We are VR: Service for the Blind and Vision Impaired

Transcript of video:

Transcript – “We Are VR: Services for the Blind and Vision Impaired”

(KELLEY SNYDER) We are VR.

(AVAH ORIANA) We are VR.

(ADELE ROBERTSON) We are VR.

(NARRATOR) We Are VR: Services for the Blind and Vision Impaired (SBVI)

(NARRATOR) Through Services for the Blind and Vision Impaired, or SBVI, VR New Hampshire provides an array of supports to help people who are blind, vision impaired, or deaf-blind earn, learn, and live life to the fullest. These include: programs for youth, including pre-employment transition services; general Vocational Rehabilitation services, the Older Individuals Who are Blind and Vision Impaired program (or OIB), and the Randolph Sheppard/Business Enterprise Program. To start, for youth who are blind or vision impaired, SBVI helps build self-confidence, prepare for employment, and successfully transition from school to the world of work.

(AVAH ORIANA) My name is Avah Oriana. I am a Junior in high school, and I live in Somersworth, New Hampshire. So, New Hampshire SBVI, I have benefited from them in many different ways. One of the ways is going to their different events that they hold in Concord or different places in New Hampshire with other visually impaired teens around the same age. I feel like I have definitely made some serious long-term connections with a few people there that are my age. Some of the events we have actually done skiing and rock climbing. We've also just had conferences where we're talking about employment and how to become a successful adult. 

(NARRATOR) SBVI also offers general Vocational Rehabilitation services to help people who are blind or vision impaired prepare for, obtain, and succeed in a meaningful career. 

(KELLEY SNYDER) My name is Kelley Snyder, and I live in Farmington, New Hampshire. VR has helped me to start to get focused on getting back to work through getting my degree at SNHU. And they've also helped me get connected with SBVI, and they helped pay for my accessibility tutoring and my accessibility software. They've helped me with support groups and finding other resources as well.

(NARRATOR) SBVI and its Vocational Rehabilitation services are holistic in nature. The purpose is to help people who are blind or vision impaired meet their goals—whether related to education, employment, or independent living—at any age. For instance, SBVI’s Older Individuals Who Are Blind, or OIB, program serves people who are blind, vision impaired, or deaf-blind and 55 or older, with a focus on building independent living skills. Examples of services include in-home consultations, monthly workshops on accessible technology, and a network of peer support groups across the state to help people connect and learn from each other’s experiences. OIB also offers something called “Silver Retreats,” which are multi-day residential programs that focus on a variety of skills, from cooking to travel to navigating social situations. 

(ADELE ROBERTSON) My name is Adele Robertson. I live in Exeter, New Hampshire. It allowed me to, 1) be independent, and 2) be independent, and 3) be independent! Because I think that's what everybody wants, whether they're sighted or not. They want to feel independent and resourceful and have a purpose, and VR returned that to me. 

(NARRATOR) Then, there’s the Randolph Sheppard/Business Enterprise Program, which serves New Hampshire residents who are legally blind and interested in self-employment. This program offers them the opportunity to establish and operate their own entrepreneurial enterprises on federal (and in some cases state, local, or private) properties. Examples include cafeterias, snack bars, and other vending facilities.

(JOHN SCARLOTTO) My name is John Scarlotto. I'm the owner of Scarlotto Vending, LLC in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. I have seven locations currently. Little by little over the years I've gotten more locations as I can show that I can do the work. I like challenges, and to me it's a challenge every day working for myself. And I'm not going to give up because of my vision. I'm just going to try harder. 

(ADELE ROBERTSON) I’ve always said, capitalize on your strength, not your weaknesses. And that’s what VR had given me.   

(KELLEY SNYDER) VR has impacted my life in a way that it’s been a catalyst for change for me to grow as a person and to look to more of what I can do and not what I can’t do and find opportunities.

(AVAH ORIANA) I think the one thing that I will always take away from this is that there are people that are out there who do understand you for who you really are.

(NARRATOR) Through SBVI, VR New Hampshire helps transform the lives of granite staters who are blind or vision impaired by helping them achieve their goals for employment and independent living. This includes maintaining the State's Blindness Registry, which allows access to certain benefits such as property tax deductions and free fishing licenses, among other services. To learn more, call 800-581-6881 or visit education.nh.gov/vr.