Receive the Blindfold by email instead of “snail mail”. Just email vision@blindandlowvision.org and put Blindfold in the subject line.
The BVIC will be closed November 27th & 28th for Thanksgiving.
The office will be closed from December 22, 2008 and will reopen on January 5, 2009.
The Tuesday Program Christmas lunch will be on December 16th. If you plan on attending you must call the BVIC at 649-3505. Kindly respond by December 10th.
Vehicles available as of 10/15/08
If you are looking for a gift idea for that special person who has everything or that difficult person to buy for, consider a donation to the BVIC in their honor. It’s a caring way to pay tribute to someone and a considerate way to help others.
We wanted to share a special photo that we recently received. It was taken at our 35th anniversary celebration a couple of years ago. Elmer Roy, a co-founder of the Blind Service Center (the original name of the BVIC) and first president was a surprise guest at the anniversary event. Elmer is still doing great and is living at a local retirement community.
Also serving the BVIC’s first Board of Directors were Bill Read, Romayne Wetmore, Grace Donlin, Marian Fitch, Elwood Dukes, Russell Eddy, Mabel Ballard & Isaac Soskin (Founder).
The BVIC is a participant in Monterey Peninsula Foundation’s community fundraiser. 
The host of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am offers a unique opportunity for charities to cash-in on the birdies made during the competitive round of the 2009 tournament. The fundraiser consists of a Pledge Drive, a Guess the Birdies contest, & a bonus bucks component.
All are welcome to fill out a pledge form & pledge one cent or more per birdie (based on the total number of birdies made by PGA Tour professionals during the 2009 AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am) or a flat rate. You can pledge for the Blind & Visually Impaired Center on line by going to Birdies for Charity . You can also call the BVIC at 649-3505 and request a pledge form be mailed to you. The lucky person who guesses correctly (before the contest closes, Feb. 11th) will win a grand prize. There are also great prizes drawn from pledge forms throughout the pledging season.
The exciting news is that 100% of all pledges for the BVIC will go to the BVIC and as an added bonus the Monterey Peninsula Foundation will provide the BVIC with Bonus Bucks in the form of a 10% match on all collected money the BVIC raises.
2009 marks the 200th birthday of Louis Braille, the man who opened the door to reading for the world's sightless and visually impaired when he developed his system of raised dots to read by touch.
The Blind & Visually Impaired Center will celebrate this event with a luncheon and performance by Tom Sullivan, the best-selling author, singer, songwriter, actor, athlete and inspirational speaker. Blind since birth, Tom has lived by the philosophy that "Any negative can be turned into a positive."
The celebration will be Sunday, February 22, 2009 at the Inn at Spanish Bay in Pebble Beach, with lunch at noon and his performance at 1:00 pm. Tickets will be $50 a person and sponsorship packages including tickets, books, program recognition and a backstage meeting are available at $500, $1,000, $2,500, $5,000 and $10,000 levels. All proceeds benefit the Blind & Visually Impaired Center of Monterey County. For information please call Carolyn Craig at(831) 373-0150.
VISTA Update
Jane, a 13 year old Carmel Middle School student, was awarded our VISTA grant in September. Jane received two types of technology from the grant: Openbook, a talking
OCR software program, as well as a HP Scanjet which is an automatic-document- feeding, duplexing scanner that holds up to 50 pages.
Roberta, Jane’s teacher, said she is outstanding academically. With the new technology for her computer, Jane will be able to read print documents and books further preparing her for higher education. Jane’s father stated that she is also an excellent pianist. She won a scholarship to attend the summer music camp at the Southern California Conservatory of Music.
We are very pleased to assist Jane with her education and independence. You can help other students who are visually impaired by making a donation to the Vista grant.
Good News for Music Fans with Vision Loss
IPod is finally accessible to the visually impaired. The American Foundation for the Blind (AFB) is applauding Apple's recent move to make iTunes and iPods accessible to blind and visually impaired people. The iPod Nano, which was virtually unusable for people with vision loss, is now equipped with talking menus and large font options. Apple has also made improvements to the accessibility of iTunes. To take advantage of spoken menus, you will need:
More information and comments can be found on the following 2 websites:
http://www.apple.com/accessibility/
http://www.afb.org/blog/
Some Tips for Using a Handheld Magnifier
Money Matters!!!
Handling your finances can be difficult when you have a vision problem. Fortunately, there are products to help.
If you have any questions or need training in the use of these products, please call Robin Whiteley, Rehabilitation Specialist, at the BVIC, 649-3505.
Last month we discussed the importance of keeping our lives "peopled" and how maintaining social connections can improve our overall health as we age. Remaining close to family and friends as well as developing new relationships through community involvement, helps us build and maintain essential social support networks. One program that offers social, as well as physical and cognitive stimulation is the Creative Living Program of the Salinas Adult School. Their mission statement reads: "...committed to excellence by meeting the needs of older learners in a safe, caring environment while providing opportunities for lifelong learning, encouraging community involvement and fostering personal warmth and dignity". Whether you are an active senior or an older adult with special needs and challenges, there is a class or group for you at CLP.
For information, call 796-6920, go online to http://www.salinasadultschool.com/ or visit the school. You won't be disappointed.
Holiday Travel
Many of us traditionally like to travel to be with family or friends over the holidays. Without a car or access to a driver for your car, you can still take a holiday trip with public transportation from Monterey. The 55 San Jose express bus goes to Prunedale, Gilroy, Morgan Hill and the Diridon Station in San Jose. It runs 7 days a week and will be running on Thanksgiving, the day after Thanksgiving, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. The schedule is limited, leaving only at 5:22 AM, 10:24 AM and 3:15 PM on those days, but it still makes it possible to go. In Gilroy the bus goes to the Caltrain station, so you can connect there to go to the Bay area. In San Jose you can take a taxi or bus from the Diridon Station to the airport or bus station. From Monterey you can also take Amtrak thruway buses to Salinas and San Jose from Pearl Street near the bus transit plaza.
For trips to the San Francisco or San Jose airport from Monterey, the Monterey Airbus runs seven days a week from Pearl Street downtown near Ordway Drugstore. It starts at 4 AM and leaves every 90 minutes until 7 PM. It costs $45.00 one way to the San Francisco airport and $35.00 one way to the San Jose airport. It does not go through Salinas, but it does stop at the Park’n Ride lot in Prunedale. For an extra fee, if you live in the Carmel or the Monterey area, the airbus can be scheduled to pick you up at your home address. For reservations or questions call the Monterey Airbus at 373-7777.
If you have an MST bus schedule, contact numbers for Greyhound, Amtrak, Caltrain, and others are listed inside the front page. For your convenience, those numbers are listed below. Happy travels!
Amtrak- 1-800-USA-RAIL or 1-800-872-7245
Bay Area Transit Info- 1-510-817-1717
Caltrain- 1-800-660-4287
Greyhound- 1800-231-2222
Rideshare- 883-3754
VTA- 1-408-321-2300
Gail Garcia
I moved to the Monterey Peninsula with my parents in 1984. I enrolled at MPC and began working for Longs Drugs Store, Corporation. Soon, I met my future husband, Joe, and here we are 24 years later! I worked for Longs for 22 years, the last 7 years as a store manager. My job moved me to several different stores, enabling me to meet many people. I enjoyed my experiences with the company, but decided in 2006 it was time for me to make a change. With the support of my husband, I started a soy candle business named GG's Natural Wonders. With soy being a natural product, I have joined the "green movement". Joe and I live in Prunedale with our family of 3 dogs, 5 fish, 2 hens, 1 rooster, a turtle and many wild birds and squirrels. We both enjoy gardening, canoeing, baseball, and music.
I was very pleased when my sister-in-law, Jean Cordero, asked me if I would be interested in becoming a board member. This is a wonderful organization & l look forward to being a helpful member for many years to come.
Helping people obtain and use the CTAP phones is one of the many important services that Robin Whiteley provides. Robin is always willing to help people with this program.
Pa Kou Cha, a CTAP’s Outreach Specialist wrote the following article about the program.
Free Phones?Yes, free phones.
The California Telephone Access Program (CTAP) provides free specialized telephone equipment to California residents who are deaf, hard of hearing, blind, or have low vision, speech disabilities, cognitive disabilities or mobility impairments.
How can CTAP provide free phones? CTAP is funded through a small surcharge that appears on each Californian’s monthly telephone bill. The surcharge ranges anywhere from $0.02 to $0.10 depending on the percentage of telephone usage. These funds pay for the program.
To qualify for the program you must:
For more information on the program you can contact CTAP at (800) 806-1191. To schedule a group presentation about the CTAP Program please contact Pa Kou Cha at (559) 477-4674 or e-mail pakoucha@ddtp.org.
The Low Vision Support Group will take a holiday break from meeting during the months of November and December. We appreciate our longtime members who have been faithful to the meetings. The meetings are very helpful for new people to work things out. The group will resume in January and we look forward to welcoming new members and exploring new topics.
Blind Babies Foundation is proudly celebrating its 60th Anniversary in 2009 with numerous events throughout the year. We very much want to include alumni and alumni parents in these events. It just doesn’t seem right to celebrate and not include the reasons for our existence – our families past and present – in the festivities. Also, we are really curious as to what has happened to our “babies” and their families during the last 60 years.
Given that goal, we need to hear from you if you were a BBF client, family, relative, or know where any of our graduates and their families are presently located. Please contact Michael McFarland at Blind Babies Foundation, 1814 Franklin Street, 11th Floor, Oakland, CA 94612, (510)446-2229, Mcfarlandmike@blindbabies.org .
On behalf of the BVIC Staff & Board Members we thank you all for your ongoing support.
We wish you all the Happiest of Holidays and a Happy & Healthy New Year!
