That Stuff DOESN’T Happen Anymore!

Recently I was telling a family member about an experience I had looking for an apartment a few years back. I had just graduated with my Master’s Degree and had taken a well-paying job (well, more well-paying than anything I’d ever had before) in Salt Lake. I grew up in a suburb of SLC and had always dreamed of living in a high-rise apartment in the middle of the city. Since I can remember, that was my “dream home”. My mom and I set out to find my dream apartment. There is a fancy outdoor mall in downtown SLC where they had built high-rise apartments right above the mall, right in the middle of the city. If you know me, you know this is PERFECTION! That would be are first stop, no questions asked. My mom and I walked in the front door to the leasing office, it was busy and one lady seemed to be helping everyone. I stood and waited with a big grin on my face, my dream was about to become reality. I really could care less how small the place was, this was it! I was practically dancing around in my shoes!

The lady finally stepped aside and walked up to me and said the following, “I’m sorry sweetie, we don’t do section 8 housing here, you can’t afford this place!”

To say I was in utter shock would have been an understatement, I was frozen in dis-belief. I had become a very confident, out-spoken, independent BLIND woman and my anger was at the boiling point (understandably if I do say so myself). I walked out the door without saying a word. Do I wish I would have given her a piece of my mind right there and then, HECK YES I do! I stood outside and let loose on my mom. WHAT THE HELL JUST HAPPENED???

I had heard of things like this happening but like many people think, I thought this was so out of the norm and would most certainly NEVER EVER happen to me! I turned to my mom (who was also trying to swallow what just happened). She convinced me to go back in and at least see the apartment, after all I had longed for this apartment for so long. I did go up and see the apartment, arms folded, biting my tongue, and with a whole different demeanor than when I first walked in. There was NO WAY IN HELL I was renting that apartment now! I was furious inside. All my hard work. All my years of school. All my accomplishments to that point, she stomped all over! I was so hurt and ANGRY, oh boy was I angry! Needless to say, I found a BETTER apartment in a beautiful building in downtown SLC and I LOVED living there, but this memory still crosses my mind every time I walk past that building.

Many of us think that discrimination is a thing of the past, we fought that battle and we won, right!?! Recent events in our country have brought up much discussion on the topic/issue of discrimination…and I don’t think it’s a bad thing that we’re talking about it! People with disabilities STILL face discrimination today in big and small ways, well really, they’re all big. Perhaps because of recent national events, we are more aware of this happening in our world, and we get more fired up when we see if affect people around us. People with disabilities face discrimination often, and rarely does it make the news at all. A couple of stories recently showcase the fact that blind people are facing discrimination, and yes, that’s exactly what it is.

I hope you’ll take the time to read these two stories:

School takes blind kid's cane, gives him pool noodle

Blind couple denied bus seats

The first, I lovingly call Noodle-Gate 2014, because it got A LOT of coverage (which it should have) involved a school district in Kansas City taking the cane of an 8-year-old blind boy and replacing it with a pool noodle—in the name of bad behavior. The school district has since apologized for their grave mistake. The story has got people talking about an important issue involving blind children.  What are your thoughts on this story?

The 2^nd is a story of a sweet friend of mine and her boyfriend denied access on public transportation in Washington.

The stories may seem like simple mistakes, but the reality is, they lead down a dark path for people with disabilities. In a daily struggle to beat the odds, and not to become part of the 70% unemployment rate among the blind, we fight daily for access to the same things as our sighted counterparts. Discrimination is not just about race, religion or socio-economic status, people with disabilities must be included in these discussions!

This stuff DOES still happen and we have to make the issues heard loud and clear and not sit idly by.

Parenting: Answering the Hard Questions

A sweet friend of mine recently contacted me via email. She was concerned about how to educate her little boy on people with disabilities. How should she explain things? What questions should she answer? What does she say to her little boy?

I am SO grateful when I get emails like this. It's refreshing to know there are parents out there who want to teach their children and educate them properly.

I find that when I am out and about, travelling from place to place, there is one general common occurrence. Kids are always curious about my cane and why I use it. I love kids in that they are so hungry for information and want to know all about everything going on around them. It's in their nature to want to know why and how, I love this.

So how does a parent go about addressing people with disabilities to their children?

1. Always, always be willing to answer their questions. Something that bothers me tremendously is when I hear a child ask their parent about my cane or why I use it and then mom/dad just shushes them. You know, "Shhh...we'll talk about that later (in hushed tone)." It's understandable parents can feel awkward in moments like this especially when they know I can hear them. BUT, the worst thing a parent can do is hush their child. Don't be afraid to answer the question right there on the spot. You may go into a longer, more in-depth conversation later but it's important for them to know it's ok to ask. If I hear the child, I'll sometimes answer myself but the parents are the best people to answer because then the child isn't afraid in the future to ask questions.

2. If you don't know the answer, it's okay. You are not expected to know everything about everything. Answer what you can then later do your own research and find the answers. The Internet has become an excellent resource for information that is easily accessible (still be careful where you get your information from). It's ok to say, "I don't know, but I will find out!" THEN go back to your child with the answer, don't leave them hanging, wondering and speculating.

3. Not every parent will want to do this but it's another option. Sometimes children will come up to me directly and ask me questions like, "Why do you carry that big stick around?" Or, "Why are you looking so closely at that package?" I personally don't mind this at all. It's easy for me to explain and I am totally aware that the child is just curious. If they have a question about me, or the person with the disability, let them ask them. Again, this might make some parents cringe, not knowing what the child may ask, but it's good for them to talk to others and learn things on their own as well.

4. Educate your child. There are so many great stories, books, articles, etc. about people with disabilities most are great, some are not, but check them out yourself first and then share them with your child. For example here are some really fun articles, about blind people, that are fun to read AND are great for educating your kiddos:
I Can't See...But I Can Imagine
Freedom 
Beyond the Funny Tree
Celebrate
Imagine
The Lessons of the Earth
To Reach for the Stars
The Car, the Sled, and the Butch Wa
Not Much of a Muchness
Safari
Reaching for the Top in the Land Down Under
I Can Feel Blue on Monday
Oh, Wow!
Reflecting the Flame
Remember to Feed the Kittens
To Touch the Untouchable Dream
Gray Pancakes and Gold Horses
Wall-to-Wall Thanksgiving
The Journey
Making Hay
As the Twig Is Bent
The Freedom Bell
What Color Is the Sun

5.  Don't be afraid to ask for help! Like I mentioned before if you don't know the answer to a question or you're not sure how to answer it. Don't hesitate to reach out to someone who can help. I'm always right across the internet-o-sphere at deja.powell@gmail.com.

Thanks for reading this and for being such AWESOME parents!
And HAPPY NEW YEAR everyone!

When Santa Lost his Eyesight

*This is a cute little story written by my good friend Alex Castillo adapted froma play from one of my heroes, Jerry Whittle. Enjoy!

When Santa Lost His Eyesight 

Santa winking/

 By: Alex Castillo

Most people know about Santa Claus. He’s the Jolly old fellow who along with a team of flying reindeer and tireless elves, work year round so that on one night out of every year, they can bring presents to children and adults all over the world. What many people are not aware of, is that one year, Santa began noticing that his vision was not what it used to be. Of course, he did not want to admit it to himself, but driving that sleigh at night, and being up there in the sky with all of those airplanes zooming by, made him feel quite unsafe.

It was no surprise when news started being gossiped about in the North Pole that Santa had gone blind, and that he was quitting the holidays. He became depressed, and without his work, he lost his sense of purpose in life. The man was a real sad mess. On one of those special Holiday nights, everything started going downhill and Just got worse and worse. The naughty and good lists were becoming a blur, and he handed out the wrong toys to more than 1 billion people. I know what you might be thinking at this moment, If Santa had gone blind, you would have surely heard about it. I’m not saying this is all true, but was there one year in which you received absolutely the most unlikely gift ever? Well, if the answer is yes, then this story might make a little sense.

After getting home that night, Santa could do little more than lock himself up in his office at the toy factory, and no matter how hard anyone tried to cheer him up, he could do absolutely nothing for a very long time. This is the story I heard last year when I was visiting friends in Ruston, Louisiana. They say that one year after he had lost his vision; Santa came down there to receive training at their blindness center. “He could barely even see Rudolph’s nose,” they said, “He had lost about 75 pounds when he had first arrived, and wouldn’t even touch a cookie.” “he’d get real close to ya when he was talking,” they would all whisper, “Couldn’t tell north from south even if he was holding a compass: bless his heart.” And apparently the entire town knew about this phenomenon. So well-known was the story down there that a writer by the name of Jerry Whittle wrote a play about the whole ordeal, and everyone in town came to see the production.

 When I asked how come Santa didn’t choose Nebraska to come and train, after all, we have an awesome center right here, and it would seem the familiar choice with all the snow we get, howling winds, and freezing weather, the answer I received was: “well, Nebraska? With all that snow up there? He’d be recognized in a heartbeat if he stepped outside dressed in all red in his Husker gear. “They said: “Down here, he’s just another blind guy with a beard.” The more I thought about the story, about this blind and depressed Santa Claus, the more sense it made. Often when people start to lose their eyesight, they feel ashamed, and even worthless. People find themselves almost transforming from a productive and contributing member of their family, or community, to just sitting passively, watching life and everyone else pass them by.

We often confuse the inability to do, with the inability to see. And all that it would take for us to get back into our routine, or even find a more exciting and challenging one is to simply understand that with some blindness training, many doors can open up with the promise of opportunity. Training centers do not create Santa Claus’s. But they can help Santa figure out how he can do his job as a respectable blind person non-visually. As I recall, the play ended with Santa making the decision to keep the toy factories open and to stay in the Job as Santa Claus, and arriving at the North Pole to continue his yearly duties, with some new blindness skills and alternatives. It was a true happy ending. But the people in Ruston tell a different story. They say that he didn’t go back to the North Pole right away. “Oh, he had some trouble with the training,” they said. At first, he was always lifting those sleep shades. They said he would use the excuse of being overheated to lift them and peek during every class. He didn’t like travel very much, they said: “Oh, Santa, Santa, you would see him just hiding when it was time for travel class,” But what surprised me the most was when they told me: “the first time Santa stepped into the wood shop and heard those live blades running, he almost fainted.”

One would think that someone who has been working with factory machinery their whole lives would be able to handle an arm saw. As time went by, he settled into the center and became an excellent student. But, after training, he didn’t go back to the North Pole right away. He wanted to try out a new career. He went to work at this Cajun restaurant as a cook in the next town. During training, Santa had discovered that he had let Mrs. Claus do all the cooking their entire marriage, but he actually enjoyed working in the kitchen. “Could you imagine that?” they said, “Santa as a cook in a Cajun restaurant?” I suppose he just felt like he wanted some independence.

Like many people after they finish blindness training, he must have felt a bit rebellious and must have wanted to prove to anyone that he could go far beyond the common expectations for a blind person. It wasn’t until the Mrs. Threatened to come and get him that he decided to go back up north. Sometimes the path to independence isn’t obvious and clear. Sometimes, like Santa, we need to figure ourselves out for a little while. Sometimes, blindness gives us an opportunity to learn and make decisions which vary greatly from our past, and that we would have never thought possible if we had not lost our eyesight. And sometimes, we just get a stronger sense of who we are.

But, The first step toward independence, and starting your life, or getting it back is recognizing when it’s time to receive training, and then going through that training in a program that will allow you to fully realize yourself as a respectable blind person. After all, this is our life, and we live through our choices. As for Santa, You can decide to believe this story or not, but the children and grownups are still receiving presents on time and without any strange mix-ups. Polls show that he’s been doing a better job year after year. And just the other day, I read a review about some new restaurant opening up on the North Pole which specializes in southern cuisine. Note:

This Story was based on the play written by Jerry Whittle.

Link: http://nebraskacenterfortheblind.blogspot.com/2012/12/blind-santa-goes-back-to-work.html

What is it you do?

Many people ask, or wonder, what it is I do for a living. Right now,
I'm working on a starting a new career in the southern part of Utah but
what I do is teach blind people to get around effectively and independently
using a long white cane.

I teach a method called Structured Discovery Cane Travel (SDCT). My
former place of work, the PDRIB just released a great Q&A about what
it is I do and what many others are doling. It's a method I fully believe in.

Q: What is the written or working definition of SDCT?

A: In short, Structured Discovery Cane Travel (SDCT) ™ is defined as the consumer-based model of orientation and mobility instruction that is derived from the collective knowledge, experiences, attitudes, and expectations of blind men and women. A full and complete description of the methods and principles that comprise SDCT take months to convey as graduate students or those pursuing an apprenticeship will attest. SDCT is not simply a strategy that can be incorporated into lessons being taught by those conventionally trained because it is a “whole paradigm” and to adopt only specific elements negates its entire premise.

Q: Why such a long cane? If SDCT promotes staying "in-step" and "in-time" but cane tip is beyond stepping area, how is coverage ensured?

A: Walking in-step with the longer, white cane provides for adequate coverage when the person is walking with his/her back straight and effecting a normal gait. Experience has shown that walking at an individual’s natural walking stride while using a short cane all too often results in not enough reaction time to stop before overstepping a drop-off or hitting an obstacle. Hence, the length of the cane allows the person to walk at a normal pace and to have the confidence that he/she will have sufficient reaction time to respond to changes in the environment.

Q: Do SDCT instructors teach pre-cane devices or AMDs?

A: Because the structure of many pre-cane and AMDs serve as a barrier to surroundings, they limit the exposure that blind children have with their environment. With a toddler, we would advocate the integration of an appropriate size cane for general mobility. During play we also promote the use of push toys that can be used out in front of the child. We strongly encourage children to freely move, explore, and to thoroughly engage with their environment and pre-cane and AMDs devices are not conducive to these ends.

Q: Where does low vision fit into SDCT?

A: This question has partially been answered with the responses to Question 10 and 21. When a consumer indicates interest in utilizing low vision devices, he/she would be referred to appropriate sources. The role of the SDCT instructor is primarily to teach students that they can go when and wherever they want to go without fear the they might not be able to see something. Once they have developed true confidence in the cane and nonvisual techniques, then they can use low vision devices at their own discretion.

Q: When is SDCT taught to children?

A: SDCT principles can be used with children regardless of age. Clearly, the skills taught will not be the same for a toddler as they are for an adult just as with traditional training.

Read the full article here: www.pdrib.com

Stop Worrying and 'She" will Learn to Love the Cane

I came across and article today that I was reminded about myself and reading through it again was reminded how much I LOVE this article. PARENTS, this is for you! Take a few minutes to read it, it's excellent!

How I Learned to Stop Worrying and
My Daughter Learned to Love the Cane

by Patricia Renfranz

My daughter Caroline, who is now twelve, is congenitally blind. She has been enrolled in a mainstream elementary school program since second grade. We spent many joyful and many frustrating hours encouraging her to explore her world as a toddler and preschooler. One day she’d be up to her armpits in a pumpkin--gleefully enjoying the gunk--and the next day she’d be crying at the top of a slide--afraid to come down but determined to do it nonetheless. A few times I crammed myself into the McDonald’s Playland tunnels to orient her or encourage her to keep moving. The worst times were those when we felt the glare of other parents as we “tortured” that poor crying blind toddler who couldn’t make up her mind to go up or down on the playground slide. We had to remember that we knew our daughter best. We knew she wanted to slide down; we just had to hang in with her until she had the courage to do it. Fortunately, my family’s resilience in these matters has paid off. Perhaps this is why I was asked by the Future Reflections editor to write about cane travel and training during the elementary school years. So, here goes.

Caroline received her first cane in preschool at the Utah Schools for the Deaf and the Blind. This cane, in fact, was a little tiny NFB cane, the significance of which I did not appreciate at the time. I don’t think Caroline saw this cane as a great emancipator, but she did receive encouragement and training. As she moved into elementary school, her various orientation and mobility instructors (OMIs) provided her with a number of different cane types (usually the red and white aluminum cane) and cane tips. She used her cane at school--in the halls, in the lunchroom, and on the playground--fairly responsibly. On the other hand, she was always encouraged to leave it at the doorway of her classroom, even though a classroom is the least predictable space in the whole school. Caroline mixed her techniques and grips to use the cane as she saw fit, while receiving instruction on its proper usage.

I do not think it is heretical or dangerous for her to have mixed and matched techniques; she was just being a kid. However, technique was a focus of her IEP goals. Technique is intimidating, and while an OMI (or a parent) may know a lot about techniques, they do not necessarily know how to translate techniques devised for blind adults into a program appropriate for children. It makes me wonder if OMI training programs have any sort of pediatric specialty. Are any of those folks who are just terrific working with children--we know who they are, even if we can't describe the type--ever recruited into OMI training programs? What about teachers with an elementary education background? Are OMIs working in the school system able to receive training in child development or child psychology? Are OMIs eligible for special endorsements for working with children? Our family certainly could have benefited from such cross-disciplinary expertise. We’ve just discovered the Modular Instruction book by Willoughby and Monthei and I was delighted to learn that Willoughby was a former elementary school teacher. I wish we had discovered the book years ago.

In any case, at home and in the community, Caroline’s use of the cane was a different story than at school. Picture us in a busy parking lot, Caroline standing outside the car door sans cane, insisting quite stridently that she will neither use her cane nor walk with an adult. In retrospect, I can see this as a young child’s yearning for independence--yearning desperately in fact--without the maturity to understand that independence requires skills and responsibility. Her desire to be independent (not to be quashed!) blossomed without the cognitive skills to understand that safe, responsible travel by a child in a very large parking lot requires either the use of the cane with supervision, or guidance from an adult. Her spirit wanted to be free (not holding hands with mom or dad) but her mind could not accept the limited choices--use your cane with someone nearby or hold our hands--that we (her parents) decided to give her in that circumstance.

This brings me to one side note, which is this question: Does every trip to the grocery store have to be a lesson in cane travel, orientation, or mobility? I feel guilty if I don’t give Caroline the opportunity to practice every chance we get, but sometimes I have to do what is best for me or for my family as a whole, not just what is best for my blind daughter. So, sometimes I leave her in the produce section to explore to her heart’s content while I go round up something for dinner. I do what I can to keep her safe, and I am guiltily relieved to not be there to see the looks of other customers or clerks as she handles all the unusual (or not so unusual) items. It is a decision that gives us both, parent and child, a little independence. She needs to know I trust her. Of course, sometimes she just stays in the car while I run in to get milk. I know, I know--Bad Mom.

Caroline and I went shoe shopping a few weeks ago. Like all the other times, I insisted she walk around the shoe department to try the shoes out. A few years ago, she was quite reluctant to do this. I could see the wheels turning in her mind: "Use a cane--stand out. Not use a cane--bump into shin-height display tables. Other kids around? I can’t see them, but I know they are staring at me." Even a little task like trying on shoes became fraught with significance. I would ask myself questions, too. Do I mention the cane? Do I just let her decide? If she doesn’t use it, do I let her bruise her shins or trip on open boxes, and learn her lesson the hard way? Why am I giving so much significance to every little thing in her life? I need therapy before we’ve even picked out what shoes to try on!

Our last shoe expedition, though, worked. We had to go to the grown-up shoe department because she’s growing so fast. There were fewer kids but more people and more obstacles, and it was in a busier part of the store. So, we get there and soon off she goes, trying her new shoes. Cane in hand, she avoids the pillars and the shin-killing shelves; she doesn’t quite avoid all the people, but that’s okay. We still get the looks--“Oh, that child is brave; oh, that parent is brave; oh, poor thing--look at her maneuvering around all the stuff on the floor.” They don’t realize it’s not about bravery. It does not take bravery to wander around a shoe department. This time, however, it did take a remarkable confluence of physical, social, and cognitive skills that we have journeyed long to find.

This year, Caroline has taken ownership of her cane, and we are so proud of her. Unfortunately, it resulted in a brouhaha with her OMI over what type of cane Caroline should use. Caroline decided she preferred the NFB-style cane, which is lighter, made of fiberglass, has a narrow round grip, and a metal tip. Her OMI insisted it was not safe. She wanted Caroline to use one of the other types of canes: the heavier aluminum cane, a folding cane, a cane with a golf grip, a cane with a plastic tip, a cane with a marshmallow tip—any cane but the NFB cane. Meetings had to be held and tempers flared. As parents, we were ecstatic that Caroline had decided to use any type of cane at all. As I told our friends, she could have chosen a telephone pole and I would have been happy. Our years of struggle, both public and private, to get her to take a cane and use it, had finally paid off! Instead of celebrating, her OMI refused to instruct her, indicating to us a lack of appreciation for what a blind child must go through to accept a cane in her life (I guess her OMI had never seen us in certain parking lots). With strong support from us, Caroline now has another OMI, one who has an open mind and who respects a blind kid’s feelings about using a cane. Things are working very well now.

I learned many things from reading Kenneth Jernigan’s article, “The Nature of Independence.” [That article is also reprinted in this issue.] One is that independence comes from knowledge and training, and from those come the power of choice. I think that OMIs, whether from within or outside the NFB, should respect the fact that there is no fixed prescription for independent mobility for any blind child. One child may need more or less time than mine to acquire the cognitive skills to understand what the cane is and how it can help him or her move independently. One child may be more or less sensitive than mine about balancing how the cane makes one different versus how it non-intuitively makes that child fit in. One family may be better able or less able than mine to find a good balancing point between the disciplined attitude that “every action has import--use the cane every day or you’ll never be independent” and a laissez-faire attitude of “hand the cane to the child and let her or him decide when to use it.”

Next year, Caroline will be going to junior high. She’ll have a big, complicated school to navigate. Thanks to a wonderful OMI, she is already learning the layout, not just routes but how to figure out for herself where she is. I am confident that she is discovering her own path to being an independent blind student who carries a cane.

Pat Renfranz is a new member on the board of the NOPBC and a leader in the Parents of Blind Children of Utah. She and her family live in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Editor’s Note: Pat raised an important question about the university training of O&M instructors. At least one program addresses the need of future instructors to have some knowledge about how children develop. The Louisiana Tech orientation and mobility degree program requires that students take a three-hour course in developmental aspects of blindness with a focus on child development. Students are taught the milestones for typically developing children, and how to use and adapt them as standards for O&M assessments and instruction. Contact information about this program is in the Resources section at the end of this issue.

 -----

Top notch stuff, right!?! I love a good honest parent article and I love Pat!

Risky Business

Denying rights is risky business

Submitted by Ruston Leader on Thu, 04/05/2012 - 10:02am

 

I recently received an email from a mother of a 12-year-old blind daughter; I will refer to her as Sophie. The mother proceeded to tell me Sophie had been in dance classes for many years; the now 12-year-old was taking a big step and starting pre-point class.

 

What does pre-point mean for you non-dancers? Point is the type of dancing you often see at the ballet where the dancer is standing on the very tip of their toes. Pre-point is the first step for a dancer before she upgrades to wearing point shoes and dances all the way on toe.

Sophie’s mother told me that her dance teacher had made it clear to both she and Sophie that Sophie would never actually graduate to point because it’s “too dangerous.” I’ll say this, point is tough, it’s hard on the ankles and the feet. You have to have a certain amount of ankle strength to do it, and it’s usually between 11 and 13 years of age that a dancer progresses to point — if they’re ready.

This email made me so sad. Sophie loves to dance just like I always have. She has worked as hard (if not harder) than everyone else to make it to this place. Sophie and her mom are well researched and know the dangers that come with the art, just like dangers in any sport or hobby.

Before I go any further I want to say that safety should always be a priority. However, I also feel that if we as humans worry about safety in all we do, we would all be home on our couches doing nothing. I am a firm believer that like anyone else, blind people have the right to enjoy hobbies, sports, the arts, whatever it is that interests them.

We, as blind people, have the same right as anyone else to make choices, good or bad, with risk or with no risk.

A few years back I headed to Park City, Utah to Utah Olympic Park with some friends. I had always wanted to do one particular activity called the Alpine Slide. The Alpine Slide is a fixed track that runs down the mountain that allows riders to go down on wooden sleds. The track is one of the longest in the world at 3,000 feet (www.utah.com/parkcity).

As I took the lift up the beautiful mountain and stood in line with my sled to go down. I was approached and told I was not allowed to ride the slide. I was perplexed by this and of course asked the reason why. As I suspected I was told it was because of my blindness and it’s too much of a liability for the park.

Now let me give you a few more facts about the slide. Kids as young as 3-years-old are allowed to ride on the lap of an adult and kids as young as 8-years-old can “drive” the sled independently. The sled is on a “fixed” track, meaning drivers do not have any control over the turns or direction. The driver has one joystick that speeds up and slows down the sled.

For me, I could not understand why it was any more dangerous for me to drive than anyone else.

After a lot of discussions with the manager I was actually never allowed to ride this particular slide.
The words liability and safety are used nearly every day with blind people. It’s brought up very frequently all across the county. It seems to be the go-to phrase when people want to stop us from doing something, and in some cases it may be, but it should be the exception to the rule, not the rule.

For me, I am a bit of a thrill seeker. I enjoy venturing out and trying new things.Not everyone is that way, and that’s OK. But I think I, and others like me, who happen to be blind should have the same right to be adventurous (or not) as anyone else.

Whether it’s dancing on point or riding down a 3,000 foot slide, the risk should be ours to make. Sure, Sophie could lose her balance and break an ankle, or I could have fallen off the slide, but it’s a risk we, as blind people, should be allowed to take.

This notion that things are more dangerous for blind people, or that we are a major liability issue is concerning to me. Sure, it’s just a dance class or an adventurous activity, but if we are told “No” to these things, what’s next?

Deja M. Powell is programs manager at the Professional Development and Research Institute on Blindness at Louisiana Tech University and a 2008 alumna of the Louisiana Center for the Blind in Ruston.

Shake it like that...

Teachers, here is a little acronymn I came up with to help my little ones remember the rules of the cane. We are working on memorizing it right! One of my little guys even has some dance moves to go along with it, it's pretty cute!


I know it's not a complete list of EVERYTHING you should think about with your cane, but it's some of the most important in my book!

Always remember to

SHAKE

when using the cane…

Swing wide.

Hold it in the middle.

Always Use It!

Keep tapping.

Every time, in-step.

nbsp;Once all (7) of my kids have it memorized we get to have an Ice Cream SHAKE party! The sweets lover that I am, this motivates me as a teacher, truly! :)

Yummmayy!!!

Blind Kids Shouldn't be Illiterate!

I have recently developed an enormous passion for teaching blind kids. I wrote the following article for the Ruston Daily Leader on Thursday April 14, 2011.

Finding Hope for Blind Kids

By: Deja M. Powell

When I was nine months old, my parents learned that I was blind, the doctors did not give my parents a very optimistic outlook on my life or my potential. My parents enrolled me in a school for the blind when I was four and that is the first time they had ever met another blind person, and they were all kids. They never met a successful blind adult until much later in my life.

Early on my parents saw the potential for me to receive a good education and enrolled me in public schools. Here they were told that like most blind people, I had some “usable” vision and braille was too difficult to learn and large print was best. They also said that I didn’t need a cane as the goal was to make me look as normal as possible. My parents listened to the so-called experts, as any parents would.

I struggled all the way through high school with large print, magnifiers, hours of uncomfortable reading, very thick glasses, no confidence and a hatred for reading.

It wasn’t until I was 23 years old, had graduated college (with mediocre grades) and now had no blindness skills to keep a job that my life felt like it was crumbling. I hit rock bottom and that was when I decided to come to the Louisiana Center for the Blind. It was then that I dug deep, learned to read and write braille proficiently, began using a cane and finally developed some confidence. It was life changing for me, but I always wonder, what if I had gotten all of that earlier?

I went to Shreveport this weekend for the National Federation of the Blind of Louisiana state convention. A gathering of more than 200 blind people from around the state attend this conference every year. The convention offers workshops and presentations on many different topics related to blindness such as braille literacy, adaptive technology, advocacy skills and presentations of personal stories from successful blind adults.

The highlight of this convention came early for me. I met a young blind couple from Baton Rouge who has a little girl who is six and has the same eye condition as I, loves clothes, shoes and jewelry like I and who is scared to use a cane, like I was. Marissa is bright, loves to dance, has a lot of personality and energy; she is like any other 6-year-old except she is blind.

When first meeting Marissa’s parents I could sense how scared, anxious and over-whelmed they seemed. Their little girl is blind and they clearly wanted to do what was best for her. They attended several meetings with other parents of blind children, talked to many successful blind adults, met with some of the national leaders in braille literacy and even did a cane walk under a blindfold.

According to the National Federation of the Blind (NFB), less than ten percent of blind kids today are learning braille. Can you imagine if Americans were told that less than ten percent of their children would be literate, there would be an uproar of enormous proportions. Yet this is happening with blind kids across the country. It should be unacceptable and yet we don’t have enough teachers who know braille to teach these kids so they never learn to read, a totally deplorable outcome.

Thankfully Marissa does have a good teacher and started learning braille at an early age, she is in kindergarten and reads at a high first grade level, in braille; she will be literate and sadly she is a rare case. Those who use braille efficiently, and early on, are 85 percent more likely to be employed as adults. You simply can’t argue with those numbers..So why is it so many blind kids get left behind?

While many things could be taken from the convention this weekend, the most important to me was that a little girl left Shreveport with a cane and two highly motivated parents who will give her every tool she needs to be whatever she wants to be. For any child, sighted or blind, the key to success is having someone, a parent, teacher, friend, organization that will stand up for them and fight for the education they deserve.

Happy St. Patty's Day from S&S!

I hate green! I know what a grumpy way to start this post right. However, I am flaunting it to the best of my ability today!

But I thought I'd post a little activity I did with the kiddos today! I know as a teacher of blind kids, I love to hear ideas from other teachers about what they are doing for their O&M lessons so I thought I'd share...

We had a rockin' St . Patty’s Day Scavenger Hunt today!

The sweet Miss Maria and her girls helped me cut out a dozen or so Shamrocks on bright green cardstock.

I got to the school early and placed them in varies areas around the outside of the school. It's 80 degrees here in Louisiana so it's warm enough in March to do this, it would still work indoors though.


The kids put on their blindfolds and we read them the clues...
1. I’m hanging outside in the place where the American Flag flies in the wind!(THE FLAG POLE)
**They needed a little help with this one. I asked , "Where would an American flag be flying?" and one of my kids said, "in America!!!" So we had to help them a little on this one. (I mean she WAS right!)

2. I love to play at recess! You can find me at the fence that’s around the first grade playground, I will be hanging out there! (CHAIN LINK FENCE AROUND PLAYGROUD).
**You could do this on the playground equipment, which would be fun, but we have travel during recess so keeping the shamrocks actually on the playground equipment was probably not going to happen!

3. I am hanging out at the fence where we practice our street crossings, it can get kind of stinky with this trash can across the street! (FENCE ON NORTH EAST SIDE OF THE SCHOOL).

4. I am going to the room where you learn your Braille, look for me outside the Braille room, cause I wanna learn too! (BRAILLE ROOM ON THE RAILING).
**The Braille room is actually in a re-locatable outside, so it worked out nicely for our scavenger hunt.

5. You did it! You found me in all my hiding places! Now go in Mrs. Hammock's room for a special surprise! (MRS. HAMMOCK’S ROOM)
**At the end I had a little green treat bag, filled with green treats and a little Braille card they had to read before they could open their treat bags.

We only had an hour for our activity so this could go on for as long as you need! The kids had a lot of fun and we learned some mobility skills at the same time!

Despite one kids minor mishap with a large pole, It was a good St. Patty's Day after all!

Why couldn't the Irish pick pink, seriously!?!

What a Doll...

What a sweetly and deliciously wonderful story I fell upon today...just enjoy this one! :) Click here for the direct link.

Salem sisters work to 'cure ignorance'

By Jillian Jorgensen jjorgensen@eagletribune.com The Eagle Tribune Wed Jan 05, 2011, 12:16 AM EST

SALEM — Kalli Roy's two older sisters have American Girl dolls customized to look just like them. But getting one for Kalli is more difficult than picking out the right facial details from the doll catalog.

Kalli, 4, has albinism, an inherited genetic condition that means she has little or no pigment in her eyes, skin or hair. Her eyes appear violet and her vision is impaired, but that didn't stop her from sprinting around her house one recent evening.

Her sisters, Kaila, 10, and Kiana, 8, got the idea to ask the American Girl company to make a doll that looks like their sister. But their request isn't just so their sister could have a familiar toy.

They want "to cure ignorance," Kaila said.

The dolls come with books telling the tales of pre-teens from various points in history through the modern day. The girls hope a "Kalli Frances" doll and book would educate those who sometimes stare at Kalli or make mean comments.

At a summer camp, Kiana and Kaila were playing with a boy they had just met. They asked if he wanted to play with their sister, too. "He said, 'No, she's a freak. She doesn't look like us. We can't play with her,'" Kiana said. "Did I cry?" Kalli asked, from the other side of the table.

Kiana told Kalli she didn't cry, because she hadn't heard the exchange.

"What do you say when people stare at you or say bad things?" the girls' mother, Tricia, asked Kalli.

"I'm fabulous," Kalli replied.

The girls decided to contact American Girl on their own, Tricia Roy said, and the company urged them to send in a letter about their little sister. But Kaila and Kiana had bigger ideas.

"We didn't want to just send in two or three letters from the family," Kiana said.

So, the two of them approached their principal at Lancaster School to see if they could ask fellow students to write letters. The school went above and beyond, Tricia Roy said, bringing in guidance counselors to talk to each class about albinism and then letting students write letters to the company during lunch. Kalli went to the school that day to answer questions from students.

"We had over 40 letters from the school and staff," Kiana said.

Tricia Roy also posted the girl's mission on Facebook and message boards for people with albinism, their families and friends. She has received letters from people nationwide and even outside the country.

"Everyone stares at Kalli and if we make an American Girl doll, it'll help them answer the questions that they're too afraid to ask because they think they're too personal," Kiana said.

But the doll could help people understand that Kalli is, with some slight help, able to live like any other 4-year-old. She uses a walking stick, and has to wear sunblock and sunglasses whenever she's outside.

But she goes to the beach with the help of a full-body bathing suit and a sun hat, and can run throughout her own home because she's memorized where everything is.

"She's smart as a whip and runs through life like any 4-year-old," Tricia Roy said.

She dances and is learning gymnastics from Kiana. She also is learning to play the piano.

"She played "Jingle Bells" in the Christmas recital," Roy said.

Just seconds later, Kalli was gone in a bright blur and "Jingle Bells" was coming from the piano a few rooms over. That's the Kalli her sisters want people to know — a girl who can do just about anything and is fun to be around, rather than some of the preconceived notions about albinism.

"All the movies that have a person with albinism, they show them being evil," Kaila said.

And for Kalli, who uses the term "sunglass kid" rather than albino to describe herself, the idea of having a doll like her is a pretty great one.

As her mother asked what a Kalli Frances doll would come with, Kalli ticked off some of her own accessories: a bright yellow dress, sunglasses, a walking stick, "a bathing suit like mine and beach socks."

Father Dave said his daughters are like second mothers.

"What's really nice is they include her in everything," he said.

And their mother has already told the girls it isn't about the end result. Even if the doll never gets made, they've already raised awareness in their school and in their community, among the people Kalli will know as she grows up.

That will help make Kalli's interactions with people easier, Tricia Roy said, even if it doesn't completely cure ignorance as they've hoped.

"What they're asking for from the world, I don't know if it'll ever really happen," Tricia Roy said. "But just knowing they think it's possible is enough for me."

Letters in support of the doll can be e-mailed to vote4kalli@gmail.com.

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What a cool idea! I've always thought Build-a-Bear Workshop should have a bear with a cane! Maybe we should start a campaign? This little girl motivated me! :)