[Ccb-alumni] Favorite instructor story.

Thu Nov 12 03:50:17 UTC 2009

EWoods!!!

Eric was the director of the summer program in 04 when i was on that
program, and i always thought of him as the "sherlock holmes" of
travel because he seemed to pick up on the smallest things.  I
remember being on the light rail and he pointed out, and asked us if
we could fel the train going down a hill or something. he paid
attention to thinks that may seem trivial to any other person, in
general, but he taught me to be more observant.  Once, after the
program, when i was transitioning into ITP, i stayd at his house, and
we stayed up until two in the morning playing interactive fiction
games. i love, absolutely love, rpgs, so to me, it was just good fun,
but what i understood later was that when i was in that dark cave with
exits and passages to the north and east, i was actually embarking on
a virtual travel lesson.  Bet you never thought of doing it that way.
^^

A very close tie would be Lindsey Palumbo, who was my councellor in
summer 05, and later a travel instructor in the ITP.  LLindsey helped
me get over some personal traumatic issues that i'd been going
through, and i could never thank her enough.  She stayed up in the
early hours of the morning, talking to me, so that icould get over the
past and focus on my future.

I remember one time in sumer of 05 when we were at the national
convention, and a couple of friends and I were hungry. it was around
eleven AM, and we weren't really much for exploring the area as most
people were, but we asked another fellow summer student where some
good places to eat were.  After we recieved the information, we set
out. When we came to the restaurant in question, we found that it was
closed.  The group wanted to just go back and order a pizza. It was
hot and i was hungry, so i told them we could either walk a few more
blocks, where surely a restaurant would be found, or we could walk the
four blocks back to the hotel; which sounded better?

Point taken, my group and I set out to find an alternative.  We used
every travel technique we were taught by our mentors, and i was
surprised that they actually worked. For the first time, i was
traveling, not to bring back a business card, but to actually get some
food for myself and my gang.
To make a long story short, we found a place to eat which turned out
to be a breakfast bufet.  After using our nonvisual techniques to get
food and seat ourselves, it dawnd on us that this was the first time
that we'd really done something independantly.  And that's when the
idea struck me.

After getting back to the hotel, we talked to eric, and told him what
we'd done, but we wanted something. we wanted a way to take the
instructors there, under sleepshades. Eric said he'd work it out, and
all we had to do was be ready with sleepshades after sed meeting at
sed time.

Turns out he yelled at the instructors, telling them that he'd gotten
word that they were using sighted guide at convention and that he
expecte better of them. he said that they had failed him, and that
some students, who were obviously better than they, were going to take
them out on a travel lesson under sleepshades.

We were waiting in the lobby with our sleepshades, and when the
councellors came down, they were not happy. they idignantly put on
their sleepshades, and followed us.   Some of them started to joke
with us, asking if/when they could take their sleepshades off, as if
they were really students.  When we got to the doors of the
restaurant, i told them that we, as students, didn't like being told
what to do; we didn't like slaving away over a hot stove everyday,
then being made to go out on travel in the scorching heat.  Some of us
already knew braille,so we didn't like having to learn something we
already knew, but for everything that they did, whether we liked it or
not, we'd like to say ... then everyone at once, as if we'd planned
it, said, "thank you". and then we explained what we did and we all
enjoyed a lunch on Eric. lol

The ITP did a lot for me as well, but nothing beats that momentous day
for me, at the national convention, when we gave back to the
counsellors for helping us achieve independence.

On 11/11/09, Darian Smith <dsmithnfb at gmail.com> wrote:
> wow!   I've  always heard great things about Diane.  She's always come
> off as a very caring individual.  I remember  one conversation during
> philosiphy class when I asked her if she agreed with everything  as it
> related to NFB  Philosophy ( something that i think everyone asks any
> leader in the federation that they respect enough to do so) and  what
> she told me made  me forever respect her. She  basically said that
> she  believes in much of  what the federationholds true.  but there
> were things that she did not  believe in as much.  I found that it was
> ok to  not believe in everything  that is said all of the time, and
> from that point, I've   began to  shape my views and understanding and
> growth here  with the understanding that  I'll not always agree with
> everything and  that's okay.
>  As for a person that I  thought was my favorite on staff...  It was
> and  is still indeed tough. I still   hold dear to me  many people.
> Julie deeden and Carol and Kimberly as well as Chip and Tom to name a
> few.
>   one of the  special  people that I remember would be Samara.  samara
>  taught me travel and  showed me that  traveling as a blind person was
> not  so bad and that using a cane is  not   limiting.
>   That said  everybody taught me something that I'll take with me and
> I'll forever be proud  of  the accomplishments and the journey.  It
> still stands as the single best decision I've made  so far.
>   Darian Smith
>   ccb04
>
> On 11/11/09, Jeremiah B. Beasley <jbeasley at jb11.net> wrote:
>> This is a hard question to answer as all of my instructors helped to
>> change
>> my life!  I would have to say the Diane McGeorge has probably had the
>> biggest impact on my life and success.  She has and continues to be a very
>> positive mentor for me.  She is always direct with me and tells me how it
>> is.  She has never said things in a way that made me feel inferior or said
>> them in a hurtful way.  I don't always like to hear what she is saying but
>> I
>> have learned that she is much wiser then I and she is normally right!  I
>> may
>> not like to hear some things she has the courage to say to me but I love
>> her
>> for caring enough to say them to me.  She has often said that I am one of
>> hers and I cannot think of any higher complement.  I was once told that I
>> was a little Diane because I took the same side of an issue as she did.  I
>> turned to this person and said THANK YOU!   Diane and Ray are part of my
>> family and I love them both very much.  I owe my success to them.  They
>> got
>> me involved in the NFB and taught me many things.  One of the most
>> important
>> lessons that I learned from Diane is that we must care about all blind
>> people if we are going to be successful in changing the live of blind
>> people.  I try to live this in my life.  Diane has believed in me when I
>> have not been able to believe in myself.  For this I will always be
>> grateful.
>>
>> Diane if you are reading this Thanks you and I love you!
>>
>> Jeremiah Beasley - Graduated CCB June of 1994
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Darian Smith [mailto:dsmithnfb at gmail.com]
>> Sent: Tuesday, November 10, 2009 9:34 PM
>> To: Colorado Center for the Blind mailing list
>> Subject: [Ccb-alumni] Favorite instructor story.
>>
>> Hello all,
>>
>>   I know we don't always get a  strong  showing of topics on this list.
>>   So I wanted to throw out a topic..
>>    Who is your favorite instructor/staff member at  the CCB when you
>> were a student and why?
>>    thanks,
>>   Darian  CCB 04
>>
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>
>
> --
> "And if you will join me in this improbable quest, if you feel destiny
> calling, and see as I see, a future of endless possibility stretching
> before us;
> if you sense, as I sense, that the time is now to shake off our
> slumber, and slough off our fear, and make good on the debt we owe
> past and future generations,
> then I'm ready to take up the cause, and march with you, and work with
> you. Together, starting today, let us finish the work that needs to be
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