<html><head><meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"></head><body dir="auto">I am so glad that you are joining us! Welcome to the group! We look forward to having you and working together.<br><br><div dir="ltr">Tasnim Alshuli, M.A. </div><div dir="ltr"><br><blockquote type="cite">On May 20, 2021, at 8:06 AM, Kristopher Idrees Crawley via NFB-Muslims <nfb-muslims@nfbnet.org> wrote:<br><br></blockquote></div><blockquote type="cite"><div dir="ltr"><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=us-ascii"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 15 (filtered medium)"><!--[if !mso]><style>v\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);}
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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--><div class="WordSection1"><p class="MsoNormal">As-salamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu,<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">My name is Kristopher Idrees Crawley, Idrees to my brothers and sisters in Islam. I recently joined the group and wanted to give a quick introduction.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">I was diagnosed with Macular Dystrophy and Rod-Cone Dystrophy at the age of 3, mostly because they did not understand my condition. I began learning Braille in 2<sup>nd</sup> grade and was a speed reader by the end of the year. I was not allowed to use my Braille skills in class because the teachers wanted me to look as “normal” as possible. I was forced to strain my eyes to read large print and miss days of school each month due to the headaches associated with the eye strain. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">I never had great vision and would get very sick if I tried to use my eyes for anything. Almost 10 years ago I began losing the rest of my vision as expected. I decided to attend a training center for the blind and I had the opportunity to train under one of the top O&M instructors in the country while attending an immersion program. Obviously, it changed my life for the better. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">I have been involved in blindness rehabilitation agencies in 3 states as either a consumer or employee. Unfortunately, I decided to step away from state-run rehabilitation agencies due to the lack of knowledge, limitations, and negative views of blindness, and blind individuals held by staff at the highest levels of the agencies I worked with.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">I eventually started my own business that focuses on Assistive Technology training, entrepreneurship, professional development, and independent living skills. Rehabilitation (and specifically teaching) is a passion of mine. I feel that Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) blessed me with the skills and experiences to give back to the blind community, and that is what I plan to do, however I can.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">I was guided to Islam (AlHamdulillah!) only a few months after completing my program. I wanted to find other blind Muslims and figure out a way to not only network, but to also bring the message of Islam to the blind and vision impaired community.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">I am happy to find this group, and I look forward to networking and working with you all to enhance and empower the blind community, inshaAllah.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Please reach out to me and consider me for any projects in the future, inshaAllah.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">I look forward to meeting you all at the next meeting, inshaAllah.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Kristopher Idrees Crawley<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://certification.nvaccess.org/"><span style="color:blue;text-decoration:none"><div><image001.png></div></span></a> <a href="http://www.freedomscientific.com/Certification"><span style="font-size:14.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:windowtext;text-decoration:none"><div><image002.jpg></div></span></a><span style="font-size:14.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif"> </span><a href="https://www.zoomtext.com/learning/certification"><span style="font-size:14.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:windowtext;text-decoration:none"><div><image003.png></div></span></a><span style="font-size:14.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:14.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p></div><span>_______________________________________________</span><br><span>NFB-Muslims mailing list</span><br><span>NFB-Muslims@nfbnet.org</span><br><span>http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfb-muslims_nfbnet.org</span><br><span>To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for NFB-Muslims:</span><br><span>http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nfb-muslims_nfbnet.org/tasnim.shuli%40gmail.com</span><br></div></blockquote></body></html>