Deafblind Community – Growing Together

Posts from the ‘Deafblind Community – Growing Together’ category

Member story – Robert & photography

Hello,

My name is Robert Lokmer .

I love taking photos! The bright LCD display on my camera makes it hard to see, so I changed the background to a black colour. I use the Zoom function to make the image closer. I’ll show you.

I enjoy taking photos at Deafblind Victoria activities, such as the DBV Café, craft group, and the recreation program.

I upload the photos to my computer and Facebook using the cloud.

Bye!

DBV Connect is supported by the Australian Government Department of Social Services. Go to www.dss.gov.au for more information.

Deafblind Tips at DBV Café

As Deafblind people, we manage our lives differently to hearing and sighted people. We love sharing helpful hints and tips with each other, like how we know which bus has arrived at our stop, how we tell when bananas are ripe, or how we manage when in hospital without interpreters. Some of these ideas can be found in the Deafblind Tips section of our website.

On 15th March 2023 at DBV Café, members shared some of their best tips, including:

Adding a hair tie on a shampoo bottle to tell the difference from the conditioner bottle
Adding knots to shoelaces to match each shoe with its pair
Making your own travel book that helps you travel independently on public transport or in a taxi
Live captions on Samsung phones
Feeling the outside temperature by touching a window

Thanks to everyone who shared tips, and everyone who came to learn about them! We would love to add your tips to our website. The DBV Connect project has gift vouchers for members who share their skills and knowledge. Contact DBV to arrange to make a post on the website.

Click for photos

Craft group prepares for Deafblind Awareness week 2023

DBV’s craft group started in 2021 with support from a small grant, to prepare yarn bombing crafts for Deafblind Awareness Week that year. The craft group was very popular and is still running in 2023, on the second Wednesday every month. All Deafblind are welcome!

This year the group is again preparing crafts for Deafblind Awareness Week. There will be a window display at the front of Ross House, including air-dried clay ornaments made and painted at craft group. We enjoy the social connection and relaxation this group provides. It’s great for our mental health!

See photos taken by DBV’s Robert Lokmer on 8th March 2023. Thank you to everyone who came!

The Deafblind Community – Growing Together project is supported by the Australian Government Department of Social Services. Go to www.dss.gov.au for more information.

Deafblind guest speaker Jael from USA

Today 15th Feb 2023 at Deafblind Café, 15 Deafblind people were introduced to new member Jael, who is also Deafblind and has moved to Melbourne from Texas, USA.

Jael talked about the services available for Deafblind community in the States. Funding for supports in America varies, depending on which state you live in. Jael worked at Boeing as a machinist with other Deafblind machinists. One of the work stations was set up with a braille display for blind staff! However, Jael saw more opportunities for herself here in Australia. She is busy learning tactile Auslan.

There were many questions from DBV members and a lively discussion. We wish to extend a warm welcome to Jael to the Deafblind community in Victoria, and we look forward to getting to know her more. Welcome Jael, and thanks for sharing your experiences with us!

Click for photos

Joe’s Exhibition and Time Out café

On 8th Feb 2023, 15 Deafblind Victorians with supports went to Time Out café to share lunch and see Deafblind artist Joe Monteleone’s exhibition. 31 people attended, including commguides, DBV volunteers and a couple of Deaf guests from interstate.

Joe is a DBV member and currently has his second art exhibition at Federation Square. It’s a beautiful image lino cut and screen printed in 12 panels that combine to make one large picture of Flinders Street station. The exhibition runs until 5th March; be sure to check it out!

Joe described the process and answered questions, with an Auslan interpreter provided by DBV. DBV member Michelle Stevens printed braille visual descriptions and Joe’s biography. There is also braille signage, and Joe’s videos in Auslan can be viewed by scanning QR codes. Joe brought and handed around a piece of vinyl for DBV members to feel the textures of his lino-cut carving work.

We look forward to seeing you all again at the next DBV craft group event!

The Deafblind Community – Growing Together project is supported by the Australian Government Department of Social Services. Go to www.dss.gov.au for more information.

DBV AGM & Christmas Party 2022

New DBV Committee from left to right: Michelle, Rodney, Trudy, Alex, Heather, and Jasper joining remotely through Messenger on the iPad.

On Wednesday 30th November 2022 Deafblind Victoria ran a combined event with our first AGM and Christmas party to coincide with DBV’s 15-year anniversary! It was held at Richmond Rowing Club and the weather was perfect for a big turnout of over 20 DBV members, along with many commguides, volunteers & interpreters. DBV’s new strategic plan was presented, which shows our goals for the next two years – click here to download a copy.

All the current five DBV committee members will reprise their roles in 2023 and we welcome our newest committee member, Rodney Baskett!

Prizes were handed out for best-dressed, we had Kris Kringle gift exchange, and a guest appearance by Santa. We all sung happy birthday in Auslan for DBV’s 15th anniversary. DBV received some great feedback from members on the day. We wish to thank all of our members for attending and voting in the AGM, and the Auslan interpreters for your wonderful work.

Merry Christmas from DBV!

Click for photos and testimonials

The Rainbow Project, relationships and gender identity

What does “gender” mean in the Deafblind community? What kinds of relationships and sexual preferences do we have? How can we make sure that everyone is welcome and included?

At Deafblind Café on 19th Oct 2022, Sherrie Beaver from the Rainbow Project and DBV’s Michelle Stevens gave a presentation and led a discussion about LGBTQIA+ identities and gender diversity. Members were able to ask questions and share their experiences. Some talked about having friends, family and support workers who are LGBTQIA+, and how they have become an “ally” (supporter). Others felt safe enough to come out as queer, trans and non-binary themselves. One Deafblind participant said that this was the first time they had ever talked about these issues in the Deafblind community. A big thank you to Sherrie and to all who attended!

LGBTQIA+ Awareness – Deafblind Victoria Download

Click here for transcript of the PDF and photos from the event

DBV Café – Charles Bonnet Syndrome

On Wednesday 21st September DBV held our monthly Cafe event with an AFL theme to celebrate the Grand Final weekend, held at Ross House in Melbourne CBD.

Guest speaker Scot Muirden from Charles Bonnet Syndrome Foundation came to give an interesting presentation on Charles Bonnet Syndrome (CBS) – a condition that can affect people with vision-loss where they experience recurring visions. Thank you Scot for visiting DBV to raise awareness on CBS in the Deafblind community.

Fourteen DBV members and their supports all enjoyed the day.

A special congratulations goes to DBV members Michael D and Gina P for winning best dressed!

Thanks everyone. We look forward to seeing you all at next month’s DBV Café event.

Click for more photos

DBV visit Ceres Community Environment Park

DBV members socialise over lunch at Ceres centre

For September, DBV combined our Recreation Program with our Craft Day activity with a visit to Ceres Community Environment Park in Brunswick! Twelve of our DBV members along with their supports got to enjoy the beautiful sunny weather catching up with friends over a yummy lunch and exploring the grounds for exciting craft ideas on how to reuse, recycle, repurpose and rehome around the house more which is better for the environment.

We had a fun day and want to say thank you to everyone! We look forward to seeing you at the next Rec day in October.

The Deafblind Community – Growing Together project is supported by the Australian Government Department of Social Services. Go to www.dss.gov.au for more information.

Deafblind Café – public transport accessibility reforms

At Deafblind Café on 20th July 2022, we talked about public transport and celebrated Christmas in July.

Maddie Chandler talks with Michelle Stevens about train access

The federal government plans to change the Disability Transport Standards. Maddie Chandler visited DBV from Canberra to find out more about Deafblind Victorians’ experiences with trains, trams, buses and taxis, so the government can make better rules about accessibility.

DBV members talked about problems we have with transport:

We memorise routes (how many stops, how to get from the platform to the exit, etc.) It’s difficult when things change
Announcements are not audible, signs are not visible, and asking for help is difficult with communication barriers
Staff can be unhelpful and hostile, and rules are inconsistent
Passengers rush in at stops before we can get off
Gaps, uneven platforms

And possible solutions:

Travel training for Deafblind people; learning the layout of stations
Deafblind Awareness training for transport staff
Signs with black backgrounds, and lower or closer to the ground
In Singapore and Japan, there are designated zones around train doors that passengers must stand behind, and glass doors to prevent tripping at the edge of the platform
Braille and tactile information at train stations

For more information about the Transport Standards, including how you can have your say about the changes, visit www.infrastructure.gov.au/transportaccessibility.

We celebrated Christmas in July with a Secret Santa and a prize for best festive hat, won by Jasper Cleland.

Click for photo gallery