Skills Center News

Fall 2007

Meet Philip Kum
Do you ever catch yourself watching infomercials such as the one for the Ronco Food Dehydrator or that mini rotisserie oven thing? Who can flip the channel when there is now actually a way to make your own turkey jerky, or such catchy slogans as "Set it and forget it!" Anyways, this is not one of those. I was not paid, bribed, or threatened to write this.
About 2 years ago I was a regular college student with no vision problems other than having to wear geeky glasses most of the time. I was finishing my degree, working, and saving up for grad school. Everything was going great, but then a tumor was found in my noggin, and I lost most of my vision after the operation to remove the tumor. What followed were months of moping in bed while being "medicated". I did not feel like eating, or even getting out of bed. I had to drop out of school, and my solitude drew me away from everyone I knew and loved. My savings were gone because of my medical bills. Everyday I woke up felt like I was falling into a nightmare. I did not do anything independently anymore because I thought there was no way for me to go back to the way I was.
So now I am back in school, have a new job I love, volunteer part-time, participate in sports every week, and make a mean batch of oatmeal raisin cookies. There are so many to thank for helping me dig my way out of the hole I was in, but the Living Skills Center had a big hand in pulling me off the ground. The way LSC is setup in a regular apartment complex allows independence and great confidence building. The best way for me to describe the LSC experience would be calling it "real life Lite". You live as you would in the real world; paying your own bills, interacting with sighted neighbors, setting up your utilities, and budgeting so you have enough money for food. On the other hand, there is the staff that will teach and guide you along every step at your own pace and needs. I have learned so much about adaptive technologies for the visually impaired, cooking, and cleaning and how to travel to wherever I need to go. Another great thing about the Living Skills Center is the relatively small size of the program. Staff and students all become family quickly, and everyone knows everyone.
I am so grateful and indebted to the Living Skills Center, but let's go back to infomercials for a moment. I am sure you have all seen in some way or the other the quick-fix pill commercials, or the get-rich quick schemes. LSC is no miracle factory . What I mean by that is there is no easy fix. I have worked hard to make the best of my situation and still get frustrated at times, but without all the awesome help along the way I would probably still be sitting in bed watching food dehydrate.

Letter from the Director
The Living Skills Center has always adhered to the philosophy that health is a function of participation. For people who are visually impaired, the fear of moving through space safely can create a sedentary lifestyle, often with the side effects of depression, obesity, and low self-esteem. In addition, societal attitudes traditionally have fostered the notion that participation in most sports is not possible for disabled individuals. But that kind of negative scenario has never fit with the Living Skills Center belief that visually impaired people can and should be contributing citizens who are active in every sense of the word. We are committed to introducing our students to activities that allow them to broaden their horizons, develop physical strength, and gain confidence and a positive attitude towards physical activity that carries over into their daily lives.
Since its inception, the LSC has introduced students to all kinds of recreational activities. The ocean kayak and cross country ski trips that we started in the 70's remain an important highlight of each student's stay at the Living Skills Center. Those very special trips are accomplished in collaboration with another wonderful non-profit, Environmental Traveling Companions (ETC), which provides volunteer guides, equipment and cabins. Over the years we have also trained with students to run 3K and 5K races, taught water aerobics, held yoga classes and beep baseball workshops, trained for fund-raising Walkathons, gone ice skating and horseback riding, and helped students sign up for Physical Education classes at the local junior college. We especially like to promote activities that involve groups and facilitate social interaction.
I believe you will enjoy reading about the most current surge of sports activities, fueled by enthusiastic staff and wonderful grants from the Thomas J. Long Foundation and Kraft Cares. The 21st century has brought new ideas, new energy and commitment from both staff and our wonderful students. At the Living Skills Center, there is never a dull moment. --Patricia C. Williams

“Blessed are those who give without remembering
and take without forgetting.” --Elizabeth Asquith Bibesco

On behalf of Paula LeDuc, the head of our Paula LeDuc Leadership Society, our staff, Board of Directors, and students, we want to thank all of our many loyal supporters and friends of the Living Skills Center. We are deeply grateful for your contributions and wish all of you a Happy Holiday Season.

LSC ATHLETES IN LA
In August LSC Night Supervisor Brandon Young, led his goalball team, the Goats, to a silver medal victory in a tournament in Commerce, California. Besides Brandon, the Goats' roster includes Phillip Kum (a recent LSC graduate), Richard Rueda, and Thomas Foley. We caught up with Brandon to chat about the young team's first experience playing in a real competition.

LSC: So, I hear that you guys really brought the fire down to L.A.! Tell me about it.
Brandon: We went down to So Cal to play goalball, we came in second out of nine teams, and it was good fun. Good times!
LSC: What are the challenges of being both a player and a coach? Do you have to give one job priority over the other?
B: Yes, actually, especially since I'm the only experienced player on the team. The coaching has to come first. I know all the rules and the nuances, so I need to be aware all the time of what's happening during the game. So, then, if I'm playing, it gets to be a lot harder to keep track of what's happening and be able to call time outs or substitutions so that I can make changes if I need to.
LSC: I heard that you were facing off against some of your former teammates from the 2000 Paralympic team. Was there any rivalry going on?
B: Well, yes! My old teammate, Joey Hamilton, from the 2000 Sydney team was there. He had a team, he was doing a little coaching. I had a team, I was doing some coaching. And we faced each other for the gold medal. That was the game where I felt like I needed to get in and be on the court as a leader, and also as offense for the team to help them try to win that game.
LSC: What would you say to someone who was thinking about playing goalball, but wasn't sure whether it was the thing for them?
B: I think you need to be sure you want to play a physical sport. It's not contact, but it is physical, it is high energy, it's fast paced. You can and probably will get a little banged up and bruised. So, I think goalball is for people who really want to use their whole bodies - and also their brains to strategize. But really, if you want to use all the muscles in your body continuously for 30 minutes at a time, and then do that five times a day in a tournament, then goalball is for you!
LSC: Well, congratulations on bringing home the silver! Thanks for sharing with us.
B: Thank you!

ABOUT THE PARALYMPICS
The XI Paralympic Summer Games marked how far the Paralympic games have come since they started in 1960 in Rome with 400 athletes. They have changed from rehabilitative, recreational sport to high-performance, competitive sport. Across eleven days of competition in the summer of 2000, 3,824 athletes competed for 550 gold medals in eighteen sports. A record number of 1.2 million tickets were sold, more than double the sales in Atlanta in 1996. We are proud that two of the athletes who participated in the best Paralympic Games ever, Brandon Young and LSC graduate Scott Blanks (goal ball), are part of the LSC family.

NEW SHOPPING CARTS
The Diablo Valley Alumnae Chapter of Delta Gamma has continuously supported the Living Skills Center for over 30 years. This year, when they asked about our current needs, we mentioned that we wished each student apartment had a sturdy shopping cart for students to use not only for grocery shopping but also to use for trips to the laundry room. When Director Patty Williams visited the spring chapter meeting, alums immediately got out their checkbooks and collectively donated enough money to meet our goal of nine shopping carts. The carts are in constant use, and now we wonder how we ever got along without them. Thank you, yet again, to our wonderful Delta Gamma friends.

TANDEM BIKE RIDING
For months, LSC staff has wanted to start a tandem cycling program. Tandem cycling is popular within the visually impaired community and is an official sport of the Paralympic Games. The dynamics of the sport are such that a person with limited or no vision can still participate fully as part of a two-person team. While cyclists without vision are restricted to the rear (“stoker”) position and requre the co-participation of a sighted partner in the front (“captain”) seat, they share equally the exertion and excitement of the cycling experience. Tandem cycles make it possible for riders who are blind to feel the exhilaration of accelerating under his/her own power and gliding smoothly through space.
First discussions were held about where we could store cycles and good places for rides. Next, our friend Allen Brenner, Director of the Earle Baum Center for the Blind in Santa Rosa donated two used tandem cycles, which got us off to a good start.
Now, through a grant from the Thomas J. Long Foundation, we have recently been able to purchase three 2-person tandem cycles. Two of these cycles are standard “road” bikes, which are easily adjusted to fit a wide range of rider body sizes. The third cycle is a recumbent tandem tricycle, which will allow students who might have balance problems to participate in rides as well. Together, these bikes will allow all of our students to hit the road and get the benefits and joy or regular bike rides. Thanks to our generous donors, we are ready to roll.

FISHING
Luckily, mobility instructor Danette Davis has an old friend named Rick Soto, who is on the Board of Directors of the California Inland Fisheries Foundation. Looking for a way to serve, Rick approached Danette with the offer of a fishing trip for the LSC students. The trip to Lake Berryessa turned out to be a smashing success! The students and staff came back all talking at once:
Meggie: "It was like Christmas! You couldn't believe the nice presents they gave us! It was the best field trip ever, and the food was great!"
Chris: "Mike caught eleven fish!"
Brandon: "It was sweet, sweet I tell you."
Christen: "We had sooo much fun."
Arif: "Look at this backpack!"
Mary: "Check out the t-shirts and hats!"
Obviously, this excursion was not just about the art of angling! Snacks were provided for fishing time on the boat, and the BBQ lunch was fabulous. Mr. Blain Schmitt, owner of FM Graphics in Sacramento designed and printed cool t-shirts and hats with "LSC Fishing Day 2007" printed in both print and feel-able Braille. In addition, Elkhorn Bait and Tackle provided incredible raffle prizes that made it seem like Christmas in July, and Markley Cove Marina donated the boat launching and parking fees. Students are still talking about what an awesome day it was, and it has been fun to hear comments about this fishing experience continue to come up in conversation, weeks after the trip happened! Our deepest gratitude goes out to all the volunteers who gave of themselves in such a meaningful way.

GOAL BALL
Every Wednesday night supervisor Brandon Young takes interested students to goalball games hosted by the Bay Area Outreach and Recreation Program (www.borp.org), a non-profit for people with disabilities that is based in Berkeley. Coach Jonathon Newman welcomes our students and teaches them this game centered around a soccer-sized ball that is wired for sound. Goalball is a rough and tumble sport where one person on a 3-person team rolls the ball as hard as possible toward the other team. The members of the defending team throw themselves down and stretch out to try to stop the ball from going through the goal line. Like goalies from other sports, participants take some pretty tough hits. It is all hard work, but many of our students love the physical competitiveness of the sport and have become addicted. Next, Brandon is talking about starting a rock climbing class. Go Brandon!

SAILING
Al Spector, owner of Marin Sailing School out of Sausalito, graciously offered to take our students, two at a time, into San Francisco Bay all the way to Alcatraz and back. Al backs out of the slip, but after that he makes sure that students are at the helm. To help them steer when the boat is engine-powered, a piece of tape is placed on the wheel at 12:00, and verbal commands are based on the clock, for example: "Turn the wheel to 2:00," or "back to noon." When under sail, Al teaches students to feel the wind and the reach of the boat. Commands change to: "turn into the wind," or "feel the wind in your left ear." Students come back from this experience so excited, with sun on their faces and completely inspired that they have been allowed to have so much control over such an enormous boat. Thank you so much, Al, for giving our students such a fantastic experience.

STATE OF THE AGENCY
Since adding two more apartments to the program in August of 2005, LSC has gone from serving 14 students at a time to 18 at a time. This expansion has allowed us to serve many more deserving Californians on our burgeoning wait list and has also allowed us to accept students from other states. Getting the word out to other states takes time; however, we have already served a student from Virginia and another student from Nevada has just arrived. In addition, we have received a lot of interest from teens and families in other states.

The expansion has not only allowed us to serve more students, but has also provided a much-needed income stream that has largely offset the crisis of dwindling government funding and allowed us to keep up with rising operating costs. However, the LIVING SKILLS CENTER STILL NEEDS YOUR SUPPORT.

Our recreation program and our assistive technology program, for example, are not funded by tuition or government contract. These two programs help to make the difference between a good program and a great one. The technology program alone requires upwards of $25,000 per year to remain cutting edge.
As you think about making end-of-year donations, please consider
supporting the Living Skills Center.

LSC EXPANSION
Recently Director Patty Williams gave a workshop for teachers of the visually impaired and families in Honolulu. Patty was so pleased by the very warm aloha and high level of interest in the Living Skills Center. Mahalo to Teacher of the Visually Impaired Kristen Oien for hosting this visit. It is exciting to have the opportunity to spread the word that our unique program is now available to students all over the country.

NOTICE TO TEACHERS OF THE
VISUALLY IMPAIRED
Around the Living Skills Center, Program Director Patti Maffei is often called "The Curriculum Queen." To access this treasure trove of material, click on "What We Do," then click on "Curriculum Materials," for useful and FREE downloads

TECH TALK

The last year has brought some big developments (and cool new toys!) to our Access Technology Lab. Here are some of the highlights:

Maestro and Trekker
In May, the LSC was excited to be able to purchase the Maestro pocket PC from Humanware. This handheld note taking device allows students to take text notes, record voice memos, and even check their email. It is equipped with Bluetooth technology, so it can connect wirelessly with a variety of hardware equipment, such as Braille keyboards, making it a versatile tool useful for many different applications. Best of all, we were able to purchase the Trekker option, which turns the Maestro into a fully functional GPS device. Our students are now learning to use the Maestro as a navigation aid on their mobility lessons. The Maestro was purchased through a grant from the Chevron Corporation.

Talking Tactile Tablet
Through the Chevron grant we were also able to purchase a Talking Tactile Tablet (TTT), along with the accompanying SAL2 Braille Courseware. The TTT is a touch-sensitive screen that connects to a computer via a USB cable. The SAL2 Courseware is a set of materials designed by Dr. Sally Mangold for teaching Braille literacy. When used together, the student is able to lay pages of Braille over the TTT's screen and then press on the appropriate cells to enter information. The computer responds with speech, providing immediate feedback about the reader's speed, accuracy and comprehension. This equipment offers a practical and engaging supplement to our Braille program.

Notetakers
The LSC recently acquired two state-of-the-art pieces of portable hardware equipment:

The Braille Plus Mobile Manager is a personal digital assistant (PDA) that has been customized for blind users by the American Printing House for the Blind. It boasts a 30 gigabyte hard drive and a wide range of applications, including word processing, email, and an MP3 player.

The Voice Sense is an amazingly small and highly portable notetaker with Braille input/speech output. The size of the unit, however, does not mean a compromise on the features. The Voice Sense actually offers more RAM, a faster processor, and more hard drive space than many larger note takers. All this power allows it to run up to seven programs simultaneously and handle complex tasks with ease.

KNFB Reader
The KNFB Reader is a portable device that scans text and reads it aloud to the user. The unit itself is essentially a normal PDA outfitted with a digital camera and Kurzweil optical character recognition software. The combination of these elements creates a powerful and compact tool that can be used in any situation requiring text to be read (e.g. college classes). Once scanned, the documents can be saved for later reference. The device also functions as a voice recorder, allowing the user to take voice memos. The KNFB Reader was purchased through the Kraft grant.

All of these wonderful new additions to the Tech Lab were made possible through grants and donations from our incredible supporters. The LSC wants to thank the following for their support:

Kraft Corporation
Chevron Corporation
Soroptimists International (Richmond branch)
Anonymous

COMMENTS WE LOVE TO HEAR
Sandy Staples, orientation and mobility instructor and part-time professor at San Francisco State University, reported on recent LSC graduate Ruben Ojeda:

"My good friend Ruben has done well. I was his mobility instructor for orientation to the community college for the first several days of the semester. He has such confidence now and maturity. I loved it when we talked about the return bus trip home, which he had not had an opportunity to preview. "Well," he said, "I think I can figure it out." And, of course, from his time at LSC, he was able to do so. He even had backup plans (which he needed to employ!) and that process of considering contingencies came with the maturing he did during his time at LSC. I have great respect and fondness for the Skills Center and the people who work there, and would do anything to support your program."