Graduation

Editor’s Note: What follows is an e-mail Director Julie Deden received from Serena, a recent graduate of our Independence Training Program (ITP). Serena is the fifth ITP grad to find employment in the last month or so. It’s the best kind of news! We print the message with her permission.

Hi Julie,

I have some great news for you. Today, I received my official offer of employment from the NJ Commission for the Blind! I’ll be working with blind seniors. I’ll be starting on October 30th.

Moms, along with Dads, grandparents, aunts, uncles, brothers, sisters, cousins, friends and of course spouses and children, regularly attend the graduation ceremonies of our students. The clips that make up this video are from three 2017 graduations – those for Jackson, Trevor and Brittany, during which their respective moms (and one grandma), shared their feelings and hopes for their now-grown children.

We have three graduations this week – Courtney, or C.G. as she has been known in her time at CCB, graduated on Monday, Suzie today, wednesday, and Ellen finishes on Thursday. All of them finished excellent wood shop projects last week. Ellen built a very nice bookshelf, and both C.G. and Suzie made the first sets of wind chimes students have made here. There must be something in the air … Well, the ringing of Freedom Bells, naturally!

Trevor definitely knows what day it is …It’s probably just a coincidence though that he’s baking 6 cheesecakes for his graduation March 30. It’s close enough for Pi Day though!

Shelby’s graduation on April 8 brought her parents and grandparents all the way from South Carolina, as well as a family friend who lives in Scotland.

“When we have students come to us right out of high school and stay for a full training program, we see so much growth in them. That’s certainly true of you, Shelby,” Julie told her as she prepared to present the Bell of Freedom. “For your guests, this bell represents a great deal of hard work – hard work that is rewarded with new and greater independence as a blind person. And you have worked so hard and grown so much in order to earn this bell!”

It’s almost impossible to think about Shelby without thinking of music, too. Her love of music led to the creation of a small, but impressive student choir. Shelby was the director, and they performed during the holidays for our Senior Christmas Party and at the NFB of Denver chapter party. In fact, they gave a lovely harmonized rendition of the “Star Spangled Banner” after the bell ceremony.

“You really raised the bar,” Julie Deden said of Daniel’s graduation meal on March 4. “I think this is the biggest grad meal we’ve ever had.”

She didn’t mean just the number of guests Daniel served – there were 80 in all – but because he cooked breakfast, lunch and dinner for those 80 guests.

The guests included family members such as his Mom and Step-dad, brother, Grandma and Pops (all live in the Denver area) and his Dad and brother who traveled from Mississippi to Colorado for the occasion, as well as close friends from church.

That’s not all though – there were a dozen students from Rice University and their faculty advisor who were at the Center as part of their Alternate Spring Break, several recent grads from the Denver area, as well as our Tech Instructor Chris Parsons and her one-month-old son Jackson (Chris is on maternity leave). Of course, there were all the current students and staff.

“Jenny is a woman who is very creative and unique, and you may find yourself experiencing things you’ve never experienced before when you spend time with Jenny.”

That was Julie Deden’s remark on January 20 as she prepared to present Jenny with her Freedom Bell. It’s very true, because it was elicited by the fact that Jenny had just served us all Brussels sprouts. Even more astonishing – we liked them!

“I know you’ll be able to do anything you put your mind to,” continued Julie.

Jenny became blind overnight about a year before coming to the Center for training. She felt lost, wondering what it meant to be a blind person and where her life could go.

“I couldn’t even think if I’d ever met a blind person,” she said.

“Jenny is a woman who is very creative and unique, and you may find yourself experiencing things you’ve never experienced before when you spend time with Jenny.”

That was Julie Deden’s remark on January 20 as she prepared to present Jenny with her Freedom Bell. It’s very true, because it was elicited by the fact that Jenny had just served us all Brussels sprouts. Even more astonishing – we liked them!

“I know you’ll be able to do anything you put your mind to,” continued Julie.

Jenny became blind overnight about a year before coming to the Center for training. She felt lost, wondering what it meant to be a blind person and where her life could go.

“I couldn’t even think if I’d ever met a blind person,” she said.

A lawyer, she characteristically didn’t wait for answers to come to her, but started researching and reached out to the National Federation of the Blind of Kansas weeks after becoming blind. She soon met many blind people, among them Diane Hemphill, who offered her information, support and advice.

"You encouraged me and you wouldn’t give up on me," she said after serving her grad meal to 60 guests, which included other family members and close friends from church, along with all the staff and students at the Center.

It was “paleo man’s” turn on December 3. That refers to his diet and his grad meal, for the record.

“Was that a great meal?” exclaimed Kimberley, who presented Jerad with his Freedom Bell.

“I want to thank you for kicking my behind every day of my program,” Jerad told his instructors.

For their part, his teachers neither confirmed nor denied how necessary that was, praising him instead for his skills and accomplishments.

It was all true. Though he came from Tennessee just out of high school, Jerad could always be counted on to lend an assist to any of his fellow students who needed it. And he worked hard to achieve his confidence and self-reliance, always remaining thoughtful and understanding.

Next for “paleo man”? College man!