Blind School

My last blog took us back to 2012. Today I will be talking about what happened in 2014. I don’t remember anything specific that happened in the time period between my cataract surgery and mid- 2014, but I probably had at least one hospital stay. I do remember staying at home was getting old and boring.  I wasn’t driving because of my vision, I was doing a daily IV medication, and I was frequently going to Dr. appointments. Getting a job was unrealistic, and besides, what could I do with limited vision? Isn’t that what everyone thinks?  I surely thought that!

 Sometime in 2014 I received a mailing regarding a back to work program NC offered. One of those programs included a vocational rehab through the North Carolina Division of Services for the Blind. I didn’t know there was a such place and after a little research, I gave them a call. Not long afterwards, I was talking with a representative face to face. We discussed all the options the NC Services for the Blind offered a visually impaired person. I was surprised because I had no idea this was available. After further talking, I made the decision to attend the NC Rehabilitation Center for the Blind. It was not a hard decision to say yes to attend the program, but it was scary to know I would be alone at a place I had never been. Yes, there were going to be other people there, but they were not going to be guiding me and walking with me telling me what to do and where to go. It was going to be all me, doing it all for myself.

 The Rehabilitation Center is held on the campus of the NC School for the Blind in Raleigh. This is a flexible 16-week program for people who have lost their vision later in life. Students in the program ranged from 20 years old to older adults in their 70’s. Most had lost their vision due to Diabetes, but there were many other reasons as well.  One person that I still talk to today, lost all of his vision after being shot in the temple. The Rehab Center offered 2 program tracks, one to prepare you for work and the other to prepare you for college. Since I had already graduated college, I took the track to prepare for a job.

 I stayed on campus in a dorm room. Upon arrival on the first day, I was shown around the campus to get familiar with the layout and location of each building I would be frequenting. The rehab center’s portion of the campus was separate from the NC School for the Blind although we did share the cafeteria. We usually went at a different time and ate in a separate room.

 My day started with breakfast then I headed to class. Each student had their own class schedule. In both tracks a test was given to determine our education level. They offered all the basic education classes as well as computer, brail, mobility, cooking, everyday living classes, and more. All of these classes specifically taught the visually impaired how to function in those areas. The teachers taught us tips and tricks to do many things. In the computer class, we were taught computer programs that allow the user to operate the computer with the keyboard and different key functions enabling the computer to read the content aloud. It was truly enlightening. I never knew there were so many possibilities for the blind. In my cooking class we were taught how to cook using assistive gadgets and tricks. Simple things such as a meat thermometer that speaks the temperature or a gadget that sits atop a mug beeping when the cup is full of liquid. If you have vision, you do not think about pouring hot coffee and knowing when the cup is full. In my everyday living class, we were taught tricks like putting a rubber band around the shampoo bottle to feel the difference between shampoo and conditioner. Here is a trick for you. You know how difficult it is to figure out the right way to put on a fitted sheet? What about when you can not see what you are doing? I could turn that sheet all day searching for the short side. The trick I learned, put a safety pin in the middle of the elastic in the foot of the sheet. The next time you put your sheets on the bed simply feel for the safety pin and you will immediately know how to place the fitted sheet. Classes ended at 3 and we could do whatever we wanted afterwards. The Rehab Center had a Recreational Therapist that came in at that time. It was part of our learning as well. The rehab therapist would do different activities with us such as gym and arts and crafts. Once a week we would go to Walmart to pick up things we needed, while at the same time, it was teaching us how to be independent and make in store purchases. We would also go bowling. Did you know a blind person could bowl? Didn’t know it, but they had a rail you could follow with your hand. When you reached the end of the rail it was time to roll the bowling ball. I could see enough that I did not need the rail, but it was awesome that someone who couldn’t see at all was able to participate in an activity with the sighted that seemed impossible. My fellow classmates and I would take a cab out to eat dinner some nights.  We had a good time. It made me realize a visually impaired person did not have to be confined to their house, or have their “person” with them at all times.

 The most challenging class I took was the mobility class. The instructor told me it was harder to teach someone with partial vision to use the blind cane. She said they wanted to depend on what little vision they had rather than using the cane to tell them what was ahead. Well, that was me. It is hard to walk confidently with a blind cane while trying to see what is around when you can’t really see what is around you. Depending completely on the blind cane to tell you where to walk is unsettling. It took me a long time to become comfortable using one. This is a one-on-one class with the student and instructor. I started out around the campus walking on different surfaces and going up and down steps. Some days we would walk across the street to Pullen Park. Part of the training was learning to cross the street. Eventually we went to downtown Raleigh and learned how to cross the street using the crosswalk button at stoplights. We also rode a bus, went to the mall to learn to use an escalator, and so much more. These are simple things a well sighted person can do without thought, you do not think about how challenging it can be for others. It is similar to a person in a wheelchair, the wheelchair doesn’t stop them from doing everything, they just have to learn new ways to do them.

 While out on the Blind School campus I would see other instructors teach their students to use the blind cane. I remember seeing a little boy that looked like he was in kindergarten or first grade running down the sidewalk with the blind cane. I was walking extremely slow taking baby steps scared I was going to walk in to something or fall off of a 50-foot ledge, and he wasn’t afraid of anything. He had his little blind cane and was all over the place. I just watched him thinking to myself, I want to be like him.

 I have seen a lot of comics and jokes online with blind people using smartphones. The joke is on them. A smartphone is extremely useful to the visually impaired. First of all, it can read everything aloud. Secondly, you can speak commands into the phone. Also, there are apps on the phone that will read documents, handwriting, tell you colors, dollar amounts, facial recognition, and so much more. Another amazing thing a phone will do is tell you cooking instructions, ingredients, and other information about a packaged item when you scan its barcode. I had one class that only taught the benefits of a smart phone for the visually impaired. I would never have known all of this if this program was not available. Technology is not the only way to accomplish tasks. I was shown other assistive tools, such as bold line paper so I didn’t write diagonally over other words. They also provided 20/20 pens that write bold enough for me to see what is written.

 Once my instructors and I felt like I had achieved the goals of each class, I was able to move on to another one. The mobility class was definitely the one I stayed in the longest. After about 6 months, in 2015, I graduated from the NC Rehabilitation Center for the Blind. One of the classes I took was a career class that helped with job interviews, job searches, applications, and resumes. After graduation it was my responsibility to follow up with any opportunities and continue the search. I met again with the NC Division of Services for the Blind. They worked with me to find a job, which can be difficult for a visually impaired person.  Just like me, before I entered the Rehab program, most wonder what a blind person is capable of doing. I learned in the program that anything is possible. Sometimes Technology can be difficult to use and unnecessary, but for the visually impaired it makes so many things possible. Right now, while writing this article, the computer is reading every letter aloud as I am typing. It is even telling me if I have misspellings or have a grammar error.

 I hope this article gives you a different perspective on people who are at a disadvantage for whatever reason. Maybe you have a disability or injury.  Let this open your eyes and heart to the possibility that there may be more out there for you. If you are looking at someone that is at a disadvantage, don’t close your mind to what they are capable of doing. Assist them if needed, but watch them accomplish more than what you may think is possible.

 While working with the Division of Services for the Blind they helped me with job placement. It was after I graduated the program that Tim’s Gift was shown to me. Stay tuned for the next article to learn how I became part of Tim’s Gift.