<html><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"></head><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;" class="">Jamelle,<div class=""> Thank you for sharing your experience.</div><div class=""> Several years ago when I was in training, I experienced the same emphasis on the use of the long white cane and the discouragement of using sighted guide when traveling.</div><div class=""> As I was taught during my training and came to understand personally after my training, what I was being taught was foundational skills. </div><div class="">This extended to learning braille and to other subject areas in the training center environment, and the idea was that a person who has these foundational skills in blindness has more choices.</div><div class=""> AT the end of the day, as Dr. Jernigan says it is about making choices.</div><div class=""> If, for example, you choose not to read or write in braille, that is your decision. If you choose to read or write in braille that is also your decision.</div><div class="">If you make the decision based upon the concern that people might treat you differently or you believe that it may be too hard to learn, that decision is yours as well. However, that type of decision is different than having the skill and choosing not to use it because it is faster for you to read with speech or use the remaining vision you have, but you do use braille for labeling the items in your kitchen or jotting down a quick note. </div><div class="">In one example you do not possess the skill so you don’t have it to go to if you need it where in the other you have the skill but you just don’t use it all the time though you have the option to if you want or need.</div><div class=""> The skills we talk about and believe in in the federation are tools, like the cookware in your kitchen or the clothing in your closet. they can be useful in certain situations.</div><div class=""> Take travel, I choose to travel with a cane. There are times where I decide, when walking with someone to hold on to their arm, and there are times when I decide to follow them.</div><div class=""> There are times when asking for directions I get verbal directions from a person and if they happen to offer to take me to the destination, I might politely decline the assistance and then head off my way. There are other times when I might ask for directions and if they do not seem clear and the person offers to help me get to where I need to be that I might accept the help.</div><div class=""> Personally I feel good enough about my skills to be able to make the choice that fits my wants or needs in the given situation in that scenario. The next person might be more comfortable than I or less so.</div><div class=""> </div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class=""> As knowledge is power, as is the possession of good blindness skills because they give us the power to exercise our independence. At the end of the day if we can, with the tools we have go where we want, when we want without troubling ourselves or other people in the process of the whole thing, then we have reached independence.</div><div class=""> As it relates to community service, if we can decide to take on whatever community service activity speaks to our interests or passions regardless of our level of vision and we have skills we can use and resources in the federation to leverage, we then can get involved in whatever way we find is most meaningful and blindness is not the thing that holds us back.</div><div class="">I look forward to your thoughts. . . </div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class=""><div class=""><div><br class=""><blockquote type="cite" class=""><div class="">On May 29, 2020, at 6:01 PM, Jamelle Word via Community-Service <<a href="mailto:community-service@nfbnet.org" class="">community-service@nfbnet.org</a>> wrote:</div><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"><div class=""><div class="WordSection1" style="page: WordSection1; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none;"><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">Hi Darian,<o:p class=""></o:p></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">Thank you for sharing the link with everyone who’s on the list. I like Dr. Jernigan’s responses from the letters he received. I think the teens who wrote to him brought up to valid points to him. Back in the day we are often told to use our white canes and guide dogs.<o:p class=""></o:p></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">I can remember that as a childen/teenagers, adults working with blind youth seemed to put a strong emphasis on using canes; no sighted guides. In fact, just a few years ago, I believe that someone was douting my independence. Now, how can I not be independent if I use electronic means to pay my bills. How can I not be independent if I am using a cane to get around.<o:p class=""></o:p></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">I thank you for sharing the link with us.<o:p class=""></o:p></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""><o:p class=""> </o:p></div><div class=""><div style="border-style: solid none none; border-top-width: 1pt; border-top-color: rgb(225, 225, 225); padding: 3pt 0in 0in;" class=""><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""><b class="">From:</b><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Community-Service <<a href="mailto:community-service-bounces@nfbnet.org" style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline;" class="">community-service-bounces@nfbnet.org</a>><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><b class="">On Behalf Of<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b>Darian Smith via Community-Service<br class=""><b class="">Sent:</b><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Friday, May 29, 2020 3:45 PMe<br class=""><b class="">To:</b><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Community Service Discussion List <<a href="mailto:community-service@nfbnet.org" style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline;" class="">community-service@nfbnet.org</a>><br class=""><b class="">Cc:</b><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Darian Smith <<a href="mailto:dsmithnfb@gmail.com" style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline;" class="">dsmithnfb@gmail.com</a>><br class=""><b class="">Subject:</b><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>[Community-Service] The Nature of Independencemed to emphasiszed independence. This meant using a cane; no sighted guide.<o:p class=""></o:p></div></div></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""><o:p class=""> </o:p></div><div class=""><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">Good afternoon,<o:p class=""></o:p></div></div><div class=""><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""> I wanted to share with you all one of my favorite banquet speeches.<o:p class=""></o:p></div></div><div class=""><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""> The title is “The Nature of Independence”.<o:p class=""></o:p></div></div><div class=""><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""> The reason why I personally enjoy this speech is because it articulates something that I find that we all struggle with as blind people. <o:p class=""></o:p></div></div><div class=""><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">It first articulates the questions of just what is independence? And it, I think successfully answers that question as well.<o:p class=""></o:p></div></div><div class=""><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""> The speech thoughtfully approaches, discusses and answers a complicated question, something I hope we can do here within this discussion thread.<o:p class=""></o:p></div></div><div class=""><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""> In my opinion, I think, no matter how long you have been a member of the federation, it is a good idea to read this speech, then reread it every once in a while. <o:p class=""></o:p></div></div><div class=""><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""> I look forward to your thoughts and opinions.<o:p class=""></o:p></div></div><div class=""><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""> Best,<o:p class=""></o:p></div></div><div class=""><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""> Darian <o:p class=""></o:p></div></div><div class=""><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""> <o:p class=""></o:p></div></div><div class=""><blockquote style="color: inherit; padding: inherit; margin: inherit;" class="" type="cite"><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""><a href="https://www.nfb.org/sites/www.nfb.org/files/images/nfb/publications/convent/addres93.htm" style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline;" class="">https://www.nfb.org/sites/www.nfb.org/files/images/nfb/publications/convent/addres93.htm</a><o:p class=""></o:p></div></blockquote></div><div class=""><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""><o:p class=""> </o:p></div></div><div class=""><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""><o:p class=""> </o:p></div></div><div class=""><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; 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