New Location for Meetings

Here’s some great news!  Our club will now be meeting at the newly constructed Children’s Cancer Research Center, 8403 Floyd Curl Drive, in San Antonio.  This is the exact same address as our last meeting place, the UTHSC Allied Health Building, which is located nearby.

As you turn south off Floyd Curl Drive into the Health Science Center driveway, the Children’s Cancer Research Center will be to your left.  It's name appears in large letters on the front of the building.  Turn in at the opening, and then turn left into the large parking lot on the north side of the building.  We will enter through the side door closest to the parking lot.  Unlike the front door, the side door has no steps, and you can proceed directly into the building.

Our club meetings will be held in a lovely, new auditorium which seats approximately 160 people.  (And we’ve been promised a new state-of-the-art PA system so everyone can hear without static.)  Coffee and refreshments will be served before meetings in a large, spacious lobby before you enter the auditorium.

LVC Program Dates

Saturday, April 17, 2004
“How to Live Well with Low Vision” moderated by Leslie Hoy.
Tips on how to cope when you become visually impaired.
(Special Note:  Please be sure to bring your card listing your “I Am An Ambassador for the Blind” activities to this meeting.  If you have lost your card, make a list of your Ambassador efforts on a sheet of paper with your name.  We want to learn what you have done to help.)

Saturday, May 15, 2004
“Spring Fiesta” hosted by the club’s Special Events Committee.
A chance to socialize and enjoy some great Mexican food served in the lobby area of the Children’s Cancer Research Center.  Cost is only $5.50 per person, but reservations must be received by Saturday, May 1, when we must order the food.  (Reservations and payments may be made at our April 17 meeting.)  For more information, call Josefina Miller at 690-4772 between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. only.

Saturday, June 19, 2004
“Role Models” from our club will tell how they have conquered their visual impairment problems.

Saturday, July 17, 2004
A visit to the new San Antonio Lighthouse Senior Center, 2300 Roosevelt, in San Antonio.

Special Field Trip This Month

Join club volunteer Melva Perez on Saturday, April 24th, from 9 a. m. to 11 a. m. for a tour of the Super Target store in Crossroads Mall, IH-10 and Loop 410 intersection.  To sign up, call Melva Perez at 567-8602 or Bonnie Truax at 344-1479.

Other Club Activities

Club member Paul Young conducted a class for 9 visually impaired beginning artists on March 13th at Warm Springs Resource Center.  Sessions will continue on a monthly basis.

The Low Vision Club also plans to offer computer classes for individuals with no computer experience.  Dates and times to be announced.  (Every club member received a special letter about these proposed classes.)  If interested, call Bonnie Truax at 344-1479.

Club member Pegi Gonzalez leads a monthly Saturday Game Day program from 9:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. with a break for lunch.  They play Scrabble, dominos and cards.  Call her at 493-9272 if interested.

And don’t forget about our bowling group which bowls from 1 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. every 1st and 3rd Monday at Wonder Bowl, 1948 Austin Highway.  Call Adela Aguilar at 922-4368 for more information.

Anglers on Wheels 2004

This is a “Door in the Wall” and Sea Island Shrimp House special event in Port Aransas May 22-23.  This is a free wheelchair accessible weekend for fishermen with disabilities, their friends and family.  Reservations required as space is limited.  Call 210-637-8316.

The “Door in the Wall” is a private, non-profit organization producing a local television program featuring disability news.  It airs on Time Warner Cable Channel 20 every Friday at 10 p.m.

DVS on KLRN-TV

KLRN-TV (Ch. 9 or Cable Ch.10) provides Descriptive Video Service on some shows each week.  Currently these are:

Sundays — Nature at 7 p.m. and Masterpiece Theater at 8 p.m.
Mondays — The American Experience at 9 p.m. (most programs)
Tuesdays — Nova at 8 p.m.
Thursdays — Conquistadors with Michael Wood at 10 p.m.

The Importance of Proper Lighting

When vision starts to fail, the individual becomes more sensitive to light, and focus becomes more important.  Although it is impossible to generalize, many people find that visual tasks become extremely difficult without adequate lighting.  And the amount of illumination can often make the difference between being able to read — even large print.  In addition, contrast is vital to enable the person with macular degeneration to be able to read, as their “daylight” vision is impaired.
(Excerpted from NAVH UPDATE, winter/spring, 2004)

“Macular Mayhem” by Marion Reh Gurfein
(Excerpted from text by Carol Guzy — The Washington Post)

“I feel my life is all a blur.
I cannot tell a him from her.
I once approached a garbage pail
And thought it an attractive male.
And since I am a friendly soul
I wave and smile at every pole.
And this is just the normal state
Of a macular degenerate.”

Fund Raising Drive

Letters are being sent to all LVC members and listeners of our club’s Owl Radio Reading Service requesting donations to help us continue our many projects.  We do not charge dues, and all activities are free except for club luncheons, but we do rely on your support whenever possible.  All contributions are tax-deductible.

A Thoughtful Gift

Sybil Walker, a long time member of the San Antonio Low Vision Club, recently passed away.  She asked that her CCTV be donated to a Low Vision Club member.  It will be awarded as a door prize during the club’s May 15th “Spring Fiesta” described earlier in this newsletter.