This week we have put together a very special Giving Tuesday edition of the podcast. Giving Tuesday is a day celebrated as a global day of giving and a worldwide celebration of generosity, and is considered to be the opening day of the giving season. Blind Beginnings participates in Giving Tuesday every year, but this year we wanted to also give back and thank all our donors and supporters by telling some stories about the impact their contributions have on the youth we serve. Nika, Jinnie, Kolby, and Seerat join Shawn in this episode to share their experiences with Blind Beginnings and the impact that the programs that they participated in had. Thank you to all our supporters over the years -- this is for you.

Blind Beginnings’ mission is to inspire children and youth who are blind or partially sighted and their families through diverse programs, experiences, counseling and peer support, and opportunities to create fulfilling lives. Visit us online at www.blindbeginnings.ca to find out more!

Music by https://www.fesliyanstudios.com

This week Shawn flies solo and welcomes Ryan Fleury, Rob Mineault, and Sarah Mennell to discuss Ryan’s audio-described music video, “Make a Difference”. Ryan wrote and performed the song, Rob produced and edited the video, and Sarah wrote the audio description track, all combining into something unique and special. Shawn discusses the song’s origins with them, how it came to be an audio described music video, the challenges faced, and the growing popularity and importance of audio description.

"Make A Difference" Audio Described Video

White Cane Records

Descriptive Video Works

Blind Beginnings’ mission is to inspire children and youth who are blind or partially sighted and their families through diverse programs, experiences, counseling and peer support, and opportunities to create fulfilling lives. Visit us online at www.blindbeginnings.ca to find out more!

Music by https://www.fesliyanstudios.com

This week Shawn and co-host Randi welcome Paralympic judoka Priscilla Gagné and her training partner Ali Briggs. We discuss topics such as how Paralympic Judo is adapted from its Olympic counterpart, what the training regiment is like preparing for competitive sport, and what it was like for the pair to go to the Rio Paralympics in 2016.

Blind Beginnings’ mission is to inspire children and youth who are blind or partially sighted and their families through diverse programs, experiences, counseling and peer support, and opportunities to create fulfilling lives. Visit us online at www.blindbeginnings.ca to find out more!

Music by https://www.fesliyanstudios.com

We are so excited this week to welcome Adam Wilton from the Provincial Resource Centre for the Visually Impaired to talk all things Braille with Shawn and this week’s co-host, Jinnie! They discuss everything from what Braille is and where people tend to find it in public spaces to how it’s being taught in schools and why Braille literacy is so vitally important. 

Provincial Resource Centre for the Visually Impaired

Hadley Online Braille Courses

If you’re interested in submitting a question for our next episode of ASK A.B.B.Y, email us at [email protected] with your question and we could feature it on our next installment! 

Blind Beginnings’ mission is to inspire children and youth who are blind or partially sighted and their families through diverse programs, experiences, counseling and peer support, and opportunities to create fulfilling lives. Visit us online at www.blindbeginnings.ca to find out more!

Music by https://www.fesliyanstudios.com

After 20 episodes, we thought it was about time the show went to the dogs -- Guide dogs, that is. Jill and Nika, who are both considering getting their first Guide dog, join Shawn and co-host Kolby this week to ask a wide variety of questions about what the training process and day to day life is like with a Guide dog. Some of the topics and questions might surprise you, so don’t miss this one! 

If you’re interested in submitting a question for our next episode of ASK A.B.B.Y, email us at [email protected] with your question and we could feature it on our next installment! 

Blind Beginnings’ mission is to inspire children and youth who are blind or partially sighted and their families through diverse programs, experiences, counseling and peer support, and opportunities to create fulfilling lives. Visit us online at www.blindbeginnings.ca to find out more!

Music by https://www.fesliyanstudios.com