The Living Skills Center for the Visually Impaired:
Teaching people to live independently by living independently 

By Patti Maffei, LSC Program Director

Sometimes life presents you with a powerful gift that forever changes your perspective. For me, that gift was the birth of my nephew, Brendan, delivered July 13, 1982. When my sister called to tell me the wonderful news that she had a beautiful new baby boy, she tearfully added that there were some problems. Her son had an extra finger on each hand and an extra toe on each foot. She went on to explain that he might have a rare syndrome called Bardet-Bidell that involves a variety of symptoms including reduced cognitive functioning and Retinitis Pigmentosa, which causes vision loss over time. We would not know if he had this syndrome until he was older and all we could do was wait. All too soon, she noticed that her son could not see at night. The diagnosis of the syndrome was confirmed and our family began the long process of trying to understand all of the life implications that came with it. As with all parents and families, the primary concern was whether or not he would he be able to live a “normal” life and take care of himself. Since Bardet-Bidell is such a rare syndrome, there was not much information available to establish realistic expectations.    

With my nephew the motivating force behind my decision, I decided to become an Orientation and Mobility Instructor. The thought was that I would learn more about vision loss and would be able to offer advice to my sister while her son was growing up and gradually losing more vision. It was while studying at San Francisco State University that I first learned about the Living Skills Center for the Visually Impaired. I was immediately drawn to this small private non-profit because of the practical innovative approach to teaching people with visual impairments to live independently. I began working at the Living Skills Center in 1991 and it has been my passion ever since.  

The Living Skills Center for the Visually Impaired (LSC), a non-profit organization, was established in 1972. To be sure, other agencies for the blind already existed at that time. Why a new one? What was so unique about the LSC? Most of the existing agencies taught Braille, the use of the white cane, and other “adaptive” skills, but students attending these schools lived in dormitories, were fed in cafeterias, and had no financial responsibilities. Our founder, Dr. Philip Hatlen, a person who truly believes that blind people can be independent, had a profound insight: Yes, we should teach all those adaptive skills, but wouldn’t it be a greater learning experience if students really had to step up to the plate and take on all the responsibilities of maintaining their own apartment? Wouldn’t it be better if they had to take out their own trash, mop their own floors, learn to shop for groceries and cook all of their own meals, learn to advocate for themselves and pay very real bills with their own income? Wouldn’t it be better if teachers encouraged students to solve their own problems and experience the consequences of their own choices? Wouldn’t it be better if teachers presented students with information and options and then allowed them the power to choose their own future? 

Thirty-four years later, our statistics continue to support our conviction that this unique approach is still the best. The Living Skills Center experience is not a test; it is real life. With the support of a caring staff, our students gradually make the transition from their parents’ loving protection to a life where they are confidently and competently in charge. At the end of the program, we help them make the next transition, to a life of their own. 

So what became of Brendan? He graduated from high school and then went on to take a few college courses while living at home. Two years later, he went to a California based program with the traditional dormitory setting to learn some adaptive techniques before he attended the Living Skills Center. The plan was that he would live there to gradually get used to living on his own and then go to the Living Skills Center. He arrived at the Living Skills Center in May 2004 and moved back to Southern California a year later. He is successfully living independently in his own apartment, taking classes at the Braille Institute and doing volunteer work at a local agency while he is searching for a paying job. My sister proudly calls me regularly to tell me stories about how Brendan confidently and independently takes care of his life. She attributes this confidence to his experience at the Living Skills Center and believes he would not have made the transition to an independent living situation without attending our center. When I asked Brendan if he felt he could have gone from the dormitory setting to his own apartment, he said he would not have been able to do it because it was just too scary.  

Brendan is one of the Living Skills Center’s successful statistics. The Center not only gave him a life of independence; it gave my whole family hope. The other day, Brendan bowled a 243. Averaging 198, he is going to try out for the Special Olympics bowling team. He is now totally blind in anything but the brightest lighting. Brendan continues to surpass all “realistic” expectations and to touch us all as he happily lives his “normal” life.  

This is just my family’s story. The Living Skills Center has affected hundreds of lives in a similar way since its opening in 1972. It is a program that I believe in with my entire heart. That is why it gives me great pleasure to announce that after 34 years of teaching young people with visual impairments in California to transition to an independent life, we are opening our doors to allow people from other states into our California program. 

If someone you know is at least 18-years old, has a visual impairment and is ready to make the move toward independence, contact the Living Skills Center at www.livingskillscenter.org or call 510-234-4984 for details.