[Colorado-Talk] my thoughts on living the life you want

Fri Jan 10 05:54:06 UTC 2020

Some of us just lived life and learned as we go and are still learning.  I
know this may be harder for those who go blind later in life.  I never got
"personal adjustment" training or any training really.  I know I do not do
everything the "blind" technique way, but don't really care.  I know I let
people who are to see do more than a lot of people agree with, but I don't
care about that either.  I am a productive parent to a small child and I
want her to realize we live in an interdependent society not a totally
independent one.  What I am doing works for me.  That is what counts.

-----Original Message-----
From: Colorado-Talk <colorado-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org> On Behalf Of Melissa
R. Green via Colorado-Talk
Sent: Thursday, January 09, 2020 11:31 PM
To: colorado-talk at nfbnet.org
Cc: Melissa R. Green <graduate56 at juno.com>
Subject: Re: [Colorado-Talk] my thoughts on living the life you want

Good morning.
Thank you Jenny.
I may be getting into trouble. But, I am going to state it. I will preface
this, by saying, I am only trying to help, and my experience and opinion.
The sleep shades has been diffeculty. Many people have given negative about
the center. Some of this is also said about the NFB.
If someone wants to leave the center. They can do that. They are adults. I
have heard that the center wants every one to be totally blind. People are
always are looking for someone to blame or make responsible for things in
their lives.
It was my choice to go to the center. Many never did go to any center. They
got personal adjustment training. It is no perfect organization. Yes we do
back the wrong horse at times. Yes we can get caught up with new people.
With that said, we  learn from the mistakes and from each other. 

Have a enjoyable and blessed day.
Sincerely,
Melissa R.  Green and Pj
"If you have a goal, make it something you strive to accomplish. If you have
a hope, then hope for it with all your heart.  

----- Original Message -----
From: Jenny Perdue via Colorado-Talk  <colorado-talk at nfbnet.org>
To: NFB of Colorado Discussion List  <colorado-talk at nfbnet.org>
Date: 01/09/2020 3:59 am
Subject: Re: [Colorado-Talk] my thoughts on living the life you want

>
>
> Hi Melissa, I enjoyed your comments greatly.
> 
> Yes you're told the requirements for CCB, but if you can't be under sleep
shade, if there are things that you can't do. You shouldn't just be booted
out because you don't meet the requirements.
> 
> I thought if anyone the NFB's Colorado Center for the blind would be
Accommodating and such as that. I have never called, because honestly, all
the centers for the blind sound like their run very similarly and I don't
think that I would really be able to do it.
> 
> Everybody doesn't fit in a box. And that includes those of us with
multiple health problems.
> 
> I am so grateful for this Dialogue, conversation. Thank everybody for
being so wonderful and understanding. Even the thoughts that we don't agree
on, we can still respect them.
> 
> Jenny
> 
> Sent from my iPhone
> 
> > On Jan 7, 2020, at 7:15 PM, Melissa R. Green via Colorado-Talk
<colorado-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> > 
> > "First, thank you Scott. For sharing your views and the background. 
> > Now, I will share my thoughts, and then continue to comment and read, as
webbl as live the life I want.
> > Growing up, I got little mentions of the NFB. Like many I got the little
callendars in braille. My teachers would give it to me.' as a gift.
> > I didn't really know about the NFB until 1992.
> > I had made up my mind that I was not going to be in any more
organizations. I was leaving the ACB. I was done.
> > So I sat at the table with my aunt and a couple of people that I had
met. While Peggy Pinder, at that time, walked around the room, and my aunt
whispering in my ear about her.
> > I didn't like it. But, Peggy came over and spent time with me.
> > Thats where I met my cousin who was a leader in the federation. I did
join.
> > I read the braille monitor. I kept reaning it when I moved back to
NewJersey. 
> > No matter how depressed or upset I got about the commission not helping
me, I stikl kept reading the braille monitor, and teaching myself things
like computers.
> > As well as talking with my cousin. Him encouraging and listening and
making suggestions.
> > One day I got a cabbl, from Mrs. Maurer. She told me about the centers.
I got a better response from Diane Mcgeorge.
> > Smile! We started working me getting to CCB.
> > After, the NFB of NJ president, joined the reverend moon church, and
lots ot talks with Duncan, and asked to consider mo"ing to Colorado. 
> > I moved and yes as the youngest, my mom came with me. I got flack for
that, but it worked out. 
> > For me it was more than river rafting, cooking a big meal, and rock
climbing. I learned that the center gives you choices and the training is
tools in my tool box.
> > We had many students that had other disabilities. Their program was 
> > indevidualized. The staff worked to help these students. One student 
> > had a stroke. It was other diffeculties that were hendering her, the 
> > staff didn't kick her to the can-rb, they found other programs for 
> > her. Nother student graduated and recieved his bell. I tell you all 
> > of this because, CCB will try, and sometimes they have a 
> > comversation about if this program will work for the person. As 
> > someone that is human, I get tired of people blaming the center for 
> > the program. You are told the requirements, and if not, then it
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > Have a enjoyable and blessed day.
> > Sincerely,
> > Melissa R.  Green and Pj
> > "If you have a goal, make it something you strive to accomplish. If you
have a hope, then hope for it with all your heart.  
> > 
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: Scott C. LaBarre via Colorado-Talk  <colorado-talk at nfbnet.org>
> > To: colorado-talk at nfbnet.org
> > Date: 01/07/2020 5:02 pm
> > Subject: [Colorado-Talk] my thoughts on living the life you want
> > 
> >> 
> >> 
> >> First of all, I want to wish everyone here a very happy new year!  My
hope is that 2020 will be outstanding for all of us.
> >> 
> >> Next, I want to thank Jenny for raising the topic of what our tagline
"live the life you want!" really means.  I appreciate everyone's thoughtful
comments about how it should be interpreted and implemented.
> >> 
> >> Before I delve into the substance of my comments, I want to give you a
little  background which helps to form my perspective.  I first joined the
NFB in 1986, and I have had the honor and privilege of being a very active
member and leader on many different levels.  As part of that experience, I
served on a committee which was formed in 2013, maybe even late 2012, whose
purpose was to develop our plan for celebrating the 75th Anniversary of the
Federation.  After some discussion, we decided that it was time to rebrand
our messaging so that we could more effectively communicate who we are.  One
part of that rebranding was changing our tagline from  "we are changing what
it means to be blind" to the current "live the life you want!"  Beyond just
the tagline, we developed a comprehensive brand architecture which has many
elements that would serve as an excellent focal point for future
discussions.  In any event, I mention all this because I think I have some
idea of what we intended regarding the message we were attempting to
communicate.
> >> 
> >> Ever since I have been involved in the NFB, there has been this
conception that the NFB only supports and celebrates the "super blind" and
that if you don't go about blindness in a very specific manner, you are not
really living the life the NFB endorses.  I emphatically and whole heartedly
believe that this misconception is not true!  There is no such thing as a
model Federationist, and there certainly is not one, singular script from
which we must all lead our lives.  
> >> 
> >> The idea of "live the life you want!" is that your blindness should not
hold you back from pursuing your dreams and ambitions.  Undeniably all of
our dreams and ambitions  are limited and somewhat governed by the realities
we face, whether those are financial, educational, , health based, or
otherwise.  There is no one way to live the life you want.  It doesn't
matter if you are pursuing a high stakes profession, working from home,
volunteering in the community, or not working at all.  Our main message is
that whatever you are doing with       your life, your blindness should not
be the chief reason holding you back from whatever brings you fulfillment
and purpose in life.  Our one minute message, another creation of our
rebranding, brings this point out.
> >> 
> >> "The National Federation of the Blind knows that blindness is not the
characteristic that defines you or your future. Every day we raise the
expectations of blind people, because low expectations create obstacles
between blind people and our dreams. You can live the life you want;
blindness is not what holds you back."
> >> 
> >> A key part of this message is that we are raising expectations.  That
has both an external and internal aspects to it.  On the external side, we
are working to convince the general population that they can and should
expect more from us.  All of us often run into very low expectations held by
the public.  Pretty much every time I travel to and through an airport
somebody tells me how amazing I am for simply putting one foot in front of
another.  
> >> 
> >> On the internal side, we should encourage one another to become the
best versions of ourselves that we can.  Doing so must always be done with
love and understanding.  Every year that I am in the Federation, I learn so
much from our members on how I can lead my life in a better way, a new
technology trick or something that enhances my independent travel or
whatever it might be.  I certainly haven't figured it all out, and I know
that some times I do in fact let my blindness limit me in a way that isn't
truly necessary.  
> >> 
> >> Regardless, we must accept people where they are in their lives and be
ready to encourage them to achieve more when that is appropriate.  This is
what we aim to do at our centers.  We work with people from all walks of
life and who have a wide variety of challenges.  No student's program is or
should be the same.  We have some general policies and expectations, but
same are always adjusted to the individual student.
> >> 
> >> Living the life you want is all about independence and freedom.  As our
founder Dr. tenBroek so eloquently  put it, we have a right to live in the
world.  That means we have the right to be free and independent and to
determine our own destiny.  The exact mechanism we use to achieve that
freedom and independence is not the key issue, but rather that we  know and
believe that we have the right to achieve it.  I think the Federation's best
speech regarding independence is the Nature of Independence by Dr. Jernigan
from the 1993 Convention.  If you haven't read it, I encourage that you do
so.    It is available through our national website.
> >> 
> >> Before closing this out, I want to address another point Jenny raised
in her original message, the idea that perhaps we some times focus and
emphasize success stories based on traditional notions of success and that
we don't celebrate other forms of achievement.  I think this is a great
point, and we should endeavor to paint a more comprehensive picture.
Convincing an animal shelter to let you volunteer despite your blindness is
just as important as someone winning a national scholarship based on
academic achievement at the highest level.  Both are part of living the life
we want.
> >> 
> >> In closing, I want to share two other element from our brand
architecture, the Brand Promise and Value Proposition.  I do this because,
for me, it so eloquently sums up why I am involved in our Federation.
"Together with love, hope, and determination, we transform dreams into
reality.  I am filled with hope, energy, and love by participating in the
National Federation of the Blind because my expectations are raised, my
contributions make a difference to me and to others, and I can celebrate the
realization of my dreams with my Federation family."
> >> 
> >> Warmly,
> >> Scott
> >> 
> >> 
> >> 
> >> 
> >> 
> >> 
> >> 
> >> 
> >> 
> >> 
> >> 
> >> 
> >> 
> >> 
> >> 
> >> 
> >> 
> >> 
> >> 
> > 
> > _______________________________________________
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