Sports
and outdoor recreation have always been a big part of our lives. My husband
Rob and I met skiing! We weren�t about to let Kyra�s blindness get in the way
of our family�s activities or her fun. Future Reflections Special Issue: Sports, Fitness, and Blindness
by Barbara Mathews
President, California Parents of Blind Children, a Division of the NFB/CA
Sports
and outdoor recreation have always been a big part of our lives. My husband
Rob and I met skiing! We weren�t about to let Kyra�s blindness get in the way
of our family�s activities or her fun.
We
sought out several blind athletes as mentors and role models. And we did our
own creative thinking. When Kyra was very young, we took her hiking and camping.
Then we progressed to more challenging sports, like skiing and rock climbing.
She participated in the team sports of softball and soccer. As she got older,
she made more of her own choices and gravitated to music. She plays flute and
piano, and sings in a choir. And of course, she loves hanging out with friends
and going to Disneyland.
She had a lot of fun participating in the Braille Institute�s Olympics, and she went to summer camp with a Braille Institute supported program. But for the most part, she has participated with sighted peers and family. Rob and I taught her to ski, and now one of us guides her when we ski. She took swimming lessons along with her sister Kiko. We got a tandem bike and started riding.
My
advice to parents: Don�t wait around for that �special� program for blind kids.
In most places, they don�t exist. Our experience has been that programs for
special needs kids generally have not been suitable. Get out and have fun!
