[nagdu] Walking in a blind person's shoes, at The Seeing Eye in Morris Township

Tue Nov 29 00:09:10 UTC 2011

I completely understand the analogy he was reaching for, but he did get it wrong. Still, I think there was more good in this article than not, and certainly it came off better than a lot of them do.
--
Buddy Brannan, KB5ELV - Erie, PA
Phone: (814) 860-3194 or 888-75-BUDDY


On Nov 28, 2011, at 10:35 AM, Jewel wrote:

> I don't like him describing the guide dog as a fuzzy version of GPS.
> THis is certainly NOT one of a guide dog's jobs, to be the GPS...I am
> not sure how he came up with that, since guide dog handlers must have
> an idea of where they are going in their head, or use a GPS unit, but
> certainly GPS is not the dog's job.
> 
> My two cents,
> Jewel
> 
> On 11/28/11, Ginger Kutsch <GingerKutsch at yahoo.com> wrote:
>> Walking in a blind person's shoes, at The Seeing Eye in Morris Township
>> 
>> Posted by Morristown Green Contributor on November 28, 2011 .
>> 
>> By Berit A. Ollestad
>> 
>> Source:
>> http://morristowngreen.com/2011/11/28/walking-in-a-blind-persons-shoes-at-th
>> e-seeing-eye-in-morris-township/
>> 
>> It's not until most of us are faced with adversity that we see things with a
>> different perspective. What are some of the basic challenges confronting
>> blind people?  I did not want to wait for adversity to find out.
>> 
>> When I decided to accept an invitation to be blindfolded and navigate around
>> The Seeing Eye's Morris Township campus with a guide dog, I was quite
>> surprised at the varied range of emotions I experienced during the
>> experiment.
>> 
>> I had looked forward to the opportunity, because it promised to take me far
>> from my comfort zone. It's important to mention what inspired me to delve
>> deeper into The Seeing Eye School and its training program. As I wrote in my
>> prior article, the mere mention of The Seeing Eye School evokes intense
>> curiosity and bewilderment among residents. Here in Morristown, The Seeing
>> Eye is an integral part of the town's history and daily life, yet no one
>> seems to know that much about the organization.
>> 
>> Photos by Berit Ollestad. Please click icon below for captions.
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> When I arrived in The Seeing Eye lobby, I was greeted by a roaring fire and
>> the smell of cinnamon wafting through the air. Immediately, I felt right at
>> home. Doug Bohl, senior manager for instruction and training for more than
>> 20 years, greeted me along with Craig Garretson, communications manager.
>> 
>> But the one I was most anxious to meet would be my lifeline, the one I would
>> depend on to keep me safe and guide me over the next couple of hours:
>> Alcott,  my Seeing Eye Dog.
>> 
>> When I first saw Alcott, a petite golden retriever just shy of 2 years old,
>> I knew she had the confidence and calmness required to get the job done. I
>> got down on the floor with her and talked and caressed her silky fur, hoping
>> to create a rapport in a brief amount of time.
>> 
>> Alcott was trained by Peggy McKenna, a trainer at The Seeing Eye for more
>> than seven years.  Alcott was eligible to be selected during the last class
>> of students to go thru The Seeing Eye. But for some reason she was not
>> paired with a student; she will have another opportunity when classes resume
>> in late January.
>> 
>> Peggy started out working in the kennels.  Her love for each dog she trains
>> is immeasurable. "The moment one of the dogs I am training does something
>> that he/she has clearly learned in training, there are no words to describe
>> the feeling that it gives me," she said.
>> 
>> As one can imagine, it is only natural to feel sadness when one of your dogs
>> gets placed with a student and is no longer part of your daily routine. But
>> Peggy was quick to point out that her mission is meaningful and rewarding.
>> "I feel so fortunate to do something I love," she said.
>> 
>> Completing the circle, Peggy married fellow trainer Brian McKenna last
>> month.
>> 
>> WALKING WITH ALCOTT
>> 
>> As I attempted to take Alcott's harness gingerly in my hand, I tried to
>> acclimate to my new (albeit temporary) status of being blind. This may not
>> sound difficult, but imagine my surprise as I rooted around for her harness
>> and recognized I was at the wrong end.
>> 
>> My initial reaction was to rip off the blindfold because I felt so
>> vulnerable. But suddenly, by default, I noticed my other senses taking over.
>> The air smelled crisper and the sounds around me became clearer.
>> 
>> Although blindness is labeled as a disability, I would prefer to call it an
>> inconvenience. It surprised me how quickly I started to function in my new
>> alternate reality. Granted, I was on a closed course with an instructor
>> close by my side, yet I still felt surprisingly normal.
>> 
>> As Alcott and I ventured around the campus, I quickly realized that I needed
>> to pay closer attention to her cues. This was never more evident than when
>> she was indicating by her refusal to go forward that there was danger ahead
>> in the form of a pothole.
>> 
>> My first reaction was to gently tug on her leash and command her "to go." It
>> wasn't until Doug pointed out that she was practicing one of the principles
>> she was taught: "Intelligent disobedience."
>> 
>> Though I was commanding her to go forward, she recognized the danger ahead
>> and ignored me. I couldn't help but be reminded that if you are someone used
>> to being in control, this will be humbling.
>> 
>> Sighted people make safety decisions based on their subconscious awareness
>> when they are walking about town. I'm sure if someone were to ask how many
>> potholes you averted on South Street you wouldn't have a clue. Yet for
>> someone who is blind, potholes are a major hazard. That is why guide dogs
>> are taught to make conscious decisions for blind individuals.
>> 
>> "Guide dogs are not taught to do certain things in particular situations. We
>> teach them to evaluate what is the safer option when given a choice to make
>> the safest decision," according to Doug.
>> 
>> Working with dogs, I found, is much like working with small children. The
>> dogs are brought into town daily for their training sessions, which average
>> 45 minutes per day. Anything past that and you risk losing the dog's
>> attention.
>> 
>> For trainers to get an idea of what would be an appropriate pace for each
>> student, trainers mimic a guide dog by placing a harness over themselves and
>> allowing students to "guide them."  This lets them gauge their normal pace,
>> for choosing the appropriate dog.  Students are assigned a dog after they
>> are at The Seeing Eye for two days.
>> 
>> After following behind Peggy with the rookie Coach and the seasoned Alcott,
>> I determined that the training itself isn't the difficult part. Essentially
>> the dogs are taught very few commands. Verbal commands such as left, right,
>> hup-hup ("let's go") and a few specialized ones seemed to be the extent of
>> it.
>> 
>> The trainer also will use hand signals in conjunction with verbal commands
>> if traffic noise, construction, etc.,  prevents the dog from hearing verbal
>> commands. The primary principle the dog is taught is to take the blind
>> person from the beginning of a street to the end of the street. The dog then
>> will await the person's command to go forward or turn left or right.
>> 
>> At the risk of sounding silly, I always had wondered how guide dogs seemed
>> to know exactly where they were going. After speaking to a handful of
>> different people I realized I wasn't alone in my line of thinking. As Doug
>> explained to me, "When you are getting in your car and heading to Newark
>> Airport, you need to have an idea of how to get there before you start out.
>> The car will get you there, but you need to know how to drive it there."
>> 
>> It then all made sense to me: A guide dog is simply the warm and fuzzy
>> version of a GPS system. Doug then told me to close my eyes for a minute and
>> give him directions on how to get to my house from the airport. This
>> illustrated how blind persons are just as capable of visualizing directions
>> as I am.
>> 
>> At the conclusion of my experience, I could see how being blind might be
>> considered a gift as well. It gives each of us the ability to relate to each
>> another with a slightly different perspective, and to relate to the world
>> differently.
>> 
>> I would like to extend my heartfelt gratitude and appreciation to everyone
>> at The Seeing Eye School for the kindness shown to me, and for the
>> opportunity to learn about the school.  The Seeing Eye is a vibrant and
>> valuable part of our community;  I encourage everyone to reach out and get
>> to know our neighbors a little better.
>> 
>> Berit Ollestad and Alcott, a Seeing Eye Dog who guided Berit around The
>> Seeing Eye's Morristown campus. Berit wore a blindfold to experience
>> training as a blind person would.
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> _______________________________________________
>> nagdu mailing list
>> nagdu at nfbnet.org
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nagdu_nfbnet.org
>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for nagdu:
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nagdu_nfbnet.org/herekittykat2%40gmail.com
>> 
> 
> _______________________________________________
> nagdu mailing list
> nagdu at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nagdu_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for nagdu:
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nagdu_nfbnet.org/buddy%40brannan.name