Do you remember the Y2K obsession leading up to the year 2000? Fortunately, the solutions to this anticipated worldwide problem worked and, to quote Wikipedia, “When the clock ticked Jan 1, 2000 . . . the whole world went on with its normal life.”
For the blind community in Cape May County, though, life changed for the better in 2000. It was during that year that Milicent Saraduke established the Blind Center of the Jersey Cape, a community service that continues to enrich the lives of visually impaired in our county.
Millie acquired her disability from glaucoma as a mature adult. Always a very active and positive person, she traveled to Arizona in the 1980s to a convention for visually impaired/blind people. Armed with information and resources from this convention and her attendance at the Braille Institute in California around that same time, Millie brought back what she had learned to start a support group in New Jersey similar to one she had found most helpful in California.
Over the next 10 years, she worked to form the organization known as the Blind Center of the Jersey Cape. The group first met in 2000 at Crest Haven, in a room supplied by Cape May County. As the group grew, Millie worked with the County Freeholders to obtain a trailer for the exclusive use of the Blind Center. Unfortunately, that meeting place was destroyed by an electrical fire in 2003.
Millie met this challenge head on, exploring various possibilities for a new home for the center. The search came to a happy conclusion when the Avalon Methodist Church offered to provide the space that is still the center’s home.
The goal of the Blind Center is to provide support and camaraderie, as well as skills and education so that blind people can live active lives despite their challenges. Millie plans all the meetings and activities, which encompass a range of projects, occasional speakers and special programs.
She also organizes field trips for the group and arranges for social workers to come at least once a month to share information with Blind Center members. A monthly newsletter that Millie spearheaded is printed and sent to interested people throughout Cape May County.
Millie is committed to helping the visually impaired and has done so not only through her own efforts but by networking and outreach to the community. Through her efforts, a group of dedicated volunteers leads the members twice a week through a variety of programs including music, drama, crafts, exercise, bingo, and even knitting! (The group, using special knitting devices and with the help of an instructor Millie recruited, has even knitted a patchwork blanket for the Coalition Against Rape and Abuse.)
Since 2000, Millie has worked to raise awareness of the services provided by the Blind Center through radio programs, public service announcements and newspaper articles.
Through her tireless efforts, and despite her own personal challenges, she has inspired blind people to strive for independence, self-development and a sense of self-worth.
All those familiar with her commitment to the Blind Center appreciate that Millie’s response to her own life challenges has been to channel her energies and considerable talents to enhancing the lives of others who are visually impaired. Congratulations to Millie and the Blind Center of the Jersey Cape on their first 10 years of service to the Cape May community!
Did you know?
• The Blind Center of the Jersey Cape meets from 10 a.m .to 1:30 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays at the First United Methodist Church of Avalon, 3344 Dune Drive. For more information contact Milicent Saraduke at 624-0931 or msaraduke@comcast.net
• The Department of Justice has announced a first-of-its-kind agreement with Hilton Worldwide Inc. that will make accessibility changes to 900 hotels nationwide. This is the first time that a chain has been required by the department to ensure that all of its franchises comply with the ADA. Hilton must also make sure its reservation system is accessible
• NJ Protect is a new health insurance option for uninsured New Jerseyans with pre-existing medical conditions. Coverage through this program will generally cost less than comparable individual health insurance and offer superior benefits. Because the program is federally subsidized, treatment for pre-existing medical conditions will be covered as of the day a policy goes into effect, and preventive care will be covered at no out-of-pocket cost to the policyholder. Contact Horizon Blue Cross and Blue Shield of NJ at 888-551-2130 to request an application. Be sure to tell the customer service representative that you are inquiring about the NJ Protect option
Pierson is the Coordinator of the Cape May County Office of Disability Services
Cape May – Governor Murphy says he doesn't know anything about the drones and doesn't know what they are doing but he does know that they are not dangerous. Does anyone feel better now?
