News
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Red Puppy Appeal
It's time to give power to the puppies! The Foundation is excited to announce its new Red Puppy Appeal campaign, replacing the former Guide Dog Appeal. The Red Puppy Appeal is on from 30 March to 1 April and is about giving our puppies the power to empower blind, deafblind and vision-impaired New Zealanders. Based on the distinctive red coats guide dog puppies wear, there will be new print, radio and TV ads. As always a key part of the campaign will be using the media to educate the public about the importance of guide dogs and what they mean to Foundation members. With a target of raising $1 million the Foundation needs real puppy (and people) power!
It costs $22,500 to breed, raise, train and match one guide dog and the Foundation's Guide Dog Services receives NO Government funding. You can do your bit to give power to the puppies by volunteering to collect for a few hours in your area. Call 0800 REDPUPPY (0800 733 787) to speak to your local Fundraising Manager about becoming a volunteer or you can register online at www.redpuppy.org.nz. You can also encourage others to put their paw in their pocket and give generously.
'Help at Hand'
As part of the Foundation's ongoing effort to reduce waiting lists, a new Adaptive Daily Living (ADL) telephone helpline, 'Help at Hand', is being trialled. This will allow members to talk through any difficulties they are experiencing due to their sight loss. These can include safety issues at home (especially in the kitchen), identifying coins, clothes care, using the telephone and magnifiers, or seeking advice about purchasing new kitchen and laundry appliances. While sorting some problems will still require a home visit, some members will be able to receive immediate help over the phone and will not have to go on the waiting list.
An experienced ADL Instructor will be available to take calls on Mondays 9am - 12pm, Wednesdays 9am -12pm and Thursdays 1pm - 4pm.To access the service members simply phone 0800 24 33 33 and press 1 for menu option 1: general inquiries. Members will then be
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forwarded to the helpline if it is within the above times. If it is outside of those times the 0800 receptionist will take the members details and book a suitable time for the ADL instructor to call them back. For more information about this service please contact Adrienne Henderson on 0800 24 33 33.
Whanganui River Journey 2007
The hair was a little grayer, the bodies slightly less agile and the sleep possibly deeper. But the fun, sense of achievement and friendships made by 12 adult members on the Whanganui River Journey more than equaled the experience of the teenagers who had gone before them.
The Whanganui River Journey took place January 23-27, and for the first time adult members were invited to attend. Richard West, RNZFB Recreation Advisor said that despite the drizzly weather, the spirit and energy of the trip created unforgettable memories and experiences for all who went.
"It was just fantastic. The environment down there is challenging and requires a huge amount of teamwork to negotiate. Everyone pulled together and in the process formed incredible friendships and developed their own confidence. And I'm sure the yarns at the end of the day around the campfire kept the wildlife well and truly entertained!"
"An awesome experience" was how Bob Thompson from Sanson near Feilding described the trip.
"Being totally blind I really didn't know how I would cope. But with the support of Foundation staff, Waka tours and the volunteers nothing was a problem."
Penny Gray from Lower Hutt agrees. "The trip was a very spiritual experience and one that bought everyone together to share a common goal - a love of the outdoors. The unity within the group was a particular highlight for me as well as the opportunity to learn from each other in different ways. It reconfirmed that even though my vision is going my life goes on. There are still so many more adventures to be had."
SuperGold Card for Seniors
A new discount card for people who are 65 and older will be available from August. The SuperGold Card will be offering
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discounts on a raft of goods and services – possibly even petrol and insurance.
The card will be sent automatically to people receiving a NZ Super or Veteran's Pension. Others can apply for the card once it is available. For more information phone 0800 25 45 65.
Equipment to View
The Foundation, with the support of HumanWare, has purchased new equipment for each office to allow members to be able to view it before purchasing. Each office now has the new SmartView Xtend CCTV and a colour PocketViewer and there are also 5 myReaders and mPower BrailleNotes located throughout the country.
As well as giving greatly reduced prices for the equipment, HumanWare are providing training for all Foundation Adaptive Communications and Adaptive Daily Living Instructors. A big thank you to HumanWare's CEO, Richard Mander, for their support and for making this possible.
To view equipment please contact the Service Co-ordinator for your area on 0800 24 33 33.
Food & Wine Festival
The annual Auckland Wine and Food Festival is a two-day event where people can not only enjoy local and international fine food and wine but also support the Foundation. The weekend event is on 31 March and 1 April and the Foundation has been given the only non-alcoholic drinks stand and will receive all profits. For each member who buys a ticket $2.00 will come to the Foundation.Volunteers will also be collecting for the Red Puppy Appeal. For more information about the festival, how to purchase tickets or if you would like to volunteer on the day, please contact Regional Fundraising Manager Bernadette Brewer on 0800 24 33 33 or visit the festival's website www.aucklandwineandfoodfestival.com
Accessible Information on Renting
The Department of Building and Housing has made two of its key brochures regarding renting available in braille and cassette. The titles are: "Tenancy - tenants: getting started" and "Renting and you: a guide to the law about renting". Copies of these are available from the Foundation's library. You do not need a
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talking book machine to play the cassettes. For information contact the library on 0800 24 33 33.
Outlook publication schedule
Outlook continues to evolve in an effort to best serve members and to best use limited financial resources. Outlook is including more information about member services as well as making more referrals to information available over the internet. Outlook will now be printed three times in each financial year. The March issue will support April's Red Puppy Appeal. The September issue will support October's Blind Week Appeal. And the December issue will wrap up the calendar year's activities in an issue that members can read over the holidays. Future Outlooks are scheduled to be 32 pages. Previously, Outlook was published quarterly and was usually 28 pages.
AXA Hearts in Action
AXA Hearts in Action is a Global AXA Group community based volunteer programme and a much valued partner of the Foundation. Over the last five years AXA staff, primarily from the Wellington office, have supported Guide Dog Appeal and Blind Week by hosting a sausage sizzle in Wellington. In Blind Week 2006, $800 was raised in just over two hours! This event is always supported by a local guide dog puppy who suffers terribly with those lovely BBQ smells.
AXA also provided financial support for the 2006 Southern Cross Games – an international sporting event for blind and vision-impaired students. Such is the passion of AXA staff that, on learning she had been named the 2006 AXA Hearts in Action Volunteer of the Year a staff member generously gave her $1,000 prize money to the Foundation! Thanks to AXA Hearts in Action for their continued support.