[Ccb-alumni] Favorite instructor story.

[Mary Ellen Sanchez]

oh wow how cool. yes i remember eric.
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Valerie Gibson" <valandkayla at gmail.com>
To: "Colorado Center for the Blind mailing list" <ccb-alumni at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Wednesday, November 11, 2009 9:50 PM
Subject: Re: [Ccb-alumni] Favorite instructor story.


> 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
>> done, and
>> usher in a new birth of freedom on this Earth."- Baraq Obama
>>
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>
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