Blind Childrens Center
4120 Marathon Street, Los Angeles, California 90029 (323)664-2153
A family-centered agency serving children with visual impairments
Press
Telegram
June 2001
By Mary Hancock Hinds
Staff writer
On Friday, Selina Landeros of Long Beach put on her cap and gown and walked across a stage, just as hundreds of others graduates have done this spring. She, like them had worked hard to participate in this ceremony.
But she, unlike them, is 2 years old. And she, unlike most of them is nearly blind.
Selina and nine other young children with damaged eyesight were graduated in exercises at the Blind Childrens Center in Los Angeles. The event honored their mastery of the skills that so many take for granted.
“Many of the graduates came to us unable to move, crawl, explore or reach because of fear or lack of interest,” said Mary Ellen McCann, Director of Education. “Now because of early intervention services, you’ll see the children independently run around and participate in activities, making it hard to tell they are even blind.”
Selina was no exception.
She has no sight in her right eye and only partial sight in her left. This came as the result of Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP) an eye disease that occurs in some premature babies.
At the center, she learned to use all her senses while performing everyday tasks. Whether picking up Cheerios to develop her fine motor skills or playing the maracas while other sang, she excelled.
Her teacher at the center noted that Selina mastered a 20-piece puzzle, a difficult feat for a vision impaired child of her age.
According to Selina’s mother, Carmen Landeros, her daughter even learned to enjoy picture books.
“She loves the character Barney. When she hold Barney books, she turns the pages and tells what Barney is doing.”
Selina does not see herself as disabled her mother said.
“Because she has never had right-eye vision, her brain adjusted to seeing out of her left eye. When she glimpses herself in the mirror, she yells, ‘Selina!’”
This fall, Selina will be in the day care at the Long Beach Department of Veterans Affairs, where her mother works. She will play and learn alongside sighted children, but will be visited weekly by speech and vision therapists.
“I know this is just the beginning of many wonderful things that my daughter will accomplish in her life,” Landeros said as Selina graduated Friday. “She is quite capable of doing anything a sighted child can do, just maybe a little more challenging.”
Blind Childrens Center
4120 Marathon Street
Los Angeles, California 90029-3584
(323) 664-2153 • Fax (323) 665-3828
©2008 Blind Childrens Center
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