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A LightHouse Staffer on Re-Visioning Enchanted Hills Camp

A LightHouse Staffer on Re-Visioning Enchanted Hills Camp

LightHouse staffer Erin Horne reflects on Enchanted Hills’ legacy and provides an update from camp.

Over the past couple of years, much of the West Coast has been ravaged by wildfires. Many have lost their lives or their livelihoods. Unfortunately, our beloved Enchanted Hills Camp did not escape the flames. But since the fires, the LightHouse has committed to build back camp better and stronger than ever.

In the weeks, months and years to follow, so many of our friends, community members and large companies which support LightHouse for the Blind and Enchanted Hills Camp have continued to lend their support. LightHouse has been lucky to have so many individuals and groups put out their hand to help us off the ground and rebuild. In addition to countless individuals, people from AmeriCorps, Volkswagen America, The Kiwanis Club of Greater Napa, XL Construction, Rotary Club of Napa and so many others have donated their time and dollars. Rotary Club of Napa’s annual Cycle for Sight bike ride and food and wine festival has continued to support Enchanted Hills. Donations large and small continue to roll in as a reminder that EHC is always in the hearts of many around the world. Any dollar amount of donation is as important as the gesture, which can be made at our website.

Founded in 1950 by Rose Resnick, Enchanted Hills was the first camp of its kind on the West Coast, to fill a void as there was not one recreational facility for blind children to explore, thrive and gain confidence. Owned and managed by the LightHouse, Enchanted Hills retains much of its original character while we make structural improvements to the layout and design of Camp.

Since 2017, our staff has begun working with a team of architects to re-envision Enchanted Hills Camp for the next 70 plus years. How can we preserve the legacy of what EHC has been while also preparing for future generations? What can we dream up for this space for people who are blind to explore their freedom and ambitions? Even though the fires were a tragedy, how can we turn it around as an opportunity? As this planning with architects will continue over the coming years, rebuilding has been happening ever since the firefighters approved re-entry on Mount Veeder after the fires were out in the fall of 2017. Our crews put blood, sweat and tears into ensuring that camp sessions could run in the summer of 2018. Even though we were short ten cabins and other facilities, returning campers hardly noticed; the joyful spirit of a typical summer at camp remained.

Between the summer session of 2018 and 2019, even more crews came to give their time and heart to continue bringing Enchanted Hills back to its shining glory. Thanks to the staff at EHC and LightHouse Headquarters, we have an almost endless rotation of volunteer groups who want to come smell the fresh air of the redwoods and dig in to get dirty for the sake of so many campers whose lives will be changed.

By the time our first summer session of 2019 starts on June 9, we will see a new shade structure by the pool and storage barn complete. The poolside shade structure will surely be a relief to our campers who enjoy the wide variety of outdoor activities all summer long. Having a storage barn will allow our staff to finally have an office again, and provide necessary storage. This summer, Enchanted Hills will be able to offer nine sessions for blind and low vision youth and adults focused on all different areas from two sessions of Family Camp to Woodworking.

Stay tuned as our beloved camp continues to grow over the coming years. Updates on the architectural progress will be forthcoming and there will be countless ways for everyone who has a place in their heart for EHC to participate in its future. Together, we will continue to rise from the ashes because, as we all know, EHC is the place to be!

Photos from Cycle for Sight: Cycling with a side of fun and fundraising

Photos from Cycle for Sight: Cycling with a side of fun and fundraising

As usual, Cycle for Sight was a day full of sunshine, good food, fitness and a key source of fundraising for Enchanted Hills Camp as we rebuild!

For over a decade, this event, co-presented with the Rotary Club of Napa, has brought together blind community members, blind athletes and family and friends alike. Thank you to all the members of Team Enchanted Hills, volunteers and donors for making this year a success!

Blind at Work: The Woodworker

Blind at Work: The Woodworker

This weekend marks our very first session back up at camp since fires destroyed a large portion of Enchanted Hills Camp in Napa. Thanks to the hard work of the firefighters up at camp, our Tactile Art Barn survived and continues to be a venue for workshops and camp sessions. From February 1 through 4, we’ll be joined by students and woodworking hopefuls from all over, who will learn from internationally renowned woodworker Jerry Kermode and blind woodworker and construction manager George Wurtzel. George works up at camp year round, and in addition to his woodworking expertise, he has plenty to teach us about a life well-lived:

This session is all booked up, but if you’re interested in taking part in future woodworking or tactile art workshops, please contact EHC Program Coordinator Taccarra Burrell at ehc@lighthouse-sf.org or 451-694-7310.

Cycle for Sight: Join Team LightHouse in Napa on April 22!

Cycle for Sight: Join Team LightHouse in Napa on April 22!

“She’s game for things that a lot of people aren’t,” says Marc Sutton of his fitness partner Ginger Jui. “She’s willing to go on dirt, she’s willing to go down steep stairs. The more you ride with someone, the more you have that built trust. I feel safe with her, but I feel like it’s not an overcautious safe — it’s just like, alright, let’s go have fun… something exciting is going to happen here. Let’s see what it is.”

Marc and Ginger have been riding tandem together for going on eight years. For Marc, who is blind, riding with Ginger creates a physical outlet that gets him out of his mind and into his body. For Ginger, it’s a pedaling meditation and a chance to catch up and talk about life. Both have gained a lifelong friendship. Get to know their story in the video below.

Every spring, LightHouse rallies a team of blind and sighted cyclists like Marc and Ginger to ride and train together for Napa Rotary’s Cycle for Sight and raise funds for Enchanted Hills Camp. You can ride on your own or join a tandem team for the 15, 25 or 50 mile routes through wine country with more than 2,500 other cyclists. This is also great opportunity for Anthem and USABA’s National Fitness Challenge to set new and different fitness goals!

Start by signing up for Cycle for Sight and select Team LightHouse at signup. Then contact Tony Fletcher at tfletcher@lighthouse-sf.org or 415-694-7319 if you’re interested in being part of a tandem team. Check out the existing members of our team!

If you’re curious about riding tandem but haven’t done it before, don’t fret — we’re offering free trainings in early April, so you can join the event with confidence. Mark your calendars for these upcoming training sessions at Bay Area Outreach & Recreation Program (BORP) at 3075 Adeline St #200 in Berkeley. Tandem bikes will be provided onsite, so contact Dagny Brown at events@lighthouse-sf.org or 415-694-7333 to reserve your spot.

April 6 – 5 p.m. – 7 p.m.

April 13 – 5 p.m. – 7 p.m.

April 15 – 11 a.m. – 1 p.m.

Members of Team LightHouse get a snazzy biking jersey and the opportunity to help raise vital funds for Enchanted Hills Camp for the Blind. All participating cyclists will receive an individual rider profile on our Cycle for Sight page, with a built in donation form. If you’re interested you can crowd fund via your individual rider page after you sign up and answer a few questions about yourself.

Raise $300 or more to receive a free stay the evening before the ride at Enchanted Hills, including meals! We also offer a prize for the person or tandem team who raises the most contributions. All proceeds support Enchanted Hills Camp. We hope you’ll join us!

Visit www.cycle4sight.com for route information, start times and more info.

This Spring, CVCL Answers the Tough Questions for New Students

This Spring, CVCL Answers the Tough Questions for New Students

“I’ve often thought about what I would do if I were to drop a sewing needle.” The instructor intones the answer in a gentle voice: “Listen for the direction and how far from you it has fallen.” Obvious? Not to me.”

When Eleanor Lew came to LightHouse in 2016, dropping a sewing needle or traveling through the dark were questions without obvious answers. These are just a couple of the hundreds of seemingly answerless riddles that we help people solve in our weeklong skills training, Changing Vision Changing Life.

Initially only held a few times a year, CVCL now happens every month. It trades locations between San Francisco and Napa to give students a holistic, two-part experience that builds confidence in all areas, introduces them to other individuals peers who motivate each other through peer learning, and gets them on the right track towards being happy, healthy people — regardless of level of eyesight.

“Introducing us to the scope of low-vision rehabilitation services so that we can live independently and maintain quality of life is the purported reason for the camp,” Eleanor writes. “But the healing power of connection is what surprises us.”

There are hundreds of stories like Eleanor’s that come out of CVCL each year. If you want to know more about her transformation, read about it in the New York Times and tell your friends with changing vision to get in touch with Debbie Bacon at dbacon@lighthouse-sf.org or by calling 415-694-7357.


Sign Up for our upcoming CVCL sessions:

CVCL II (San Francisco): March 20 – 24

CVCL I (Napa): April 3 – 7

CVCL II (San Francisco): May 8 – 12

CVCL I: (Napa): June 12 – 16

CVCL II (San Francisco): July 17 – 21

 

Directions to EHC

Enchanted Hills Camp is located atop Mt. Veeder in Napa, CA. The address is 3410 Mt. Veeder Rd., Napa, CA 94558.

On Public Transit

Downtown Napa may be reached by a number of busses, namely the Napa Airporter or the #29 Vine bus originating at the El Cerrito Del Norte BART station in the East Bay. Once dropped off (at Justin Sienna High School), traveler must arrange for a driver to ferry them to 3410 Mt. Veeder Rd., Napa, CA 94558.

Driving Directions

With no traffic, EHC is about 1 hour and 15 minutes from San Francisco and the East Bay.

From San Francisco and the Peninsula

  • Take Hwy 101 North across Golden Gate Bridge
  • Go 20 miles to Hwy 37 exit toward Vallejo and Napa
  • At Sears Point, take Hwy 121 exit to the left
  • At Big Bend, turn right to stay on Hwy 121-12 to Napa
  • Hwy 121-12 will run into Hwy 29
  • Turn left onto Hwy 29 North to Napa
  • Take Hwy 29 North to Napa
  • Exit Redwood/Trancas, turn left onto Redwood Road
  • Go 4 miles to where Redwood Road veers right and becomes Mt. Veeder Road
  • Go 6 miles on Mt. Veeder Road
  • Retreat driveway will be on your right at 3410 Mt. Veeder Roa

From East Bay, Oakland or Vallejo

  • Take Interstate 80 East past the Carquinez Bridge & Vallejo
  • Take Hwy 37 exit to Napa
  • Go past Six Flags to Hwy 29 North to Napa
  • Take Hwy 29 North to Napa
  • Exit Redwood/Trancas, turn left onto Redwood Road
  • Go 4 miles to where Redwood Road veers right and becomes Mt. Veeder Road
  • Go 6 miles on Mt. Veeder Road
  • Retreat driveway will be on your right at 3410 Mt. Veeder Road

From Sacramento Area

  • Take Interstate 80 West toward San Francisco
  • Just after Fairfield, take Hwy 12 West
  • Turn right onto Hwy 29 North to Napa
  • Take Hwy 29 North to Napa
  • Exit Redwood/Trancas, turn left onto Redwood Road
  • Go 4 miles to where Redwood Road veers right and becomes Mt. Veeder Road
  • Go 6 miles on Mt. Veeder Road
  • Retreat driveway will be on your right at 3410 Mt. Veeder Road

From Northern Napa County

  • Take Hwy 29 South toward Napa
  • At Oakville, turn right onto Oakville Grade
  • Oakville Grade intersects with Dry Creek Road
  • Turn left onto Mt. Veeder Road
  • Go about 2 miles on Mt. Veeder Road
  • Retreat driveway will be on your left at 3410 Mt. Veeder Road

From Santa Rosa Area

  • Take Hwy 12 East
  • Past Kenwood, turn left onto Trinity Road
  • Trinity Road turns into Dry Creek Road at the down grade
  • Turn right onto Mt. Veeder Road
  • Go about 2 miles on Mt. Veeder Road
  • Retreat driveway will be on your left at 3410 Mt. Veeder Road

From the Sonoma Area

  • Take Hwy 12 East
  • Turn left onto Hwy 121-12
  • Napa Hwy 121-12 will run into Hwy 29
  • Turn left onto Hwy 29 North to Napa
  • Take Hwy 29 North to Napa
  • At first light, turn left onto Redwood Road
  • Go 4 miles to where Redwood Road veers right and becomes Mt. Veeder Road
  • Go 6 miles on Mt. Veeder Road
  • Retreat driveway will be on your right at 3410 Mt. Veeder Road

 

What I Learned at Blind Bootcamp, Part 2: Why We Meet

Valli Ferrel, one of the program's first students, leads a tour of Spring Mountain Winery where she directs PR

This is Part 2 in a series. Click here to read Part 1.

by Will Butler

Earlier this week I started writing about what it’s like to immerse yourself in our adult training retreat at Enchanted Hills Camp in Napa. Now that it’s over, you’d think it’d be easier for me to sum up in retrospect, but the truth of the matter is I’m still processing it all. The amount of information that was given to us was immense. The strength of personal connections made between all the students, aged 25-77, was unlike anything I’ve ever seen occur over the course of five days. The disparity between how we behaved when we arrived and how we behaved when we left was remarkable. The skills, tools, and adaptations we learned were all custom-made, personalized little gifts  — in many ways, they won’t mean anything to our spouses or family or friends — and it’s hard to imagine ever describing it to someone who wasn’t there in a way that’s meaningful. But I guarantee that if you stumbled upon the twelve blind folks eating dinner at Gott’s Roadside on Thursday evening, you’d recognize immediately that they had been through something special together.

But enough vagueness; if you’ve read this far I’m sure you actually want to know: what did we spend all our time doing? The truth is, we learned how to live on all levels, from the most mundane to the most abstract and emotionally elusive.

Getting better at everyday tasks (which in these circles is called independent living skills or ILS) was, at least for me and a few others, a priority. For starters, we had an entire session dedicated to helping you find stuff. Boring as it may sound, these are the questions newly blind people find themselves agonizing over: If I drop a pill bottle, what’s the fastest way to find it? Can I wipe down a counter and be sure it’s clean? How do I put in the right batteries? How do I shave? With our training shades over our eyes for anyone who still relied on some eyesight, we were taken step by step through these everyday simplicities and reassured that, yes, there was an easy way to do all of them. Later on, we did this with cooking as well, cleaning, chopping, and preparing dozens of pounds of marinated vegetables for dinner, all the while learning blind-oriented knife skills, measurement and identification techniques. I was surprised to find that my cooking skills were better than I would have thought, and that discovery if nothing else was worth the class. Suddenly, when I get home, I wanted to cook again.

At another session, we went in-depth on labeling and organizing, talking strategies but also getting hands on with solutions. Many blind people eagerly embrace new technology, but simple, low-tech hardware and quick dollar store solutions are still mainstays of everyday adaptation. Stickers, high contrast cutting boards, talking calculators, magnets, velcro, buttons, bumps, signature guides, safety pins, sock locks, knife holders, innovative dishware, extra-thin silicon oven mitts and above all rubber bands (for tagging shampoo/conditioner bottles, etc.); there was a never-ending list of items to add to the efficient-living arsenal. These are things that blend in, seem obvious once suggested, but are also ideas I would never have come up with on my own. We also exchanged advice. How exactly do you deal with the grocery store? What do you do when your husband wants help dressing himself? How do you sort your clothes? We were all at different levels, and yet we could all relate. You’ve never seen a group so eager to talk about their dresser drawers.

This is not to make it sound like it was all low-tech either. Personally, as a Mac person I’d been putting off learning JAWS, the screenreader software which is PC-only and also happens to be the industry standard for word processing. To me it seemed daunting, unnecessary because I am low vision and not totally blind. And yet, put me in front of a PC and I’m admittedly useless. To my surprise, our tech instructor Julianna had me up and running (and surfing Facebook) without any visual cues within an hour. That’s the power of having a human teach you how to do these things. It was about getting advice and giving it. If you knew something someone else didn’t yet, it felt good to share your strategy with them. Though the solution may be simple you could feel that the other person really deeply appreciated it.

Tech solutions were different for different people. Some brought touchscreen devices, iPhones, iPads or laptops that they wanted to get better at using. Others learned how to load up their Victor reader (another portable, more tactile audio player) with documents, podcasts, books and news. For some, it was enough to learn about Wilson, the compact voice memo recorder that could help them keep notes and to-do lists, or the Pen Friend, a smart audio pen that allows to record your own labels. And with the absolute surge in the iPhone’s general popularity in recent years, the motto of the week seemed to be “there’s an app for that.” Nearly every month now an app comes along that can significantly change a blind person’s life. Apps such as KNFB Reader, Tap Tap See, Be My Eyes, and hundreds more have absolutely proliferated, and we couldn’t live in a better time for cool blind tech. This is what Sydney was responding to when she exclaimed with joy and relief in our very first solutions session.

It wasn’t simply about taking down a list of items to buy, either. This was one of the first opportunities some of us had to try stuff out and see if it worked. You could sit down with one technology, play with it for a while, then try an alternative. All of it was at our fingertips, in one room, all week long.

Because of the nature of my vision, mobility has not always been a problem for me, but even so I met with Katt Jones for a one-on-one assessment. We talked about everything to do with cane travel; some things I had picked up naturally but didn’t know the names for. She showed me a more elegant and efficient way to locate doorknobs. She corrected my technique approaching and scaling stairs. We talked about “how to train your human,” or in other words, how to help people help you. She took me to downtown Napa, where we walked back and forth across a massive intersection, analyzed the ins and outs of curb cuts, and then went to Trader Joe’s. Some things were new, and for the things that weren’t, it felt good to have a certified O&M instructor tell me confidently that I was doing things right. Even walking around the grocery store alone, I already felt more comfortable than usual, even if it was just in my head.

There were also the more interpersonal, emotional discussions. What to do when a loved one says something hurtful, how to hold your own in household duties, and how to be honest and expect honesty back were all topics we explored. Then came the embarrassing stories, the stories about humility and moving forward with grace, the stories which will not be published here.

The week really showed the wide range of experience within the blind community. There were those with degenerative conditions, people who had been in accidents, victims of violence, and some with less explicable or diagnosable visual impairments. There were those who had lived full, vibrant lives and those who were just beginning their journeys. There were kids from low-income backgrounds alongside retired college professors. And all of them went through some sort of metamorphosis. For some it was just social, and for others very physical. There were adult students too timid to take one step on their own when they arrived Sunday evening; and within days, even 24 hours for some, they were calmly navigating the hills and paths of Enchanted Hills entirely by themselves.

The big takeaway, for me, was that the best learning comes from peers and role models. Jamey Gump’s teenage counsellors in training were right there along side us most of the week, and it was pretty cool to see their training mirror our own. They looked to each other as everything from mentors to mere curiosities, and above all just people they could feel comfortable around. We all stood in a line on Wednesday night and did the “cookie challenge,” wherein contestants tilt their head back and race to get an Oreo from their forehead to their mouth with no hands. One of Sook Hee Choi’s deafblind students was the winner. Thursday night there was a talent show, which involved jokes, skits, a tap dance, and a no-holes-barred Billy Joel-esque piano ballad from Shane, EHC’s arts and enrichment counsellor for the summer. In the morning, all the kids and adults — each their on their own training program — mingled like happy campers. Kids who I had earlier assumed were completely blind approached and said cheery hellos to me of their own accord. And, kept busy every day from breakfast to sunset it wasn’t until about the time I left that I stopped and realized how much I’d been enjoying the whole week.

History

History

In 1902, Mrs. Josephine Rowan, whose brother was blind, organized a group of women to establish The Reading Room for the Blind in the basement of the San Francisco Public Library, with the intent of helping blind and visually impaired individuals access printed material. Thus California’s first private agency for the blind was born.

In 1914, the Reading Room changed its name to the San Francisco Association for the Blind, and Ruth Quinan was hired as Superintendent of the Association. Her first action was to create the trademark “Blindcraft” for the growing production of brooms and baskets. Quinan served as Superintendent and later President of the Association until her death in 1955 – over 40 years of service. During her leadership, the Association dramatically expanded its production activities and added a cooking school to the range of services offered.

As the Association grew, the need to expand facilities emerged. In 1924, three members of the Cowell family stepped forward with the generous offer to buy land and construct the building that would house the Association’s expanding services. With the support of Isabel, Helen and S.H. Cowell, the Association moved to a new facility at 1097 Howard Street later that year. For the next two decades, the Association continued manufacturing and selling brooms, baskets and furniture produced by blind workers, and began teaching braille, instructing white cane technique and providing counseling. This made the organization quite unusual. In the 20th century blind people doing any kind of work was unheard of, and the industrial opportunities the LightHouse provided 100 years ago were considered the most progressive options then available.

In 1950, Rose Resnick and Nina Brandt founded Enchanted Hills Camp on 343 acres of land in the foothills west of Napa Valley, under the auspices of Recreation for the Blind, Inc. This organization soon after merged with The Association to become the San Francisco LightHouse for the Blind. In the sixties, the LightHouse expanded its employment opportunities to include deaf-blind individuals, and in the seventies, the agency collaborated with ophthalmologists at Pacific Presbyterian Medical Center to establish experimental services for people with low vision.

In 1977, Jewel and Jim McGinnis (who were members of Blind San Franciscans, Inc.), identified a service that was not available through any of the agencies then serving the blind and visually impaired. They founded Broadcast Services for the Blind, which offered the reading of printed materials such as newspapers, magazines and literature on the radio. In 1989, the LightHouse merged with Broadcast Services for the Blind.

Finally, in 1993, the Rose Resnick Center and the LightHouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired merged to form Rose Resnick LightHouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired, thus providing a broader continuum of services to better meet the needs of those who were blind or had low vision.

In 1996, two years after Rose Resnick LightHouse purchased 214 Van Ness in San Francisco, the LightHouse designed a comprehensive “living with Vision Loss” training program, providing rehabilitative and orientation and mobility training throughout the greater Bay Area for the first time. Today, the LightHouse provides services throughout Northern California and serves thousands of blind and visually impaired youth, adults and seniors.

As successor to many organizations, the Board of Directors streamlined the name of the organization for the new Millenium to be simply, “Lighthouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired.” Rose Resnick passed away in August 2007, just two months short of her 100th birthday, but still today we carry on her legacy and value her many years of leadership. Enchanted Hills Camp for the Blind is busier than ever, as both a summer camp, retreat center, and training facility, and every day we become more effective and relied upon for providing a seamless continuum of services and outreach into the community.

Over the last several years, LightHouse CEO Bryan Bashin has conducted a series of interviews, collecting the oral histories of significant members of the blindness community, which you can listen to at our LightHouse Podcasts page.

The Next 114 Years

In the spring of 2016, the LightHouse moved from the 1906 converted garage it occupied since 1993 into a new, state-of-the-art location in the heart of downtown San Francisco. Designed for the blind, by the blind, the new LightHouse for the Blind will triple the available space for programs and community services. The new headquarters uses innovative lighting and architectural design features to set a new standard of universal design for people with all levels of eyesight. Onsite dorms will accommodate blind people of all ages and their families from all over the US for intensive, immersive training. With this new headquarters the LightHouse’s reach and influence will grow exponentially.  We’re envisioning partnering with blind, deaf-blind and other organizations across the US and the world, to house their students in our dorms and provide groundbreaking programs not offered anywhere else. Our new headquarters overlooks UN plaza and is one of the most transit-accessible blindness centers in the world.