Showing the way at busy intersection
Crossing a busy intersection such as the one at Pine Island Road and U.S. 41 is daunting enough with 20/20 vision. Imagine having to do it with impaired or no sight.
Tuesday, during the 40th anniversary open house for Lighthouse of Southwest Florida, people got an opportunity to do just that, blindfolded, carrying a white cane and guided by, in some cases, individuals who are blind.
And those who dared gained a newfound respect for those who do it daily.
At Lighthouse on West Mariana Drive, there was a live band, massages, food and refreshments, a tour of the facility, and an opportunity to experience life without sight.
And then there was the intersection walk, aided by the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, which helped traffic along for what has become an annual ritual.
Of course, those who are visually impaired or blind don’t learn to travel overnight. It takes years of practice to master the techniques necessary.
“The techniques are taught by us. We teach techniques in a lot of different areas that help people who lose their vision to maintain their independence, and that includes travel,” said Mike Brust, a certified orientation and mobility supervisor.
Brust will teach people to use the white cane in a safe manner, then teach them to travel independently.
Some of the techniques taught include waiting for the surge of cars parallel to the direction you’re going and even feeling the wind direction created by the cars.
Depending on the degree of vision loss, it could take years to develop listening skills and master the techniques.
For the first timers, it was a very different feeling. Vicki Collins, who works for the Lee County Supervisor of elections, was guided through the four-way intersection by Stacey Landau and her guide dog.
“It was unnerving to not have any sight and hear the cars nearby and be completely out of my element,” Collins said. “To be so reliant on someone else, I’m not used to that.”
The biggest lesson Collins learned was communication between the guide dog or the human guide has to be there.
Christy Skinner, president of the board of directors of Lighthouse, put the blindfold on for the first time.
“It was very intimidating. You don’t realize how much you rely on your vision to navigate in everyday circumstances,” Skinner said. “You need to learn to key into your other senses to be able to feel comfortable and trust those people are paying attention to you.”
Even Capt. Chris Reeves of the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, who deals with traffic issues daily, found the experience intimidating. He was guided by Evan Connell, who is blind.
“Hearing the cars go by and not knowing where they turn. The training these people get is very valuable. If it weren’t for Evan, I wouldn’t know when to go or if it was safe,” Reeves said. “I did the dining in the dark with them, but that was nothing compared to 2,000 pound cars screaming by.”
Lesson learned: a new respect for what the seeing impaired go through every day.
“I don’t think we realize how much patients and motivation and obstacles in everyday life. I gained more respect than I already have for the people we serve,” Skinner said. “It would be great to see more people participate because many of us will be afflicted someday.”