[Cagdu] JC AND M AT THE WHITE HOUSEFw: POSSIBLE ARTICLE

[peter mansell]

Hello Beach Citizens and CAGDU Community:

Our beautiful president and her beautiful guide dog co-president visited the White House!  Aerie and I joined them.  Congratulations girls!
 PETER AND AERIE 
----- Original Message ----- 
From: pat.sherman at tlnews.net 
To: julietcody at cox.net 
Sent: Tuesday, February 12, 2008 8:32 PM
Subject: RE: POSSIBLE ARTICLE




Juliet, here is my story. I'll send the photos tomorrow.



Finding her way 

Escondido woman overcomes blindness via education and enthusiasm 

By Pat Sherman | pat.sherman at tlnews.net 

Sunday, February 10, 2008

Though Juliett Cody once owned a day care center and has a background in child development, after losing her sight in 2000, she found it difficult to land a job.

Undeterred, the Escondido resident completed her education, starting at Palomar College, then transferring to Cal State San Marcos, from which she earned a bachelor's degree in communication last spring.

To lessen her financial burden, Cody applied for scholarships and received more than 20 grants and awards during the past five or six years.

It is her most recent award, however, that carries the most distinction.

Last week, Cody traveled to Washington, D.C., to meet with first lady Laura Bush. The trip was part of a $6,000 award from Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic, a national nonprofit organization that produces textbooks for students who are visually impaired or have dyslexia.

"One of the things I advocate for is to keep Braille in the schools," Cody said. "People think that electronics can take over and we don't need to teach children Braille. That's wrong, because they'll be illiterate next to their peers."

Cody and five other scholarship winners met with Bush in the East Wing of the White House on Thursday morning.

"It went wonderful," said Cody, who brought her guide dog Marley and her friend Peter Mansell and his dog Aerie, also of Escondido.

"(Bush is) just very receptive to education, and she loved the dogs," Cody said. "She reached out and she grabbed my hands and she said, 'Hello, Juliett, congratulations. I'm very proud of you. What a beautiful dog.' She was very, very warm, and she actually hugged you and said, 'More pictures.'

"You have very little time, but I said, 'You know, we're here advocating for Braille literacy and education,' and she agreed that it was of most importance."

In 1995, Cody was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa, a category of inherited diseases causing retinal degeneration, and began losing her eyesight.

"I had never been around any blind people," Cody said. "I went to a seminar of the National Federation of the Blind in San Diego, and I was just amazed that people were walking around with their canes and their dogs and going to the drinking fountain. I said, 'Wow, that's just how I'm going to be.' "

Cody immediately enrolled with the San Diego Service Center for the Blind in Vista, where she learned Braille and other skills.

Though she initially returned to school with the goal of teaching disabled children, Cody soon recognized a need for advocates on behalf of the disabled and visually impaired.

"We have to get into our legislative offices and show them the need that disabled people have and all the prejudice that's going on," said Cody, who serves on the board of directors for the National Federation of the Blind. "I go to Washington once a year and talk to the (legislators) and go visit my legislators here."

As a federation board member, Cody has met with congressional representatives on both sides of the aisle, including Republican Duncan Hunter and Democrats Susan Davis and Bob Filner.

One of the federation's goals is to find a sponsor for legislation that would establish a minimum sound standard for hybrid cars. Though the vehicles are easier on the environment, as they decelerate, their approach is nearly inaudible.

"We're all about a cleaner environment, but we also need to have a minimum sound standard so that we know that we're safe," said Robert Stigile, president of the federation's California chapter. The organization also is asking Congress to fund $19 million a year for the next four years to digitize the Library of Congress's Talking Book Program and to increase the Social Security earnings limit for blind individuals from $18,000 to $36,000.

Cody is completing her education with the assistance of Braille, audio textbooks and an adaptive computer. She carries a note taker with her to class, which has a Braille keyboard.

At first, learning Braille was a challenge for Cody. However, she said, "I fell in love with it because it was going to make me literate again." Cody is completing her prerequisite work to enter the Literature and Writing Studies program at Cal State San Marcos and obtain her master's degree.

As part of her community service, she leads seminars for blind and visually impaired seniors called "Blindness in a Positive Manner." She also speaks to the parents of blind children to urge them to focus on their children's potential, instead of their sight-based limitations.

John Segoria, director of disabled student services at Cal State San Marcos, has written letters in support for Cody for scholarship applications.

"She's a very good advocate for the (visually impaired)," Segoria said. "She's well-spoken and very independent. She's definitely the real deal."

Katherine Brown, an associate professor of communication at Cal State San Marcos, served as Cody's faculty mentor in a student research competition.

Cody chose to study how comfortable sighted individuals were with blind people who used a cane, versus those accompanied by a guide dog. Her research found that the dog acts as a conversational icebreaker and that people are more apt to approach a blind person with a guide dog than those using a cane.

"I've enjoyed working with her," Brown said. "Every time I've had a conversation with her I go away enthused, energized and excited. . She's a contagious speaker and communicates her enthusiasm well. She teaches her peers really to focus on what is possible." 

Reach reporter Pat Sherman at (760) 752-6774.



  -----Original Message-----
  From: Juliett Cody [mailto:julietcody at cox.net]
  Sent: Tuesday, February 12, 2008 12:18 PM
  To: Sherman, Pat
  Subject: Re: POSSIBLE ARTICLE


  Hey Pat,
  Congratulations! The article was wonderful. Could you please e-mail me the articles and photos just for me?
  Thanks,
  Juliet and Marly 
    ----- Original Message ----- 
    From: pat.sherman at tlnews.net 
    To: julietcody at cox.net 
    Sent: Thursday, January 31, 2008 6:26 PM
    Subject: FW: POSSIBLE ARTICLE


    Juliet, congratulations! I would love to meet with you to talk about your scholarships. Let me know if you'll have some time to chat tomorrow or early next week.


    Regards,


    Pat Sherman
    Today's Local News
    (760) 752-6774
    (619) 261-6200 (cell)


    -----Original Message-----
    From: Walker, Cheryl 
    Sent: Thursday, January 31, 2008 2:50 PM
    To: Sherman, Pat
    Subject: FW: POSSIBLE ARTICLE



    -----Original Message-----
    From: Juliett Cody [mailto:julietcody at cox.net]
    Sent: Thursday, January 31, 2008 2:13 PM
    To: Walker, Cheryl
    Subject: POSSIBLE ARTICLE


    Hi Sheryl, 

    I received a scholarship for six thousand dollars and an opportunity to go to Washington DC and speak to first lady, Laura Bush. I will be talking to her about Braille literacy and education. I am a blind student at Cal State San Marcos. I could not get a part time job so I started applying for scholarships  and have received over twenty of them.
    Juliet Cody
    760-522-0288
    If interested either call or e-mail..
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://nfbcal.org/pipermail/cagdu/attachments/20080221/6e4afb85/attachment.html