[Massachusetts-NFB] Member to Member Getting To Know Each Other

[Jennifer Bose]

Hi, everyone. Bronwen, that was a great sketch about Stephanie; you're a
good interviewer! And Stephanie, thanks for being the first one to let us
get to know more about you.😊

Jen

On Wed, Nov 5, 2025 at 8:19 PM Shara Winton via Massachusetts-NFB <
massachusetts-nfb at nfbnet.org> wrote:

> Thank you Bronwen and Stephanie. Great job! I am truly looking forward to
> learning so much about all of our members.
> Bronwen, I truly appreciate your taking this on and bringing us all closer
> together.
>
> Warmly,
> Shara
>
>
> Shara Winton
> President, National federation of the Blind of Massachusetts
> www.nfbma.org
> sharawinton at gmail.com
> 617-304-0347
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Massachusetts-NFB <massachusetts-nfb-bounces at nfbnet.org> On Behalf
> Of Bronwen Tedesco via Massachusetts-NFB
> Sent: Wednesday, November 5, 2025 5:24 PM
> To: massachusetts-nfb at nfbnet.org
> Cc: Bronwen Tedesco <bronwen.tedesco at gmail.com>
> Subject: [Massachusetts-NFB] Member to Member Getting To Know Each Other
>
> 
> Welcome to our very first edition of member to Member! This new interview
> series is designed to get to know all of our members: their lives, hobbies,
> as well as their journey to the NFB. In our very first Member to Member, we
> will get to know Stephanie Valdes, president of the Massachusetts blind
> Parents division, IEP advocate, coordinator of the Massachusetts Bell
> academy, 2022 national scholarship winner, and member of the sports and
> recreation division, as well as the Cambridge chapter. Stephanie was born
> and raised in Trujillo Altro, a town in Puerto Rico next to San Juan . She
> grew up with her parents and sister where she attended Catholic school her
> entire childhood. When she was in high school, she ran track and played
> softball. Soon after graduating high school in 2013, her family moved to
> Boston to reunite with other family in the area and receive better health
> care for her health.
>
> Stephanie did not grow up blind. Toward the end of high school, she
> experienced health issues that ultimately resulted in her losing her
> vision. When discussing this time in her life, she said, “Me losing my
> vision was hard but that was not the hardest part. The hardest part was the
> lack of knowledge. I had it in my head that I was going to sit around and
> do nothing because I’m blind.” She then went on to attend the Carroll
> Center in 2014 then in 2015, she started college. This same year, she
> applied for an NFB scholarship through Massachusetts where she participated
> in her first convention. Meeting so many different blind people involved in
> various activities and with many different experiences motivated her to
> remain involved. In 2018, she was on the board for the Massachusetts
> Association of Blind Students, (MABS), then soon went on to attend Blind
> Inc, graduating in 2019. “I knew how to get around. I knew I could do all
> these things but when I graduated blind Inc, there was a difference. I
> really had that confidence,” Stephanie said when reflecting on her training
> experience. When asked if she had any advice for new members or people new
> to blindness, she said, “Try to keep an open mind. Not everything works,
> but there’s a lot out there, so see what works for you.” After training,
> she then went on to have children, create a skin care business, then
> receive her batchelors degree in French in hopes of becoming an
> interpreter. She now works full-time as an end development communications
> associate for the federation of Children with special needs. She enjoys
> volunteering, running, and her skin care business Blind delights. She is
> also fluent in English, Spanish, and French and enjoys fencing as well.
> It’s been great getting to know you, Stephanie!
>
>  
> Bronwen M. Tedesco
> 831-359-8514
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