[nagdu] Did anyone watch the home makeover show yesterday.thefamily has a guide dog and are diabetics, but they didn't go into any of that at all.

Bobbie bewitched56 at comcast.net
Thu Dec 9 19:23:53 UTC 2010


Hi Cheryl,
I didn't see the program, but a friend of mine did and had some positive 
things to say. Mainly that there were a lot of issues that could be nit 
picked to death, but that overall they did a good job. What I was concerned 
about, as you alluded to, was the fact that they didn't contact Blind 
Services or the NFB for guidance. I heard that the woman has burns on her 
arms. This could be due to the stove she was using. I had services and 
training to cook and handle the stove. I burned myself more when I was 
sighted than I do now, lol. I was disturbed to hear about their guide dog's 
behavior, but wonder if it was simply that there were a lot of  people 
around and they didn't want to correct the dog in front of them, something I 
did when I first got my dog. Now I correct immediately, and could care less 
how people respond to it. I am going to try to access the website and make 
contact, and will let you know if I get a reply. Also, I commend this couple 
for trying to help other disabled individuals in their community, despite 
the difficulties they are facing. I need to begin doing this. I have had 
people with relatives and friends approach me in stores, and I always refer 
them to services and both the NFB and the ACB, but I should be doing more. A 
good reminder. Bobbie
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "cheryl echevarria" <cherylandmaxx at hotmail.com>
To: "NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users" 
<nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Thursday, December 09, 2010 2:00 PM
Subject: Re: [nagdu] Did anyone watch the home makeover show 
yesterday.thefamily has a guide dog and are diabetics,but they didn't go 
into any of that at all.


> Lyn coming from someone who lost her vision at 35 and now I am 43, I had 
> to learn, but I also had help with the NFB, DAN (Diabetic Action Network), 
> NAGDU, etc.  As well as great support at home.
>
> There mortgage was paid off, so like myself who has to pay taxes and some 
> of the highest in the country next to New Jersey, which I live in NY. I 
> believe that they can afford them or they wouldn't be living there in the 
> first place.
>
> We pay here on Long Island almost $6000.00 a year in taxes and mind you as 
> soon as Nelson retires we are out of here.
>
> But getting back to the show at hand. I got the original information from 
> a friend who said the dog is from GEB.
>
> I don't like the fact then when they are looking for stuff for a family, 
> they will focus on if they were a firefighter and go to the station or 
> schools, or even other places like the Cavaliers Basketball Team, instead 
> of focusing on the sons hearing disability or even going to even a local 
> state run Blind Training Facility in Ohio. Or go to the local NFB in Ohio 
> to help.
>
> No they didn't
>
> And the guy who has the dog, the Father's name is Andre he didn't correct 
> the dog, and just let him keep digging.
>
> The biggest compliment you can pay me is to recommend my services!
>
> Cheryl Echevarria
> http://Echevarriatravel.com<http://echevarriatravel.com/>
> 1-866-580-5574
> Reservations at echevarriatravel.com<mailto:Reservations at echevarriatravel.com>
>
> Affiliated as an Independent Contractor with Montrose Travel 
> CST-1018299-10
> Affiliated as an Independent Contractor with Absolute Cruise and Travel 
> Inc.
>
> join my yahoogroup
> echevarriatravel-subscribe at yahoogroups.com<mailto:echevarriatravel-subscribe at yahoogroups.com>
>  ----- Original Message ----- 
>  From: Lyn Gwizdak<mailto:linda.gwizdak at cox.net>
>  To: NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog 
> Users<mailto:nagdu at nfbnet.org>
>  Sent: Thursday, December 09, 2010 12:39 PM
>  Subject: Re: [nagdu] Did anyone watch the home makeover show yesterday. 
> thefamily has a guide dog and are diabetics,but they didn't go into any of 
> that at all.
>
>
>  Hi Cheryl,
>  I watched the Home Makeover on ABC last Sunday night.
>
>  I had the same questions myself.  The couple appeared to lack real 
> blindness
>  skills and the ability to navigate their own home for hazards like the
>  cabinets and microwave sticking out.  I did wonder about the dog with its
>  digging a hole in the dirt while in harness.  I saw the harness but 
> couldn't
>  decern the school. It had no martingale on it so it wasn't a Seeing Eye 
> dog.
>
>  The house they were in really was a VERY substandard home that Section 8
>  would NEVER approve it one of their participants wanted to rent it.  The
>  bathroom sink falling off the wall!  Wow!  The toilet coming up off the
>  floor.  I wonder how on earth did the state ever license the couple to 
> run
>  an agency for the disabled with a building in that condition???
>
>  I'm glad they got the new home, but I wonder if the couple will soon have 
> to
>  be forclosed on and lose it because of the new rate of taxes on it? It
>  looked like a huge mansion after ABC Home Makeover rebuilt it from 
> scratch -
>  you know with the much increased square footage and all.
>
>  I think unfortunately, most blind people - especially the older new 
> blind -
>  have few real skills like the younger folks who have been blind longer or
>  who have gone to a place like the NFB centers shortly after becoming 
> blind.
>  It is still pretty real that most sighted folks still love to pity us and
>  any other disabled person.  This attitude fuels the continuing
>  discrimination we get.  It sucks.
>
>  These kinds of shows just reinforce this lousey attitude and it makes 
> money
>  for the corporations - not us!
>
>  Lyn and Landon
>
>
>  ----- Original Message ----- 
>  From: "Brenda" <bjnite at windstream.net<mailto:bjnite at windstream.net>>
>  To: "NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users"
>  <nagdu at nfbnet.org<mailto:nagdu at nfbnet.org>>
>  Sent: Monday, December 06, 2010 8:59 AM
>  Subject: Re: [nagdu] Did anyone watch the home makeover show yesterday. 
> the
>  family has a guide dog and are diabetics, but they didn't go into any of
>  that at all.
>
>
>  > Did the family actually have a guide dog?  They showed the dog but not
>  > much else and never even showed his harness and never even showed the
>  > parents walking down the street independently to try the traffic light.
>  > (They showed the traffic light, but just let the family hear it over 
> the
>  > phone.)
>  >
>  > On 12/6/2010 11:50 AM, cheryl echevarria wrote:
>  >> Good morning all:
>  >>
>  >> This was the second time that ABC Extreme Home Make Over did a  home 
> make
>  >> over for a blind family.
>  >>
>  >> The got some stuff right, but again I have some questions, some about 
> the
>  >> family, and some about what ABC did?
>  >>
>  >> Question about the Anderson family.  Now these are questions I may 
> right
>  >> to the show about, but mostly they are pondering in my head to share 
> with
>  >> all.
>  >>
>  >> The Anderson Family
>  >>
>  >> 1.  They are from what I understand and family who gives support to 
> other
>  >> people with disabilities.  One of my questions is are they members of
>  >> either the NFB or another organization, trained in all of this from 
> being
>  >> in the field, or just decided to do it all by themselves.
>  >>
>  >> 2.  They never went into there diabetes, since both of them are 
> diabetic,
>  >> like do they use anything like the prodigy voice or the solo meter to
>  >> test the blood, the team never asked that either.
>  >>
>  >> 3. The husband has a guide dog, but at one point when they were 
> talking
>  >> to the family, my husband said that the dog was in harness and digging 
> a
>  >> whole in the ground. WHAT is that about?
>  >>
>  >> 4.  If they are having problems with the traffic lights, then why 
> didn't
>  >> they just contact the town or the legislative body in there area and 
> get
>  >> it fixed.  If they are a company or business out there helping other
>  >> blind and disabled people shouldn't they be doing this for themselves
>  >> first before helping others to do it.
>  >>
>  >> ABC:  This the 2nd time in 8 Seasons that they have focused or help 
> and
>  >> blind family, and still haven't gotten it correctly.
>  >>
>  >> 1.  The technology.  They didn't say where they got the technology, 
> the
>  >> didn't go to NFB or the other organization for advice, they just went 
> to
>  >> the technology stores that have technology for the blind.
>  >>
>  >> 2. And Electric Cane, now come on, do we if we were taught properly to
>  >> use our canes, do we need a cane that vibrates when we are near
>  >> something. They are diabetic, they can have neuropathy and not be able 
> to
>  >> tell if they are vibrating, etc.
>  >>
>  >> 3. The stove they got, yes she got burned many times, again diabetic,
>  >> they got them the counter tops and wall oven, but they didn't label it 
> or
>  >> at least put raised dots on the stove/oven.
>  >>
>  >>
>  >> To many other issues there.
>  >>
>  >> I don't know if the NFB members ever wrote the first time to ABC and 
> got
>  >> responses on these issues.
>  >>
>  >> But I plan on starting a writing campaign.  Let me know if you are
>  >> interested.
>  >> The biggest compliment you can pay me is to recommend my services!
>  >>
>  >> Cheryl Echevarria
>  >> 
> http://Echevarriatravel.com<http://echevarriatravel.com/<http://echevarriatravel.com%3chttp//echevarriatravel.com/>>
>  >> 1-866-580-5574
>  >> 
> Reservations at echevarriatravel.com<mailto:Reservations at echevarriatravel.com<mailto:Reservations at echevarriatravel.com%3Cmailto:Reservations at echevarriatravel.com>>
>  >>
>  >> Affiliated as an Independent Contractor with Montrose Travel
>  >> CST-1018299-10
>  >> Affiliated as an Independent Contractor with Absolute Cruise and 
> Travel
>  >> Inc.
>  >>
>  >> join my yahoogroup
>  >> 
> echevarriatravel-subscribe at yahoogroups.com<mailto:echevarriatravel-subscribe at yahoogroups.com<mailto:echevarriatravel-subscribe at yahoogroups.com%3Cmailto:echevarriatravel-subscribe at yahoogroups.com>>
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