Club Vibes Logo

May/June 2017

  APRIL
23-No biking
27-Flower orders due--Turn in to Sue at her house--6pm-8 pm
29- Belk Charity Sale; 6:00 am-10:00 am Turkey Creek, West Town, Maryville
29-Dogwood Classic 5k for NFC members and volunteers  Cherokee Blvd, 7:15 am
29-College/Young Professional Group, 6:00 pm at the Buckley's
30- UT/Club VIBES Sports Fest; Brenda Lawson Indoor Football Field; 2:00 pm
Details Below
NFC Training dates and locations continue each week; time and location TBA
MAY
6-Indoor rock climbing; River Sports; 10:00 am-noon; $5.00 per person
8-Flower delivery-pick up orders at Sue's house, 12:00 pm -5:00 pm
9-Board meeting, 6:00 pm
21- Tandem biking, Cherokee Blvd, 2:00 pm; RSVP to Sue
23-College/Young Professional Group meeting--6:00 pm 
NFC Training dates and locations continue each week; time and location TBA

JUNE
 3-Indoor rock climbing; River Sports; 10:00 am-noon; $5.00 per person
11- Tandem biking, Cherokee Blvd, 2:00 pm; RSVP to Sue 
13-Board meeting, 6:00 pm
24-Pool Party Fundraiser; details to come
25-Pool Party rain date
NFC Training dates and locations continue each week; time and location TBA

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

Being Healed - Whether You Want It or Not
As I've mentioned from time-to-time, being blind or visually impaired increases the likelihood of you having some bizarre experiences that most of humanity misses out on. One of the strangest is being "healed." Read More

WE WELCOME YOUR COMMENTS
Please share your experiences about these topics in the comments section on the blog page.


NEWS

THERE IS STILL TIME TO ORDER SPRING HANGING BASKETS
Club VIBES annual sale of hanging baskets filled with colorful flowers or enormous ferns continues until April 27. This is one of our major fundraisers and we depend on the proceeds from this sale to carry out the many programs we offer to our blind and visually impaired members. We thank all of those who have supported our sale in past years and encourage you to contact a VIBES board member or Sue to place this year's order.  See details below under fundraising.
CLUB VIBES IS IN THE LEAD
Club VIBES is in the lead of the 13 teams  (325 individuals) participating in the National Fitness Challenge 2017 (NFC) for the month of March. Club VIBES recorded 9 million steps on their Fitbits and the second place team, Atlanta, recorded 7 million. Way to go Club VIBES! March was considered a training month for the NFC. The serious competition is now underway with Club VIBES still leading in April. 

 Each of the 25 members on team Club VIBES Knoxville is expected to walk at least 10,000 steps daily. In addition, there are weekly team walks organized by VIBES coach, Missy Kane, at various locations throughout Knoxville. The weekly walks build team spirit and reinforce working together as a team which is an important part of the challenge as this is a team competition, not individual. For many of the participants, this is their first opportunity to be a member of a team. Each VIBES team member has a guide for the weekly walks some of whom are "wounded warriors" who have themselves faced obstacles in athletic participation. The guides have expressed their appreciation for the opportunity to participate. 

A special thanks to Coach Missy and all of the guides for their motivation and encouragement!! 


The photo on the left shows what a demanding coach Sue has in Mary Ann Tackett.  Mary Ann decided Sue needs a little more work so she has outfitted Sue with a rather heavy training pack to build up her strength. Watch out, Sue or Mary Ann will have you climbing Mt. Le Conte with your training pack!

The photo on the right are two NFC team members, Sarah and Kathy Holloway.  Congratulations to Sarah for winning the March female "step award".

We will be announcing monthly NFC "step awards". March winners are:
Male--Jarod Jackson
Female-Sarah Holloway
Keep it up!!

Some other NFC news:
-You can listen to Sue's interviewed on April 20 on WIVK's Andy and Allison in the morning 

  -Club VIBES team member Paige will be interviewed for an upcoming edition of the  USABA Newsletter.

"Stay tuned" for updates on our monthly "step awards" and on how Club VIBES is faring in the competition with the 12 other teams.


UT/CLUB VIBES SPORTS FEST TO BE APRIL 30
Club VIBES and the UT VOLleader Academy are hosting a sports conference to educate the public and others about recreational opportunities for persons with disabilities (such as PE teachers and coaches). This event is one of the components required of participating teams in the  National Fitness Challenge 2017 (NFC).  A grant provided by the US Association of Blind Athletes and Amerigroup of Tennessee is providing for a special guest speaker at the Sports Fest, Liz Baker, a Paralympic triathlete from Signal Mountain. 

Everyone with an interest in adaptive sports is invited to attend. Come dressed and ready to participate in a variety of events. You can learn more at the Facebook page UT Sportsfest

Many thanks to USABA and Amerigroup for making this event possible.
 
WHEN: Sunday, April 30, 2:00 pm
WHERE: Brenda Lawson Indoor Football Field (On the campus of UT Knoxville)
                1551 Lake Loudoun Blvd
                Knoxville
(you may need to copy and paste this address to register)

 
KAEC TACKLES EMPLYOMENT ISSUES FOR THE DISABLED
An organization that every Knoxvillian with a disability needs to know about is the Knoxville Area Employment Consortium (KAEC). VIBES member, Sarah, attended an event held by KAEC. Here is her report.

On March 27, an annual event called Community Conversation was held by the Knoxville Area Employment Consortium (KAEC). The purpose of this event was to bring local organizations together whose main goal is to help those with disabilities obtain employment. 

The guest speaker for the event was Michael Henson, who is blind and worked at the World Trade Center during the 9/11 terror attack,  and whose guide dog led him to safety. Mr. Henson talked about the barriers he has faced seeking employment as a visually impaired person and how he has worked to overcome these barriers. 

Following his presentation, everyone in attendance broke out into small groups and discussed how the KAEC can improve their services and programs to better help those with disabilities obtain employment. I learned a great deal at this event about ways to break down barriers to employment and hope they have more of these events in the future. To learn more about KAEC and their services and programs, visit them on Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/KAECKnoxville/ 


THANKS TO CLUB VIBES FOR A C-SUN ADVENTURE
Club VIBES partnered with Knox County Schools to send four Vision Teachers to the C-SUN conference which was held in San Diego, California. This conference is one of the largest displays of assistive technology, much of it focusing on devices for the blind and visually impaired. Learning about new developments in technology insures that Knox County blind and visually impaired students will continue learning new technology which is imperative for their future success. An added bonus of the Knox County teachers visit to the conference is the contacts they made with vendors. Some of the vendors, upon learning, about the Knoxville market for their products have scheduled visits to Knoxville, giving the Knoxville blind and visually impaired community (and their parents) a chance to see and try these new products first hand.

Here is a first hand report written by participant Patty McDonough.
CSUN was an excellent adventure. Thanks to Club VIBES for facilitating my participation in the 32nd assistive technology conference. I truly appreciate the generosity of the entire club and the willingness to provide financial assistance to observe first hand the cutting edge of technology available  I was impressed by the volume and number of developers, participants, presenters, vendors, and guide dogs. It was awesome to witness so many visually impaired persons navigating through hallways, lecture halls, elevators, and the streets and restaurants. I have reviewed my favorite device below in Technology.

MEMBERS CORNER
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. The fee is $5.00 which covers equipment, coaching and time on the wall. Come out and try your climbing skills on May 6.
FUNDRAISING
ORDER NOW! 
Our biggest fundraiser is the spring sale of beautiful hanging baskets of flowers or ferns. These are from Stanley's Greenhouse and are larger and more colorful than those sold in stores for $18.00 each.They can be ordered from VIBES board members or by contacting Sue.  They will be delivered May 8, in time for Mother's Day and graduation. 
Available varieties are:
             
Photos: Boston Fern                    Asparagus fern                 Blue Angel    

 
Photos:   Petunia                               Yellow Lantana                    Vinca                                             
           
BELK CHARITY DAY SALE
The Belk Charity sale is April 29. For a $5.00 ticket you are entitled to special savings, not offered to the public, from 6:00am-10:00am. Tickets are available from any VIBES board member or can be purchased at the door at Turkey Creek, West Town or Maryville Belk stores from a Club VIBES representative. 

CLUB VIBES APPRECIATES WELCOME WAGON
Sue and Arlene received a check from Irma DeBord, chair of the fundraiser, Game Day, which designated Club VIBES as the recipient of the funds raised.  Club VIBES greatly appreciates the support of Welcome Wagon and all of the ladies who attend Game Day.
                                
                                 
TECH NEWS
AIRA, EYES FOR THE BLIND
by Patty McDonough
I was most impressed with a device called Aira which is mounted to glasses and provides real time navigational assistance to visually impaired pedestrians. Aira, pronounced Eye-Ra is named for Artificial intelligence and Ra the sun god of ancient Egypt. The device was recently developed using the google maps model and is being used by over 200 persons in the United States. Subscriptions are similar to a cell phone plan, minutes are purchased monthly.  When in need of assistance, the user can contact an agent with the tap of the glasses arm. A camera is located on the glasses and with some prompted scanning provides a visual of the area the pedestrian is navigating.  When paired with google maps the agent is able to provide assistance and directions to the destination.

Like many social media sites, photographs and profiles can be added through the settings so that people can be recognized and located. Restaurant menus can be read; classrooms can be located; posters can be explained.....below are three websites that will provide a lot of information about Aira and show several demonstrations of how the equipment works and interacts.



THANK YOU TO OUR PROGRAM PARTNERS FOR 2016

PLATINUM
GOLD
SILVER
DRAGONFLY
 
Sherbakoff Nalls Group

ANONYMOUS



Arnold Cohen,
Attorney at Law

Dr. Bruce Gilliland