DEAF-BLIND AWARENESS AND ACCESS MONTH JUNE 1999
Before
reading any further, stop for a moment and think of all
you have done today or plan on doing later. Now imagine being
Deaf-Blind and not being able to access the services that are
vital in order to do everyday activities. Activities such as
going to the bank, visiting the Doctor or Dentist, reading the
newspaper or going shopping and out for a cup of coffee. Many
people believe that people who are Deaf-Blind are unable to
do things the rest of the population can do. In reality, they
only lack the access to Intervenor Services that are required
to do the things we as hearing-sighted people do without thinking
twice about.
An Intervenor is someone who, using various methods of
communication, links a person who is Deaf-Blind to his or her
surrounding environment by providing auditory and visual information.
Intervenor Services provide access to information that facilitates
independence, integration and self-sufficiency. There is an
urgent need for more Intervenor Services because there are many
people who are Deaf-Blind in Canada who do not have access to
the services they need. The majority of people who are Deaf-Blind
receive Intervenor Services one day a week, for only a few hours.
This is by no means enough time for a person to do all the things
he or she needs and wants to do in order to live a fulfilling
life.
With increased Intervenor Services, people who are Deaf-Blind
can access an endless list of opportunities, such as education,
employment, technology awareness, rehabilitation, medical appointments
and social recreation.
With this in mind, a seed for a new project has been
planted by Rotary Cheshire Homes in collaboration with Balance,
the Canadian National Society of the Deaf-Blind and the Deaf-Blind
Association of Toronto. Rotary Cheshire Homes, the driving force
behind this worthwhile project, is an apartment building that
was built specifically for persons who are Deaf-Blind. The 16-unit
building is equipped with many features, such as tactile surfaces,
contrasting colours, vibrating alarms and all signs throughout
the building are in braille and in raised large print. The Tenants
who live at Rotary Cheshire Homes have access to Intervenor
Services 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
The goal of this new and exciting project is to provide
a training center that persons who are Deaf-Blind can access
across Canada. This training center would provide opportunities
to gain skills in independent living, computers and technology,
employment and education, to name just a few. With the support
of the government and the community, this project can flourish
and grow into a national training center that will provide the
services that are greatly needed by the Deaf-Blind community.
To learn more about this project and how you can offer
your support, please contact Cindy Babineau at Rotary Cheshire
Homes at:
(416)730-9501 (voice),
(416)730-9187 (TTY) or
e-mail: rcheshire@onramp.ca.
By showing your interest and support, you can help make
it possible for all persons who are Deaf-Blind to have access
to Intervenor Services that enable them to achieve the life
they dream of.
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