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Sports and Recreation

LightHouse News

Learn How You Can Change the Lives of the Blind and Visually Impaired by Running a Half Marathon

The LightHouse for the Blind is the largest organization serving the blind and visually impaired in Northern California. We have a responsibility to change the lives of those who are blind and visually impaired so that the dream of being employed, going to school and having a family does not remain just a dream but becomes a reality.

One of our oldest programs is our Enchanted Hills Camp and retreat. Nestled in the hills of Napa, Enchanted Hills is a scenic getaway where blind and visually impaired youth and adults have come to canoe, hike, horseback ride, and meet new and old friends who all share a common bond. For 60 years, this camp has aided in the personal growth of many individuals.

At the LightHouse, we believe our Enchanted Hills Camp as well as our programs and services can help put blind and visually impaired people on the road to achieving their own personal success. We need your help to keep all of our programs thriving.

Your commitment to fundraise and run, walk or jog the San Francisco half marathon will help enrich, foster and create new and exciting programs and services that can change the lives of people living with visual impairments, and keep our current programs flourishing.

Join today and change someone’s life.

–$500 can pay for the construction of a tactile relief map of the Napa hills and valleys that surround our Enchanted Hills Camp for blind youth and adults.
–$250 can buy campers a backpack, sleeping bag and tent for a confidence-building wilderness trek and night under the stars.
–$100 can help pay for a variety of classes that teach alternative techniques and provide strategies for living a successful life as a blind person.
–$50 can help us buy archery and other sports equipment for adaptive games, like beep baseball.
–$25 can go toward the purchase of a white cane, which is a necessary tool needed for the safe and independent travel of blind people.

If you are ready to make this commitment, join us at the LightHouse on Wednesday, November 17 from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. for a light dinner, socializing and a brainstorming session on how to raise that $1,300.

Meet your teammates and get ready to run/walk/jog the San Francisco half marathon and put the fun in fundraising for a fantastic cause.

Training begins Saturday, November 20, so if you have not yet registered, please visit http://bit.ly/teamlighthouse today!

Raffle prizes will be given away. But, you must be present to win. To RSVP, or to ask questions, call or email Lisamaria Martinez at 415-431-1481 or info@old.lighthouse-sf.org.

See you at the LightHouse!
214 Van Ness Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94102

Resources in the Community

The 2011 USABA and BOEC Winter Ski Camp!

Where else can you get a full Colorado Ski experience for $200 plus your cost to get there?

It’s not a typo…your $200 gets you 4 nights of lodging, all meals, ski equipment, ski instruction and lift passes in beautiful Breckenridge, Colorado when you sign up for the USABA and BOEC Winter Ski Camp.

United States Association of Blind Athletes has teamed up with the staff of the Breckenridge Outdoor Education Center (BOEC) to provide you this outstanding opportunity that will heap you achieve your goal of learning to enjoy skiing.

Who can attend?  Any USABA athlete member (including veterans and active duty service members) may attend.  If you’re not a member, you can visit our website, www.usaba.org, and download a membership form, or call USABA (719-630-0422) about joining.

When and where?  March 11-15, 2011 in Breckenridge Colorado (March 11 and 15 are travel days)

What’s the cost?  Hard to believe, but only $200 plus what you spend to get there.  Scholarship monies and special funding support may be available.

What’s the catch?  Spaces are limited and registration ends on February 11, 2011.  Beyond that if you don’t act today, you may miss out on this outstanding deal.

Information and the application are available on the USABA website, http://www.usaba.org, under the Headline News section.

For additional questions call Rich at 719-630-0422 (extension 15) or email him at:  military@usaba.org.

Resources in the Community

Northern California Entertainment and Recreation Listing: November 12

If you do not receive this listing in your inbox every Thursday, join the distribution list by emailing bberenson@old.lighthouse-sf.org.

This listing is compiled by the Information Resource Center at the LightHouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired. It is compiled weekly as a service to the blind and visually impaired community of Northern California. If you have a meeting or event information that would be appropriate for inclusion in this list, please email info@old.lighthouse-sf.org. This list will be updated every Thursday. Information for each Thursday’s listing must be submitted one week prior to publication.

Northern California Entertainment and Recreation Listing 11.11.10

Resources in the Community

Northern California Entertainment and Recreation Listing: November 5

If you do not receive this listing in your inbox every Thursday, join the distribution list by emailing bberenson@old.lighthouse-sf.org.

 

This listing is compiled by the Information Resource Center at the LightHouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired. It is compiled weekly as a service to the blind and visually impaired community of Northern California. If you have a meeting or event information that would be appropriate for inclusion in this list, please email info@old.lighthouse-sf.org. This list will be updated every Thursday. Information for each Thursday’s listing must be submitted one week prior to publication.

Resources in the Community

Riding Blind, Pushing Limits Radio Interviews Bobby McMullen

Riding Blind, Pushing Limits Radio Interviews Bobby Mc Mullen,

This summer, LightHouse was excited to host Bobby McMullen as a motivational speaker at our Enchanted Hills Camp. And recently, we featured a film about the blind Paralympic champ at the Sports Basement in San Francisco as part of a fundraiser for EHC.

Now, Pushing Limits, Berkeley radio by and for people with disabilities, continues the conversation. Tune in tomorrow! Here is the show announcement form PL:

Set your radios and laptops to 94.1 KPFA in Berkeley or kpfa.org this Friday afternoon at 2:30 PM. http://www.kpfa.org/pushing-limits. (Episode will also be archived on the site for future listening.)

Our theme this week, Riding Blind. Leah Gardner and Raphaella Bennin will be interviewing legally blind mountain biker Bobby McMullen. After countless broken bones, a double organ transplant and sight loss, this daredevil doesn’t just ride his bike; he’s a cliff hanger in every sense of the word. We’ll talk about the documentary based on his mountain biking exploits, How Bobby Sees It, and about blind biking, so hold onto your chairs; we’re in for a bumpy ride.

Want to know more about Pushing Limits Radio? Visit their blog and their Facebook.

LightHouse News

Last One Picked

2 Commentson Last One Picked

The following entry was written by Serena Olsen, a member of Team LightHouse who has also served as an agency volunteer. Serena works for the Japan Society and as a Braille instructor at the Lions Center for the Blind.

Challenge yourself to run, jog or walk the San Francisco half marathon. Raise funds for the LightHouse and get into fabulous shape. Hurry, registration ends November 20!

There were absolutely no sports in my household when I was growing up. Both my parents usually had their noses buried in a sci-fi novel, my dad crocheted lacy doilies and tablecloths, and the one and only time my dad actually tried roller-skating instead of just watching me, he nervously clutched the edge of the rink all the way around and ended up breaking his wrist. Is it any wonder that I was always the last one picked for sports teams all the way through school and never actually ran the mile, but just walked instead?

As a young adult, my love for all things Asian led me to dabble in a wide array of martial arts, but I never really went far with them. Even today, the most athletic I usually get is indulging in my yoga addiction. During those young adult years, I was also coming to terms with my blindness — a slow but fruitful journey that has led to acceptance and comfort with my blindness and resources and training in the tools that make me a more competent, confident and accomplished professional. I always travel with a cane; I know, use and teach Braille; and I have a fully stocked toolbox of goodies that make my blindness more of a nuisance than a setback — screen readers, a notetaker, portable media devices, magnification tools, and my newest and most favorite, my iPhone!

Clearly, there is no excuse for me to be the last one picked anymore! In fact, I was one of the first picked by LightHouse staffer Lisamaria Martinez to participate in Team LightHouse. The training, not to mention the fundraising, can feel daunting at times, but I am fired up to successfully achieve yet another new accomplishment and am motivated by the support of people like Lisamaria and the droves of quality people whom I have come to know in the years since I started hanging out with competent blind individuals. Raising funds and awareness in the half marathon for a great agency like the LightHouse is not just a win for me; it is one way that I can give back to the blind community, especially those in the Bay Area.

Resources in the Community

Northern California Entertainment and Recreation Listing: October 29

If you do not receive this listing in your inbox every Thursday, join the distribution list by emailing bberenson@old.lighthouse-sf.org.

This listing is compiled by the Information Resource Center at the LightHouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired. It is compiled weekly as a service to the blind and visually impaired community of Northern California. If you have a meeting or event information that would be appropriate for inclusion in this list, please email info@old.lighthouse-sf.org. This list will be updated every Thursday. Information for each Thursday’s listing must be submitted one week prior to publication.

NorCal Entertainment and Recreation List 10.29.10

Resources in the Community

Northern California Entertainment and Recreation Listing: October 22

If you do not receive this listing in your inbox every Thursday, join the distribution list by emailing bberenson@old.lighthouse-sf.org.

This listing is compiled by the Information Resource Center at the LightHouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired. It is compiled weekly as a service to the blind and visually impaired community of Northern California. If you have a meeting or event information that would be appropriate for inclusion in this list, please email info@old.lighthouse-sf.org. This list will be updated every Thursday. Information for each Thursday’s listing must be submitted one week prior to publication.

NorCal Entertainment and Recreation Listing 10.22.10

Resources in the Community

Northern California Entertainment and Recreation Listing: October 15

If you do not receive this listing in your inbox every Thursday, join the distribution list by emailing bberenson@old.lighthouse-sf.org.

This listing is compiled by the Information Resource Center at the LightHouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired. It is compiled weekly as a service to the blind and visually impaired community of Northern California. If you have a meeting or event information that would be appropriate for inclusion in this list, please email info@old.lighthouse-sf.org. This list will be updated every Thursday. Information for each Thursday’s listing must be submitted one week prior to publication.

Download it here: NorCal Entertainment and Recreation List 10.15.2010

Resources in the Community

Global Explorers, Where Has Your White Cane Taken You?

In honor of White Cane Safety Day, LightHouse wants to remind adventurous blind youth to apply for Global Explorers Leading the Way program by November 15th!

This year, the expedition is called Rim to River and it involves a high altitude hike of the Grand Canyon in summer 2011. Go to the Global Explorers website to find out more about the application and ways you can fundraise for your journey:

Just imagine where your white cane can take you! Maybe you have already traversed the Grand Canyon with your cane? Or, a more exotic locale? We want to know. Send the LightHouse photos of yourself with your white cane in exciting destinations. Post them to your Facebook and share them on our Facebook page.