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LightHouse News

Do You Work for the Government? Designate LightHouse as your Combined Federal Campaign or Local Independent Charities Designee

10/28/2016 LightHouse Staff

Photo: Group of five blind woodworking students carving a log.

“At LightHouse I had that moment when I thought, ‘yes, I’m blind, but I can do a lot more than I thought I could.’” – David, blind woodworker

As a government employee, you can easily donate to the LightHouse by designating us as your annual workplace giving recipient for the Combined Federal Campaign (for Federal employees) or the Local Independent Charities of America (for state and local government employees).

Annually, LightHouse serves over 3000 people by teaching traditional blindness skills, like white cane travel and braille, and focused classes, like woodworking or technology. One student, David, is following the career path of his father by pursuing a life-long career in woodworking. He and his father were afraid that he wouldn’t be able to work independently. After one week of our intensive woodworking training, David told us, “I’ve learned so many skills in woodworking already, and I can do it safely on my own.”

Giving to programs that support students like David is easy because the Combined Federal Campaign allows employees to elect to give directly to the charity of their choice. Our Combined Federal Campaign number is #17667 (for Federal Employees), and state and local employees can find us under “LightHouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired.” (Please note: There are several LightHouses that serve the blind, so be sure to select the LightHouse located in California.)

We hope that you will join our 10,000 individual donors by identifying the LightHouse for the Blind as your choice for the Combined Federal Campaign or Local Independent Charities.

LightHouse News

Get a Break on Your Taxes: Contribute to the LightHouse for the Holidays

10/28/2016 LightHouse Staff

At LightHouse for the Blind, our teachers are focused on helping students of all ages who are blind or have low vision gain skills and tools for independent living. Beyond that, they help our students build confidence, so they can go out in the world with their white cane (or guide dog) and be active members of society in any way that they desire.

Your contribution helps us provide a range of classes, from cooking without sight to robotics, possible. End of year is a great time to make a charitable donation and receive a deduction in your 2016 taxes.

Support LightHouse for the Blind today and join a passionate community of innovation, mentorship and caring. For 114 years, the LightHouse has been a place where people with low vision or blindness can learn what once seemed impossible. At the LightHouse our students take advantage of life-changing technology, pioneering teaching methods and blind role models.

You can play a critical role in our efforts to improve the lives of children, adults and seniors who are blind. Please donate today!

A reminder for those over 70:

The IRA Rollover allows donors age 70½ and older to make tax-free charitable gifts directly from their Individual Retirement Account (IRA) funds to charitable organizations. Donors may give up to $100,000. In December 2015, Congress passed the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes (PATH) Act making the IRA Charitable Rollover a permanent charitable giving incentive.

It’s important to know that tax rates on appreciated IRAs can be sky-high, but when you donate funds from your IRA none of the donation will be taxed, a particularly-efficient way for donors to help philanthropies.

Please donate today!

You can also make a contribution of any type or learn more about the IRA Rollover by contacting Jennifer Sachs at jsachs@old.lighthouse-sf.org or 415.694.7333.

LightHouse News

Saturday, November 19: Our All-Day BEST Classes for Youth Are Back – Cooking, Sculpting and More

10/27/2016 LightHouse Staff

Photo: BEST participants Ethan Fung and Anthony Dalli prepare a chicken stir-fry during the Iron Chef of the LightHouse cooking class.

BEST (Building Excellence Through Skills Training) is a once-a-month program for middle school and high school youth. Sign up now for this month’s fun-filled Thanksgiving themed Challenge.

Who: Youth who are blind or have low vision, ages 8 to 18
When: Saturday, November 19, 10:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Where: The LightHouse Building, 1155 Market St., 10th Floor, 94103
Waiver: Each participant must submit a LightHouse Youth Program waiver form if they have not done so for a previous outing or event.
Cost: FREE for low vision and blind youth
Classes will be limited to 12 participants and all participants must RSVP.
For more information or to RSVP, please contact Jamey Gump, Youth Services Coordinator, at (415) 694-7372, or by email at jgump@old.lighthouse-sf.org.

Blind Youth to Battle it Out During Iron Chef of the LightHouse Cooking Class, 10:00 a.m. to 12:45 p.m.
Back by popular demand, the Iron Chef of the LightHouse series of cooking classes, where students work with blind mentors in a series of fun food competitions. In addition to the cooking challenges, we’ll teach students to cook tasty treats, simple side dishes and snacks as well as festive full-course meals.
More about Iron Chef at the LightHouse

LightHouse BEST Challenge, 1:00 to 3:00 p.m.
Each month, in an attempt to jam as much fun as we possibly can into our BEST Saturdays, we will be hosting a series of challenges consisting of interactive and engaging activities that will help students master skills that will help them be more successful in the future. Challenges will teach and test participants’ Orientation & Mobility, technology or living skills. During November’s Challenge, students will be tasked with activities that might help the family get ready for Thanksgiving.

Tactile Art: Sculpting, 3:00 to 4:30 p.m.
In our BEST Saturday Art Class students will not only learn skills that will help them be more successful in life, they will get the chance to express themselves though art. For the month of November, students will be working with their hands to create sculptures out of clay.

LightHouse News

There’s Still Time to Give Back – See the Year Out by Volunteering with the LightHouse

10/27/2016 LightHouse Staff

Photo: Volunteer Gerry Cannon receives award from LightHouse MADLab Director Greg Kehret at our Volunteer Appreciation Event.

It’s not too late to show your support for our community by volunteering. Would you like to make a significant contribution to the life of a blind person or person with low vision? The following volunteer opportunities are available in November and December.

Start Your Journey as LightHouse Volunteer – Join Us for Our Volunteer Orientation
When: Saturday, November 5, 2016, from 10:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Where: the LightHouse Building, 1155 Market Street, 10th Floor, San Francisco, 94103
Refreshments will be served.

RSVP or get more information about our program by contacting our Volunteer Engagement Specialist Justine Harris-Richburgh at volunteer@old.lighthouse-sf.org or 415-694-7320 and complete our Volunteer Registration form.

Become More Involved with the LightHouse with the Following Opportunities:

YES (Youth Employment Series) Program
When: Saturday and Sunday, November 12 and 13, 2016 and Saturday and Sunday, December 10 and 11, 2016
Where: the LightHouse Building, 1155 Market Street, 10th Floor, San Francisco, 94103
We’re looking for Volunteer Support Coordinators to help with student supervision, meal prep, clean up or take photos and/or video for social media. There are three shifts to choose from and up to five slots available per shift. Contact Volunteer Engagement Specialist Justine Harris-Richburgh at volunteer@old.lighthouse-sf.org or 415-694-7320 for more details.

Our First-Ever Blind Soldering Weekend Workshop
When: Friday, November 4 through Sunday, November 6, 2016
Where: the LightHouse Building, 1155 Market Street, 10th Floor, San Francisco, 94103
There are a variety of shifts available, each with several slots available per shift, making this a perfect opportunity to volunteer with a buddy and learn more about blind soldering – this is not to be missed! You’ll be assisting instructors, supporting students and running errands as needed. Soldering knowledge and experience are not required; however knowledge and interest in electronics and soldering may be useful.
Lunch will be provided.
Contact Volunteer Engagement Specialist Justine Harris-Richburgh at volunteer@old.lighthouse-sf.org or 415-694-7320 for more details.

Can You Dig It? We Had a Far Out, Solid Gold, To the Max Time at Our Volunteer Appreciation Party
This year’s Volunteer Appreciation Party went off in style, with a Solid Gold theme that brought us back to those solid-gold ’70s, complete with gold streamers, gold balloons, gold party favors and solid gold disco music in the background. Over 100 volunteers, board members, staff and guests attended our annual celebration. The room was festive, the food and drink flowed and we had a blast giving out raffle prizes and awards to our standout volunteers.

This year we honored the following volunteers:

Mike May was recognized by Bryan Bashin for his outstanding volunteer commitments and contributions to Enchanted Hills Camp.
Our Development Department recognized Jennisen Svendsen’s hours of photo organizing.
Volunteer Gerry Cannon was recognized by MADLab for the impressive amount of recording he has provided.
Enchanted Hills Camp’s gave an award to longtime volunteer Tino Benelli.
We honored Silvana Rainey’s contribution to our Employment Immersion Program.
We acknowledged Sabrina Treguboff’s dedicated work with Community Services’ Senior and Adult Programs.
And finally, we honored all of our wonderful Board members for their dedication.

Thank you to all who were able to attend. For those LightHouse Volunteers who missed it, our next appreciation celebration will be in April, 2017.

LightHouse News

We Welcome AmeriCorps Back to Enchanted Hills This Winter

10/27/2016 LightHouse Staff

Photo: Last year members of AmeriCorps made many improvements at Enchanted Hills, including finishing deck railings, working on fencing on the horse trail above the Art Barn, designing a new tech lab for the Kiva, building a storage container for the Kiva and renovating the Enchanted Hills Recycling Center.

This winter we will be hosting 14 members of AmeriCorps who will spend six weeks improving our camp property. AmeriCorps is a core program of the federal agency, the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS). Per their website, “AmeriCorps places thousands of young adults into intensive service positions where they learn valuable work skills, earn money for education, and develop an appreciation for citizenship. They are committed to seeing positive change in their country, and are devoting ten months of their lives to work towards this end.”

Some of the many projects AmeriCorps Volunteers are slated to tackle at Enchanted Hills are rebuilding the pool deck, updating fencing along the lake and trails, remodeling the interior of the Lodge and landscape improvements.

Enchanted Hills Camp Director Tony Fletcher told us, “Our budding relationship with AmeriCorps has become a highlight of my year. Watching these dedicated young men and woman working diligently to make a difference for our camp gives me and the rest of the Enchanted Hills Staff extra incentive to work just as hard. Under George Wurtzel’s supervision I have seen Corps members gain confidence and pride in building decks, laying flooring, constructing trails and learning about blindness that goes above and beyond a typical placement for AmeriCorps teams. We are proud to be a host sponsor for AmeriCorps.”

LightHouse News

A New Milestone: LightHouse’s Employment Immersion Alumni Hit $2.5M Salary Mark

10/27/2016 LightHouse Staff

Photo: Kate Williams stands on the sweeping ramp inside the Ed Roberts Campus where LightHouse has its Berkeley office.

Everyone in the blindness community knows the ominous statistics: At least 60 – possibly even as many as 70 percent – of legally blind people remain unemployed. That’s why back in 2011 we made a commitment to blind jobseekers to establish a program that gave them the practical skills they needed to get the jobs they wanted.

Today, we’re proud to announce that the alumni of our program reached over $2.5M in salaries – $2,513,630 to be exact – and the number is growing every week. That is $2.5M in value added to our economy; $2.5M of worker time for people who didn’t know if they had what it took to compete in the job market; $2.5M that doesn’t even factor in the amount those individuals would have otherwise collected from social security and state financial aid.

Kate Williams, our Employment Immersion Program Manager, Purpose Prize Winner, and job coach nationally recognized by the Wall Street Journal, is the driving force behind these achievements. In the last six months alone, Kate and her team have helped sixteen blind and low vision jobseekers find new employment. That is sixteen people who six months ago, had to rely solely on assistance from others.

We can’t take all the credit, though. The LightHouse students who have been through our program have received rigorous and enthusiastic support from family, friends, private donors, foundations, grants and the CA State Department of Rehabilitation (DOR) which sends many students through our classes. At the end of the day, though, it’s about letting our students stand on their own two feet and enjoy a little bit of financial security. As one student told Kate last week: “It was just nice to be able to actually buy someone else dinner, for once.”

Here’s to more dinners together, and more success stories in 2016.

The Employment Immersion Program is for people who are blind or have low vision, from any background, seeking any job.

The next Employment Immersion session will begin on January 10, 2017:

Where: The LightHouse Building, 1155 Market St., 10th Floor, 94103
When: January 10 through February 9, 2017
Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

To learn more, contact Employment Immersion Coordinator Wanda Pearson at wpearson@old.lighthouse-sf.org or call 415-694-7359.

Employment Immersion is hiring a new job development professional. If you have the skills to help blind and low vision jobseekers thrive, apply here.

LightHouse News

Saturday, November 12: Youth – Learn How to Advocate for All Your Needs (YES Workshop)

10/27/2016 LightHouse Staff

Photo: (Left to right) YES students Billy Lei, Carlos Torres and Austin Walker learn about appropriate attire for job interviewing. They are standing next to a mannequin dressed in suit and tie.

The November YES workshop is Making Advocacy Accessible

Each month the LightHouse offers a special YES (Youth Employment Series) workshop aimed at youth ages 14 to 26. This November we’ll focus on advocacy – including how to get accommodation, the issue of informed consent, and how to transition from high school to college or from school to career.

When: Saturday, November 12, 2016, 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Where: the LightHouse Building, 1155 Market St., 10th Floor, San Francisco, 94103.
Who: Candidates must be transition-aged students ages 14 to 26 who are blind or have low vision. They must be eligible for transitional rehabilitation services, deemed legally blind by a physician or accredited agency, and able to fulfill the training and work required by the program.

Topics that will be discussed in November include but are not limited to:

Self-advocacy, individual rights, self-determination skills, the informed consent process as well as peer mentoring.
Accommodations available to college students and those entering the workforce.
Blindness skills that will enrich life and help achieve ones goals, be more confident and learn how to advocate needs.
How to smoothly navigate through any system as a student transitioning into college from high school or from college to a career.
Strategies that will help students make strong and positive first impressions.
Developing, enhancing and utilizing ones network and relationship with peers and mentors.

Sign-up now for the December YES Workshop: Taking Technology Seriously which will take place on Saturday, December 10, from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Is There a Cost to Attend YES Workshops?
The cost to attend the LightHouse Youth Employment Series workshops is $175 per day-long workshop. In addition to the day’s activities and curriculum, students will receive a light breakfast, lunch and refreshments throughout the day. Department of Rehabilitation authorizations or other payment source must be secured before students will be eligible to participate.

If you have any questions or wish to apply, please contact Youth Services Coordinator Richie Flores at rflores@old.lighthouse-sf.org or 415-694-7328.

Would you like to be a YES Protégé?
Sign up for YES workshops! We are currently seeking protégés for the Youth Employment Series (YES). Protégés will benefit from vocational and blindness skills training, meaningful work and volunteer opportunities, as well as career-specific mentorships with the working blind. This informative monthly series will provide transition-aged youth who are blind or have low vision with vital skills that will help them become more successful as they pursue their academic and employment dreams.

LightHouse News

Off the Page: Twitter Volunteers will Help You With those Pesky Print Materials

10/27/2016 LightHouse Staff

When: Friday, November 11, 2016, from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Where: the LightHouse Building, 1155 Market Street, 10th Floor, San Francisco, 94103

Sign up to have paper documents read, get assistance with the completion of printed applications and much more by our vetted and professional volunteers from Twitter. If you’re actively looking for a job, come and have your resume reviewed by one of our professional Twitter volunteers.

Don’t miss out on this prime opportunity to meet one-on-one with a volunteer.

RSVP or get more information about our program by contacting our Volunteer Engagement Specialist Justine Harris-Richburgh at volunteer@old.lighthouse-sf.org or 415-694-7320.

LightHouse News

Come Have Dinner on Us and Learn Some Estate Planning Techniques that May Benefit You and the LightHouse

10/27/2016 LightHouse Staff

Portrait of Michael Bland

You are invited to a LightHouse Legacy Society Event at the new LightHouse building, with special guest presenter Michael Bland. Michael is the principal attorney at Guardian Counsel, PC. and is dedicated to assisting his clients design their family’s estate plans to preserve their personal and financial well-being while planning for the future. Michael is an Eagle Scout and was born and raised in Napa, California.

When: Wednesday, November 2nd, 2016, 6:00 to 8:00 p.m.
Where: the LightHouse Building at 1155 Market Street, Floor 10, San Francisco, 94103
Dinner will be served

Please RSVP to Dagny Brown at 415-694-7333 or events@old.lighthouse-sf.org.

We want to thank our LightHouse Legacy Society Members for including the LightHouse in their estate plans:

Hank Borenko, Margie Donovan, Joan M. Dove, Robert Ray Foster, Gena Harper and Mike May, Dolores Ippolito, Roger Kallen, Justin Kim, Kuhnle Family Endowment, Jerry Kuns and Theresa Postello, Inez E. Martini, Ann Noble and Goran Muhlert, Robert E. O’Donnell, Alicia Jean Rose, Frederic and Kristine Silva, Richard Stevens and Virginia Behm, David and Regula Weill, Martin and Rosan Weissman, Jennifer Westbrook, Greg Wong.

LightHouse News

Saturday, November 5: Family Picnic and Hike at Lake Merritt

10/27/2016 LightHouse Staff

Join us for a gathering of LightHouse students and their families for a fun filled day at Lake Merritt. Meet at the Lake Merritt BART Station at 11:00 a.m. for a walk around the lake. During the walk the group will choose a picnic spot.

Who: Families (immediate family members or guardians) with at least one person that is blind or has low vision.
When: Saturday, November 5, 2016, 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Where: Meet at Lake Merritt BART Station in Oakland
Cost: Free
What to bring: Picnic lunch for yourself and your family, water bottle, warm layers of clothing and any necessary mobility aids such as a cane or monocular.
Waiver: Each participant must complete a LightHouse Youth Program Application as well as all 2016 LightHouse release forms.

If you would like more information about this event or wish to sign your family up, please contact Jamey Gump, Youth Services Coordinator, at jgump@old.lighthouse-sf.org or 415-694-7372 for more information.