[NFBMO] Your help is needed from BLIND INC. and Dick Davis

[horchemg at gary-springfield-mo.net]

BLIND, Inc. former staff and students, I need your help. What unusual 
but customer focused things did BLIND do when you were there? I am 
seeking things that ran counter to “one size fits all.” Here are some 
examples:

A young girl and her grandpa were both blind and inseparable. We let 
them attend the center at the same time. She attended the Buddy Program 
and he attended either the adult or senior program, I forget. They did 
things together too.

One student was volunteer coordinator of a community festival. He 
attended the center part time and planned and ran the festival part 
time. His city hired him after he graduated.

Another student wanted to learn to use low vision while attending the 
center. He took his low vision training at VLR and his other classes at 
BLIND, Inc., going into a job at the end of his training.

Another student was ineligible for anything but Medicaid. He grew up in 
a homeless shelter. Because he needed a job right away, I worked with 
him on finding a part time job at FedEx. I think we had to alter his 
training schedule so he could work in the late afternoon. The employer’s 
college program paid his way through a degree program.

I created a fake semi truck out of a small classroom and had the student 
load and unload heavy boxes of Braille paper to prepare him to work at 
loading and unloading trucks. He went to work after he graduated and 
still works there.

I arranged for students to do internships at a local care center and 
work with the residents there during class hours.

We did set up individual programs where students took college classes 
while attending the center at the same time. We supported them and 
taught them study skills.

And of course, we always accommodated guide dog users, with only rare 
problems.

Dan Wenzel and Shawn Mayo, do you remember things we did?

Two rules:

1. Don’t use anyone’s name in responding to this unless you have their 
permission to do do.

2. If you don’t feel comfortable responding to this post, email me 
instead at dickblind at gmail.com.

Thanks!