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Kiwanis and CNIB Sign Updated Memorandum of Understanding in Providing Vital Services to Children with Vision Loss

CNIB President, John Rafferty and Gary Levine, Governor of the Eastern Canada and Caribbean district of Kiwanis, met to sign an updated memorandum of understanding between the two organizations on October 7, 2009.

This marks the fourth year CNIB and Kiwanis have worked together to provide vital services to children with vision loss.

“We are pleased to continue our relationship with Kiwanis,” says Rafferty. “Their support has helped CNIB continue to play a significant role in the lives of children with vision loss and we are look forward to growing this relationship.”

Through the partnership, Kiwanis clubs across Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic Canada donate money through their Young Children Priority One initiative to support a child in their own community who requires the intensive, one-on-one support of a CNIB early intervention specialist.

Gifts from these clubs are extremely valuable as they enable a personalized teaching approach that will help children with vision loss gain the basic skills and development that occur in the critical formative years and beyond – a gift that will truly last a lifetime for the children touched by the generosity of the Kiwanis.

For more information or to speak to a CNIB representative please contact: Jennifer Johnson, 1-800-265-4127 ext. 5115 jennifer.johnson@cnib.ca

Child and Family Services: Early Intervention

A child’s first six years of life are a time of unprecedented exploration and learning. It is estimated that as much as 85 per cent of the learning that takes place during this period is acquired through vision. A sighted child, for example, will see a playmate build a tower with blocks, then go on to mimic the same action. He uses vision to understand the language he is hearing and watches facial expressions to interpret the unspoken parts of communication.

Infants who are born blind or children who experience vision loss at an early age are simply not able to access information in the same way. But this does not mean they are incapable of learning. With the proper assistance and support, particularly during the earliest years of their life, they can grow up to be fully functional and independent members of our community.

CNIB has child development experts who specialize in providing support to children with vision loss and their families during these formative years of birth to six. They focus on hands-on learning techniques which encourage children to use their remaining senses to the fullest, as well as act as an information and advocacy resource for parents and caregivers. Services are provided at no cost to the family in the child’s home, daycare, school and elsewhere in the community as required.

“When we first found out about (my son’s) diagnosis, we were paralyzed with anxiety and had no idea how we were going to cope. (The CNIB Early Intervention Specialist) was like an angel sent from heaven. The moment we talked to her, I gave a huge sigh of relief. I literally felt rescued.”

- Gillian, mother of toddler with vision loss

Did you know that ...

• the most common causes of vision loss in infants and young children are cortical vision impairment (disturbance of the visual cortex of the brain), and retinopathy of prematurity (eye disorder affecting premature infants);

• despite the common misconception that vision loss cannot be diagnosed until a child can verbally articulate what they can see, early examination by an eye care practitioner can detect visual abnormalities in a newborn;

• there are approximately 1,000 children with vision loss, aged birth to six, receiving specialized support from CNIB today;

• to help alleviate the fear and anxiety often experienced by parents whose children are diagnosed with significant vision loss, it is our policy to respond to all new referrals for children, aged birth to six, within 24 hours;

• CNIB Early Intervention Specialists teach infants and young children with vision loss important concepts such as left and right, up and down and lay the foundation for independent mobility and literacy.

How you can help:

As a nationwide, community-based registered charity, CNIB relies on community partners – on people like you – for approximately 70 per cent of its funding. Only an estimated 30 per cent of CNIB’s annual budget comes from government sources. You can make a real and immediate difference in the lives of very young children living with vision loss by supporting our dedicated Early Intervention program today! Here’s how:

• $1,000 will provide specialized early intervention support for one child in your community for one year;

• $10,000 will provide 16 families with specific techniques for handling the day-to-day challenges of raising an infant with vision loss (i.e. how to get infants who cannot tell light from dark to sleep through the night; how to use spoons with flashlights to facilitate independent feeding in children with low vision, etc.);

• $25,000 will help educate 25 community partners (daycare, early years centres, etc.) on the special needs of children with vision loss so they can better facilitate the integration of the children into that environment;

• $50,000 will provide 100 families with the support they need to better understand their child’s diagnosis and to advocate on their behalf;

• $100,000 will help 10 children learn to “see” the world through touch, a process which involves years of intensive one-on-one support from an Early Intervention Specialist.

Note:

Children living with vision loss in the provinces of Quebec, Nova Scotia, PEI and New Brunswick are fortunate enough to receive support through government-sanctioned programs. A vital CNIB service that still requires support, however, is the CNIB Library.

Through this world-renowned resource, children living with vision loss can access braille, printbraille (special books that encourage reading with a parent or caregiver), and digitally recorded audio books at no cost to them. They can borrow descriptive movies, join a summer reading club or visit CNIB’s interactive Children’s Discovery Portal, an online resource with safe accessible games and moderated chat rooms.

Any funding received from Kiwanis clubs in Quebec, Nova Scotia, PEI or New Brunswick would support library services for young children with vision loss.

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