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Hi there, GDUC has been very busy this past quarter. We have participated in Guide Dog Day at the Capitol which, as usual, was a great success. Our message to the legislators this time was that we need to enhance the penalties for interference with and injury of guide dogs. There have been far too many incidents in this area of late and we intend to try to improve matters to the benefit of all of us. We now have a booklet that GDUC can use as an educational tool informing law enforcement personnel and the public of just what the California laws are. We have some protection already. What we need is enforcement of what is already there and more stringent penalties in the areas where the perpetrator isn't getting the message because the penalty isn't stiff enough. We are hard at work trying to do something good on behalf of all of us. In the last issue we told you about the "20 Questions" project that we have going. I expected that we would have these easels and brochures out around the time of the convention but, alas, we missed the mark by a little. They are coming soon. You will be receiving a package containing two easels with the braille and large print instructions on how to assemble them, and a quantity of brochures to put in them. For those who prefer to have their instructions on tape, we will include them in this issue of "FORWARD". We are asking you to take an easel filled with brochures to two different places in your area. Ask the owner or manager of the establishment if they will permit you to place an easel by their cash register for customers to take one if they want to. There is a sticker on the front of the easel telling people that they are free and to take one. We think this can do a great deal toward educating the public. If you need more than two easels or if you run out of brochures, please call and ask for more. Some ideas of places to place your easels are: restaurants that you feel need to know more about guide dogs and their handlers, or just a favorite place you like to go have dinner; your doctor's office; the place you purchase your dog's food and supplies; your vet's front desk; your groomer's front desk; the local Mom & Pop market or gas station. Be creative, you all have ideas that will surprise the rest of us and make everyone wonder why we didn't think of that. All across the state pedestrian safety has become a topic of great interest. This certainly is of interest to all of us, whether we are guide dog users or cane users. Actually, if they walk it is important to everyone. Well, it seems to attracted the attention of governmental bodies too. They are in a frame of mind to improve the safety of the pedestrian all over California. Lets help them. I have been to two different symposiums so far and there are more scheduled in the near future. I have seen other of our members in attendance at different ones of these meetings. I'm glad to see you, and I hope all of you continue to be involved in your local area's pedestrian safety arena. For far too long, especially in southern California, the almighty vehicle has reigned supreme. Well, things seem to be taking a turn in the direction that will benefit all pedestrians, whether they walk because they have to or just because they like walking as a mode of transportation. There really are people like that out there. When any of you take part in an interesting symposium or go to an interesting meeting, please report on it in the pages of FORWARD. This is the best mechanism we have to keep all of our members up-to-date on all that is going on around our state, and there is a lot taking place. In August the California Restaurant and Hospitality show will be going on in San Francisco. It will be at the Moscone Center on August 19, 20 and 21. I hope several will take part in that. It is always fun. You get to see all of the latest things being sold to restaurants, taste different foods and make a lot of new and valuable friends. All of California's guide dog schools and GDUC benefit from this show. It is a wonderful joint effort. We've had numerous calls as a result of our being at the show. Some have wanted to know what the state laws are regarding guide dogs, others are just interested in guide dogs in general. There are even those who ask because they want to get involved in puppy raising. This show is excellent exposure. It is a place where the attendees can feel free to ask all the questions they want and, even get to pet one of the working guides, if they ask! I hope several of you will attend this year. You won't be sorry you did. Compliance with California's Food And Agriculture Code Chapter 3.5: Guide Dogs, Signal Dogs, and Service Dogs, Sections 30850 through 30854 is beginning to take place. Orange County has taken the lead in this civil obedience. Those at the spring convention voted to have all the counties of the state contacted to let them know that we, the members of GDUC, will be asking each of them to comply by issuing the appropriate identification tag to us. This may not be the final answer to the question of whether or not a Guide, Signal or Service Dog is permitted, (they are), but it can give a business owner a little peace of mind about whether or not the dog coming into his/her establishment is really a legitimate assistant for a disabled individual. More needs to be done on this, but it is a start. I will be writing the letter in the next few days. I'm sure I've forgotten to tell you something, but I can't for the life of me think what it is. So, I'll stop for now and save everything else for the next time. Give those pups a hug and scratch for me and do have a wonderful summer. Melita Waters |
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Held at the Sacramento Hilton Hotel during the California Council of the Blind Convention. Melita Waters called the meeting to order at approximately 8:30. The complete treasurer's report and minutes of last meeting will appear in an upcoming edition of the newsletter "Forward". They were not read and approved at this meeting. Election of delegates to the national and state conventions. Melita announced that GDUC would reimburse the two delegates to the national convention a total of $150. Melita Waters was voted delegate for the fall 2000 and spring 2001 CCB convention, with Abby Vincent as alternate. Sheila Styron was elected delegate to the National ACB convention in July 2000, with Melita Waters as alternate. All four positions were by acclamation, as other nominees were either ineligible or declined the nomination. Committee appointments Nominating Committee. Lee Morton was appointed chair of the nominating committee. The committee will nominate members to replace outgoing board members. The election will be held at the fall convention. The slate will be in the September "Forward". Program development committee. The program development committee will consider possible topics for future GDUC conventions. Sheila Styron was appointed chair, with Mitch Pomerantz and Alan Brenner as members. "Where do we go from here?" Sheila Styron has compiled a report on suggestions for future direction for GDUC's advocacy efforts. She read her report, which has also appeared in "Forward". There was some discussion of ID's for service dog owners. This may be necessary because of the challenge of some service dogs, especially "emotional support animals". Sheila believes the state is best place to focus advocacy because the state deals with access to public accommodations. There was some discussion of the dog tags issued to service dogs by local animal control authorities. These are intended to identify the dog. Resolution on guide dog expenses. Melita asked the members to vote on a proposed CCB resolution written by Jeff Thom concerning allowing guide dog expenses to be considered as work expenses. Our recommendation would be sent to the resolutions committee for their consideration. The resolution seeks to have the State of California, for taxation purposes, to consider guide dog expenses as work expenses. GDUC voted to endorse the resolution. Twenty Questions. Melita announced that the "Twenty Questions" series of information folders will be available soon. These are intended to give information about guide dogs intended to improve public understanding and cooperation. Each member will receive some folders, and we are expected to distribute them in places where we think they are needed. Expenses for "Forward" Because of the increased expense of producing and sending our newsletter, David Foster asked for and received an allowance of $400 per year. The business meeting was adjourned at approximately 9:30. Following the business meeting, members heard reports about housing discrimination and reports from each of the schools. |
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INTRODUCTION REMARKS: Thank you Melita Waters for that nice introduction. Good Morning ladies and gentlemen. My name is Harry Thomas. I have just completed two terms as President of the State Board of Guide Dogs for the Blind. I am usually at these meetings as one of the people who gets introduced and doesn't say much but gets polite applause anyway. I have always been grateful for that applause, so it is only fair to warn you that today I have more to say and I do want something from you. I have worked with you and around you for eight years; at meetings like this, Guide Dog Days at the Capitol and the sunset and rebirth of the Guide Dog Board. I am continuingly impressed by your willingness to do things, your tenacity and capacity for accomplishment. So it is hard for me to understand why many people refer to the Guide Dog Users as the "best educated but most underemployed segment of the disabled community". I believe there is something wrong with that picture. I believe that right now is the time to make an effort to fix it. Right now! The theme of this convention is "Now Is The Time". That is wonder- fully applicable to the current job market. The California jobless rate is 2.8%, right now. That is lower than anytime in my life, if you do not count World War II. "Now Is The Time" when employers are anxious for good workers and can be expected to be most interested in what we have to offer. So, with more jobs for guide dog users in mind, I talked to a few friends who like to get things done and we have come up with a program we labeled Plan A. We call it the "Poster Person Plan".
Expect fallout from the publicity to bring out more candidates and willing employers. Now that's a pretty simple plan and many people say it is pretty darn arrogant, too, because if it really was that simple it would have been done long ago. Well, maybe yes, maybe no. You notice I just said simple, I did not say easy to do. I think we all know of instances where the wisdom of the ages says "YOU CAN'T DO THAT" but some dummy who didn't know it couldn't be done, came along and did it. The difference is usually new blood, new energy, singleness of purpose, and a willingness to wade through a sea of "NO's" to get to a "YES". With your help I would like to be that dummy that didn't know it couldn't be done. I have also talked to some of the folks who are involved with job placement for the visually impaired and as Re-Hab Director Catherine Campisi said at yesterdays General Session, "The successful placement statistics are getting worse instead of getting better". It is, of course wonderful to have the Director's attention on the problem, As a result, I am sure you will understand that the Department and the people concerned will spend a great effort "Problem Solving" to deal with the bad statistics in a governmental way. Beyond that I think an effort should be made to get people jobs! I propose to make that effort and intend to recruit as many volunteers as possible to help. That includes you and "Now Is The Time". We start with the folks who work with Job Placement all the time. They are where the rubber meets the road and they have all of the contacts and history. We need to waste no energy trying to re-invent the wheel. Let us be sure we take advantage of existing information and structure. Let us get the easy ones first. We start with our best candidates. We start with the lists of known willing employers. Let us recognize that in the existing structure, few folks have Job Placement as their first priority and those that do are burdened by heavy case loads, mountains of paperwork, formal procedures and past frustrations. Our efforts will not start with that kind of excess baggage. I am here today to ask for volunteers, recruits, potential employer prospects and everybody or anybody who wants to put some energy or information in. If you might be a candidate, let me know. Give me names. Now or later. I will be here until Sunday morning. If you can not find me, give names or information to Melita and she will pass it on. Let us get started "Now Is The Time".
Editor's Note: |
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To Tell the weather, go to your back door and look for the dog. If the dog is at the door and he is wet, it's probably raining. But if the dog is standing there really soaking wet, it is probably raining really hard. If the dog's fur looks like it's been rubbed the wrong way, it's probably windy. If the dog has snow on his back, it's probably snowing. Of course, to be able to tell the weather like this, you have to leave the dog outside all the time, especially if you expect bad weather. Sincerely, |
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I recently spent an afternoon with some blind teens and pre-teens which carried me back to my own pre-guide dog days. Being with these young people and observing their fascination with the magic of guide dogs left me feeling more than a little nostalgic about my own before and after getting a guide dog experiences. I always knew as a child that I would have a guide dog when I grew up, although I had never even met a blind person who worked with one. However, that didn't matter, because I loved animals to distraction and had identified so strongly with all those books about guide dogs. I was as certain as some little girls are about finding the man of their dreams that I would be one of those lucky blind people who would get to travel all over the world with their guide dog. So when I did my home interview with San Rafael, this is how it went. "Which breed of dog would you prefer, Miss Styron" (Schools were quite formal then.) "Oh," I said. "A collie, of course! Just like Lassie." "Well, Miss Styron, we don't use collies as guide dogs. You must choose between a German Shepherd, a Labrador Retriever or a Golden Retriever." Then I asked, "Which one is the furriest?" And he said, "Golden Retrievers are the furriest, Miss Styron." Armed with that valuable knowledge, I proceeded with my dream of getting a guide dog and before the school had a chance to realize what they had turned loose on the world, I was parading all around UCLA as a scared, uppity little music major freshman with my beautiful Golden Retriever Guide Dog, Inca. Now, back to the present and the teenagers who caused me to remember my pre-guide dog excitement and expectations so fondly. Ranging in age from 12 to 15 years old, Heather, Latasha and Mathew were participants in an after school program sponsored by the Braille Institute which presented them with the opportunity to learn about guide dogs. The fun took place at the Topanga Canyon kennels of Guide Dogs For The Blind, where the kids come weekly to gain some hands-on experience with dogs in general as well as guides. I got in on the fun, because I help out at this wonderful facility from time to time. Therefore, when Liz Morosco invited me to participate in this event, I jumped at the chance to mentor blind teens as well as vicariously take part in their experience of learning about guide dogs. This particular Wednesday, we worked on grooming along with the daunting task of cleaning ears. My guide, Dorian, as well as other brave volunteers from the kennels were gentle, patient teachers, and we all had a fine time getting to know one another in the shade of the large oak tree which grows in Topanga's doggy exercise yard. As a teenager, I would have been thrilled out of my mind to have had the opportunity to hang out with actual guide dogs while imagining what it would be like when I finally would be able to train with one of my own. I hope the kids enjoyed our time working and playing together at least half as much as Dorian and I did. |
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My name is Lena Contreras and I am a graduate student in the Community Development program at the University of California at Davis. I am looking for people interested in participating in my research for my thesis about guide dog retirement and bonding with a successor dog. I am interested in people's stories. I am gathering my stories during telephone interviews. All the information you provide will be kept confidential. I think that more people need to be aware and understand the bond we share with our dogs and what the end of a partnership means to us. Also what happens during the beginning of another partnership. If you are interested, you may reach me by phone or e-mail: (530) 756-3119 or lcontreras@ucdavis.edu. Thank you all in advance, Lena Contreras |
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On May 20th during GDUC's business meeting a nominating committee was chosen. Lee Morton is chair. Tom Treher and Ann Kysor were also named to serve on the committee. We will select candidates for GDUC's elections in November. Three positions are up for grabs: vice president, treasurer, and director. Our committees choices will appear in the next issue of Forward. The election will take place in November. Nominations from the floor will be taken at that time. I hope some of you are seriously thinking about serving on GDUC's board of directors. We have some serious challenges facing us. We need your input!! If you are interested in running, call: Lee Morton (619) 223-1259, Tom Treher (619) 234-1291, or Ann Kysor (916) 648-2147. I look forward to your participation in GDUC's elections. We will see you all in November. |
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In the last two or three weeks it has been my privilege to attend meetings in Los Angeles and Santa Ana on safety, pedestrians and, I thought, primarily pedestrian safety. The meetings were interesting and quite similar in result but vastly different in size and polish. The Metropolitan Transit Agency (MTA) put on a meeting in it's second floor conference room, as big as a small theater, on June 1, 2000, billed as a "Pedestrian Symposium". There were many dignitaries, including Yvonne Brathwaite Burke, MTA chair and a Supervisor of Los Angeles County, Pam O'Conner, Mayor of Santa Monica as well as a large number of LA County worker types. The only disabled representatives apparent were Melita Waters, Abby Vincent and Mitch Pomerantz. The meeting was well-prepared and polished. The discussion was aimed at developing interest in, and reporting on what had been done, to get people out of their cars and on foot. The basic premise of the MTA is that walking must be considered as an essential element in any transportation plan, and that there must be an increase in the amount of walking. The more people that get out and walk the better. There were two speakers that supported that idea from a theoretical or philosophic viewpoint. Rebecca Solnit is the author of "Wanderlust, A History of Walking" who in her book praises highly the benefits of walking - strolling through the world, apparently in a leisurely and unhurried manner. The social aspects of meeting people also walking and chatting and interacting were described as most desirable. Gloria Ohland of the Surface Transportation Policy Project, a think tank, supported the idea of revising traditional land use policy and making towns and cities into the village concept, in which the residents work and live in small areas, so that walking is the most desirable way to get around. Obviously there would be no room for the free-standing single family residence; all housing would be apartment or row housing. There was no mention of the problem that a person's income must be enough to allow living in that kind of development, and no solution was offered as to what to do with the people that couldn't afford to live next door to their work. There was no mention made of the limited choice of stores -you would go to the store in your village. And there was no reference made to the success or failure of the few projects that have already been built. Gloria Ohland pointed out that there are three main factors that make the village concept more attractive now: changing demographics, interest in "smart growth" and a shift in thinking about transportation. Changing demographics refers to the increase in the traditional minority groups and the reduction of the traditional majority population with the attendant change in preferred ways of living. Smart Growth seem to mean that new development should be planned for higher density occupation - more people in smaller areas. Transportation thinking is leaning away from the sole use of the automobile and incorporating transit, bicycles, rail and, yes, walking as a primary mode. The Mayor of Santa Monica described the successful efforts to rejuvenate the Mall in Santa Monica and the effect it has had. She noted that she does not own a car and uses public transportation. There was a good description of the Pine Avenue/Queensway Bay project in Long Beach, emphasizing (as did the Mayor of Santa Monica) the efforts to make walking more desirable and easier than driving. In both Long Beach and Santa Monica much of the emphasis was to make the walking areas attractive and inviting to encourage walking rather than driving. The Los Angeles Department of Transportation (LADOT) described with some pride their project to apply the principles of making the walkways more desirable. The Vermont Avenue corridor is a stretch of 2.9 miles in Los Angeles and is reported to be one of the most heavily travelled corridors in the country. LADOT was given 2.6 million dollars to make it more attractive and safer. They did have a problem - the street serves hospitals, the Braille Institute, colleges and has three metro (subway) stations. It crosses the Hollywood freeway and has on-and -off ramps. There is low density commercial without a closely knit group of area residents or organization. LADOT put into effect their "Streetscapes" program. They have installed 12 access ramps, 12 vibrating crosswalk pushbuttons, repainted 107 existing street light poles, enhanced 77 street light poles with decorative shadows of leafs, added 30 new trees around the Metro stations and added directional maps (not tactile) at 25 bus stops. They have in the works or coming soon more trees, sidewalk repair, decorate sidewalks at all remaining signalized intersections, add 12 custom-designed bicycle racks, add leaf impressions to the sidewalks where they have to repair the walks, add transit shelters and bus benches, and add 134 banners and medallions to street lamp poles. They have artists and designers on staff to assist. Oh, yes, trash receptacles and security lighting at bus stops is coming. Street lighting for safety purposes is not provided by the city. If the residents or businesses in an area want pedestrian lighting between bus stops, they must form a "revenue district" and pay for it themselves. LADOT also spoke on their pedestrian safety program. They have identified a 23 point safety program which includes such things as wider sidewalks, special pedestrian timing in special areas, devices for the visually impaired, marking of crosswalks including ladder marking, mid-block pedestrian signals, accessible intersections, and on, including police "sting" operations. These are where a plain-clothes officer will cross a street and see if the cars stop. If they don't, there is a police unit on hand. The LADOT also has a Pedestrian Advisory Committee. They claim a 20% reduction in pedestrian related accidents since 1995. Interestingly, wider sidewalks, up to two feet wider, are encouraged, however, new trees are planted in planter beds that take up one-half to three-quarters of the sidewalk. The MTA discussed it's policy on changing pedestrian environment, pointing out that 8.7% of all trips in Los Angeles are exclusively walking trips, 7% of all traffic accidents involve pedestrians and 40% of traffic fatalities are pedestrians. A major aim of the pedestrian element of the MTA Long Range Plan is to expand ADA access and improve safety. The next pedestrian safety meeting was the Santa Ana Pedestrian Safety Task Force on June 6. Santa Ana is the ninth largest city and the second most densely populated city in California. Approximately eleven per cent of it's population ride transit or walk to work. There is a severe problem: in 1997, over 50% of the traffic deaths in Santa Ana resulted from pedestrian accidents (13 deaths, 179 injuries, in a city of 300,000 population). Over 50% of these accidents were caused by the pedestrian, not the vehicle driver. This task force has been in existence for over a year. It has done considerable research and started several projects to try to educate pedestrians and drivers. Their main thrust seems to be towards safety of school children walking to and from school. They have placed much emphasis on "Walk This Way" programs, walking children to school projects. In conjunction with the University of California, Irvine, and the California Office of Traffic Safety, pedestrian safety assessments have been done at elementary schools in Santa Ana. At the meeting, there were several representatives of the various schools, two police officers and the police department supervisor of the school crossing guards. There were two representatives of State Assemblyman Lou Correa's office and a city traffic engineer. There was a representative of Metrolink and the Auto Club and an artist. There were three representatives of the sponsoring organization, UC Irvine Pediatric Injury Prevention Research Group. There was no mention of accessible intersections during the meeting. When asked about audible signals (there are none at all in Santa Ana) the traffic engineer said that he has a supervisor who "knows all about those things" and that he would get back with us. To date, nothing has been heard. It should be noted that there were no representatives of any disability group, organized or not, other than Melita Waters. It appears that there had never been any such representation. There was much discussion about a book "Streets and Sidewalks, People and Cars, The Citizen's Guide to Traffic Calming"" by Dan Burden. This book, which was also available at the MTA meeting, although not emphasized, is aimed at making walking more desirable and reducing the speed of automobiles. The thrust seems to be to redesign cities and towns and neighborhoods so that walking is the thing to do. That way there will be fewer cars and therefore walking will be safer. In the meantime, modify streets to make cars slow down - by narrowing the streets, bulbouts, neckdowns, medians, pedestrian refuge islands, and even roundabouts. These techniques are referred to as traffic calming. The proposals met with great enthusiasm in Santa Ana. To summarize: pedestrian safety is alive and well in Los Angeles and other cities under the MTA; it is not the top objective, but right up there close, ahead of painted leaves and decorative banners on lamp posts. Pedestrian Safety in Santa Ana means teach the children how to walk to and from school safely and attempt to reach the adults with public service handouts and programs. The MTA efforts are serious attempts to incorporate pedestrian needs into long-term planning and include attention to disability concerns. The Santa Ana Pedestrian Safety Project is in response to an out of control situation and is aiming its efforts at the areas that are most likely to produce results in a timely manner. |
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Whether one uses a guide dog or white cane as a mobility aid, there is little doubt that the streets and intersections of this land have become increasingly hazardous to our collective health. As a new guide dog user--less than six months at this writing--I am reminded almost daily that traveling with a dog only somewhat mitigates the hazards involved in getting to and from my work. As the ADA Compliance officer for the City of Los Angeles, I am fortunate to get paid for providing input to government officials on such issues as encouraging the installation of accessible pedestrian signals and discouraging the use of "traffic calming" techniques (e.g., traffic circles) which adversely impact the safety of blind and visually impaired persons. At our recent Spring Convention, pedestrian access and safety were the hot topics at the joint meeting of California Council of Citizens with Low Vision (CCCLV) and the Committee on Access and Transportation (CAT). The tone was set by Charles Crawford, ACB's Executive Director, with his address "The Pedestrian Infrastructure, Whose Is It Anyway." Charlie mentioned the increasing number of tragic deaths of blind people which have occurred in recent years, largely due to the lack of accessible pedestrian signals and other accessibility features in the built environment. Additionally, traffic calming measures (the slowing, or reduction in the number, of automobiles traveling through an area utilizing a variety of means) have made it even more of a challenge for us to navigate our communities. He concluded by reminding us that the second edition of ACB's Pedestrian Handbook will soon be available. (This informative and valuable document may be accessed and downloaded from the ACB website.) Charlie urged all of us with an interest in pedestrian safety to read, become familiar with and disseminate the handbook as widely as possible. "Building Partnerships and Creating a Safe Walking Environment for All" was presented by Anne Geroghty, President of Walk Sacramento, an affiliate of the national organization, America Walks. She discussed the benefits to ourselves and our communities of getting from place to place by walking (a bit of preaching to the choir). Ms. Geroghty talked about what her group is doing in Sacramento and expressed sincere interest in the pedestrian access and safety issues we raised with her. For example: she mentioned the desirability of planting trees along parkways (the space between the curb line and sidewalk itself) in order to provide shade and a little greenery for pedestrians. I pointed out that in Los Angeles, hundreds of miles of our sidewalks have been rendered serious tripping hazards because of trees which were planted 20 and 30 years ago but whose root systems were never kept under control. Ms. Geroghty understood the problem and indicated that there are trees, which can be planted and techniques employed by which roots do not uplift sidewalks. On a personal note, the Chairperson of our local Pedestrian Advisory Committee is the President of L.A. Walks. I have found her and the organization especially supportive of the pedestrian safety concerns I have brought to the Committee's attention during the past year. Similar groups in your communities are also likely to be good partners in carrying forward our concerns. A panel presentation "Pedestrian Access: An Urban Policy and Design," addressed a number of the technical considerations involved in traffic management and pedestrian safety. It was pointed out that increasingly, cycling of the signal from red to green is determined by traffic flow. When a pedestrian pushes the button, one of two things can occur: 1) the signal will not change until sufficient parallel traffic is detected by sensors buried in the pavement, not the sidewalk; or 2) the signal is timed so that it will not change for several seconds (20 to 30) after pushing. In fact, pushing the button typically does not affect when the cycle commences but only affects the length of the "walk" cycle itself. The final presentation, "Supporting the Travel of Consumers" was made by Tasha Dean, PH.D., President, California Association of Orientation and Mobility Specialists. While indicating her organization's desire to work cooperatively with blind and visually impaired people to enhance pedestrian access and safety, much of Dr. Dean's presentation echoed--in this old hand's opinion--CAOMS' rhetoric of 20 years ago. While peripherally related to the subject at hand, and at the risk of reopening an old debate, Dr. Dean still holds that the only person who can provide proper mobility training is someone who has been through years of schooling and certification by professionals in the field. This is particularly worrisome given that Dr. Dean acknowledged the critical shortage of Orientation and Mobility Specialists and the fact that this shortage will grow as the result of the aging of the population and the increased incidence of blindness among this population. By implication, CAOMS also seems to believe that blind persons cannot provide OandM training to other blind persons (to my knowledge, only two blind individuals have ever been certified as Orientation and Mobility Instructors by AER). Keep in mind that Counselor-Teachers for the Blind (a majority of whom are blind themselves) have been unofficially and successfully training their clients for decades. With that said, we can hope that an on-going dialogue between CCB and CAOMS will be beneficial to both organizations. As I stated at the outset, whether we choose a guide dog or cane to get around, pedestrian access and safety are vitally important to all of us. Regardless of our choice of aid, we are independent, blind men and women who should not accept that our mobility will be curtailed by increasingly complicated and/or dangerous public streets. The joint CCCLV/CAT program makes that fact perfectly clear! |
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MAY 21: This morning, on the deck, he kept saying, over and over again: "We live HERE, now. Do you understand? We used to live THERE. But now we live HERE. This is our HOME, now. HERE." Yeah, yeah. HERE. I get it, already. MAY 22: MAY 23: I've begun preliminary excavation work at four different locations. Bill has noticed three of them, but the fourth one is hidden behind a poster of Rita Hayworth. I may not have learned much from watching cartoons, but "The Shawshank Redemption" was a revelation. MAY 24: MAY 25: "Do you know how much I paid for this rug?" he screamed, spritzing club soda all over the place. Well, at least I got him to bark. Incidentally, if you've never had club soda on your paws, it's the wildest sensation. I can't wait until he paints the porch. MAY 26: MAY 27: MAY 28: MAY 29: Naturally, I pushed to door open again with my nose and returned to the yard, just to show him how I clever I am. Well, this is never a good idea, especially when you're living with the control freak of the century. Within 15 minutes he screwed a hook onto the screen, and gave me this whole lecture about who's in charge around here. I can't even imagine what he's going to do when he finds out that I can use the microwave. MAY 30: "I'm doing this because I love you," he said, "and I don't want anything to happen to you. Do you understand?" I didn't, at first, but then, the more I thought about it, the more I figured he meant it. And I was kind of touched by the whole thing, to tell you the truth. So, when we went back inside I licked his forehead and made him some popcorn in the microwave. "WHAT IS THIS?" he yelled. There is just no pleasing the man. Author Unknown |
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It has been reported that here is a coupon at a web site for a free dose of the flea and tick control Frontline. It seems that all that a person has to do is print the coupon of the web site and present it to their vet for a free dose. The website is: |
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In the first general session on Friday afternoon, Dr. Catherine Campisi, Director, California Department of Rehabilitation, spoke. Essentially she spent a good deal of time talking about herself, then talked of many of the things she intended to do while being director. John Mott Smith, Chief, Elections Division, CA Secretary of State, spoke on access of the voting booth to the blind and visually impaired. Linda Dardarian, attorney, spoke about the settlement of the Wells Fargo Bank ATM machines issue. She said that City Bank and Bank of America would also be following in a similar manner. Lynda Bardis, Chief, Services to the Blind, California Department of Social Services, in Sacramento, spoke on the passage of the bill that would allow SSDI recipients to get the Guide Dog Allowance. In the Friday evening presidents report Catherine Skivers spoke on the status of CCB. She referred to the new chapters and chapters reaffirming themselves. She spoke on the Wells Fargo situation. Ardis Bazyn spoke on ways of encouraging chapter members to get new people into their chapters. On Saturday afternoon, Dr Tasha Dean, President, California Association of Orientation and Mobility Specialists, spoke about the organization that she represents. They have a Northern California group and a Southern California group. They would like to get into more advocacy issues. On Sunday we had a couple of resolutions that had to do with Guide Dogs. One of these had to do with the aforementioned SSDI dog allowance. It would bring the SSDI dog allowance up to what the SSI recipients are receiving. The other resolution concerning Guide Dogs would make expenses incurred in having the dog tax exempt. Respectfully Submitted |
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I didn't want to face the fact that Ivy, my faithful Golden Retriever guide for 11 years, was growing old. Because I could not see the whitening of my Golden girl's muzzle, I was not confronted by the visual image of her aging. She had slowed down, but so had I, and we were like perfectly matched book ends. Over the years, Ivy had developed into a meticulous guide, intuitively recognizing my pervasive fear of losing my balance and falling. Feeling her subtle signals through the harness handle, I confidently negotiated environments as diverse as the subway system in New York City, the buses in Tel Aviv, Israel, and major airports throughout the world. Her cautious approach to stairs, curbs and uneven footing was the hallmark of the effectiveness of our working partnership. When her caution began to border on hesitancy, I became uneasy and knew something was drastically wrong. Ivy, the consummate professional, occasionally began failing to stop at curbs and appeared confused when entering a darkened theater from a well-fit lobby. Fearing for my safety, I consulted with a veterinary ophthalmologist and received the devastating news that Ivy had lost vision completely in one eye. This 1993 Delta Society' Guide Dog of the Year award winner had continued to perform her duties expertly with such brilliance, but I was unaware until her condition had progressed significantly that she was functioning with limited vision. Unwilling to break the bond prematurely, I continued to work with Ivy, unrealistically hoping her vision would stabilize and we would continue our partnership for many more months. With this thought, my husband, Ed, and I flew to Washington, D.C., to attend the joint conference of the International Association of Assistance Dog Partners and Assistance Dogs International. Living up to my expectations, Ivy expertly guided me on the crowded metropolitan streets and within the hotel. On the third day of the conference, however, Ivy's remaining vision deteriorated drastically, and I felt as though my world were crumbling. Although she was able to guide me safely in the narrow hotel corridors, she appeared confused and disoriented when entering the open lobby. When I took her out for relief at dusk she seemed particularly unsure of herself. Not wanting to put pressure on her or endanger myself, I relied on sighted human guides and did not ask my faithful Golden Retriever to guide me for the rest of the trip. Following the conference, we were scheduled to visit Ann Strathern, a long-time friend in nearby Maryland. My spirits were lifted somewhat knowing Ivy, a passionate water lover, would have the chance to swim in Ann's pool. We learned of Ivy's love of the Maryland waters during an earlier visit. Several years prior, when Ann and her family purchased their property in Maryland, strict rules were established about water rights. The pool was for the exclusive use of humans, while the pond was for the canine corps. Shortly after Ivy became my guide, we took a trip to visit Ann. While I cavorted in the pool with Ann's children, Ivy joined Ann's Golden Retrievers in a fenced paddock adjacent the pool. Suddenly, I heard a loud splash as Ivy, not recognizing the rules of the house, jumped the five foot fence to get her share of water aerobics. Having been placed back in the paddock, Ivy's water passion was not to be denied! If the pool was off limits, the pond was not! Jumping the fence in the other direction, Ivy indulged her swimming passion in the designated dog area. For the rest of that visit and subsequent visits to Ann's home, when Ivy was off-leash I allowed her to cavort in the water. Arriving in Maryland after the conference, however, I was surprised to learn the rules at Ann's had been relaxed and dogs now were invited to join humans in the pool. During this latest visit, I was concerned that Ivy, with her limited vision, might injure herself trying to get to the water. Not to worry! Because Ivy was familiar with the house and property, she used her residual vision to run around the yard and found the pool quickly. To my dismay, when a floating boat bumper was thrown, Ivy dove after it but often swam right by. Eventually scenting the bumper, she retrieved it and brought it to us on the patio. When dusk fell, however, Ann noted in distress that Ivy was unable to locate the patio steps and tried to reach us by crashing through the bushes. Ann's observations confirmed my worst fears about Ivy's continuing vision loss. Our trip home was bittersweet. I knew the prognosis was not good and plans soon would have to be made to train with Ivy's successor. She had been my loyal guide for 11 years and had accumulated thousands of flying miles. I was teary throughout the flight knowing Ivy's retirement soon would be official. By the time Escort, my new Golden Retriever guide dog, entered our family, Ivy had become totally blind. Although she adapted quickly to her blindness, my emotions were rocked hearing her bump into walls as she rushed to greet visitors at the door. The first time she tried to race down the stairs at mealtime, she stumbled and slid down several steps. From that time on, however, she adjusted her pace and never had another close call. Ivy learned to heel on my right as Escort assumed the guiding role at my left side. Whenever possible, Ivy accompanied me to meetings, restaurants, theater productions and friends' homes. When Ed and I were away from home overnight, however, a corps of dog sitters had to be found for Ivy, who could not accompany us. When our friend Helen Shea was the designated dog sitter, Ivy was in ecstasy. Like Ann, Aunt Helen had a pool, and dogs were allowed to use it! Although Ivy would have preferred to use the pool during our Fresno, Calif., winter, she was not allowed to indulge her swimming passion until the weather warmed up. Finally, that magic day arrived when air and water temperature were right. Fearing for her safety, I set about reintroducing Ivy to the pool. Ed, Helen's daughter Beth and I got into the water and called Ivy to us. She cautiously negotiated the steps into the pool and swam several feet away. We called her back to the steps, then let her swim farther away. After two or three lessons, Ivy demonstrated her confidence by swimming the length of the pool. Later that day, as we humans dried off on the patio, Ivy emerged from the pool and embarked on an incredible investigation. In awe, Beth described Ivy's movements. Using her nose as a blind person would use a long cane, Ivy carefully negotiated the perimeter of the pool, apparently measuring and memorizing the length and width of its boundaries. Having completed her task, she returned to the stairs and effortlessly glided back into her watery haven. Her message was loud and clear to me: You never have allowed your blindness to interfere with your ability to follow your dreams. Adopting your attitude of independence, I, too, can pursue my passions! |
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The Korean electronics giant Samsung has developed a prototype digital guide dog harness which combines the use of the GPS global |