[rehab] Blind Hairdressers/Comotolgists

Wed Jan 21 21:47:41 UTC 2009

This might help you.
Thanks

:  Remarkable Blind Hairdresser Refuses To Stop Working
:   Thursday January 11, 2007
:   CityNews.ca Staff
:   Giving up your job for an illness is a difficult thing.
:
:   Coming back to your old place of employment is sometimes even harder.
:
:   So you can only imagine what Delia Martins thought the day she
:   returned to work.
:
:   Martins was suddenly rendered legally blind and doctors and surgeries
:   weren't able to restore her sight.
:
:   The mother of two was forced to leave her shop and went into a deep
:   depression until her old customers demanded she come back to her
:   profession.
:
:   And she did - cutting people's hair.
:
:   Martins runs Pro Hair Design at the Georgetown Marketplace near
:   Highway 7 and Mountainview Road.
:
:   And even though you'd think sight is a vital component of her daily
:   efforts, not being able to see anything hasn't proven much of a
:   handicap at all.
:
:   It's an amazing story backed up by an amazing attitude.
:
:   "Two and a half years ago, I lost my eyesight," she recalls. "I was
:   right here in this chair when my retina detached." But as she sunk
:   into a black pit of self-pity, her old clients kept calling insisting
:   she come back. "My customers wouldn't leave me alone," she laughs.
:
:   And this determined woman found the courage to forge a return against
:   all odds. Today, she's a thriving success.
:
:   Which leads to the inevitable question: how in the world can she wield
:   scissors and style hair when she can't see?
:
:   "It goes all by feel," she explains. "I used to often joke that I
:   could do this job with my eyes closed."
:
:   How do her regulars react to having their 'do done by a blind
:   hairdresser? "She's amazing," gushes Diane Rainbow, getting up from
:   her appointment. "She just did my hair and I'm absolutely thrilled."
:
:   So are her co-workers.
:
:   "I've never seen anything like it," marvels Janet Parker. "I've worked
:   in salons since I was 17. I've seen good stylists. She's not good.
:   She's really good."
:
:   But Martins doesn't think of herself as anything unusual. And she
:   doesn't want any special treatment.
:
:   "They gave me a second chance," she responds about her clientele.
:   "They said 'Delia we can't lose you.' I can't see but I've a got a
:   talent and a gift."
:
:   And she now spends most of her time giving it to others.
:
:

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Please note my new email address:
fatos.floyd at nebraska.gov

Fatos Floyd, CRC, CVRCB
Director, Nebraska Center for the Blind
Nebraska Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired
Our Mission:
Empowering blind individuals,
Promoting opportunities,
and building belief in the blind.
(402) 471-8120

-----Original Message-----
From: rehab-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:rehab-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of David B Andrews
Sent: Wednesday, January 21, 2009 3:27 PM
To: rehab at nfbnet.org
Subject: Re: [rehab] Blind Hairdressers/Comotolgists

I would suggest contacting Loraine Rovig, lrovig at nfb.org at the National Center * she is good at this stuff and might know.

Dave

David Andrews
Chief Technology Officer
Minnesota State Services for the Blind
2200 University Ave. W., #240
St. Paul, MN  55114-1840
(651) 642-0513  Office
(612) 730-7931  Cell
(651) 649-5927  Fax

>>> Jennifer Kennedy <msjenniferkennedy at gmail.com> 1/21/2009 2:45 PM
>>>

Hi all,

I am wondering if any of you have contact with or have placed a blind person as a hairdresser? I know there's one from Michigan and there used to be one in Iowa but haven't a clue how to get in contact with them. If any of you can enlighten me that would be appreciated. I am currently working with a student who wants to go back into the world of beauty but needs some guidance as she was sighted when she learned the trade.

Thanks in advance,
Jennifer Kennedy

--
Jennifer M. Kennedy, M. A., NOMC
National Association of Blind Students, Board Member
Website: www.nabslink.org
Email: msjenniferkennedy at gmail.com
Phone: (330) 465-6245

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