magazine - ncbi · when phoning to make appointment make sure to check what you need to bring with...

Magazine

VOl. 20, No. 2. Summer 2017

REACHING THE SUMMITSharon Moran of Galway at the summit of Kilimanjaro to raise funds for NCBI. See Story page 4.

NCBI inSight (Incorporating The Blind Citizen 1923) is published four times a year by: NCBI,Whitworth Road, Drumcondra, Dublin 9. Tel: 01 830 7033 Fax: 01 8307 787 email: [email protected] website: www.ncbi.ieEditor: Frank Callery, Mobile: 087 6724097 email: [email protected] by: PB Print Solutions Tel: 353 86 2511640.

3. NCBI Specsavers Golf.

6. NCBI Virtual Technology Club.

4. The Summit of Achievement.

8. Free Travel — The Facts!

5. Accessible Tourism.

9. Moving Beyond the 84%.

10. Bridging the Information Gap.

11. Latest Technology Releases.

12. Profile — Miriam Kelly.

18. New Products at NCBI Resource Centre.

14. Vision Impaired Tennis.

20. NCBI on the Airways.

16. Cork NCBI Art Exhibition.

24. NCBI Fundraising.

Cover Story NCBI Service User — 20

Call for participants in a clinical research study of Corneal Refractive Surgery Procedure — See page 21.

Thousands of Golfers Supporting NCBI This Year!

18. New Products at NCBI Resource Centre.

Over 90 clubs have registered to participate in the NCBI Specsavers HolmPatrick Cup so far this year!

We are thrilled to welcome Specsavers Ireland as our Headline sponsor for the 2017 and 2018 competition. The competition is in its 85th year and will see thousands of golfers compete to win a trip of a life time to the home of golf, St. Andrews, in October.

The HolmPatrick Cup was gifted to NCBI in 1932 by Lady HolmPatrick and allows NCBI to raise vital funds for life-enhancing sight loss services, annually.

With the support of Specsavers we hope to place a stronger emphasis on eye health among our golfers this year. Specsavers sponsorship also ensures that all funds raised throughout the competition go directly toward the provision of sight loss services, nationally.

If you or your club would like to participate in the NCBI Specsavers HolmPatrick Cup please visit, www.ncbiholmpatrickcup.com or call our competition manager Allison on 01 8307033.

Left to right: Kerril Hickey, Vice-chair of Specsavers Ireland and NCBI CEO Chris White at the launch.

Galway woman Sharon Moran likes a challenge, so much so, that she undertook climbing Kilimanjaro in aid of NCBI.

Sharon’s two sons Adam and Nathan both have Retinitis Pigmentosa which is a degenerative blindness disease. Sharon says, “At the moment the two boys have colour blindness and night blindness, but are coping day-to-day.” Adam and Nathan both enjoy attending workshops in the NCBI centre in Galway and Camp Abilities.

When Sharon signed up to do the Kilimanjaro climb she had never climbed a mountain before. A huge amount of preparation was required before Sharon took off for Kilimanjaro. Sharon trained for three months in advance. She says, “Three months was enough time as I stayed very focused.” Sharon undertook a huge amount of training with a personal trainer.

She followed a strict programme; training three times a week and at weekends, climbed various mountains while carrying a 5k kettlebell in a backpack. During her training Sharon climbed Croagh Patrick, Diamond Hill and Glendalough.

Sharon arrived in Tanzania in January where she spent twelve days; the climb took a whopping seven and a half days in total. Alongside the intensive training Sharon was also dedicated to raising funds for NCBI through organising a huge amount of fundraising events.

The Summit of Achievement for NCBI

ABOVE: Sharon Moran at the Summit of Kilimanjaro.

These included a jumble sale, a quiz night, a bake n’ cake event, an auction night; two non-uniform days in local schools and an online gofundme.ie account.

Sharon says “I am an outdoorsy person; I have previously done tough mudder and a parachute jump, so this time I said I was going to go big.” Sharon explains why she chose to undertake this huge challenge, “When I found out about the two boys having RP, I went to NCBI. From that day NCBI got me through the low days”.

NCBI would like to say a huge “thank you” to Sharon Moran for her commitment and massive effort to raise an amazing €17,476.22 for NCBI.

By donating to NCBI regularly you will be contributing to the provision of NCBI’s life changing services. Our practical and emotional advice and supports help 8,000 people and their families face their futures with confidence every year.

We help people deal emotionally with the diagnosis of an eye condition and the impact it will have on different aspects of your life, from family to work to education, now and into the future. One of the first things we do is provide information and advice about how your vision has been affected and how you can maximise the vision you still have.

NCBI’s services include emotional support and counselling, low vision solutions like magnifiers, assistive technology, advice and training,

rehabilitation training (including independent living skills and using a long cane), a large print, audio and Braille library. The organisation also has an online shop with lots of practical solutions.

Make a regular donation through our Direct Debit forms. The Direct Debit forms are available by contacting Roisin on the details below, from our retail shops and regional offices, or print the form from our website www.ncbi.ie. [email protected] or call (01) 830 7033.

Becoming a Regular Donor

Accessible Tourism A Travel agency in Lisbon provides dedicated accessible tourism for all.

Portugal 4all Senses, has recently launched in Lisbon, it is a travel agency dedicated to accessible tourism. They have design travel experiences for individuals with reduced mobility and with visual impairments. They are the first Portuguese agency to design and promote holidays especially for people who are blind or visually impaired.

Portugal 4all Senses are members of the European Network for Accessible Tourism (ENAT). They have developed unique and enjoyable tourist activities in Portugal and offer private tours, thematic experiences and the possibility of designing your trip, allowing you to explore Portugal at your own pace and style. They also provide transfers, specialised accommodation, technical support and equipment, activities and personalised experiences appropriate to the needs of each client.

For more information visit www.portugal4allsenses.pt or email: [email protected]

Page 5

NCBI’s Virtual Technology Club was established in April of this year in recognition of the fact that for many people with sight loss who rely on technology to live an independent life, it can be difficult to travel, to access training or support, or to meet other users and share knowledge.

According to its founder, Stuart Lawler, “We believe strongly that some of the most useful support and informal training can occur when people have the time and space to chat to each other about how they use their technology, in work, at school and at home.

“In the last number of years, we have been facilitating groups of people to come together and talk about how they use their technology, share and solve problems and hear from experts who have told us about everything from the latest tech gadgets to some of the most basic daily living aids.

“Now, however, we are extending that idea to

ensure that lack of access does not preclude someone from participating. To that end, we have introduced a virtual meeting space, where we can all join together from the comfort of our own living room or work space and talk about technology.

“Users learn and share from each other in a space where knowledge and experiences can be exchanged freely.”

How does it work?Users are required to install a piece of software called TeamTalk on their computer, phone or iPad to join the club. TeamTalk is free software and it is very easy to use.

To find out when the next session is taking place and for step-by-step instructions on installing and using TeamTalk you can download the Virtual Technology Club User Guide at www.ncbi.ie/technology, or alternatively call NCBI on 01 8307033 for support over the phone.

NCBI Virtual Technology Club

Page 6

NCBI Virtual Technology Club

Page 7

The first edition of NCBI’s quarterly technology e-newsletter, “Tech News”, was released in May of this year.

Amongst other things, the newsletter was created to allow readers to keep up to date with the latest technology trends and products for people with sight loss, listen to technology podcasts, and stay informed about upcoming technology events.

The newsletter forms one of the projects being coordinated by NCBI’s Technology Specialist Team consisting of Stuart Lawler, Paul Traynor and JP Corcoran. Suggested content for the newsletter is extremely welcome and can be emailed to [email protected].

Anyone who would like to subscribe to the newsletter can fill in the registration form at www.ncbi.ie/technology/technology-newsletter.

Tech Newsletter

An app that reads the newspaper for you? Yes please!

News over Audio, or NOA is a brand new application that will provide visually impaired people with thirty of the day’s top stories over audio.

The initiative in association with many of the world’s leading news brands, including The Irish Times, The Financial Times and The Independent, now means you will always be on top of the stories that matter.

THE APP THAT READS YOUR NEWSPAPER!

Other titles including The Examiner and The Telegraph will be available in June.

The app is now available from the Android Play Store and the Apple App store. Simply download the app to any Android or Apple smart phone or tablet device and you’ll never be at a loss for news.

Free Travel and Transferring to the New Public Services Cardby Elaine Howley

Here is what those entitled to free travel should know.

1. The Department of Social Protection is keen for all those who have free travel passes to replace these as soon as possible.

2. Old Travel Passes are still valid although some staff of public transport companies would lead us to believe otherwise.

3. By November 2017 this will no longer be the case and only new Public Service Cards will be accepted from persons entitled to free travel.

4. There is a perception that we need to wait until we are invited by the Department of Social Protection to make the transfer and this is not the case.

5. Anyone with an old travel pass (regardless of what condition it is in) should make contact with their local welfare/DSP office to arrange an appointment to apply for the new public services card.

6. If there is an office other than the

one closest to your home, that for whatever reason is more accessible for you, the DSP will facilitate you there.

7. When phoning to make appointment make sure to check what you need to bring with you to the appointment.

I have gone through the process and can assure people that it is painless, however, when asked to enter a number on the key pad you should know that the key pad is not necessarily laid out like a telephone with 1 2 3 across the top.

It may be upside down like the keypad on the right hand side of a computer key board. This was the case in the office I went to, so it meant that the numbers were laid out upside down, with 7 8 9 across the top, 4 5 6 in the middle and 1 2 3 across the bottom.

If anyone has any queries or comes across any issues in relation to this please contact Elaine Howley, Director of Policy & Advocacy on [email protected] or 01 8307033.

Elaine Howley.

Page 8

Moving Beyond the 84% Unemployment Rate

Page 9

Over the past several months we have seen a steady drop in the general unemployment rate in Ireland, reaching 7.2% in December.

We are ahead of the curve within the Euro Zone which maintains an average of 9.8%. However a closer look at these rates at home shows that 84% of working age people with sight loss in Ireland are unemployed.

A move in the right direction Over 51,000 people in Ireland have self-declared that they experience significant sight loss. While for the NCBI this is a move in the right direction, it may also pinpoint why the unemployment rates within this community are so high.

Disclosure of disability in business has long been a hot topic, as fear of litigation, extra costs and disbelief in individual ability has prevented thousands of disabled people from entering the workforce.

As Ireland slowly creeps back into economic recovery, businesses are cautious. While inclusion and accessibility are considered desirable, the private sector is slow to invest in this under-used talent pool.

The historical stereotypes of dependency

by Amie Hynes-Fitzpatrick

and complete inability have established a social welfare dependent legacy in the country. According to The Economic Costs of Sight Loss conducted by NCBI and Deloitte, taxation losses alone indicates an emergent need to change this, with the costs expected to jump to €63,743,444 by 2020.

Kickstart a systemic change In NCBI our focus for 2017 and beyond is on reducing the 84% unemployment rate among working age people with sight loss in Ireland. We are delighted to partner with leading Irish companies to kick start a systemic change around recruitment, retention and talent management in Ireland. Over the next two years NCBI will work alongside Fujitsu, Insurance Ireland, Specsavers and other innovative companies to challenge employment trends and to better support blind and vision impaired people into meaningful employment.

If you know of a company that would like to join us in changing how people with sight loss are included in the employment process please contact: Amie Hynes Fitzpatrick on 018307033 or email [email protected] .

Bridging the Information Gap Seminar in Croke Park

On Thursday 18th May, NCBI held a seminar in Dublin’s Croke Park exploring the future of accessible print and the solutions that are available to people with sight loss.

Recognising that many people who are blind or vision impaired are faced with a scarcity of information because they cannot access standard printed material, the seminar focused on the benefits of building stronger relationships between public libraries, the third level education sector, and NCBI’s Library and Media Centre.

It also concentrated on maximising the use of mainstream technology and featured an introduction to digital and refreshable Braille.

Special thanks to guest speakers Maria Bailey TD, former Minister Mary O’Rourke, Dr. Tom Clonan and Ms Christina McCarthy, as well as panellists Aisling McCarthy from Bord Gáis Energy, Deputy City Librarian Brendan Teeling and Andrew Costello Assistive Technology Officer / Disability Officer in TCD.

Pictured above (L-R) are Gerard Byrne (NCBI National Services Manager), former Government Minister Mary O’Rourke, Dr. Tom Clonan, Stuart Lawler (NCBI Training Centre Manager and Technology Specialist Team Lead) and Lina Kouzi (NCBI Library and Media Centre Manager).

Latest Technology Releases

Check out some of the latest product releases for people experiencing sight loss.

OrCam MyEye and OrCam MyReaderIsraeli-based tech company OrCam Technologies recently released version 7 of the OrCam MyEye and OrCam MyReader. The OrCam is a wearable device that detects what you are looking at, recognises the presence of text, and speaks the text aloud. This includes text in books, newspapers, letters and restaurant menus. The OrCam can also identify various products, mobile phone text messages, credit cards, and, in the case of the OrCam MyEye, even recognise faces.

ZoomText 11The new ZoomText 11 features include, Geometric Smoothing, Zoom to 1x, and photographic enhancement. ZoomText and JAWS are now compatible, providing users

with a combination of these popular speech and magnification packages.

ElBraille ®The ElBraille combines the power and flexibility of a modern mainstream computer running the Windows® 10 operating system with JAWS, and a Braille display with a Braille keyboard to offer a fully accessible compact computer.

The Dot WatchSouth Korean start-up ‘Dot’ have made the first active Braille smartwatch for people with sight loss. The Dot Watch, which is strapped around the wrist just like a regular watch, uses magnets and a grid of pins to create four braille characters at a time, that change at adjustable speeds, allowing users to read text messages and use apps on any device via Bluetooth.

Page 11

Miriam Kelly is animated as she describes her work in the NCBI. As an IT Trainer Miriam is tasked with providing training and support to the many service users who use technology in their day-to-day working and personal lives.

“It is a challenging role but one I relish.” she says, “I take great pride in seeing people’s lives transformed when they get to grips with technology, it really opens the world to them, giving them more autonomy and choice”. Miriam came to work for NCBI in 2011 after enjoying a very successful career providing training to companies and organisations in the North East. Her initial six month contract turned into a permanent position and now seven years on, she says she still gets great joy out of coming to work in NCBI.

Learning Resources“Things worked out perfectly and I continue to love my job. No two days are the same, there is wonderful variety. I liaise with a lot of other colleagues in NCBI, my role is not stand alone. For example, I am in constant contact with the Community Resource Workers as they are often the first point of contact with our service users. I also work with our Employment Advisor carrying out Assistive Technology Assessments and reports that will enable service users to maintain their employment or seek a new role. Then a lot of my time is actually spent behind the scenes devising and developing training programmes and producing hand–outs and other learning resources.”

“I install computer equipment — hardware and software and set up home networks, then provide the technical training to compliment this. I also provide training and support on a range of assistive technologies and an increasing range of mainstream technology including PCs, laptops, tablets, phones and digital book players. We provide remote access as well and I go to people’s work places; it is really multi-facetted”.

It is also a very fast moving area and Miriam says she believes that the NCBI IT team is one of the most technically savvy in the country.

“We have to be,” she says. “adding, a vision impairment or total sight loss involves a whole new set of complexity and challenges which demand that the IT Trainers at NCBI maintain a high level of knowledge and expertise. The rapid changes in technology mean we are in a continual state of change. Keeping up with every aspect of technology is paramount in ensuring we provide the best service. It is tough, but highly rewarding.”

The rewards come as people blossom under Miriam’s tutorage and learn to trust her and themselves. “It is great to see people pushing the boundaries, getting over their fears of technology and really getting into it.”

“Trust is paramount. I go to people’s homes as well as their places of work and they have to suss me out and learn to trust me. Once this is established we can move mountains!— My job satisfaction is off the scale!”

MY JOB SATISFACTION IS OFF THE SCALE!

Page 12

Sally McEllistrim talks with NCBI’s IT Trainer, MIRIAM KELLY.

Miriam Kellyinstructs a service user.

MY JOB SATISFACTION IS OFF THE SCALE!

Page 13

WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS, SPAIN, MAY 2017 — Joe Geraghty reports.

At Mayfest 2016 a new sport, Blind/Vision Impaired Tennis was launched. Twelve months later, a team travelled to Alicante in Spain to represent Ireland in the 1st World Championships, organised by the International Blind Tennis Association.

Invented in Japan in 1984, the game is Ireland’s fastest growing VI sport. It is played on a realigned tennis court with special tennis balls that emit sound. Raised tactile lines are used as navigational markers to assist the players to recognise their position on the court. Players use their heightened sense of hearing and develop their spatial awareness to track and hit the Blind Tennis balls. Athletes are classified using Paralympic sight classifications: B1, B2 and B3. B1 players have no vision or no functional vision. B2 and B3 players have a small amount of useful sight within a reduced field of vision.

Ireland now has over thirty players in five groups in Dublin and Belfast following the successful collaboration between Vision Sports Ireland and Tennis Ireland. The sport, has benefited from significant funding from Sport Ireland and will shortly expand to centres in Sligo, Navan and Cork. We hope to make it available in as many centres as possible in Ireland.

The Irish TeamThe team of eight players headed to Alicante on May 6th. for the first ever World Games. Each player was accompanied by a guide. After a week of competition the team arrived home with results they never dared to hope for:

Irish Blind / Vision Impaired Tennis

Willem Roode came 3rd in the B3 Class where he narrowly lost the semi-final to the eventual winner, Chris Bailey from Great Britain. Roode went on to win the 3rd place play-off against Australian opponent Adam Fayed. In addition Roode received widespread recognition for agreeing to play a match with Singaporean Ng Jesson against whom he had previously been granted a walkover. Roode, who had qualified for the semi-final, put this at risk by doing so. However, he won the match in a closely fought contest.

Page 14

Willem Roode after his win against Ng Jessen brings his physiotherapy experience to help his opponent!

“What a week – what a tournament, what an experience! To come 3rd in the men’s B3 category was way beyond what I thought was possible. I know now that I can compete at this international level. A big thank you to our coaching team and the volunteer guides who came to the tournament this week” Willem said. “Added to this achievement, David Nason and Roisin Dermody succeeded in reaching the quarter-finals in the main draw, while Oran O’Neill won and lost some epic and tense battles in his B1 campaign —- including playing against, and taking some games from, the overall tournament winner and world no 1! Also, Johnny McInerney from Thurles, the team´s youngest player, reached the final of the B2 consolation tournament.

David Nason said: “Winning my first official international competitive match was an incredible feeling, but the matches I lost, and the ones I watched, blew me away too. I want to be that good and can’t wait to get back training.”

“What a simply great week! Said Liam O’Donohoe of Tennis Ireland. “Performances on the courts, learning from playing at the highest level of Blind Tennis and a whole range of new contacts and relationships that have been built over the week.”

Sarah O´Donohoe, the team´s coach said: “We are incredibly proud of the team’s performance in Spain. They have worked extremely hard and acquitted themselves admirably in their first international tournament.” The results from the international tournament will determine the sport´s first world rankings, but we already know that Ireland has the world´s number three ranked Men’s B3 player in Willem Roode, and two of our B2 players are in the top eight in the world. International friendlies have been agreed with Britain, Germany and Poland, and other countries are also interested in developing a relationship with Ireland in the future. More Information at: www.visionsports.ie

The Irish team with their guides and coach at the 1st World Championships at Alicante.

The Irish Team:Susan Corrigan, Goatstown, Dublin; Roisin Dermody, Carlow; Tina Lowe, Shankill, Dublin; Johnny McInerney, Thurles, Co. Tipperary; David Nason, Blackrock, Dublin; Oran O’Neill, Blanchardstown, Dublin; Willem Roode, Swords, Dublin; and Clare Whelan, Ballymun, Dublin. Coach: Sarah O’Donohoe, Shankill Tennis Club.

The members of the Art Group of the National Council for the Blind of Ireland in Cork will be exhibiting their work in the Ballincollig Library from 11 am July 6th to July 19th.

The exhibition will be officially opened by an honoured guest who will be announced nearer the time.

The exhibitors have been facilitated by artists Therese Newman, Margaret Horgan and Kathryn McCarthy with the generous help of the Cork County Council.

Pauline Bewick is the source of inspiration for the exhibitors who made a selection of art in ceramics, textiles and glass.

Bishopstown Community College (BCC) played an important role in the preparation for the exhibition when students and exhibitors worked together to glaze and fire the ceramics.

The art teacher Mr. David O’Mahony and the Principal John O’Farrell of BCC have been a constant source of encouragement to the project.

The Ballincollig Library and its members will open their hearts and doors to us again and we thank all who have assisted us in our endeavours.

NCBI would like to acknowledge the support of Ian McDonagh Art Director and the Arts Council at Cork County Council for their support of the group and the exhibition of their work in the library.

NCBI Art Group Exhibit at BallincolligLibrary

Page 16

Members of the NCBI Cork Arts

Group preparing their pieces for the

exhibition.

The network of NCBI Charity shops is continuously growing. There are three new shops which have recently opened. These are located in Dunshaughlin, Co.Meath, Ardee Co. Louth and Blackrock Co. Dublin. We would

Last summer, Gemma and Mick Cassidy of Castleblaney Co. Monaghan, kindly contacted NCBI, informing us of their kind and thoughtful intention to request donations to our charity in lieu of gifts, as they celebrated their Golden Wedding Anniversary in July 2016.

As a result, we recently received an amazing donation of €1,040 from all their family and friends. We really appreciate this wonderful support and thank all those who contributed to making this possible.

Sadly, Mick passed away in March of this year. NCBI would like to extend our deepest sympathies to Gemma and all her family.

NEW NCBI Charity Shops

appreciate all your support and donations to our new shops. NCBI Charity Shops have a large variety of clothing, books and other items. All of our charity shops are seeking your donations, which help our provision of services locally.

A kindness from Gemma and Mick Cassidy

Gemma, and the late Mick Cassidy pictured on their Golden Wedding Anniversary in July, 2016.

Our range of products is continuously growing, here are some new products we are now stocking in our equipment shop:

DPCL8500 – Geemarc Mobile Phone (€98.40). This is a great phone with many features, such as a talking keypad and caller ID; three direct memory buttons, big dial buttons, white backlight and high contrast. The phonebook holds 300 entries; there is a missed call indicator and many more fantastic features.

DL553624 – Finger Guard (€6.17). This is a very handy item for slicing and dicing. The unique kitchen tool will protect your fingers when chopping ingredients, it can be used either on your left or right hand. It is made from high quality plastic and is dishwasher safe.

New Products in our Resource Centre

Page 18

IL856772 – Easy to see Watch with leather strap (€21.65). This large size watch (11/2” diameter face), includes extra wide hands that provide maximum visibility and ease of reading. It has a silver coloured case and a black leather strap, also available with an expandable band.

DN1062 – Hobby Table Lamp (€35.74). This lamp is perfect for reading and working at a table. The powerful 27w full spectrum daylight tube will light up any large surface and will give you the best colour rendering ever. With its flexible arm you can direct light exactly where you need it. The lamp comes in white and the dimensions are 40x46x16cm (15.7”x18.1”x6.3”).

Watch out for our special offers (every quarter) and our clearance section online. Log onto to our website www.ncbi.ie for the latest shop news.

Coming Soon – a new range of portable and task lamps by Ottlite.

We always welcome new ideas; please feel free to share yours with us.

The 3rd Lions World Song Festival for the Blind, Sounds from the Heart, will take place in Krakow from the 16-18 November 2017. The Festival is a contest, dedicated to talented vocalists who are blind or vision impaired, who are not professional musicians. In previous festivals vocalists from 13 countries were supported by 50 Lions clubs. The Lions Club want to create a unique opportunity for vision impaired artists to show their talents and improve their music careers.

Last year at the 2nd edition of the festival was the first time there was Irish involvement in the festival, with Sean

Olohan from the Wicklow & District Ireland Lions Club being a member of the Festival Jury. If you are interested in entering contact Sean on 0404-67389 / 086-3428043 or email [email protected] check out www.lionsfestival.org for more information.

3rd Lions World Song Festival for the Blind

Caranua is an organisation which was established by the Residential Institutions Statutory Fund Act 2012. They use funds from Irish religious congregations to address the health, housing and education needs of survivors living in Ireland and other parts of the world.

Caranua can offer support, information, advice and advocacy to survivors. They help individuals to get the services they are entitled to as a citizen, and improve access to those services. They can pay for services and give grants to individuals to source services themselves.

To be eligible to apply to Caranua, you must

have spent time in an institution as a child, and received an award through settlement, Court or the Residential Institutions Redress Board in relation to your time in an institution.

Caranua aim to improve the wellbeing of survivors. Wellbeing is about being physically and mentally well, being socially active, connected and self-fulfilled. If you are a survivor, Caranua can offer you a dedicated service to make sure that you get services and other opportunities to improve your wellbeing.

Caranua — Support for Survivors of Institutional Abuse

Freefone 1800 212477.

NCBI on the Airwaves‘The Living Word’, RTE Radio 1’s long time series of short reflections will dedicate a week to stories of visually impaired people in June. Listeners will hear short vignettes about three of NCBI’s staff, Stuart Lawler, Amie Hynes Fitzpatrick and Paul Traynor. Service users Mark Talbot and Rosemary Smyth will also feature.

The common thread in the pieces was the dedication and care shown by the NCBI towards its staff and service users which, coupled with their own innate determination and strong characters, means they live lives to the full and have the skills and confidence to negotiate any obstacles that may still persist.

The amazing strides in technology which are so vital to the lives of visually impaired people will be central to an upcoming RTE 1 ‘Nationwide’ slot which features NCBI. The hugely popular TV show will focus on new devices and advances which continue to be so vital in the working and personal lives of blind and visually impaired people.

The nationwide network of NCBI Charity Shops attracted coverage in several media outlets. The Liffey Champion, The Anglo Celt and The Carlow Nationalist together with Galway Bay FM and Tipp FM were just some of the outlets which ran pieces about NCBI’s Charity Shops. All the various media were highly impressed by the range, quality and excellent value in our shops and were glowing in their reports!

Page 20

Carlow NCBI ran a pottery class for service users in May. Participants made strawberry pots, under instruction of tutor Jayne Foley. Carlow VEC funded the tutor and participants went home after the four week course with a finished glazed pot, filled with strawberry plant supplied from Jayne’s tunnel.

Carlow NCBI Pottery Class

Brian Flynn potting up at Carlow pottery class.

Carlow NCBI Pottery Class

The Wellington Eye Clinic is participating in a clinical research study of a corneal refractive surgery procedure that aims to reduce or eliminate myopia (near-sightedness). The goal of the study is to evaluate the initial safety of the procedure.

Who can take part?• If you have sight loss in one eye that is best corrected visual acuity of 6/60 or worse.

• 22 years of age or older.

• No active implanted device, such as heart pacemaker or defibrillator.

• Not taking medications, such as Isotretinoin, Amiodarone hydrochloride, or Hydroxychloroquine.

• No other eye conditions such as: • Corneal disease • Uncontrolled glaucoma • Diagnosis of dry eye

• No previous corneal surgery, such as corneal transplant/implant.

Please note that patients with a visual acuity of 6/60 or worse will most likely not gain any visual benefit from this treatment.

For more information contact: [email protected]

Call for participants in a clinical research study of Corneal Refractive Surgery Procedure

The Carlow NCBI pottery group at work.

L-R: Brian Flynn and Michael Soames filling their ceramic pots.

BELOW: L-R, Derek Mooney, Jason Smyth, Professor Michael O’Keefe and Joe Geraghty.Joe Geraghty reports on Vision

Sports MayFest 2017!

MayFest all Talk all Action!

Page 22

MayFest 2017, our 35th anniversary games, was simply the best!

Vision Sports President Prof. Michael O’Keeffe threw in the ball at TalkFest, a conference which included interactive sports, at ChildVision on Friday 19th May. The topic of the day was “Vision Sports — 2020 and beyond”. Guest speakers included the fastest Paralympian on the planet Jason Smyth as well as Peter McKenna (GAA), Denis Toomey (Paralympics Ireland, Olympic Council of Ireland), Paul O’Rahilly (Irish Blind Golf), Rahim Nazarali (Vision Sports) and Liam O’Donohoe (Tennis Ireland).

The morning panel discussion was chaired by Rob Hartnett from Sport for Business while Shane Califf from Sport Ireland chaired the afternoon discussion. Colm Larkin from Vision Sports took overall charge. The day began with the school children from St. Joseph’s displaying futsal and finished over at the ChildVision Equestrian centre, hosted by manager Audrey Darby.

Markievicz Sports Centre Following the early evening meal at Flanagans on O’Connell St. it was over to poolside at nearby Markievicz Sports Centre where Frank Cullinane was putting swimmers through a variety of distance challenges from 750m upwards.

As dawn broke the following morning it was all on board the NCBI bus and off to meet the tandem cyclists on the daunting 20 mile Swords loop, Local boy, Tom Walsh, won the overall prize: the Shane Clyne Memorial Trophy.

Over at Newbridge Demesne, Michael Lavin and Sean O’Brien were taking a group of vision impaired walkers on a 6k stroll. Back at base at ALSAA sports centre blind tennis players from DCU and Shankhill did battle. It ended: love all. Meanwhile, Fiona Cusack arranged a tenpin tournament at the ALSAA Bowl.

RTE’s Derek Mooney popped in for lunch. As Ireland’s very first Paralympics broadcaster Derek was at ease and made a very inspiring speech. For prize presentations Derek was joined on stage by Jason Smyth, Prof. O’Keeffe and Trish Clyne. Trish and her family donated the top prize of the day for cycling.

Hungry then for more action, and on to the mat for judo. You could putt an effort into Blind Golf or be game ball with the blind footballers. You could row your boat; try tennis, run against a few Paralympians. Many of the children took to the tandems for a spin.

Finally, we got to sit down for the MayFest Dinner over at Landsdowne Tennis Club. Time to unwind and dance the night away.What a night, what a weekend!

BELOW: L-R, Derek Mooney, Jason Smyth, Professor Michael O’Keefe and Joe Geraghty.

LEFT: Tandem duo: L-R, Maureen Madden, and pilot Declan Smith.

(All pictures on this spreAd by lorrAine o’connor. lorrAine And her son MArk Also did the video which will shortly be uploAded to the vision sports website.)

ABOVE, LEFT: Well grounded, at the Judo.

ABOVE: Vision Sports Chairman Joe Geraghty with partipants at MayFest.

ABOVE: A tussle in the men’s blind football.

ABOVE: Dribbling to victory in the futsal, eight-year-old Annie Donnelly from Tipperary.

Page 23

The Granard Cup 2017 will be taking place in Malahide Golf Club on Monday 21st August. Would your club like to compete?

It is only €5 per player to take part, with a minimum of €100 per club.

Established in 1933, The Granard Cup is one of the longest running ladies golf competitions in Ireland. The format of the competition is Foursomes Stableford.

All funds from this golf fundraising event will go directly towards NCBI’s National Children’s Services.

For further details, please contact Roisin Walsh on 01 882 1984 or by e-mail [email protected]

Upcoming Fundraising Events The Granard Cup

Page 24

We have lots of exciting upcoming fundraising events happening, if you would like to get involved contact Collette on [email protected] or call 018307033.• Hell & Back Challenge 7km/12km – 17th June.• Achill Half Marathon & 10K – 1st July.• The Granard Cup- 21st August. • NCBI Night Cycle – 25th August.• Hell & Back Challenge 7km – 9th September,• Sky Dive 4 Sight Loss – 16th September.• Trip to Tipp Cycle Challenge – 1st October.• Stephen Roche Cycle Camp – Mallorca – 13th to 20th October.• Airtricity Dublin City Marathon – 29th October.• Turf Warrior – 4th November.

And of course, don’t miss your chance to be here at St. Andrews in October. For more information email [email protected] or call (01) 882 1939.

magazine - ncbi · when phoning to make appointment make sure to check what you need to bring with...

Documents