Blind Childrens Center

4120 Marathon Street, Los Angeles, California 90029 (323)664-2153

A family-centered agency serving children with visual impairments

Newsletter Archives

IN THIS ISSUE

• Golfing for the Kids
• Team Blind Children
• Awards and Recognition
• Autumn Events Highlights
• Wish List

A precious gift

Steven

Steven was born full-term in March of 2004 to parents Faviola and Luis. “I had good pre-natal care. The doctor’s told me that my baby was developing normally and seemed to be very healthy,” said Faviola. “Even when he was born no one noticed anything wrong,” mom added.

But then at 4 months old Steven was hospitalized for Pneumonia where doctors quickly discovered that he was missing his Corpus Callosum, the middle part of the brain that connects the left and right sides. Following this discovery came many other health issues including a diagnosis of Hypotonia, a condition that causes week muscular strength; and, Optic Nerve Hypoplasia, which is the underdevelopment of the optic nerve bundle connecting the eye to the brain. ONH is one of the three most common causes of visual impairment in children.

“Steven never smiled, he cried and complained a lot. He couldn’t sit up right or move around on his own. He couldn’t communicate or even play. But, then we found the Blind Childrens Center and all of that has changed,” said mom.

Steven was enrolled at the Center when he was one year old. “Teacher Lily helped me to have faith in my son. I was always focusing on his diagnosis and not on his potential. Lily helped me to help my son, to concentrate on what he could do,” said mom. “He does so many things now. He amazes me every day.”

Steven has made tremendous strides here at the Center. He is now aware of his surroundings, recognizes new and familiar people, vocalizes sounds to gain attention and engages in social activities with adults and children.

His fine and gross motor skills are improving as well which makes mom very happy. “I always knew that he understood what I was saying and that he was learning, but he was never able to communicate that with me because of his slow motor skills. But now he is able to tell me what he wants through use of pictures, sounds, signs and body language. I can’t tell you how much this means to me.”

“Just because a person has difficulty with motor skills doesn’t mean that they don’t have the cognitive abilities to learn,” said teacher Lily. “We’ve discovered that Steven is capable of communicating, we just needed to give him the right tools to do so. Now, mom will ask him a question and he responds to her.”

Steven can clap his hands together, hold and transfer objects and can pull the string on toys to activate them. He can now sit unassisted for 5 to 6 minutes, and can scoot backwards on the floor. “He wasn’t doing any of these things before he came to the Center,” said mom.

Aside from taking care of her son every day, Faviola is also very involved here at the Center. She is her classroom representative and belongs to the parent group, an organization within the Center that raises money and creates awareness in the community. “I love it here. This place is such a blessing.”

Our youngest donor

Ten year-old Vihaan lives in Calcutta, India and he has been an enthusiastic supporter of the Blind Childrens Center for more than two years.

This remarkable young man told his family that he wished to contribute to the well being of children. With the help of his Aunt Smita, who lives in California, he discovered the Blind Childrens Center. Vihaan collects the money he receives as birthday and holiday gifts from his family and sends it off to help the children. Vihaan also supports and visits the local Institute for the Blind in Calcutta where he enjoys distributing candy and food on his birthday.

His Aunt Smita says that Vihaan has always had a strong spirit of giving back to others. He also has a very curious mind and loves learning about other cultures.

Vihaan says, “It makes me happy to make others happy!”
Vihaan, everyone at the Blind Childrens Center thanks you for being our very special youngest donor.

Kids didn’t get rattled…

…when the reptile family and other creepy critters visited the Center. Lots of snakes, lizards, spiders and one big turtle hung out in the yard allowing the children to feel their slimy scaly skins and prickly furry legs. Quite the learning experience and the kids had a ball!

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