Independence Training Program

Okay, this is really not about finding a girlfriend, but it is about Jackson developing the skills and confidence to be an independent blind person. And what’s not attractive about that? He gives his thoughts on the #HowEyeSeeIt challenge as well.

Does blindness cause people to be unable to tell the difference between water and vinegar? That’s what one #HowEyeSeeIt video concludes. Two of our Home Management Instructors suggest that there’s more than a whiff of the ridiculous in that.

Warren is interested in becoming a blind vendor after graduation on October 5. That’s why he took on the task of working with the Center soda machine. He gives us his thoughts on the HowEEyeSeeIt challenge – a fund-raising campaign that invites participants to mimick blindness and call for funding a cure.

Believe it or not, the HowEyeSeeIt campaign hsows folks who are convinced they couldn’t type without their vision. Elementary thinking, and a pretty basic skill that Matt mastered long ago.

Mastering the ordinary is not extraordinary for blind people, but that mastery is the foundation for living the lives we want extraordinarily! Christian has been doing a lot of cooking this week, putting in place more of the building blocks for the future he wants for himself.

Mastering the ordinary is not extraordinary for blind people, but that mastery is the foundation for living the lives we want extraordinarily! Christian has been doing a lot of cooking this week, putting in place more of the building blocks for the future he wants for himself.

Littleton’s 2016 Western Welcome Week, including our tours and participation in the Saturday parade, was sure a lot of fun! This week has already seen Matt complete his support drop, our canoeing trip postponed due to thunder, our first rock climbing trip today for the (really?) fall!

Even as the 10-day Western Welcome Week celebration was winding down on Sunday, Seniors in Charge students were arriving at the McGeorge Mountain Terrace apartments for a week of taking on new challenges in blindness skills. Offered by our Senior Services staff led by Duncan Larsen, Seniors in Charge gives a week’s worth of intensive training in Braille, cane travel, technology and home management skills.

While Marlene is getting ready to serve her final graduation meal (for 60) and Brigid is working on her own grad meal for tomorrow, let’s look back at Tuesday morning. Unfortunately, the extraordinary smells of both Christian’s chicken kababs and Kierra’s pot of red beans and rice cooking all Tuesday morning cannot be conveyed successfully to the reader in words or pictures. The odors wafting out of the kitchen made lots of stomachs growl. Just saying …

Tech classes went out to the garden first thing in the morning. They brought in lots of great stuff – zucchini, an abundance of tomatillos, half a dozen eggplants and more. We don’t want this to get around, but there are a couple of green pumpkins out there, too.

Later, a new martial arts class started with Rachel, which meant a lot of punching and kicking. Take a look at Brittany – she looks pretty fierce in her fighting stance. Maybe because she was getting so hungry smelling all that food!

Thursday, August 18

3:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

That’s right, this rodeo isn’t over yet!

Farhan came to the center from Pakistan because he believed that the confidence and self-reliance in our tag line mean greater independence and opportunity for him. Here he is, a little past the mid-point in his training, making really amazing (and crunchy) samosas for 15 guests, and you can feel his new confidence!

Littleton’s Western Welcome Week starts … Well, tomorrow! Next week we will give tours and promised that we’ll do Goal Ball demonstrations in the gym, and even let guests take their turn if they like. So, Martin, Warren and Jimmy went down to the gym this week to demonstrate some basics for those who’ve never herd of Goal Ball.

Maybe you’ll want to take your shots next week, or even watch the Goal Ball action during the 2016 Paralympics!