Club Vibes Logo

MARCH/APRIL, 2017

MARCH CALENDAR
18-NFC group walk, Fleet Feet Turkey Creek 9:10 am
(NFC is National Fitness Challenge)
19-No biking
25-NFC group walk, TBA
28-Board meeting 6:00 pm

APRIL CALENDAR
1-Indoor rock climbing; River Sports, 10:00 am-12 noon; $5/person
2-Tandem biking, Cherokee Blvd; 2:15 pm; RSVP Sue
2-Spring flower sales begin
4- College/Young Professional Group meeting; 6:00 pm Buckley's
11-Board Meeting; 6:00 pm
29-Fitness Challenge participates in Dogwood 5k with volunteers 
27-Turn in flower orders 4-8 pm; Sue's house 
30-UT Adaptive Sports Conference; 2-5 pm

MAY CALENDAR
6-Indoor rock climbing; River Sports, 10:00 am-12 noon; $5/person
8-Flower delivery, Sue's house, 12:00-8:00 pm
9-Board meeting 6:00 pm
15- Tandem biking, Cherokee Blvd; 2:15 pm; RSVP Sue
23- College/Young Professional Group meeting; 6:00 pm Buckley's
TBA-Graduation party for VIBES graduates


Freedom to Fly Blog
WHAT IS NEW THIS MONTH ON OUR BLOG PAGE?
HOW DOES SOMEONE WHO IS BLIND USE A COMPUTER?
If you're looking for something different to spice up your next business team-building exercise or family gathering, I'd like to suggest trying to use a computer without a screen.  Continue Reading

NEWS
LAUNCHING NATIONAL FITNESS CHALLENGE
Club VIBES has a team participating in the 2017 National Fitness Challenge sponsored by the United States Association of Blind Athletes and the Anthem Foundation. Our team of 24 includes 20 who are blind or low vision. VIBES is one of only 13 organizations from across the nation to be invited to participate in this program in 2017. This  Fitness Challenge has impacted the lives of more than 3,000 people who are blind and visually impaired across the U.S. since 2011. The overall goal is to raise the physical activity levels of each participant to the level recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) - 30 minutes of moderate physical activity and 10,000 steps per day.

A Grant from Anthem Foundation provides a Fitbit Flex 2 to each participant allowing them to monitor and share their progress. There is a Facebook page exclusively for all participants nationwide, where they log in daily to post their activity. The participants from each organization will interact and compete against participants of other agencies with monthly prizes going to the top achievers. The program, continues for 9 months, from March through November, and each participant agrees to walk 10,000 steps a day and attend group events such as a 5k on April 29. There are group walks scheduled for most Saturdays at a variety of locations throughout Knoxville. An important feature of this challenge is the involvement of volunteers from groups such as Wounded Warriors and the Knoxville Track Club who serve as guides to the blind and visually impaired walkers (or runners). Other activities available to VIBES Fitness Challenge participants (and all visually impaired members of the area) are monthly tandem bike rides, indoor rock climbing, and with warmer weather, kayaking.  Missy Kane will act as "coach" for activities planned to further encourage active lives.
Club VIBES got an early start on their fitness training a couple of weeks before the official date and the 2 winners taking the most steps in the early training phase were male, Joe Tibbetts and female, Kathy Holloway. Keep watching for the announcements of the monthly winners.

        Group picture: On March 4, Vibes Fitness Challenge held its first group walk

Click Here to view the WBIR story about the Club VIBES Fitness Challenge.

WELCOME WAGON GAME DAY--CLUB VIBES IS THE WINNER!
The members of the Knoxville Welcome Wagon hosted a "Game Day" providing fun for members and a fund raiser for a local charity.  The participants from Red Hatters, Newcomers, and other clubs played a variety of board and card games and enjoyed a delicious lunch. The real winner of the day was Club VIBES, the recipient of the funds raised through this event.

We are thankful that Club VIBES was selected to receive the honor of this donation. It will help us continue and extend our programs providing mentoring and recreational opportunities to blind and visually impaired students and young adults in the Knoxville area. We thank all of the ladies who participated.


Picture shows Sue along with many others who enjoyed game day. 
SPOTLIGHT
MEET OUR NEW MEMBER ILYA
Ilya has become a member of Club VIBES after recently losing his vision. He is a junior at Hardin Valley Academy and is currently learning Braille, mobility and technology along with his other classes.  Originally from the Ukraine, Ilya and his family came to the United States in 2004. 

Some of the Club VIBES activities Ilya has enjoyed are tandem bicycling, beeping kickball, meeting with the college age and young professional group and joining the Fitness Challenge. He looks forward to each week's group walks. Ilya is especially thankful to Sue for teaching him to use VoiceOver on the iPad and iPhone.

Ilya is already thinking beyond high school with plans to continue on to college and law school. He has been planning on becoming a lawyer since he was 5 years old! 

We are happy to welcome Ilya to Club VIBES.

MEMBERS CORNER
COLLEGE-AGE, YOUNG PROFESSIONALS MEET
The college-age and young professionals group met at Sue's house on the 28th of February and began the evening with introductions. We had seven in attendance and started the evening's discussions with talks of preparations for entering college, and if given the opportunity to do it over again, what resources would be the best to get connected with? Following the opening discussion, we talked about the upcoming spring adaptive sports conference. Discussion is ongoing regarding the spring and fall adaptive sports conferences, and we continue conversations regarding the next phase of life after college. Please join us for the next college-age, young professionals meeting which will be April 4, 6:00 pm at the Buckley's house.

ANOTHER FITNESS CHALLENGE
As our monthly tandem biking resumes April 2, here is a story to inspire you.

THE CAN-DO KIWI COUPLE
Tom Halliburton and Jane Mehaffey stopped by Adventure Cycling headquarters  at the end of July 2016 while traveling west on the TransAmerica Bicycle Trail. The two Kiwis had planned to do a road trip in the U.S. by car but decided on a bicycle tour after a friend told them about his journey on the TransAm.

"My wife became visually impaired many years ago," Tom wrote, "and other health issues precluded prolonged walks for her. Ten years ago, when our children had grown up, I was concerned that we were drifting apart, living separate lives, in part due to her vision and health issues. I decided to buy a tandem to see if she enjoyed cycling as a shared activity. Despite serious muscle pains on the first few rides (which she never mentioned until much later) she loved cycling with me."
A year later, the two cycled 1,000 miles in 21 days from Land's End to John O'Groats in the UK. Back in New Zealand, they did numerous trips ranging from day trips to three-week adventures. At age 61 and 63 respectively, Tom and Jane relied heavily on Adventure Cycling maps on their 93-day TransAm trip.  "Planning was especially important as we had to manage my wife's health issues," wrote Tom. "In addition to being visually impaired, she is diabetic - requiring insulin injections - and has a transplanted kidney that requires a variety of medications twice daily to prevent it from rejecting. Her two cases of cancer were not a concern, as I was confident that these had been cured, but insulin needs to be kept cool to remain active." The two used an evaporative cooling pouch, hung in the breeze outside a pannier, which kept the insulin cool for two days at a time after being soaked in water. A friend of theirs in California kept a bulk supply of insulin, along with Jane's other medications, and would have a fresh two-week supply sent "general delivery" to the travelers at pre-determined locations.

"Were we riding to prove cancer, an organ transplant, blindness, or diabetes were not obstacles to adventure? Not really. We knew that with a little planning, and willingness to adapt, none of these are problems." Having completed their journey, when asked if their expedition changed them, Tom wrote, "I gained a renewed respect for my wife's patience, tolerance, and mental toughness. After four months of being close together, and 4,807 miles, we're still married." The two plan on returning to the U.S. someday soon to tackle the Northern Tier together.

From Adventure Cycling's National Bicycle Touring Portrait Collection. © 2017 Adventure Cycling Association. 

FUNDRAISING
SPRING IS NEAR AND SO IS FLOWER SALE
Flowering trees and daffodils blooming are signs that spring is near as is the Club VIBES annual spring flower sale. We will be taking orders for our beautiful hanging baskets from April 2 until April 30. Contact your last year's sales person or email  info@club-vibes.org to place your order.


Pictures show hanging baskets of Periwinkles and Boston Fern 

WE ARE THANKFUL!
The ladies of Delta Gamma Sorority work hard planning and carrying out various fundraising events for Club VIBES throughout the year. These events provide social and recreational opportunities for our members and their families in addition to raising funds that are very important in our ability to provide programs for our members to develop increased independence. We thank you!

We also wish to thank the Knoxville Welcome Wagon for their generous donation that resulted from the funds raised at Game Day. We also thank the ladies that attended Game Day. Club VIBES was the lucky recipient of those funds. These funds are a crucial part of our operation. Thank You!  

TECH NEWS
AUDIO BOOKS FROM KNOX COUNTY LIBRARY
 A quick and easy source of free audio books is the Knox County Library. All you need to access the large selection of books on your computer, phone, or tablet is a library card. They also have a large selection of ebooks for those using that format. You can c all 865-215-8700 to book an individual training session on borrowing audio and ebooks using your device.

Now the important question for Club VIBES readers--how accessible are the web site and downloading procedures to those using screen readers or magnification software? If anyone has tried or is willing to try using the Knox County Library as a source of electronic reading material, please send a report of your experience to arlene_mh@yahoo.com  You can begin the process by calling the number above and setting up an appointment for a training session.

THANK YOU TO OUR PROGRAM PARTNERS FOR 2016-2017

PLATINUM
GOLD
SILVER
DRAGONFLY
 
Sherbakoff Nalls Group

ANONYMOUS



Arnold Cohen,
Attorney at Law

Dr. Bruce Gilliland