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By Thursday, Jessica was challenging herself to travel independently between classes while wearing sleep shades.

We want to give a farewell wave to Jessica Edmiston, who spent Monday through Thursday here at the Center, not just observing, but working under sleep shades all week, going to classes with student mentors and working on the basics of Braille, Assistive Technology, cooking and travel. And as it happened, she was here to witness three graduations, including partaking of the meals prepared for 60 by the graduates, and the awarding of their Freedom Bells!

It’s no small deal for Jessica to take a week to do this, since she’s the Alabama Institute for Deaf and ������ Birmingham Regional Center Director. That’s a long title, and it has a lot of responsibility to go with it, but her center contains a recently established program, which is (the methodology and philosophy we employ here at CCB, called the Alabama Freedom Center for the ������.

Another round of testing for the Martial Arts class on Tuesday was followed by an awards ceremony. The entire Center turned out in the gym as five students and Travel Instructor Steve Patten all received orange belts from Karate Denver instructors Rachel and Travis. Steve is a bit of a ringer, of course, since he already has a black belt in Judo and competed internationally.

Each class meets for eight sessions in our gym, learning any number of defensive strategies and moves, punches, kicks and holds. This class included Jay, Jimmy, Warren, Brittany, warren and Courtney C along with Steve.

“I feel a lot more confidence in myself,” said Brittany after the class. Wearing a warrior’s face during her belt testing, she giggles when asked about it. “It was fun too!”

Six remarkable women made up our late-summer Seniors in Charge the week of August 31 to September 4. Ranging in age from 58 to 90, it didn’t take long to figure out that each of them were accomplished, dynamic people, and had been all their lives. They came to Seniors in Charge because they intend to remain that way.

Three of the women came from the Grand Junction area and one returned from Mexico, where she retired after living and working in Denver. It was an intense and demanding five days and six nights, of course including Braille, cane travel, assistive technnology and home management skills. Though sleepshades are optional during Seniors in Charge, they are encouraged, and each student took on the challenge at least part of the time during the week.

It’s the last week of July, and at the ������ we’re fighting the feeling that summer is almost over. We know that there are still weeks of hot weather, lovely warm Colorado evenings to enjoy.

But that vague anxiety is fueled as the last week of July saw our 22 summer students graduating on Wednesday, cleaning and packing on Thursday and leaving on Friday. Many of them are starting school in the first week of August. For them, summer truly is about over.

From Shay: Here at the airport, waiting to go home. Thinking about this summer, and how great it was. I met a lot of really amazing people this summer that have really help me and challenge me to do the best that I could. I am leaving here with so much. New friendships, amazing memories, and The ability to do more than I ever thought I could. I will never forget the memories or the people I met this summer. hope to come back next summer and to see all of you sometime again.

Editor’s Note: What follows is excerpted from an August 6, 2014 blog post of , the official blog of the National Federation of the ������ of Colorado. An Arizona high school student, Christian Able was a student this summer and worked 40 hours for the staff. Here’s his reflection on the summer program at the Center and his work with the NFB of Colorado.

Stepping on that plane a month ago I thought everything would be easy and I wouldn’t learn anything this summer. That’s not the case at all. I would say the sleep shades helped me see. At my school I learn a lot about living successfully as a blind individual, but coming here has been a whole other experience.