[Nfbf-l] My Tour Of The Rehab Center

[Roanna Bacchus]

Dear Members,

Today my parents and I had the opportunity to tour the Rehabilitation Center For The Blind and Visually Impaired in Daytona Beach, Florida. When my Mom and I spent a weekend there sixteen years ago, we were not impressed. The facilities were not clean or safe. We had to share a bathroom with someone else.

  This morning my parents and I left home at 7-30 Am and arrived just before our scheduled 9-00 Am tour. Edward Hudson who is the Bureau Chief was our tour guide. We were very impressed with what we saw today. The entire facility has been rebuilt from the ground up. The dormitory has thirty individual suites like a hotel. Each student stays in their own individual suite while they are on campus. Each room is equipped with its own desktop computer with programs that students use in class during the day. Meals are served three times a day in the cafeteria. In Home Management, students are taught to use the stove and prepare a meal. All of the staff members took time to answer any questions that we had. There is twenty-four hour security on campus. A security guard is on duty at all times in the dormitory.

  I will be doing the Independent Living Skills program at the Rehab Center. I will be learning cooking, cleaning, doing my own laundry, learning the new Ueb braille code, labeling my own clothing, and learning to wash and dry my clothes. There is a possibility that I will be gaining work experience at the Braille And Talking Book Library. The Rehab Center is an hour away from my home.

Roanna Bacchus