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DECEMBER/JANUARY,  2017/2018
 DECEMBER CALENDAR
21-Knox County Schools classes end

 JANUARY CALENDAR
9-Board Meeting, 6:00 pm
5-Young Professional Meeting
17-Walks at West Town Mall with Delta Gamma begin

Freedom to Fly Blog
WHAT IS NEW THIS MONTH ON OUR BLOG PAGE?

THE CLASS EVERY BLIND STUDENT DREDS
Technically, this title isn't completely true. There's always an exception, a true statistical outlier, but 99.9998% of all blind or visually impaired students Dred math class.  Continue Reading

NEWS


Photo of a wreath
CLUB VIBES WISHES 
EVERYONE A WONDERFUL 
HOLIDAY SEASON

GIFT IDEA
If you are still wondering of what to get your blind or visually impaired loved one, a Bradley Watch might be the perfect gift.  See TECH NEWS at the end of the newsletter for more information.

WE DID IT!
After leading the other 12 teams participating in the National Fittnes Challenge for every month of the 9 month contest, Club VIBES claimed the overall victory as the competition ended November 30.  Congratulations to all of the team members who continued their dedication for the entire contest and special thanks to the volunteers who served as guides on our group walks, the ladies from Delta Gamma who guided us on walks in West Town Mall, and especially to our super coach, Missy Kane without whom we could not have achieved our victory. 

Our latest group events were our participation in the Subway Walk for Cancer and weekly walks in West Town Mall with Delta Gamma.

The contest has ended, but our fitness must endure. We will maintain our activity level to ensure that our fitness remains.  Beginning January 17, we will walk weekly, every Wednesday at 6:00 pm, at West Town Mall with Delta Gamma. Stay tuned for further updates on our activities and remember that everyone is welcome to join us.

We are ready for the Subway Walk for Cancer


She did it! Sarah crosses the finish line at the Subway Walk for Cancer

TOP STEPPERS FOR NOVEMBER
Congratulations to our final two monthly winners, Tate Garcia and Aaron Michael Quillen. Their efforts helped the Club VIBES NFC team remain in the lead and claim the final victory! Thank you both!

WRAP UP
Members of the National Fitness Challenge team got together to celebrate their win in the national competition as well as their improvement in their physical well being. 
Club VIBES GROUP, amazing folks, who, competing as a team, won every month of the national  2017 USABA/Anthem National Fitness Challenge! They got fitter and healthier and it shows !! The group averaged well over 10,000 steps a day (25 in our group ) some more than 20,000 steps per day average. Club VIBES totaled 7,196,511 steps followed by Second place St. Louis with 7,025,502 steps.

Way to go Club VIBES!!


   
Photo: NFC team members celebrating their victory.

THANK YOU DELTA GAMMA FOR A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY PARTY
     
Photo: Group singing Christmas songs
Photo: Jacoby is the proud winner of the lighted shirt contest.
On December 14 Club VIBES members and friends took a break from busy holiday schedules for an evening of singing, and delicious potluck treats at the Delta Gamma house.  We took the theme "You Light Up My Holidays" seriously and decorated our shirts and hats with colorful lights. We also discovered some hidden vocal talents as we sang favorite Christmas songs both solo and in chorus.




MEMBERS CORNER
SCHOLARSHIP OPPORTUNITY
A scholarship for blind and visually impaired students in East Tennessee is available through the East Tennessee Foundation (ETF). This scholarship is in honor of Debbie Van Cleave, a blind student that attended Knox County schools. ETF is happy to announce that 2018 Scholarship Applications will be available on our website, www.easttennesseefoundation.org, beginning November 1, 2017. All ETF scholarship applications must be completed and submitted online by February 15, 2018 . Scholarship information, including detailed descriptions and applications. This scholarship is available to both upcoming and current college students.
FUNDRAISING
BELK CHARITY SALE
Club VIBES sold tickets and worked at the West Town and Turkey Creek Belk stores for the Belk Charity Sale. We have been rewarded for our efforts adding over $300 to our bank account. 

Thanks to those who supported us by purchasing tickets and to those who worked at the stores for Club VIBES.

WE WILL BE WELCOMING NEW PARTNERS FOR 2018-2019
Our partners provide us with resources that are so important in our ability to provide a variety of programs to carry out our mission statement, " To assist blind and visually impaired young people in the Knoxville area to live independent and productive lives by identifying their unique capacities and developing their individual strengths".

If you know of any business or organization that might be interested in being one of our partners, please contact Sue.

TECH NEWS
THE BRADLEY WATCH
The Bradley Watch is an innovative way for telling time without sight or sound.  Many blind and visually impaired folks would like an attractive device that they can discreetly check without announcing the time to everyone around them via talking watches or cell phones. This new innovation allows the user to tell time by touch with raised markers and two ball bearings that travel around the watch face in separate, recessed tracks: one for the minute, and one for the hour. It comes in many styles and colors and is priced from $285.  Further details are available at  https://www.eone-time.com

Photo: The Bradley Watch

THANK YOU TO OUR PROGRAM PARTNERS FOR 2016-2017

PLATINUM
GOLD
SILVER
DRAGONFLY
 
Sherbakoff Nalls Group

ANONYMOUS



Arnold Cohen,
Attorney at Law

Dr. Bruce Gilliland