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OCTOBER, NOVEMBER 2016

 OCTOBER 
8-11-Washington DC trip
14-Movie night at Market Square with Delta Gamma (see below)
9-Open Streets Knoxville; new location; details below
15-Catalyst Sports Expo, Victor Ashe Park, 10:00am-4:00pm (see below)
23-Tandem biking Cherokee Blvd 2:00pm; RSVP Sue
23-Pointsettia and wreath orders begin

NOVEMBER
 5-Annual board planning meeting, 9:00am-1:00pm
5-Belk Charity Day
5-Indoor Rock Climbing, River Sports, 10:00-12:00, $10
13-Beeping kickball, 2:30 at Safety City (details below)
16-Volunteer Thank You Party, 6:30pm
20-Biking, Cherokee Blvd 2:00pm; RSVP Sue
27-Turn in flower orders
29-Delta Gamma holiday party

Freedom to Fly Blog
WHAT IS NEW THIS MONTH ON OUR BLOG PAGE?

TELL EVERYONE ABOUT YOUR STDS AND SCHEDULE IV DRUG USE
If you think you have anything like medical privacy when you lose your vision, think again. I suspect that there is a secret clause in HIPAA that says, "This doesn't really apply to anyone who is blind."   Read More

BLINDNESS UNDER A MICROSCOPE
A Note from John:   Please welcome guest contributor Sarah Holloway to our "Freedom to Fly" blog.  As a high-school student, Sarah was one of the founding members of Club VIBES. She has received her B.S. in microbiology from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.
You're legally blind and got a degree in microbiology?! You graduated summa cum laude?! How on earth did you do that?  Read More
WE WELCOME YOUR COMMENTS
Please share your experiences about these topics in the comments section on the blog page.
 

NEWS
PLANS READY FOR TRIP TO DC
We are getting excited! Some of the highlights from our itinerary include special guided "hands-on" tours of the U.S.Capitol, the Air and Space Museum. and the American History Museum. We will explore one day by bicycle and one day by metro, plus, we will have a special bicycle tour of the mall at night. One of the highlights will be dinner with Blake Bivens, a graduate of Farragut High School who now works for the FBI in DC and is also blind. He will explain how he uses the metro among other experiences he has had while living independently in a big city.  

Club VIBES wishes to extend a special thanks to all who have helped make this trip possible by buying flowers in the spring, ordering holiday wreaths and poinsettias (beginning October 23), attending the Belk Charity Day sales (coming up on Nov. 5), and stepping up as partners of Club VIBES. This trip would not be possible without all your support.  THANK YOU!

SPORTS EXPO
Just because you are blind or visually impaired, you are not excluded from participating in a wide variety of adventurous sports. Come to Victor Ashe Park on October 15 and try out a variety of sports such as bicycling, golf, rock climbing, yoga, beeping kickball and running that have adaptations allowing  participation for persons with disabilities. Club VIBES will be there with tandems offering rides.  

Catalyst Sports is hosting the expo.Their purpose is to expose persons with disabilities to sports and encourage their participation in these activities.
We encourage all VIBES members and their families to attend and learn more about many sports opportunities available to them. Click here to register and for more information. Volunteers are also needed to help with the event.

MOVIES ON THE MALL
The ladies of Delta Gamma invite Club VIBES members to join them on Market Square Mall for "Movies on the Mall. The first was on September 30 with a showing of "Night at the Museum". The next movie night is October 14, featuring "Ghost Busters". Delta Gamma ladies will each pair up with a VIBES member to be their sighted guide, help them with snacks, and provide a descriptive narration of the visual aspects of the movie as well as help them get  popcorn . Bring your chairs or a blanket to sit on and enjoy a "night at the movies". RSVP to Sue so that Delta Gamma knows how many to plan for and for details of when and where to meet.

VOLUNTEER THANK YOU PARTY
On November 16, we will get together for our annual party to honor our many volunteers. Each year we host this to enjoy celebrating our victories and accomplishments with the folks that make it all possible. Please RSVP so that we can have plenty of good eats and beverages. Plan on attending if you volunteer to make VIBES a success. Details will follow.

ATTENTION PARENTS
Parent Webinar titled "Parent and School Collaboration" is being hosted by Learning Ally on Thursday, October 20th, from 12:00pm-1:00pm. The featured speaker is Dr. Vaughn Lauer who will walk parents through steps for success in collaborating with the school. This will be interactive and you can ask questions. You must register at Learning Ally  If you cannot participate in this live webinar, you can watch it online at a time more convenient to you, along with many other webinars at this link click here.

SPOTLIGHT
MEET OUR PARTNER, ARNOLD COHEN, ATTORNEY AT LAW
Mr. Arnold G. Cohen, Attorney at Law, is one of our returning financial contributors to our Club VIBES programs. His continued support is much needed and appreciated by our members and their families.

Mr. Cohen brings years of professional law experience to his clients in Knoxville. He represents individuals, businesses and families in a variety of practice areas, ranging from business transactions to law and probate. He believes in building lasting professional relationships with his clients and his community.

Thank you Mr. Cohen for your support of our program.
MEMBERS CORNER
TY SPEAKS AT ANCHOR SPLASH
Vibes member Ty spoke to members of UT fraternities and sororities as a part of Delta Gamma's fundraiser, Anchor Splash. As reported by Ty,  "The audience was filled with different sororities and fraternities as well as Delta Gamma. I started my speech out with humor and then spoke about my life and how I found Club VIBES. I then spoke about how VIBES has affected me personally and I thank all of the people who have donated time, money, or friendship to Club VIBES. It was super fun and they were a really rowdy and involved audience. I would LOVE to do it again next year!"

TANDEM BIKING TO BE FOLLOWED BY POTLUCK
Our next Cherokee tandem biking date is October 23. Bring a covered dish to share and stay to enjoy a potluck following the ride. We look forward to all members and their families joining us. RSVP to Sue.

COME AND PLAY KICKBALL
VIBES is partnering with UT athletes for a kickball game on November 15. We need all VIBES members and their families to play in this adaptation of the popular game in which the athletes will be blindfolded. This will be a lot of fun for everyone! The game will take place at Safety City, on Concord St  at 2:30. The athletes will be blindfolded to "even the playing field".

INDOOR ROCK CLIMBING CONTINUES
Riversports Outfitters on Sutherland Ave has an indoor rock climbing program for persons with disabilities on the first Saturday of every month from 10:00am until 12:00pm.  There is a $10 fee which covers equipment, coaching and time on the wall. There are scholarships available.  For more information or to register,  click here
COLLEGE AND YOUNG PROFESSIONAL GROUP

FUNDRAISING

POINSETTIA AND WREATH SALE
We will be taking orders for holiday poinsettias and natural wreaths from October 23 until November 27 with delivery on December 5. Poinsettias will be in foil covered pots for $15.00 each. The poinsettias are beautiful; huge and covered with blooms. They will be available in Candy Cane (mix of white and red), Red, or White. 
  
           Candy Cane                                  Wreath                                     Red or White                 

In addition, we will also be taking orders for fresh wreaths. They will be $20.00 for 12", the perfect size for the front door or over the fireplace and $15.00 for an 8" wreath which are great on windows. 

We look forward to these beautiful plants and wreaths every year.

This is one of our biggest fundraising events and we ask you to please consider ordering. Contact any VIBES member, board member or Sue to place your order.

BELK CHARITY DAY SALE
The Belk Charity sale is November 5. For a $5.00 ticket you are entitled to special savings, not offered to the public, from 6:00am-10:00am. If you are not an early riser, you can come later in the day and still get great bargains available only to ticket holders. You can get tickets from any VIBES board member or purchase at the door at Turkey Creek, West Town or Maryville Belk stores from a Club VIBES representative.  

Beginning October 23, VIBES will begin taking orders for wreaths and poinsettias. We will again be offering holiday wreaths and poinsettias.  Many of us have enjoyed these huge plants that are covered with blooms and the fresh natural wreaths in past years.
TECH NEWS
OPTIONS FOR  ACCESSIBILITY TO TV AND MOVIES

NETFLIX IS NOW ACCESSIBLE TO THE BLIND
Recently an agreement was reached between Netflix and the American Council of the Blind in which movies and television shows streamed through Netflix (such as House of Cards, Orange is the New Black) will include audio descriptions of the visual content. Learn More 

BLINDY TV, TAKING THE VISION OUT OF TELEVISION
Blindy.TV is a charitable project created by blind people that believe that the blind should be able to enjoy the same television programming that entertains and contributes to the shared culture of their sighted family and friends. "We contribute freely of our time and resources to provide a free described television programming service to those that are served by neither commercial products nor government programs." The current service provides a few channels of audio-only television programming, in several genres, all with audio description. Learn More

THANK YOU TO OUR PROGRAM PARTNERS FOR 2016

PLATINUM
GOLD
SILVER
DRAGONFLY
 
Sherbakoff Nalls Group

ANONYMOUS



Arnold Cohen,
Attorney at Law

Dr. Bruce Gilliland