[nfb-talk] {Disarmed} FW: A personal report from ChairmanGordon Gund

T. Joseph Carter carter.tjoseph at gmail.com
Tue Apr 26 11:51:47 UTC 2011


If I have said it once, I've said it a thousand times:  People are 
going to notice there's something not normal about those of us with 
residual vision.  The burying our noses in everything is usually a 
good clue, as is our inability to notice and follow simple posted 
instructions on signs.

As I see it, we've really got two choices.  To the sighted, we can 
appear as blind, or we can appear as stupid.  I'll take blind any day 
of the week.  Blind I can explain.  Stupid not so much.

Joseph


On Tue, Apr 26, 2011 at 07:21:37AM -0400, Powers, Terry (NIH/OD/DEAS) [E] wrote:
>The hardest thing I had to do as a partial was to accept the fact that I needed to use a cane.  I used to think using a cane publisized that I was blind.  As a kid, I never used a cane, mainly because my adopted mother used crutches and I could trip her.  I would follow her every where.  I was tought to use a cane as a teanager.  I was very reluctant to use it, thinking it was publisizing  my blindness.  Then I ended up with a husband that did not accept my blindness.  I am almost a free woman and I use my cane when ever I am out in the public or in unknown teritory.  I use it when out with friends and with family and they have accepted it.  Things have totally changed and I am almost independent and free, thanks to the NFB.
>
>Terry Powers
>
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: T. Joseph Carter [mailto:carter.tjoseph at gmail.com]
>Sent: Sunday, April 24, 2011 7:33 AM
>To: NFB Talk Mailing List
>Subject: Re: [nfb-talk] {Disarmed} FW: A personal report from ChairmanGordon Gund
>
>No, it's really not the right term.  Being "partially sighted" or "visually impaired" was far worse than trying to live in two worlds for me.  The fact of the matter was that I couldn't live in either world, and I hated it.
>
>I did not know it was okay to be blind.  Even though I spent so much time around the NFB, I really didn't get it.  Not even in 2005 when I decided I needed to go to Colorado.  Not even in 2006 when I went, actually.  I don't know where I really figured out that I was blind without modifiers.  I do know that I figured it out before I returned from the Colorado Center.
>
>It's really strange to me because there honestly isn't that much we do at our training centers that could not be done elsewhere.  There is no secret wisdom to pass along.  It's just an immersive setting and the attitude that a person can do whatever they want to do, if they really want to do what it takes to make it happen, along with the occasional challenge exercise to help prove the point.  That should be available anywhere, but it's not for some reason.  The rest is up to you.
>
>Joseph
>
>
>On Fri, Apr 22, 2011 at 08:21:49PM -0700, Gloria Whipple wrote:
>>I fully agree.
>>
>>Myself, I have been blind all my life, so I don't know what it is like
>>living in two worlds. Is that the right term?
>>
>>
>>Gloria Whipple
>>Corresponding Secretary
>>Inland Empire chapter
>>nfb of WA
>>
>>
>>-----Original Message-----
>>From: nfb-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nfb-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
>>Behalf Of T. Joseph Carter
>>Sent: Friday, April 22, 2011 20:00
>>To: NFB Talk Mailing List
>>Subject: Re: [nfb-talk] {Disarmed} FW: A personal report from ChairmanGordon
>>Gund
>>
>>Gloria,
>>
>>For the longest time I wished I were either fully sighted or fully
>>blind.  I didn't much care which.  I was raised to be "visually
>>impaired", not "blind", so I was expected to do things visually when
>>possible, which generally it wasn't.  The end result was that I was
>>angry, depressed, and generally Not Terribly Happy with the world.
>>
>>I can easily see how a person who is in such a state, and much more
>>easily see how a person who had vision and lost it would want to be
>>able to see more than most anything else.  In the latter case, it is
>>just something we have to understand.  In the former, it is too bad
>>that people who cannot see are taught to idolize vision they will not
>>have.  This creates in such people an innate sense of inferiority we
>>have seen a few times here on this list.
>>
>>The unfortunate reality is that most parents don't get it.  My
>>dearest Katie, who uses a wheelchair but is not blind, just last week
>>had that fact made blatantly apparent to her in a way that made her
>>feel kind of sick: Her parents don't get disability, despite raising
>>her and being generally supportive much of the time.  They just
>>don't, and probably they never will.  If they don't understand her,
>>what hope is there that they will ever understand me?
>>
>>Joseph
>>
>>
>>On Fri, Apr 22, 2011 at 09:11:48AM -0700, Gloria Whipple wrote:
>>>Bull. Are you in that category? I feel for you if you are.
>>>
>>>Sure it would be nice if sight could be given to those who want it, but it
>>>isn't the end of the world!
>>>
>>>
>>>Gloria Whipple
>>>Corresponding Secretary
>>>Inland Empire chapter
>>>nfb of WA
>>>
>>>
>>>-----Original Message-----
>>>From: nfb-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nfb-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
>>>Behalf Of John Heim
>>>Sent: Friday, April 22, 2011 07:02
>>>To: NFB Talk Mailing List
>>>Subject: Re: [nfb-talk] {Disarmed} FW: A personal report from
>>ChairmanGordon
>>>Gund
>>>
>>>A lot of people don't like being blind. In fact, I would say that most
>>>people who are blind would prefer not to be blind.
>>>
>>>----- Original Message -----
>>>From: "Gloria Whipple" <ladygloria at webband.com>
>>>To: "'NFB Talk Mailing List'" <nfb-talk at nfbnet.org>
>>>Sent: Thursday, April 21, 2011 4:19 PM
>>>Subject: Re: [nfb-talk] {Disarmed} FW: A personal report from
>>ChairmanGordon
>>>
>>>Gund
>>>
>>>
>>>> What in the heck is wrong with being blind!
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Gloria Whipple
>>>> Corresponding Secretary
>>>> Inland Empire chapter
>>>> nfb of WA
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> -----Original Message-----
>>>> From: nfb-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nfb-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
>>>> Behalf Of S Baker
>>>> Sent: Thursday, April 21, 2011 14:14
>>>> To: AMoLList
>>>> Subject: [nfb-talk] {Disarmed} FW: A personal report from Chairman Gordon
>>>> Gund
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> SRBaker
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Date: Thu, 21 Apr 2011 16:00:24 -0500
>>>> From: GGund at FightBlindness.org
>>>> To: srbaker at charter.net
>>>> Subject: A personal report from Chairman Gordon Gund
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Like you, Steven, I follow the work of the Foundation Fighting Blindness
>>>> closely. As a donor, I want to know that my donations make a difference.
>>>>
>>>> And believe me, they do.  When I reflect on the last year and listen to
>>>> this
>>>> video, I am reminded that we have more clinical trials for sight-saving
>>>> treatments underway than ever before.  Clearly, hope and optimism are
>>>> running high.  Incredible strides have been made in the last few years,
>>>> and
>>>> these remarkable advances would not have been made without your support
>>of
>>>> the Foundation. They include:
>>>>
>>>> Vision Restored.  We are continuing to build on remarkable gains in gene
>>>> therapy.  As you may recall, in a Foundation-funded trial, 9-year-old
>>>> Corey
>>>> Haas and 19 others received a gene therapy treatment and can now see.
>>And
>>>> as the trial has expanded, participants have shown sustained improvement
>>>> in
>>>> vision.  Building on this success, similar gene therapy treatments are
>>>> moving into clinical trials for choroideremia, Stargardt disease and
>>Usher
>>>> syndrome.
>>>>
>>>> Innovative Technology.  The high-tech industry has a treatment I'm
>>>> incredibly excited about-- the world's first commercially available
>>>> artificial or "bionic" eye. Early funding from the Foundation was key to
>>>> getting this engineered retina off the ground.  Building on the studies
>>we
>>>> funded, the light-sensing, implantable "chip" has been tested in a
>>>> clinical
>>>> trial in Europe with great results. In the study, people who were
>>>> profoundly
>>>> blind experienced improved vision that could help them to be more
>>>> independent.  In fact, many can now see shapes and recognize large
>>>> letters.
>>>>
>>>> Groundbreaking Therapies.  A research team funded by the Foundation
>>>> Fighting
>>>> Blindness developed an innovative technique for correcting the
>>>> disease-causing gene by using stem cells derived from a person's skin.
>>>> While
>>>> more work is needed to ensure safety, this advancement suggests that
>>>> doctors
>>>> may someday be able to treat a patient's retinal disease using their own
>>>> skin cells.
>>>> These few accomplishments barely begin to tell the story of all the
>>>> progress
>>>> that's being made.  And this is why words can never express my personal
>>>> gratitude for your passionate and committed support.
>>>>
>>>> I hope you will take a few minutes to watch the video and see the results
>>>> of
>>>> your support and the hope it has generated. But most importantly, I hope
>>>> you
>>>> will see that research is progressing at a terrific rate.  It's been a
>>>> long
>>>> time coming, but we crossed a critical threshold when our researchers
>>>> actually restored sight. It launched us into a new era when more and more
>>>> people will have their sight saved or restored every year.  A lot of work
>>>> remains.  But we'll get there by continuing to work together.
>>>>
>>>> The Foundation Fighting Blindness values the support you give us by
>>>> donating, talking to your friends, and advocating for increased research
>>>> funding.  As we continue our relentless pursuit to eradicate blindness,
>>we
>>>> hope you will continue your steadfast support of our mission. Thanks for
>>>> envisioning a bright future for the millions affected by retinal
>>>> degenerative diseases.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Sincerely,
>>>>
>>>> Gordon Gund
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Check us out on:
>>>>
>>>> Tell a Friend  |  Subscribe  |  Change email address  |  Unsubscribe
>>>> Foundation Fighting Blindness
>>>> www.FightBlindness.org
>>>> 7168 Columbia Gateway Drive, Suite 100
>>>> Columbia, MD 21046
>>>> 1-800-683-5555
>>>>
>>>> nonprofit software
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>>a
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>>>>
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>>e
>>>t
>>>>
>>>
>>>
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