[nfb-talk] Dr. Jernigan and NFB Centers

[Marilyn Womble]

I have been reading the comments about NFB Centers and I would like to share
something with you.    I was born with no central vision and each day I
loose more of my peripheral vision.  Until I was 36, I thought that legally
blind and blind were not the same.  When I lived in Iowa, a very blind
counselor came to visit me for the Iowa Center for the Blind that was
directed by Dr. Jernigan.  Truly, this was the first blind person that I had
ever met.  He had been to college, had a job, used a cane, and was very
independent.

	You see, I knew that each day I was loosing sight but I did not know
that I was blind enough to get help.  Anyway, this man could work circles
around me.  He offered my husband and me a tour of the Center.  When I
watched Jim Omvig, Dr. Jernigan and others walking and working, my heart
ached to have what they had.  For the first time in my life, I realized that
it is not how much vision one has, but what you do with the abilities that
God has given you.

	Because I had children at home, I completed their eight-month course
in one month.  I was so hungry to learn the skills.  At first, I did not
understand the importance of the sleep shades, but later I did.  When I
completed the Braille course and my final five-mile travel route, I had a
peace within my heart to know that my lack of vision would not stop me from
living a full life.

	This has proved true.  I can no longer read even with a magnifying
glass, but because of Dr. Jernigan and the way he directed his Center and
the examples of the blind people who worked with him, the continuous loss of
my vision has not affected my independence.

	For thirteen years, I directed a Center that I patterned after Dr.
Jernigan's Center.  I know from my own life and from the students that I
taught, that the only way to train a person is with all his vision blocked.
Then when the training is complete, he can use what vision he has to work
with the training he has gained.  Most of all, it is the peace that you have
within your heart just knowing that even if you loose every bit of sight,
you can still live a full and productive life.

	I do not think that you can find anyone who has regretted having had
the opportunity to receive such training.  I will always be grateful to Dr.
Jernigan and the way he opened so many doors for us.  He could be tough when
he was dealing with someone who hindered blind people, but he was a kind and
caring person.  I will always miss him.