These articles are not an endorsement by Second Sense. Editor, Kathy Austin.
May Update
Training on Your Terms
Meet our New Staff Member, Taurus Smith
Learn About En-Vision America ScriptTalk Medication Labels
Why Back-Up Your iPhone?
RP Meet Up
Ever Thought of Playing Golf?
New Guide Dog Advocacy App
Hardcopy Braille Books from NLS BARD
Participating in Eye Research
Encouraging Documentary
Chicago Humanities Festival
Calendar of Events
We’re excited to announce that Taurus Smith, CVRT, has joined our Second Sense team! Taurus recently graduated from Northern Illinois University with his masters in vision rehabilitation. Some of you may have had an opportunity to work with Taurus last fall when he completed his internship with us. Read on to get to know Taurus!
Everyone has different needs and goals. This is why Second Sense tailors our training to meet you where you are and help you get to where you want to go. Our individualized services cover three main areas of support: technology training, daily living and mobility.
Our technology department can help you master your iPhone, freshen up those keyboarding skills with our keyboarding class or transition from screen magnification to speech output. You can learn Microsoft Office, surf the Internet or use email, it’s all up to you!
Learning adaptations for your daily routine can be high or low tech. learning these adaptations for cooking, paying bills or choosing a magnifier can make life a little easier. Our certified vision rehabilitation therapists, Cody Froeter, Richard Stauder and Taurus Smith, all have creative solutions for your most frustrating challenges.
Getting where you want to go, safely, is vital. Whether you have just decided that it’s time to start using a white cane, need a brush up on your existing skills or need to familiarize yourself with a new neighborhood, local college campus or workplace, our mobility instructors can help.
In-person technology tutoring and braille instruction can also help you meet your personal goals. Marv Commerford can answer your questions on using VoiceOver on your iPhone, learning to use a Victor Reader Stream and getting NLS BARD set up on your device. Gloria Moyer provides braille instruction from the basics to labeling to reading for pleasure.
Our Product Center carries the essential products to make living with vision loss more accessible. From bump dots to magnifiers to white canes, Jim Holzman will process your order and get it to you as quickly as possible.
To inquire about any of the above services, please call our office at 312-236-8569 or email kathy.austin@second-sense.org. To place an order with our Product Center, call our office and press #2, then #5 to leave a voice mail for Jim or send an email to productcenter@second-sense.org.
Taurus is a single dad, musician, artist and producer. He received a degree in audio engineering from Columbia College and started his own production company. Later, Taurus began teaching blind and low vision individuals how to run their own recording studio and make it accessible. When working with a man who was new to vision loss, he witnessed him go from having no computer knowledge to independently recording his own band.
This experience inspired Taurus to make a bigger impact in the lives of people with vision loss. Taurus became a computer instructor teaching MAC OS accessibility features allowing people to be more employable and independent in everyday life. “Seeing an elderly man send a text to his wife for the first time is a priceless experience,” says Taurus. Wanting to broaden his horizons even further, Taurus decided to become a vision rehabilitation therapist where he can have the greatest impact on a person’s quality of life.
Taurus enjoys spending time with his two amazing children, Aaliya, age 8, and Kendrick, age 6, working out at the gym, traveling, bike riding and watching basketball. Welcome to Second Sense, Taurus!
Making sure you are taking the correct medication and the correct dosage is extremely important. Small print on small medication bottles make it difficult to read. We are happy to welcome Loretta Roberts, advocate outreach specialist from En-Vision America, on Wednesday, May 10 at 10:30 am. Ms. Roberts will share how En-Vision America patient care advocates “can do the work for you” to find a participating pharmacy providing these accessible drug labels. The labels are available in braille, large print, audio, dual language and controlled substance labels. Join us on the conference line for this important presentation at 312-809-1004. For questions, email Kathy.austin@second-sense.org
What happens if you don’t back up your iPhone? Headaches, for sure! We’re going to show you how to back up your data to iCloud to avoid those headaches so you don’t have any issues when those unexpected mishaps occur with your iPhone. Join Richard Stauder, our assistive technology instructor, for Apple Exchange on Thursday, May 4 at 1:00 pm CT to learn the importance of backing up your phone’s data, saving photos and purchasing extra storage if needed. We meet on the conference line, 312-809-1004. For questions, email richard.stauder@second-sense.org
Each time your vision deteriorates from RP, you will need to make adjustments. It can be frustrating when just a few days before you were able to complete a task and today it has become much more difficult. At our RP Meet Up on Tuesday, May 9, our topic is “Ask a Vision Rehabilitation Therapist.” Cody Froeter, CVRT, joins us to answer your “How do I …?” questions. Let’s share our own tips and hacks to minimize those frustrating times when new vision loss gets in the way. Our RP Meet Up is for people with retinitis pigmentosa and related inherited retinal conditions, family and friends. We meet on the conference line, 312-809-1004, from 7:00 to 8:30 pm Central Time. For questions, email kathy.austin@second-sense.org
You might not think the game of golf would be a sport someone with vision loss would play, but the U.S. Adaptive Golf Alliance thinks otherwise! This nonprofit organization brings other adaptive golf associations together to make golf inclusive to those with disabilities. When you participate in a USAGA clinic, you receive hands-on adaptive golf instruction tailored to your individual needs from adaptive golf coaches and physical therapists. They will work with you on fundamentals such as balance, posture and swing. Clinics and tournaments happen all across the country. After your instruction, you are encouraged to get out and play golf with friends and family. To find a clinic near you, check out the USAGA website for more information.
The Seeing Eye, the oldest guide dog school in the country, has developed a new app for guide dog handlers. The app provides information on U.S. and Canadian laws ensuring guide dog handlers have access to public places and protection from harm and interference from people and other dogs. You’ll find federal, state and provincial laws, regulations, policies and educational materials. Educational information includes air travel, emergency preparedness, service animals in the workplace, housing and public spaces. While the information contained in the app is from public sources, it is a handy app for a guide dog handler to educate those who may not be aware of the laws that protect them. At this time, the Seeing Eye Advocacy app is only available for iPhone and iPad, but an Android app is coming soon. Visit the Apple App Store to download The Seeing Eye Advocacy app.
The National Library Service for the Blind has expanded their braille on demand program! Now you can order hard copy braille books from any title on the NLS BARD site. Any patron can receive up to five hard copy braille books per month with no return date. To order online, complete this online form or contact your network library for assistance. In Illinois, call 800-426-0709.
Wondering about participating in a clinical trial for research into your eye condition? Your first step is to talk with your eye doctor to see if the trial is appropriate for you. The National Eye Institute’s clinical trial webpage contains information about the types of trials and the benefits and risks of participating in a trial. You’ll also find clinical trials in progress and results of previous trials.
For those newly diagnosed with macular degeneration or other eye conditions, this inspiring documentary, “Losing Sight, Finding Hope,” from the American Macular Degeneration Foundation is definitely worth your time to watch. You’ll meet others with macular degeneration and have continued to live their lives to be the best they can be. Share it with someone you know who is experiencing vision loss, it sends a hopeful message and they will know they are not alone.
The Chicago Humanities Festival offers one-of-kind events exploring civic and cultural concerns through conversations, musical performances, inspiring art and community gatherings. This organization is dedicated to adhering and surpassing the ADA guidelines for accessibility. Several events coming up in May offer audio description. To purchase tickets, please call 312-661-1239. You can find the full event listing on Chicago Humanities webpage. Below are the audio described performances for May.
Sound Opinions Live with Robbie Fulks in concert
Monday, May 8, 7:00 pm at Park West
Jonathan Eig on the Life of Martin Luther King Jr.
Thursday, May 11, 7:00 pm at Chop Shop
A Night Out with Andy Cohen
Friday, May 12, 7:00 pm at Park West
A Night Out with Andrew Rannells
Thursday, May 18, 7:00 pm at Music Box Theatre
Secretary Hillary Rodham Clinton
Monday, May 22, 7:00 pm at the Riviera Theatre
Thursday, May 4, 1:00 pm
Apple Exchange: Backing up your iPhone
https://www.second-sense.org/events/apple-exchange-exploring-your-iphone-settings/
Tuesday, May 9, 7:00 pm
RP Meet Up
https://www.second-sense.org/events/rp-meet-up-2-2023-05-09/
Wednesday, May 10, 10:30 am
ScriptTalk Pharmacy
https://www.second-sense.org/events/medication-management-scripttalk-prescription-labels/
Monday, May 29
Second Sense closed in honor of Memorial Day