it send to the families of those suffering from a visual impairment when this excellent educational facility is forced to gamble in the property market to secure the future of the centre?”

The school now finds itself in the unenviable position of trying to sell land in a depressed market. Two years ago developers would have been falling over themselves trying to secure the valuable site, but it could now take a considerable length of time before an acceptable offer is secured.

Visually impaired Paralympic athlete is back in action

2009-02-28T16:16:00.000-06:00

With two Paralympic gold medals already in her collection, Viviane Forest decided she needed another challenge. Not just a simple challenge, but a change of life as well.

So she turned her world upside down - moving from Quebec to Edmonton and switching from a summer Paralympian to winter and chasing gold medals in alpine skiing - a sport she not only hadn't tried since a young child, but knew very little about.

``I had no knowledge about skiing,'' the petite blond said recently. ``I tried it only a little bit as a child . . . I knew nothing about racing.

``I didn't know what was a slalom or a gate.''

Just months into her first season on the World Cup circuit, Forest has already won two gold medals, three silvers and one bronze in seven races to establish herself as a gold-medal contender for the 2010 Paralympics in Vancouver.

``The luck of the beginner,'' she said modestly. ``My first year on the World Cup so I have no experience, not much ski experience about strategy, the right line and all that, so I can't ask for a better year.''

Born visually impaired, the 29-year-old native of Brossard, Que., won gold medals in goalball in the Sydney and Athens summer Paralympics in the visually impaired B2 classification. She has about four per cent vision - she can't read menus in restaurants, has to move close to even read the huge E on eye charts and sitting across a table she can tell what colour shirt her interviewer is wearing, but not much more.

``The only thing I struggle with is not being able to drive a car,'' she said. ``Every day I complain about it because it's so much freedom, just to be able to transport yourself somewhere, to do the grocery shopping.''

And her peripheral vision has been getting worse since she was 14, shrinking to where it's now about 10 per cent in front, tunnel vision.

Which made skiing a real challenge. She skis with a guide - Arnaud Rajchenbach of Montreal - immediately in front of her because she can't see the gates and they communicate through headsets in their helmets.

She took up skiing in January 2007 with the local Canadian Association of Disabled Skiers that taught her to ski, found her a compatible guide and convinced her to go racing.

``She is a natural athlete, picks things up rapidly,'' said Andreas Donauer, CADS ski school director in Edmonton.

She was hesitant because she wasn't confident enough and being a proud Paralympian, didn't want to embarrass herself.

She need not have worried.

Using borrowed equipment, she impressed the Alberta coaches and by the end of that season was selected for the Canadian development team.

``The first year I borrowed all the equipment, even the pants,'' she said with a smile. ``I had wrong equipment. My boots were three sizes too big. I was wearing four pairs of socks and I was complaining it hurt. When (coaches) saw my equipment they were like, `Oh my God.' ''

A year later she was on the national team after winning the 2008 slalom and giant slalom Canadian championships. Now halfway through the season, she is getting ready for her first world championships in Korea beginning Feb. 21 and then the World Cup finals at Whistler, B.C., from March 9-15.

She's quick to give credit for her rapid success to those coaches who have helped her, from the local CADS program to her development coach of last year ``who taught me everything.''

She picked up her first major sponsor last month - The Weather Network - to help offset some of the nearly $38,000 she figures it costs her to ski last year, when lost salary is taken into account.

She works with Aroga Group Inc., working with blind and visually impaired people, teaching them to use braille computers and helping them adjust to life.

``I love the teaching part,'' she said. ``Often it will be people who lost their vision, it's to give them the autonomy they think they will never have again. Or the young children born blind, teach them that they can read and write just like every other kid.''

She uses her own experiences of being born visually impaired and overcoming obstacles to win Paralympic gold medals.

``I always talk about different sports . . . tell them to find a passion and engage yourself in it.''

Edmonton Journal

jkorobanik@thejournal.canwest.com

Visually impaired student from Tampa was picked for Grand Canyon trip

2009-02-28T16:03:00.002-06:00

McKenna Murphy will spend two weeks this summer rafting and hiking in the Grand Canyon, studying ecology and Native American culture and restoring a house.

The 14-year-old is one of 10 blind or visually impaired students from the United States and Canada chosen for the "leadership adventure" excursion, offered by Global Explorers, a nonprofit organization that arranges educational and service trips for students.

McKenna was born with a condition called ocular albinism, which makes it hard for her eyes to process bright lights and glare. She cannot see in bright sunlight but sees well enough to read and take notes in a dimmer room. She reads without Braille. She has trouble with overhead projectors, but her eyes can adapt well enough to computer screens for her to work on a computer. She is also colorblind.

None of that, though, does much to slow down the Adams Middle School eighth-grader. McKenna helps her mother make decorative tiles, practices tae kwon do, loves to read, works in her school's media center and hopes to get accepted into the academically intense International Baccalaureate program at Hillsborough High School.

She wants to go to college but isn't sure what she wants to do.

"That's why I try my best in every area," she said. "So I have options."

Her drive to succeed and positive attitude made her a good fit for the Grand Canyon trip, said vision teacher Teresa Martinkovic, who works with McKenna weekly at school.

Martinkovic heard about the Grand Canyon trip and thought it would be perfect for McKenna.

"She's adventurous, and she likes to try new things," Martinkovic said. "She's just a cool kid."

McKenna has participated in other activities for visually impaired students, including two trips to Space Camp at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, Ala.

The 16-day Grand Canyon Trip in July will be part fun, part leadership training. It's one of two that Global Explorers is organizing as part of its "Leading the Way" program for visually and hearing-impaired students. The other is an April excursion to Costa Rica for deaf and hearing-impaired students.

McKenna's group will spend half its time rafting the Colorado River and hiking trails accessible only from the water. The students will meet scientists who will teach them about the ecosystem and discuss how tourism affects the environment.

The second half of the trip will focus on service and culture. Students will study Native American history and traditions. They also will join a service project, working on a house, and get guidance on individual projects the students will work on once they get home.

"I think this is going to be a really fun time," McKenna said.

Preparations for the trip have already started.

Each month, the students take part in a conference call so they can get to know one another, learn about the area and what they will be doing there. They also get homework. Meeting the other students has been fun, and they talk online regularly, McKenna said.

In April, they will spend two days in Colorado with Erik Weihenmayer, the first blind climber to scale Mount Everest. He has written two books about his experiences – one of which McKenna read -- and speaks to students about leadership.

The other aspect of the trip is fundraising, which Global Explorers requires as a leadership exercise. McKenna must raise $2,300 for the trip. She and Martinkovic are planning a raffle, where they are offering to clean the winner's house as a prize.

"M&M Housecleaning," Martinkovic said, joking.

McKenna's main project is selling decorative tiles that her mother, Nolia, an artist, makes. Normally $40, the family is selling them for $10 through her parents' e-mail address, fishfeathers@tampabay.rr.com.

McKenna's mother developed the design -- a tree with high branches and winding roots wrapped around an acorn – and McKenna came up with the message in the middle: "Never underestimate the power inside of you."

Reporter Courtney Cairns Pastor can be reached at (813) 865-1503.

Beeping Easter eggs make an egg hunt fun for visually impaired children too!

2009-02-28T15:45:00.001-06:00

What better way for children to celebrate Easter than with an Easter Egg Hunt? Now, specially designed Beeping Easter Eggs, available from Maxi-Aids Products for Independent Living, allow Blind and Visually Impaired kids to join in on the fun! Instead of going by visual cues, kids locate these eggs by following the loud, clear beep they emit.

"We are happy to offer our Beeping Easter Eggs," says Elliot Zaretsky, president of Maxi-Aids, leading supplier of products for the blind, low vision, deaf, hard of hearing and those with other special needs. "They give children who might otherwise be excluded the opportunity to participate in the special spring tradition of the Easter Egg Hunt."

Beeping Easter Eggs can also be used on Easter morning to provide an audible alert as kids with low vision experience the excitement of locating their Easter baskets. In addition, they're great for use at disability awareness functions as well as senior homes and assisted living facilities to bring the joy of Easter to all ages.

The beeper assembly and batteries are housed in the bottom half of each egg. The beeper is easily operated using a built-in ON/OFF switch and drilled holes allow sound to be transmitted more loudly. Each egg measures 3" Long x 2-1/4" Diameter and uses 2 replaceable and readily available type "N" batteries, which are included.

"We are pleased with the response we have received not only from blind and low vision groups, but also from community centers, church groups and even some individuals," notes Mr. Zaretsky. "Many people are planning to make these beeping eggs part of their Easter traditions for years to come."

For more information on Beeping Easter Eggs (Item #402733), product pricing or to order, visit www.MaxiAids.com, call 1-800-522-6294 or email sales@MaxiAids.com. Quantity discounts are available: email bulkbuys@maxiaids.com

About Maxi-Aids

For nearly 25 years Maxi-Aids, under the guidance of founder and president Elliot Zaretsky, has been at the forefront of the independent living industry, supplying an extensive range of aids and devices to improve the lives of the Blind, Low Vision, Deaf, Hard of Hearing, Diabetic, those with mobility and other special needs, as well as a growing number of senior citizens and baby boomers. Maxi-Aids is the exclusive distributor of the Money Talks Money Identifier for the Visually Impaired and Reizen products for special needs. Visit www.MaxiAids.com, call 1-800-522-6294 or email us at sales@maxiaids.com to learn more about our products.

Crawford Technologies translate documents for the visually impaired

2009-02-28T15:34:00.002-06:00

Crawford Technologies announced the availability of a service to provide transactional documents for visually impaired customers in alternate formats. Crawford Technologies uses existing customer communications data to produce the requisite alternative formats for its clients’ visually impaired customers.

This is a clear example of how intelligent content delivery technology can be used to re-purpose content for a variety of business purposes.

In the case of Crawford, the value of the content is increased and customer loyalty and satisfaction is increased to a targeted audience (the visually impaired), without much added effort. Content is not re-authored, but re-purposed, published in alternate formats to meet specific business needs. CrawfordTech’s DAS accepts most common print files, including AFP, Xerox Metacode, PCL, PostScript, PDF, EBCDIC, ASCII Text and other data types such as XML, and produces the required format, including braille (grades One and Two), large format, audio and e-text.

Said Ernie Crawford, President and founder of Crawford Technologies, “Beyond the raft of regulatory requirements to provide these alternative formats to their customers, many of our clients recognize that this significant demographic is largely underserved. They have an opportunity to not only reduce their own risk and costs, but to attract and retain the visually impaired as loyal customers by promoting independence.”

Mr. Crawford is right on, and his logic and proposition is easily expanded to fit any number of other targeted communication paradigms. And yet, as a recent study showed, most organizations are not leveraging content delivery functionality to any significant manner, despite the availability of many technology options. This is an issue I have blogged on many times. What Crawford Technologies provides is an excellent example of one approach to intelligent content delivery - but it is just that - one example. The ECM industry has done a poor job in educating the market on the value associated with intelligent content delivery. Intellignet content delivery technologies and services potentially represent the next big movement in ECM.

Computer classes for the visually impaired are now available!

2009-02-28T15:16:00.000-06:00

Before checking out those jobs in Manhattan, please take time to read about these helpful courses for those who are visually challenged. ATRIEV, a computer school for the blind and visually impaired, will conduct the following computer training courses in the first half of 2009:

PC Operations with Access Technology (Low Vision)
Trains students in basic computer literacy, especially in the use of a screen magnification software in tandem with Microsoft Office applications including Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, plus Internet, email, instant messaging and basic trouble shooting. The course also includes
competencies in work ethics and quality standards.

Digital Early Intervention Training for Kids
Teaches blind and visually impaired kids grades IV to Vi the Windows environment and Word Processing software in tandem with a screen reader or screen magnification software.
Class Schedule: 04 to 29 May 2009
Mondays-Fridays, 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Requirements

Completely filled up Application Form available for download or at the ATRIEV office
2 pieces (1-by-1) ID photo
Personal interview by a member of the ATRIEV training team
Photocopy of diploma / certificates (whichever is applicable)
Photocopy of report card or transcript of records (whichever is applicable)
Consent of parent or guardian (for minors and those supported by parents)
Medical certificate for visual acuity

Registration fee: Php200.00 only

Tuition fee sponsorships are also available. Limited slots only!

For more information, click here or visit ATRIEV at 1680 E. Rodriguez Boulevard, Barangay Immaculate Concepcion, Cubao, Quezon City, Philippines, or call them at +632-725-4191.

High School graduate was appointed to be member of the board of school for the blind

2009-01-31T15:59:00.000-06:00

A 1980 Cooper High School graduate is among three people appointed by Gov. Rick Perry to the Governing Board of the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired.

Bobby Druesedow, of Aldeo, will serve on the board until at least January 2013.

Druesedow, who is blind, works as the employment assistance specialist for the Division for Blind Services at the Texas Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services, and is a member of the Texas Rehab Action Network. He also has taught at TSBVI as a certified teacher for the visually impaired.

In his new role, Druesedow, along with 10 other board members, will help oversee TSBVI services such as budget preparation, policy adoption and the appointment of the superintendent.

Located in Austin, TSBVI is a public school that helps visually impaired students ages 6 through 21 gain specialized education and participate in extracurricular activities.

Perry also appointed Michael E. Garrett, of Missouri City, and Cindy Phillips Finley, of Lubbock, to serve on the TSBVI board.

Druesedow was born in Haskell and grew up in Abilene, where he played football at Austin Elementary School, rode bulls at Austin Junior High School and marched in the Cooper High School band before graduating in 1980. He later received a bachelor's degree from Texas Tech University.

New school for the visually impaired is being built in Texas

2009-01-24T14:33:00.002-06:00

Members of the Austin community alongside local dignitaries will join the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired students, staff and board of directors for a groundbreaking ceremony commemorating the three phases of construction on Friday, January 23 at 12:30 pm behind the Main Instructional Building.

The first phase of the construction began in 2007 when an elementary residential complex consisting of three student duplexes, playroom and residential office; a residential dormitory; and a four-unit student apartment were built. This phase was completed in 2008. Currently, Phase II includes the Main Instructional and Public Square Buildings.

Construction of five new buildings includes a two-story main instructional building, a natatorium, student activity center, kitchen and dining facility, and fine arts auditorium began this past December.

Construction on this more than 118,360-square-foot-project will continue while classes are in session and is expected to be finished by June 2010. The project team includes owner, Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired, project manager, Texas Facilities Commission general contractor, Walton Construction Company, LLC and architect, Halff Associates Inc.“The groundbreaking ceremony marks a historic day for the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired,” said Superintendent William Daugherty. “We are celebrating the construction of a facility to advance the education of Texas students who are blind and visually impaired, and create a campus suited for the 21st century and beyond.”

A third phase was awarded on Wednesday, January 21. This phase consists of the construction of seven new residential facilities. All buildings will be environmentally efficient and conform to the Americans With Disabilities Act standards. The project team selected includes Walton Construction and architect, Graeber, Simmons & Cowan.

Graeber, Simmons & Cowan also are working on several new building designs. Those include a new outreach and conference center, a new career education building, a new staff and IT office building, and a new elementary school building.

Superintendent Daugherty will be the keynote speaker at the ceremony. A reception will follow in the school’s cafeteria.

Funds for the campus improvement were originally authorized in the November 2001 general election. Texas voters approved the Proposition 8 amendment, which authorized $850 million in general obligation bond authority.

Walton Construction Company, LLC, which maintains full-service offices in Kansas City, St. Louis, Springfield, Mo., Dallas, and New Orleans is ranked among the top contractors in the United States by Engineering News Record. Established in 1985, Walton Construction has grown steadily to become a leader in pre-construction, general contracting, design-build and construction management services.

Visually impaired was snowbound!

2009-01-24T13:10:00.001-06:00

The snow may be melting, but it's still piled up in some areas. All the snow is causing problems for a visually impaired Calgary woman who relies on her seeing-eye dog.

Diane Allard hasn't been able to leave her house by herself for a month because the snow piled on the curb confuses her dog Bracken.

"The problem is the dog is trained to stop at every curb and that's when I have to safely cross the street and right now she cannot even see the curb because all the curbs are covered with snow or ice."

Allard says Bracken gets confused when she can't see the curb and the dog doesn't know where to guide her. To make matters worse, Bracken is a young dog and joined the family two months ago. Allard hasn't been able to keep up the dog's training.

"I'm worried she might possibly forget, she might not work as well, she's no longer with a professional trainer, she's with me so it's a scary thought."

Allard says she has phoned 311, but it wasn't helpful.

"I asked them if they can clear the street which would clean off the curb and they said no, not our job."

Allard says the City of Calgary has been unsympathetic to her situation basically telling her she has to wait until the snow melts. Some melting has taken place, but there's a long way to go.

Ric McIvor is the alderman for the area. He's sympathetic to Allard's situation.

"The problem is when you start with special treatment, and I'm not saying special treatment isn't warranted, it probably is, but then where do you draw the line?"

A spokesperson for the Roads Department told CTV News that crews are now able to target trouble spots and that someone will be looking into the situation.

Allard hopes that means she'll be able to walk safely in her own neighborhood soon.

Voice Terminal Service offers upgrades to the visually impaired

2009-01-18T15:18:00.001-06:00

Audiopoint has recently introduced an upgrade to its Voice Terminal Service (VTS) that speaks directly to the visually impaired community, voice enables Google (NSDQ: GOOG) Calendar (users can listen to their daily agenda as well as add calendar entries) and offers entry level service plans making the service affordable to all.

Voice Terminal Service (VTS), a platform based application service, is the perfect mobile tool for anyone who wants to access the Internet, email and customized web information while on the go. This upgrade is especially pertinent to those with low vision or no vision by providing them first time access to their personal data without the need for expensive, specialized equipment or hardware such as screen readers. With simple voice commands, VTS is accessed via any telephone - landline, cellular or today’s smart phone. VTS improves the online user experience of the visually impaired and liberates them so that they can reach greater independence and mobility.

VTS 1.5 improves usability with new call flow prompts, an updated voice user interface, and an easier login process. Users can now access their address book over the phone and the “Enhanced Notifier” feature allows users to broadcast messages by group, individual contact, or access a phone number that is not in their address book that is sent via email or alert.

VTS is available as a monthly or annual subscription for $1.99 a month for 125 minutes of service, $4.95 a month for 250 minutes, and $12.95 for 1000 minutes. Annual plans and site licenses are also available ranging from $199 to $499. Audiopoint is offering VTS free to all visually impaired U.S. veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan… More information is available from the dedicated website.

The vision of an educator helped the visually impaired

2009-01-17T19:58:00.000-06:00

Reading letters of support from his friends, colleagues and former pupils that helped earn him a New Year honour was an emotional experience for Thomas Rogerson.

"It took my breath away. They said so many nice things about me, I had no idea they felt that way.
"It was pretty humbling to see their submissions."

The former teacher and principal was made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to the visually impaired.

Mr Rogerson, of Mt Albert, says he owes much of his success to his wife Ann, who passed away in 2000.

"I’m convinced in my own mind if it hadn’t been for Ann and the people I worked with, I would have probably been a pretty ordinary sort of joker."

Mr Rogerson has been working with the vision impaired for around 40 years and was nominated for the honour by his daughters Edwina and Christina.

Already a qualified primary school teacher, he came to the career by accident when a friend who was acting deputy principal at the Parnell School for the Blind left the post and suggested Mr Rogerson take it up.

"I said: ‘I don’t know anything about teaching blind children’. He said: ‘You’ll learn’."

With the help and guidance of some blind adults, Mr Rogerson learned to read braille by sight and was able to get valuable advice on teaching the children.

He worked for the New Zealand Foundation of the Blind for 25 years until 1987 and also became principal of the former Homai College for the Blind in Manurewa, now known as the Blind and Low Vision Education Network NZ.

While at the school, he founded the Deaf Blind Children’s Unit to help children affected by an outbreak of rubella in the early 1960s.

He travelled to the United States to learn techniques for teaching the deaf-blind students. He also helped set up a course for teachers of the visually handicapped at Epsom Teachers College and was co-founder of the Blind Sailing School in conjunction with the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron.

In 1986, Mr Rogerson co-founded the Deaf-Blind Society of New Zealand.

He is a life member of the International Council for the Education of Visually Impaired Persons and served as the president of the Pacific region.

The South Pacific Educators of Visually Impaired Persons also made him a life member and he currently belongs to the Mt Albert Rotary Club, which awarded him the Paul Harris Fellowship in 2005.

Royal New Zealand Foundation of the Blind board chairman Don McKenzie says Mr Rogerson was an innovative teacher.

"He was the first person to travel to the Perkins School for the Blind in Boston and brought back a lot of unique communication techniques that enabled deaf-blind children to gain an education.
"It was a real leap forward for the education of deaf-blind students in New Zealand."

He says Mr Rogerson introduced more sport and music into the curriculum and had students pull apart old machinery and put it back together so they could learn how to use tools.

A teacher who worked under Mr Rogerson at Homai College and later became the school’s principal was also honoured.

Gwen Nagel was made a Companion of the Queen’s Service Order for services to special education.

"He passed the baton on to some very good people," says Mr McKenzie.

A service dog can change the life of a visually impaired person

2009-01-03T00:43:00.001-06:00

For a visually impaired person, everyday activities like crossing the street or locating an elevator in a building -- second nature to those of us blessed with vision -- pose a challenge. Yet for Patty Zallar, 43, her guide dog, Carlee, became her additional set of eyes and made much of her daily routine easier.

"I love her. It's a special bond between her and I," Patty said. "I don't know what I'd do without her."Carlee follows Patty almost everywhere -- to work daily, to church, to dinner at restaurants. Patty only leaves Carlee behind when she attends concerts, fearing that loud noise would damage her dog's sensitive ears.

Legally blind, Patty has no vision in her left eye and limited tunnel vision in her right eye, a permanent condition she describes as "looking through the thickness of a hollowed-out pencil or pen." Tunnel vision means she lacks peripheral vision, and needs to look directly at something in order to see it. Her vision continues to deteriorate.

"When I go to the eye doctor I can't even see the eye chart hardly anymore," she said.Guide dogs such as Carlee are trained to recognize and locate places like elevators, stairs, store counters, escalators and curbs. According to Patty, Carlee can be patterned to remember new locations if continually brought there.If Carlee is brought to a familiar area like Patty's office and not given any instructions, she will automatically lead Patty to her office room.

However, visually impaired owners cannot simply state a destination and expect their guide dogs to get them there Â-- they have to direct their dogs in the general direction they want to go. "Just because you have a seeing-eye dog, you can't totally depend on them. You still need orientation and mobility to get around," Patty said. "I have to have some idea of where an elevator or escalator is, and she'll find it for me."

Patty controls Carlee by means of a leash and a handle attached to the brown harness on Carlee's body, and directs her to move via commands like "left," "right," "straight" and "forward."Through the handle, Patty can detect subtle hints from Carlee through the harness handle -- the dog will slow down or stop if the way ahead is blocked.When confronted by obstacles like tables, pillars or walls, Carlee will avoid or weave around the obstruction to prevent Patty from getting hurt.

She is also trained to cross roads only when there are no moving vehicles nearby -- she will not move unless she senses no danger.Vision problemsBorn in Wausau, Patty's vision problems began at the age of 5, when her eye doctor diagnosed her with chronic uveitis -- an inflammation of the eyes. She underwent nine surgeries between age 13 and 18 to remove cataracts and calcium deposits and treat glaucoma.

In middle school, Patty still had adequate vision to take a sewing class, where she made a pocket organizer and a denim skirt with the aid of a magnifying glass. At 16, she received her temporary driver's license and drove around under the supervision of her father, Henry Gazda. She decided to stop driving when her vision worsened.

After graduating from high school in 1983, Patty enrolled for a degree in data-processing at Northcentral Technical College in Wausau, which offers a program for visually impaired students. Patty learned orientation and mobility skills there and began to use a white cane to help her avoid obstacles. She began working at the Wisconsin Department of Revenue in 1990, where she is project leader in the Technology Services division.

She usually commutes using the paratransit service provided by Metro Transit, which picks her up from home and takes her directly to her destination.Navigating her office with a cane proved challenging."Even if you're using a cane, you can still run into things and hit things," Patty said. "A cane is an obstacle finder, so that's what you're doing -- you're obviously trying to avoid obstacles. When my cane hits something I've got to figure out what it is and how do I get around it.""Patty depended very much on the people keeping her informed of changes in the room layout," said Sandy Hunter, 52, Patty's close friend and former colleague.

"When we changed the floor plan, one hallway would be closed up and another would open up elsewhere. She found it difficult to integrate those changes."Patty found herself having to re-orientate herself to the new layout by recounting steps and reorganizing her mental map of the area. She said she felt like "a mouse in a maze."Using a cane also brought an unwanted stigma along with it. Patty often encountered parents who would tell their children to stay away from or get out of her way."

A lot of people don't know how to deal with someone that has a kind of disability," Patty said. "It's true that I can't see you unless I can hear you coming, but if they don't tell their kid anything else, what are they teaching their child? Avoid them. What I have is not contagious."All that changed with Carlee in tow. Unlike before, people would now open doors for Patty though she could find a door far better than with a cane. Strangers approached her more often.

"Carlee's an icebreaker," Patty said. "She has more clout than me, and that's OK." She affectionately nicknamed her dog "Carlee Starlee" because more people wanted to talk to the dog than to her. Addition to the familyPatty has been married for 12 years to Steve Zallar, 58, a maintenance mechanic. The couple have a 10-year-old son, Andrew.

In 2006, Patty decided to pursue getting a guide dog, a prospect she had mulled for several years. She applied to Leader Dogs for the Blind in Rochester, Mich. because she was a member of the Wisconsin Lions, a charitable foundation that supported Leader Dog.

Applicants to Leader Dog must be at least 16 years old, legally blind, have good mental and physical health, demonstrate independent travel skills, and successfully complete a basic course in orientation and mobility. Guide dogs and training are provided free of charge to successful applicants. In Madison, the Wisconsin Academy of Graduate Service Dogs offers service dogs for people with mobility impairments.

Unlike guide dogs, which help the visually impaired, service dogs learn more commands and can perform a larger variety of tasks like operating light switches. Leader Dog accepted Patty's application, and she traveled to Michigan to begin her training in August 2006."I thought it was wonderful that Patty was going to get a seeing eye dog," Steve said. "I told her to go for it."At Leader Dog, Patty was paired with Carlee, a sprightly female yellow Labrador.

She learned commands and hand signals to use with Carlee during her training there, as well as how to groom and care for her. "When I went there, I made up my mind that no matter what, I have to trust this dog," Patty said. "I'm not going to use my vision to get around, I'm going to trust her.""The bond between a guide dog and its owner is very strong," said Betsy Gruba of the Wisconsin Council of the Blind, who also owns a guide dog.

"It takes a while to form, but once formed it can't be broken."As part of their nearly month-long training, the pair learned to navigate residential and commercial areas, cross streets and intersections, as well as do country and night traveling.The school provided Patty with an identification card after her graduation in September to certify Carlee as her guide dog. Wisconsin law guarantees a blind person the legal right to be accompanied by a specially trained dog guide in harness in all public accommodations -- this means that she cannot be refused entry into places like hotels, shops or restaurants because of her dog.

Back home, Steve and Andy had begun nesting for the new arrival. "It was the same thing like getting a child," Steve said. "We got the room rearranged, and put a crib in." They also got Carlee a dog bone pillow and a quilt blanket. Today, Carlee sleeps in the living room at night -- the only time the pair are apart. She follows Patty everywhere at home, even when her harness is off. She sits in the back seat of the family truck when they drive out.Changed life"It's not that I do different things than I did before," Patty said.

"I'm still relying on my orientation but it's easier to get places. We're like a duo or a team, she's enhanced my mobility and security about getting around."Potential obstacles like open cabinet doors and large trash cans in the workplace no longer pose a concern, as Carlee simply leads Patty around those obstacles. "Carlee's kind of replaced the courteous person that leads Patty around," Hunter said. "The physical danger of getting around has gone away."Steve said that Carlee has given his wife "complete mobility,'' as the dog can sense what is coming or where things are, unlike when she used a cane.

"Patty was a fast walker even when she had the cane, but she's even faster now," Hunter said. "She's so much freer now, and it's amazing how confident she is." Having Carlee also enabled Patty to do something she hadn't done in decades since her eyesight began to deteriorate -- jog. "When I go walking with her, we'll run or jog a couple of blocks. I'll never be a marathon runner, but that's one thing I haven't done since high school is jog," she said.

For Patty, grooming and caring for Carlee is her way of giving back what she has received in return."To me, it's a wonderful trade-off," Patty said. "She takes care of me and I take care of her. I don't know what I would do without Carlee at my left side. We have become inseparable."From the day she entered the Zallar household, the Zallars have unanimously embraced her as one of their own. Carlee became a playmate for Andy, the only child in the family.

"Steve's the daddy, Patty's the mommy, Andy's the older brother, and Carlee's the little sister. I consider her my four-legged daughter," Patty said. "I take care of her just like I take care of my son. I wouldn't give her up for anything in the world."

Finding the perfect match between a visually impaired man and his guide dog

2009-01-01T19:34:00.002-06:00

In the past, Chris McNamee had trouble navigating through airports to visit his adult children living in three major U.S. cities: Chicago, Seattle and San Francisco.

But that was before meeting his dog, Max, at Southeastern Guide Dogs more than two years ago.
McNamee, who suffers from retinitis pigmentosa, a degenerative eye disease that slowly eliminates peripheral, low light and night-light vision, has benefited from having Max help him maneuver through grocery stores, airports and other everyday places.

“My world has been completely changed in terms of my confidence and safety and ability to independently navigate,” the Anna Maria resident said.

The Southeastern Guide Dogs, an organization that works to create a partnership between visually impaired individual and a guide dog, has received a $5,000 grant from the Lakewood Ranch Community Fund of the Manatee Community Foundation that will help provide a visually impaired Lakewood Ranch resident with a guide dog and training.

“We would love to have students from everywhere, but a student specifically from Lakewood Ranch would be supported by this grant,” said Patsy French, director of development and communication for the organization.

“We appreciate their investment in their community. This is a community investment in someone with a disability.”

Anyone who is legally blind and older than 18 qualifies for a guide dog, she said. The cost is free for the dog, residential training and lifetime follow up services for the person with the need.

About 11 classes, which last 26 days, are held throughout the year. Students in the classes range from age 19 to 81, she said. The next class is scheduled to start Jan. 5.

Mary Ellen Motyl, Lakewood Ranch Community Fund program coordinator, said the grant for the Southeastern Guide Dogs is one of 21 grants totaling $101,743 that were distributed to various nonprofit organizations.

About 53 grants worth a total of $318,000 were requested during the application process this year. Among some of the organizations to receive funding was the Center for Autism and Resource & Education, Stillpoint House of Prayer shoe program and the YMCA at Lakewood Ranch.

A grants committee reviews all the applications and determines how much funding can be given to different needs in the community, she said.

“There are all sorts of different organizations out there. The committee just felt that this was something that might be overlooked if we weren’t able to support them,” she said.

Southeastern Guide Dogs has changed the quality of life for McNamee, who recommends the organization to anyone who needs help with navigation. McNamee also found that the organization was willing to help and had a good attitude toward the students.

“These people have a servant’s heart,” he said. “It’s not a job to them. It’s a mission. Everybody there is working to enrich other people’s lives.”

Jessica Klipa, Herald staff reporter, can be reached at 708-7906.

Is Braille becoming a thing of the past?

2008-12-31T15:28:00.002-06:00

The defiant one settles herself with teenage confidence at the end of the classroom table.She is, by her own account, a "stubborn" and "ornery" student here at the Kansas State School for the Blind."A handful," teachers agree.They've given her a cane. She refuses to use it.They try to teach her Braille."I hate that I have to learn it," said Hannah Nistler, to whom, at age 16, the tools of blindness are uneasy reminders that one day her already murky vision could go completely black."It's scary," she said.

"That's not something I've wanted to accept."What's equally scary, say advocates for the blind, is just how few visually impaired children outside of places like this school are being instructed in Braille.Whereas about half of them were taught the reading and writing method in the 1960s (usually at state institutions), the number now instructed in it, with "mainstreaming" in public schools, has fallen to 12 percent.

The decline in this foundation of literacy in the blind community since the early 1800s parallels an explosion in technologies designed to help the blind access everything from novels to the Internet: "talking" computers, magnifiers, audiobooks.Perhaps at a price."There is technology that can read print to you, but that is not the same as being literate," said Chris Danielsen, spokesman for the National Federation of the Blind. "If you listen to books, you don't learn how to spell from that. You don't learn how to write from that.

You don't learn how to do punctuation from that."His organization hopes the bicentennial anniversary of Braille creator Louis Braille's birth on Jan. 4 will raise awareness of what it's calling a crisis in Braille literacy."Society would never accept a 10 percent literacy rate among sighted children," he said. "It would be outrageous."Some of the outrage may need to be tempered.

Although only 12 percent of visually impaired children are learning Braille, it's also true that only about 10 percent are completely blind.Most of the remaining 90 percent are like Nistler and have some limited vision, or enough to use devices that make Braille less vital."In a lot of ways, it is better to be blind now, especially in the United States, than it has been in history," said Reinhard Mabry, president of Alphapointe, an association that supports the blind and visually impaired. "Technology is better than it has ever been.

"But a talking computer, Braille proponents say, won't read your shopping list in the aisle of a grocery store. It won't select your floor in an elevator. And what happens when the power lines go down?Advocates also offer this clincher: Of the paltry 30 percent of blind or visually impaired people who are fully employed, 90 percent know Braille.Nistler and her classmates know all of this, of course.

"They like to pound it into your head," she said of her instructors.For much of Nistler's life, she's looked at the world through a black circle, as if peering through the end of a thin straw. At night, she is totally blind.Whether the straw will stay open, no one knows. She has retinitis pigmentosa — a degenerative disorder.In 2005, she began to lose her colors. "First, my reds and greens went," Nistler said. "Then the blues. Then the rest."

She now sees in shades of black and white and grays, some of it gorgeous."Roses. They're beautiful in black and white," she said.At the other end of the English class table sits Chad Rohr, 18, with his guide dog at his feet. Nistler and four others sit nearby.He unfurls his textbook on the table — broad white sheets the size of placemats, each embossed with hundreds of Braille dots.

His hands sweep across the pages, his large fingers gliding left to right, row after row.A tumble off an all-terrain vehicle cracked Rohr's skull and nearly killed him at age 13."I had traumatic brain injury, and the swelling in my brain pinched my optic nerve," he explained.Braille is easy for him now, but he understands Nistler's reluctance."There were days when I just wanted to burn the books I was reading," he said. "I hated it that much."It's instinctual, he said, to use the sight one has while it's still there.

Thinking about the day it'll be gone is hard.Plus, Braille is hard. The system of raised dots was adapted in 1821 from "escriture nocturne," or "night writing," a way for soldiers to communicate in the dark on the battlefield.The code is based around "cells" of six dots."Like you're looking at a muffin pan, horizontally," said Christian Puett, 16, who, like Nistler, has retinitis pigmentosa. He can see a fog of light and images, but his vision since the eighth grade has been all but gone.To start with, he said, all the dots feel the same.

It can take months or even years to master reading them.But after a while, it's like visual reading: fluid, unconscious. The independence it offers is freeing."Right now," Puett said, "I'm reading 'Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.'" The Braille version came out the same night as the print version.Nistler is working on a book of her own.It's slow going. Sometimes she still peers down at the cells, she said, to see if she has them right. But in Omaha soon, there's going be to a Braille reading and writing competition."I don't know," she said. "I thought I'd try."

Visually impaired teacher sues school district for discrimination

2008-12-29T23:44:00.000-06:00

To understand how Lukas Barfield sees the world, imagine staring through a toilet-paper roll with wax paper over the other end. Barfield suffers from rod-cone dystrophy, a condition that causes a very narrow field of vision—even objects right in front of him are hard to make out.

But Barfield didn't let his condition stop him from getting a teaching certificate with an emphasis in math from the University of Washington and a teaching job in the Kent School District. After the 2006–2007 school year—his first—Barfield received a satisfactory evaluation, but at the end of the following term, the district fired him. Last month he sued the district for discrimination.

At the start of the 2007–2008 school year, Barfield started answering to a new vice principal, Anthony Brown. "Almost immediately, Mr. Brown began to discriminate," Barfield's suit against the district states.

Barfield's attorney, Tyler Firkins, says Mill Creek isn't an easy school to begin with, even for sighted teachers. "We're not talking about [advanced placement] students at Mercer Island or something like that," Firkins says. "This is a pretty challenging group that he had." The fourth-period kids were a particular problem, passing notes, throwing things, and not getting out textbooks when asked. So in the fall of 2007, Barfield says he asked Brown for help, claiming students took advantage of his sight problems. According to the suit, Brown offered no assistance and told Barfield he needed to be "the heavy."

After a parent complained later that fall that disruptive students in that class made it harder for others to learn, Barfield reminded Brown that he had asked for assistance. According to the lawsuit, Brown began coming into Barfield's class unannounced, sitting outside the teacher's field of vision. Barfield claims he didn't know Brown was in the room; once, Barfield says, he nearly sat on Brown. After the surreptitious observations, Brown criticized him for things like not seeing students raising their hands or passing notes, Barfield says.

In January of this year, Barfield asked for a para-educator—a specialized teaching assistant—to help him manage his class. Brown allegedly replied by saying the district wasn't obligated to provide one. Barfield then asked for a meeting with the Kent Education Association and the state Department of Services for the Blind. The district subsequently agreed to hire someone to assist Barfield in the classroom. But even then, Barfield says, Brown only allowed the assistant to do little more than point out disruptive kids. Instead of providing Barfield with the help he needed, Filkins says the assistant "became a classroom narc."

At the end of the year, the district notified Barfield that his contract would not be renewed. He appealed to the Kent School Board and filed for a restraining order against the district to stop the firing. Both of these maneuvers proved unsuccessful.

Firkins says other districts have been far more accommodating to teachers with disabilities than Kent. He believes administrators preferred to force Barfield out rather than make it easier for him to teach. Meanwhile, the district filed a general response in court Nov. 25, denying any wrongdoing without going into specifics.

Kent School District spokesperson Becky Hanks says she can't comment directly on Barfield's case, but adds that the district has successfully made accommodations for other teachers with sensory disabilities, though she wouldn't go into specifics.

"Kent School District does not discriminate on disability. If an employee does not have a contract renewed, the issue is job performance," says Hanks.

Firkins acknowledges the district wrote his client up several times for issues related to students' behavioral problems. But those are instances, he says, where a sighted teacher wouldn't have had the same problems. Perhaps the most damning claim in Barfield's suit is the allegation that Brown not only cited him unfairly, but repeatedly noted that Barfield's problem was his inability to see all that went on. According to the complaint, Barfield had to remind the vice principal that he was visually impaired.

From seizures to blindness, the story of a great wrestler

2008-12-29T23:22:00.001-06:00

It doesn't matter whether it's the championship of a holiday wrestling event or a midweek dual match.

Debbie Gunter gets emotional any time her son, Coventry High freshman Jesse Gunter, walks onto the mat.

''I'll be crying at the beginning, screaming and laughing during the match, and crying again after the match,'' she said. ''There is simply so much adrenaline flowing every match, I can't stand it because I love so much what is happening. Jesse amazes us every time he's out there.''

She is not an ordinary wrestling mom. The tears are of joy — and not because her powerfully built son has been so successful.

It's not because Jesse is 15-1 with 10 pins wrestling at 103 and 112 pounds after he dispatched opponents from Ellet and Firestone in less than two minutes in a triangular match a week ago. And it's not because her 15-year-old is becoming a part of the strong tradition at Coventry and is projected to do well when tournament time comes in March.

No, Debbie cries because she believes she is witnessing a miracle every time.

Jesse Gunter is blind.

''Jesse's story is an incredible life story,'' Coventry coach Keith Shinn said. ''Hopefully, it will inspire others to get over whatever is holding them back and enable them to have as much passion for life and wrestling as Jesse does. He is truly an amazing young man.''

Sports, the Gunters were told by neurologists and pediatricians, were something that Jesse would never participate in. ''Most of the doctors told us he'd never be able to walk or even talk, that he wouldn't be able to do much of anything,'' Debbie said.

''I thank God every day. We never had the courage to dream that he could do what he's doing. He's an inspiration to all of us, especially those of us who were there when he was born.''

Jesse's battle began before he took his first breath.

Debbie went into labor, and Tony Gunter took her to Barberton Citizens Hospital.

Everybody expected a normal delivery.

It wasn't.

''I was pushing and pushing the entire day,'' Debbie said. After 16 hours, Debbie underwent an emergency Caesarean section. Jesse weighed 9 pounds, 2 ounces.

''Jesse's little head was all bruised,'' Debbie said. ''I was very upset because that was my baby. And I knew something was wrong. I'm a mom.''

The Gunters became more concerned a few hours later when Jesse began having seizures.

He was rushed to Akron Children's Hospital to undergo tests. The results were not what any parent would want to hear. ''The doctors told us he suffered brain damage and part of the brain was dead,'' Debbie said.

''We were 23 at the time. There were all kinds of self-doubts cropping up. I was miserable because my baby had been hurt.''

New hope emerges

For three years, the Gunters took Jesse to neurological and pediatric experts who said there was little anyone could do. The Gunters moved to Virginia to live with Tony Gunter's parents and found a savior in Dr. Dawn Forbes of Lewis Gale Hospital in Salem, Va.

''Dr. Forbes loved Jesse; she believed in him from the first day she saw him,'' Tony Gunter said. ''She just told us that whatever we do, don't baby him — treat him normal like every other kid, and he'll grow up to be like every other kid.''

Jesse is blind in one eye and has had two surgeries on his other eye to help stabilize it.

He has no peripheral vision in that eye. Think of his vision this way: if you made a small circle the size of a dime with your forefinger and thumb and put it in front of your eye, that's what he sees.
''He has total tunnel vision in the one, and he'll never be able to drive,'' Tony Gunter said. ''He never can hold a job that includes detailed work. He never can operate heavy machinery.''

That ruled out most sports.

''I can see a basketball, but the players in a game are a blur,'' Jesse said. ''I can pitch a baseball toward a hitter, but I can't catch or field a ball. . . . I was disappointed, but I didn't give up because I always wanted to do a sport.''

When the family moved back to the Akron area in 1996, Jesse began taking karate classes, earning a black belt in two and a half years.

''That made me feel great about myself,'' Jesse said.

He moved into wrestling three years ago. He was a seventh-grader at Coventry Junior High, and it was the only school-sponsored sport in which he could compete.

''The thing I love most about wrestling is that I can really push my body. My body can support me in wrestling, and it's a thrill for me,'' he said.

Top of class, team

He was 22-8 as a seventh-grader and 23-2 in eighth grade. He also won numerous invitationals before earning a spot on the Coventry varsity team this year.

In school, he has a 4.0 grade-point average taking a regular academic schedule.

''I can't see anything on a blackboard or TV screen,'' he said. ''But the teachers have been great. They give me extra handouts that show the things that the rest of the class can see.''

His only wrestling loss in 16 matches came against highly regarded Beachwood junior Alex Dronzek, who is ranked second in the state at 103 and won 6-0.

''I think my opponents underestimate what I can do,'' Jesse said.

Because opponents must maintain contact with him in matches, Jesse says he has learned to practice in a way other wrestlers do not. ''I use that to my advantage,'' he said. ''They have to use another style in the match when we're both on our feet, but it's normal for me.''

Gunter doesn't rely on leverage — he stands 5-foot-1.

But he is developed physically for his age and size. He has an Olympic weight set and wrestling mat in the basement of his home and is constantly working out. He outdid all of his teammates in a fitness test during preseason conditioning.

''Jesse blew away the competition,'' said Shinn, now an Akron Police Department patrolman and a former Coventry standout who was a key contributor as a 189-pound state qualifier on the Comets' 1993 Division III state championship team.

Jesse did 130 pushups in two minutes. He did 44 full pull-ups before fatiguing. Both were Coventry wrestling team records.

Shinn said Jesse has more to learn. ''We're putting in a new move just about every day because we all know that at some point — districts, state — he's going to run into some outstanding 18-year-olds.''

Jesse has set ambitious goals. ''I want to be a four-time state champion and a four-time national champion in college,'' he said. ''And I want to be an Olympian. I know that no blind wrestler has ever competed in the Olympics. But that doesn't bother me.

''I can't see, but I can dream. And I'm determined to live those dreams.''

Bill Lilley can be reached at 330-996-3811 or blilley@thebeaconjournal.com.

Visually impaired athletes practice their sport on the slopes!

2008-12-29T22:10:00.001-06:00

If you ask Marie Hennessy of Malden to tell a story that sums up the essence of one of the nation's oldest programs for blind cross-country skiers, her answer might surprise you. Instead of telling an exhilarating, outdoorsy tale about how New England Regional Ski For Light pairs sighted guides with visually impaired athletes, the organization's president instead points to the time dozens of members were on an overnight trip to Craftsbury, Vt., and the electricity at the inn went out.

"All of a sudden, the sighted guides couldn't see," said Hennessy, who has been blind since birth. "Our roles were reversed, and the visually impaired people were assisting the guides, because we know how to move around in a dark world. It was ironic, but at the same time, we had fun. In fact, nothing stops us from having fun."

Hennessy's positive outlook is echoed by other Ski For Light participants, who stress that the organization's main goal is not just to get adults with disabilities involved with physically demanding sports, but to provide those opportunities in an atmosphere of camaraderie that benefits both the sighted and the blind.

"One thing that Ski For Light has done for me is it makes me feel like a more complete person," said David Fisk, a volunteer guide from Thetford, Vt. "I think any type of volunteering helps a person be more complete."

Introducing visually impaired people to cross-country skiing dates back to the 1950s in Europe with a blind Norwegian musician named Erling Stordahl. His efforts led to the creation of an annual, week-long event called Ridderrenn in 1964, which has grown to attract thousands of disabled participants and guides from around the world to the mountains of Norway.

The Ridderrenn concept was brought to Colorado in 1975, and shortly thereafter morphed into a national organization known as Ski For Light. Two years later, when the annual event rotated to Woodstock, Vt., there was enough local momentum to form an offshoot branch so that activities could continue on a regular basis, and in 1977 New England became the first of what would expand to nine regional Ski For Light chapters.

Today, NERSFL doesn't rely solely on cross-country skiing to get its participants outdoors. In the winter, the group now also snowshoes. In warmer months, trips are planned for hiking, canoeing, and tandem bicycling. The organization has an itinerary of upcoming trips on its website (nersfl.org), where it actively recruits volunteer guides and visually impaired participants.
When it comes to first-timers, NERSFL members said it is usually the sighted guides, not the blind skiers, who feel a bit of anxiety the initial time they get paired up.

"Fear isn't one of my responses," said Cindy Wentz, who lives outside of Boston and has been legally blind since birth, although she does have some limited vision. "The first time on skis, I would say I probably had more of a feeling of 'Let's just go and jump into this with both feet.' "

Hennessy agreed. "I didn't have any trepidation. I felt totally comfortable," she said. "The guide who was with me had incredible patience. I knew I was going to trust this person, and he knew I wanted to make this work."

Fisk, who became a guide in 1994 and now trains the sighted volunteers who enter the NERSFL program, said he was initially "nervous about working with blind people." But he said he received valuable feedback from the more experienced visually impaired skiers, and that two-way communication made him a better guide.

"I just realized I had to give [blind people] a lot more credit than I was giving," Fisk said. "A lot of skiers with Ski For Light are good skiers. There are some who can ski any of the terrains they encounter."

Fisk said that when introducing a blind person to the sport, he will begin by explaining what each piece of equipment does with a hands-on demonstration. Guides and blind skiers are paired up on a one-to-one basis, and a lot of thought goes into matching the personalities and ability levels of the sighted and blind skiers.

On the trails, communication is the key to guiding a blind skier. "Tips left" and "tips right" are common commands, but rather than direct a skier's every movement, Fisk said a guide's primary function is to describe the lay of the land and to forewarn of any terrain changes. Whether the blind skier goes ahead of, behind, or next to the guide is a matter of individual preference.

The only emergency command that participants must obey is the "Sit down!" warning, Fisk said. Falling backward is the safest position for someone who can't see if they have to avoid an imminent obstacle.

"I spent a lot of time on my rear at first," Wentz joked.

Fisk said that when he trains guides, he often will have them ski blindfolded to simulate how someone without sight would negotiate a trail.

"It's incredibly difficult to judge your speed," Fisk said. "We rely so much on our visual cues for balance."

Teaching the basics of cross-country skiing is one thing. But helping blind athletes appreciate the aesthetics and raw beauty of nature while on the trails can be trickier.

"Almost all of it has to be verbal," Fisk said, although he will use the sense of touch to help visually impaired skiers distinguish various types of bark on trees or the difference between snow conditions. Hennessy recalled that a guide once took her outstretched arm and used it to "trace" a mountain range far off in the distance.

"I love stopping and just listening," said Wentz. She has enough sight, she explained, to tell that "the sky is blue," or what the trees look like in a "Monet kind of way." For her, "there's some visual, but you also rely on your other senses."

Hennessy said that well-meaning sighted people are sometimes hesitant to offer "too much information" out of fear that the blind person will become annoyed. But she appreciates it when the guides stop on the trail to enlighten her about things in nature that she can't see.

"Having someone take the time to think about what you might enjoy is a wonderful experience," Hennessy said.

"It's not about the destination, it's about the process," Wentz said. "It's a freedom of movement, which is hard to get in other areas of my life. When I walk [around the city] I need to concentrate on the next step and on my own safety. When I ski, all my mental energy is focused. I just remember being blown away the first time I did it."

Ski For Light is just as rewarding for the volunteer guides, too.

"It's a personal development thing for me," said Fisk. "And it's downright fun."

Library offers the use of special magnifier to the visually impaired

2008-12-29T22:07:00.001-06:00

A portable, electronic magnifier is now available to visually-impaired residents through Hussey-Mayfield Memorial Public Library's new equipment loan program.

Striving to provide all residents with access to the written word, the library has acquired three Bierley MonoMouse units, which project enlarged type onto a home television screen.

Resembling a super-sized computer mouse, the device is designed to easily magnify written copy as the unit is passed over the page.

Using the library's new loan program, residents with vision difficulties could have a wealth of reading material open up to them. No longer will they be forced to wait for their favorite title to come out in a large print or audio format. Now, residents will have the luxury of checking out the latest titles, including circulating magazines, and enjoying them in the comfort of their own home.

The library will loan the magnifiers to interested cardholders for 21-day intervals. Residents just need to visit the second floor circulation desk to request a MonoMouse.

Patrons may also place holds on the item through the library's online catalog at www.zionsville.lib.in.us or by calling (317) 873-8341.

Virginia Hilbert is assistant department head for circulation services at the Hussey-Mayfield Memorial Public Library. Contact her at (317) 873-3149 ext. 11280 or e-mail

virginiah@zionsville.lib.in.us.