|
�������� BLINDNESS CAN'T
STOP SKYDIVERS ���������������������������� ���������������������� by Mike Patty ���������������������������� ���������������������������� ����������������������� ����� ���������������������������� ���� From the Editor:� This article appeared in the BRAILLE MONITOR, Vol. 43,
No. 7, July 2000 edition, published by the National Federation
of the Blind. ���� From the MONITOR Editor: NFB adult training
centers make a point of
helping their students push their limits. Once you have succeeded
at white‑water rafting, rock climbing, carpentry,
or� single‑handedly feeding
40 people, you find it hard
to picture yourself as incompetent and helpless. So, when
several students began talking last winter to Colorado
Center staff about their wish to go skydiving, it was
hard to think of reasons for not doing it. Julie Deden, Center
Director, didn't even try. In fact, she agreed to go along.
After all, it's healthy now and then for everyone to push
back the limitations we place on ourselves. ���� So Colorado Center students and staff began
making arrangements to
go skydiving for the first time on April 15. Unfortunately,
Mother Nature had other ideas. A mid‑spring snow storm put
an end to the outing, and it was rescheduled for Sunday, May
21. This time, no snow appeared, so off the group went. ���� I asked Julie Deden afterward, whether she
had enjoyed the experience.
The best she could say was that she was glad she had done it.
She had not been prepared for the noise during the free‑fall
portion of the jump.� But if
Julie Deden was less
than euphoric about the experience personally, others
in the group made up for it with their enthusiasm and
delight. The press, as well, found the notion of 26 blind people
jumping out of an airplane worthy of some attention. Moreover,
they got the story right. This was not a nine‑days'
wonder with no connection to good rehabilitation‑‑this
was part of an extraordinary program that enables blind
people to regain their self‑confidence and return to their
lives as fully participating, contributing members
of their families and communities. ���� On Tuesday, May 30, MSNBC conducted a five‑minute interview with
Julie Deden and Buna Dahal, a member of the staff. It provided
Julie and Buna an excellent opportunity to describe their
experience and explain its value in the context of an effective
rehabilitation program. ���� The following is an article that appeared
in the May 22, 2000, edition
of the ROCKY MOUNTAIN TIMES. Here it is: ���� Twenty‑six students and staff members
of the Colorado Center for the
Blind jumped Sunday from an airplane more than two miles
above Longmont's Vance Brand Airport. They did it for the
same reasons sighted people skydive: to test their character
and for the plain thrill of it. ���� Julie Deden, the center's executive director,
said Sunday's jump at
the Mile‑Hi Skydiving Center was the first for all 26. "As
far as I know, it's the first time anywhere so many blind people
have skydived on one day," Deden said. ���� All made tandem jumps with Mile‑Hi
instructors. ���� The idea for a skydiving outing came from
David James, a recent graduate
of the Colorado Center for the Blind. "I used to ride Harleys
before I lost my sight two years ago," James said. "I
can't do that anymore, but I miss the adrenaline rush." �� ���� James said losing his sight in his late
forties nearly destroyed him.
"There was a time when I would get up every morning and had
to look hard for reasons not to put a bullet in my brain,"
James said. "But the people at the center knew what I was going
through. I wouldn't have made it except for them.� My first week at the center I had to hang sheet
rock, cut a Christmas
tree, and make quiche." ���� Soon, James said, he regained his sense
of hope. "I learned how to
do all the things required of living," James said. "I figured,
if others can do it, so can I." ���� Eddie Culp, a blind instructor at the center,
was the first one out of
the plane Sunday. "At first there was a tremendous rush,
then it felt like I was floating in a dream," Culp
said. "It was over too soon." ���� Culp said it is important for blind people
to push their limits and
learn to overcome self‑doubt. "Most of life is about believing
in yourself," Culp said. "My philosophy is don't let fear
put out the fire." ���� Laura Connors, who lost her sight 16 months
ago, said she had long fantasized
about skydiving. ���� "It was always in the back of my mind
if I had the guts to do it,"
Connors said. "When I had the opportunity, I didn't want to
let it pass." ���� Connors said it got very scary at the door
of the airplane over the
drop zone. "But I did what you do when you are scared: just
take some deep breaths and do it," Connors said. |
||
��������������������
�����