The Blindfold is available in Braille and in large print upon request. To go green, and receive yours by email please send an email to vision@blindandlowvision.org and put Blindfold in the subject line.
For info or if you have a vehicle in good running order that you would like to donate, call Russ at 659-5360 or the BVIC at 649-3505.
Approximately 2 years old, like-new condition, programmable for your special needs, original price $6,000, with 5 year extended warranty. Owner will sell for $2,000 (or best offer) and will donate all the proceeds to the Blind & Visually Impaired Center of Monterey County. In turn the funds may be matched by the Harden Foundation match grant. Please call Sonja Jackson at 831-373-5738 for more information.
“If you want happiness for an hour, take a nap.
If you want happiness for a day, go fishing.
If you want happiness for a year, inherit a fortune.
If you want happiness for a lifetime, help somebody.”
Chinese Proverb
April is National Volunteer Month, and we would like to once again recognize and honor our volunteers, who inspire us with their service and demonstrate the happiness that can be derived from helping others. These folks graciously share their time, talents, interests and energy in a wide variety of capacities. Here are some of the activities that often go unnoticed or unheralded, but are so vital to the health of our community and welfare of our clients:
“Great opportunities to help others seldom come, but small ones surround us every day.” (Sally Koch) If you’d like to learn more about volunteer opportunities at the BVIC, please give us a call.
Use of the Support Cane in Orientation & Mobility Instruction
When people are unfamiliar with what Orientation and Mobility is and a reference to canes is made, most people think immediately of the type of short cane one leans on. Generally the length of it is about to one’s hip, and it usually has a crook or horizontal handle on the top.
Orientation and Mobility Specialists vary in their views about teaching the use of the standard support cane as a part of O&M training. Support canes have historically been the job of the physical therapist to recommend, provide the correct height and type of support cane, and teach how to use. In O&M training, “our” cane is known as the long cane. It is thinner than a support cane, and comes up to one’s chest in length. The grip is covered with rubber like a golf grip, and usually has one flat side.
Over the years as awareness has grown about the visual functioning of people with different types of low vision, we have realized that many people with low vision have enough vision to avoid obstacles. Many low vision pedestrians can detect the presence of a curb from seeing the contrast between the darker street and the sidewalk. Some people with low vision still use their vision as the primary avenue of information for orientation. Sometimes the main problem is depth perception when it comes to using vision for walking. Many people do not need a long cane to avoid obstacles.
As an Orientation and Mobility Specialist, I view the support cane as a potentially supplemental tool for the person who has a high degree of low vision, but has some balance issues. I’ve noticed that many people can walk easily on good sidewalks without a support cane, but generally do need something to step down off curbs, or to feel more secure on slanting surfaces. If a person can see the curb but not how deep it is, the support cane can be used to check the depth of the curb before stepping down.
If a low vision pedestrian needs to periodically check a dark area to see if it is a hole, a puddle, or a shadow, sometimes a support cane can be used in a modified manner to stop and check by dragging it across the dark surface. However, if a person really depends on the support cane to maintain balance even on flat, smooth surfaces, the support cane cannot be used as a tool to check surfaces without presenting a possible danger to the pedestrian.
Some people cannot walk safely without a support cane to lean on. If a person’s balance and vision are both severely impaired, the use of the long cane in conjunction with the support cane can be taught.
These days one can obtain a support cane that is marked white with a little red near the base, just like a long cane is marked. If a person walks easily over slightly raised sidewalk cracks and slabs and can see the location of any curb, the person probably does not have the type of vision loss that absolutely warrants needing a long cane to check surfaces ahead. Such a person may be able to use a support cane for minimal balance issues; to check the depth of a curb; and to lean on while stepping down off the curb. The marked support cane can also serve to alert drivers at intersections that the pedestrian is visually impaired. In public this person with the marked support cane might more easily obtain offers of information assistance than the support cane user who does not have the cane marked white and red.
So, in summary, support canes are not the primary instructional tool of the O&M Specialist. Long canes are their primary tool. However, the support cane may be a part of the O&M training program if the trainee has balance challenges.
By Denise St. Jean, Guide Dogs for the Blind (reprinted with permission)
Rena Wyant, O&M Specialist from Monterey, Calif. recently attended a seminar at Guide Dogs for the Blind (GDB) national headquarters in San Rafael, Calif. The five-day seminar educated O&M Specialists about GDB, class training and the Guide Dog lifestyle.
Rena’s motivation for attending the seminar at GDB was a result of her clients expressing interest in working with a Guide Dog and being able to provide feedback to clients looking for verification after they receive a Guide Dog. She also wanted to update her existing knowledge about working with clients who have Guide Dogs.
“I was able to get a real understanding of how to prepare my students interested in a Guide Dog as a mobility option. What I learned will help me begin preparing them to transition from cane travel to using a dog. I will also be able to provide more effective orientation assistance to my clients who are active Guide Dog users.”
The seminar also gave the O&M Specialists problem-solving simulated instructional situations with a blindfolded Guide Dog instructor with a Guide Dog, posing as the visually impaired student. The group had to decide how best to teach finding a specific objective that did not have any outstanding auditory or kinesthetic landmarks. They learned how to pattern the dog, in cooperation with the student, to a specific point of reference so the objective could be accurately found by the Guide Dog team.
“The opportunity to work under blindfold during the seminar reminded me of what it was like to be a student again. I will take the experience home with me and be a more effective teacher because of it."Rena also found the seminar at GDB to be an excellent way to network.
"I enjoyed comparing experiences with the other O&M Specialists from the U.S. and Canada. I was impressed with GDB's policies of follow-up and continued information and support for GDB graduates. I know I can also contact GDB when I need more information and support in working with Guide Dog teams. GDB is a great resource for O&M Specialists."
During the seminar the group was also briefed on assisting potential candidates to qualify and complete the GDB application process. Rena was delighted to learn GDB has no upper age limit for applicants and how many applicants have low vision.
“I love how applicants are thoroughly interviewed and evaluated. The school will make useful recommendations if applicants are determined not to be ready for the program yet. Later applicants can re-apply when their circumstances change.”
Once candidates are accepted into class at GDB, the staff works hard to make it as successful an experience as possible for the Guide Dog team. A highlight for Rena was listening to visually impaired staff members talk about their experiences with becoming Guide Dog travelers, and having different experiences with different Guide Dogs.
Rena’s experience at the GDB seminar brought home the belief of successful teaching of any kind depends greatly on taking into account the needs and goals of each individual. She also realized GDB will work enthusiastically with her and her students who show sincere effort and determination to meet the requirements to qualify as an applicant to the GDB program.“After taking this seminar I definitely feel I have acquired practical tools for working with my students who are already part of a Guide Dog team, as well as with those who are considering applying to GDB.”
Future O&M Seminars hosted by GDB will be held in cities across the U.S. in 2010. For more information, please call 1.800.295.4050.
Rena (left) at GDB Seminar
(by Carolyn Craig)
As a client and a board member I found a wonderful resource I’d like to share with others. “Sound Solutions” is a series of audio tapes produced by the Braille Institute of America that have been given to our Center. Each one is approximately 30 minutes in length and covers a different topic to help people and their families deal with vision loss. The information and tips are about living life independently. Subjects are presented in an interesting and an entertaining story format for easy listening. Some of the topics cover organization and communication skills, traveling and cooking tips, and myths about blindness. There are many ideas about exploring your other senses. I found them to be very helpful and also inspiring. The cassettes are available for a three week loan by calling Jeannie at 649-3505. For your convenience the Sound Solutions Series also can be accessed at the Braille Institute’s website at http://www.brailleinstitute.org/recorded_media.We’re excited to bring you two fast and easy ways to donate to your favorite charity, the BVIC. Doing two things many of us love to do – Search the WEB and SHOP online. The BVIC is registered on eScrip and GoodSearch, two internet sites that help non-profits. Even if you are not a computer user you can help by spreading the word to family and friends!
Good Search
Use www.goodsearch.com as your search engine. For each search GoodSearch will make a donation to the BVIC. All you have to do is register at www.goodsearch.com and select Blind and Visually Impaired Center-BVIC from th drop-down menu. Then search away…
The site also offers GoodShop where you can find coupons & discounts from over 1,000 stores. PLUS, the added bonus of money being donated to the BVIC while you search or shop. For example Macy’s gifting is 1.5 to 2.5%, Best Buy 2.5% and Pet Smart can be 4 to 7.5%. You can even add GoodSearch to your toolbar or on your website.
eScrip
eScrip and hundreds of merchant partners have created a system that rewards customer loyalty by contributing a percentage of purchases to a chosen group, BVIC.
Online Registration –
Visit www.eScrip.com and register in the program. It only takes a few minutes and from then on shop with eScrip merchants – automatically! Registration is fast and easy. Steps for supporter registration: