General Colorado Center Information

Got about 20 minutes to be wowed?

We’re just back from our 2016 National Federation of the Blind of Colorado Convention in Lone Tree from October 27 to 30. All staff and students attended and, since we’re an NFB training center (the NFB of Colorado started the Center in 1988), Executive Director Julie Deden always makes a report the the entire convention about all that’s happened in the last year. It’s always a highlight of an affiliate convention that is full of highlights.

This year Julie’s report included this video of 2016 highlights and retrospective of our graduates this year. But you’ll have to wait till the end for the really, really cool part …

It was feathers and bird calls Tuesday morning in our first Birding by Ear class with Alie Mayes, Outreach Coordinator at Bird Conservancy of the Rockies in Brighton. Alie brought casts of bird skulls as well as mounts, giving everyone a sense of various differences in bird anatomy, size and aerodynamics.

Then we got down to identifying a couple of dozen bird calls we might hear in the Littleton area this time of year, such as canada geese, crows and chickadees, as well as others that come and go around the calendar.

Next time, we’ll take our newly practiced ears outside to find some of our neighbors. Class parcicipants may have a hard time waiting, but we’ll have MP3 files to study up with and, naturally, there’s nothing to stop us from going outside to listen!

And when someone wonders out loud, “I wonder what bird makes that beautiful song,” they might have the answer!”

Tactile art and art shows are in the works this fall, with collaboration and coordination from the Colorado Center for the Blind’s Ann Cunningham as the common medium.

First, Arapahoe Community College’s now-annual “Shared Visions” tactile art show will open with a reception on November 10 at the Colorado Gallery of the Arts from 5 to 8 p.m. The show, which will be open to the public until November 18, will feature tactile and sensory art from ACC Painting and Ceramics students, as well as works from CCB students and staff in several media. CCB’s Ann Cunningham teaches classes each week to Independence Training Students and to Older Blind Programs.

We are always excited to be invited to talk at schools in the area about what it really means to be blind. It’s a great chance to dispel myths and stereotypes and to teach kids that blind people are just folks, too. So, we were delighted when we received a call from Diane Harris, a parent and administrator at nearby Mile High Academy.

Another round of testing for the Martial Arts class on Tuesday was followed by an awards ceremony. The entire Center turned out in the gym as five students and Travel Instructor Steve Patten all received orange belts from Karate Denver instructors Rachel and Travis. Steve is a bit of a ringer, of course, since he already has a black belt in Judo and competed internationally.

Each class meets for eight sessions in our gym, learning any number of defensive strategies and moves, punches, kicks and holds. This class included Jay, Jimmy, Warren, Brittany, warren and Courtney C along with Steve.

“I feel a lot more confidence in myself,” said Brittany after the class. Wearing a warrior’s face during her belt testing, she giggles when asked about it. “It was fun too!”

The mornings are cool and the colors turning. There were still loads of tomoatoes, green to read, not to mention the ripe pumpkins on wat may be one of the last weeks our sudents work in our Legacy Garden with the Arapahoe Master Gardeners.

This week it was the first-hour Tech Classes who got to work in the garden. From veterans like Tech Instructor Chris Parsons (who breakfasted on tomatoes directly off the vine, to brand-new students like David in his first day at the Center, it was a festive mood bringing in so much produce before the first frost hits. For those who’ve been around since the first plantings last June, it’s satisfying, yet bittersweet. Like every year, though, the garden is a big part of our summer months at the Center!

Hindley loves to cook and entertain, something she learned from positive role models. She gives her thoughts on the negative impact of the #HowEyeSeeIt challenge.

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.