The NJFFB Health & Wellness program is built from the ground up to meet the unique needs of adults with severe vision loss.  This popular program has grown into Bergen, Essex and Morris Counties.

Each week, participants enjoy Yoga, T’ai Chi Chih, Horticultural Therapy and Group Drumming, whole-health activities widely accepted by the medical community as healing arts. They bring joy, exhilaration, and relaxation while they improve balance and strength, and reduce the emotional pain of the loss of sight.

The 13-week summer semester begins the week of May 14, 2012. Programs are held in Denville (Morris), Montclair (Essex) and Ridgewood (Bergen). The final day to register is Friday, April 20 so transportation can be coordinated

Classes are adapted to meet the needs of individuals with additional disabilities or health conditions. Everyone participates at his or her own pace.  More than two-thirds of our participants come back to repeat the program and all have reported improved feelings of wellness.

For more information about the program, contact Linda Groszew, Student Services Coordinator, at 973-627-0055, Ext. 312, or email lgroszew@njffb.org.

You can click on Spring 2012 Update to read the newsletter now. You can also sign up to receive a free subscription to our Spring and Fall Update Newsletters. Just specify if you prefer a PDF, Text or Audio format.

The spring issue focuses on our Nutrition class led by a team of volunteers who are vision-impaired, and the benefits of our Health and Wellness Program. Additionally, you will learn which organizations, corporations and foundations have been exceptionally generous to us since our last issue. Please take note of our new sponsor section and the helpful community programs they provide.

Our new video above provides a peek into our Health & Wellness Program at our Essex County site. Meet one of our students, Lorraine Cawley, whose life has been improved by her participation and learn why she has become inspired to help others. The program’s wellness activities are having a similar impact on 24 other individuals who are vision impaired in this brief “Here and Now” segment produced by WMBC-TV. 

Click here to learn more about our Health & Wellness Program.

The Helen Gromann Hall was humming last week with the voices of nearly 50 students gathered to share past and current stories of their experiences as vision rehabilitation students at NJ Foundation for the Blind.  Many students who entered the NJFFB program years ago in their early stage of adjustment to vision loss were happy to reunite with students they had not seen in years.  Most have achieved a high level of independence including working in business, volunteering, helping others with similar challenges, and pursuing fulfilling hobbies.  Diane, a current participant in the Health & Wellness and Art program is now taking her fondness for art into the realm of photography.  She shared with old friends and NJFFB staff the family photographs she recently took.  “Trying photography is another way the Foundation has opened up my world,” she stated with a pleased grin.  

Tara, a 2008 graduate of NJ Foundation for the Blind, exemplifies the miracles that can result when highly motivated individuals have access to programs and resources that help them adjust to vision loss.  For years, Tara has dealt with her disabilities and overcome countless obstacles.  She is now an immensely successful college student and eternal optimist.   And at 31, she’s only just begun.  Read more about Tara in this article generously provided by Bookshare, a non-profit online digital library.

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NJFFB Health and Wellness classes will start in mid-January in Denville, Montclair and Ridgewood.  The program consists of 13 days of classes in Yoga, T’ai Chi Chih, Horticultural Therapy, Drumming and Support Group. Wellness activities are widely accepted by the medical community as effective healing arts which can reduce stress while building coordination, balance, flexibility and feelings of well-being.  If you are interested in attending this unique program and have access to private transportation, you can register through January 9^th by calling 973-627-0055, Ext. 312.   For our complete press release, click here.

NJ Foundation for the Blind and Mark Wood of Wood’nDrums are co-hosting the North Jersey Drum & Dance event on Saturday, November 26^th, from 8 to 11 PM at NJFFB at 230 Diamond Spring Road in Denville.  The cost is $12 per person.  Children under 12 are free.  Light snacks are included.

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You can access NJFFB’s Fall 2011 Update Newsletter by clicking Fall 2011 Update  to read the newsletter now.  You can also sign up to receive a free subscription to our spring and fall Update Newsletters.  Your issues will be emailed as PDFs or you may choose an alternate format.

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It is sadly ironic that October observes both Blindness Awareness Month and Halloween, the scariest day of the year, for blindness is more feared than just about any other health condition.

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NJFFB is continuing to geographically expand its popular Health & Wellness Program for the Blind and Visually Impaired with the opening this month of a new site in Ridgewood, Bergen County.

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