Winter - Spring 2023/Vol. 6
Greetings Everyone,
Welcome to Volume 6 of the Quarterly Insight Living Newsletter. The Executive Team hopes everyone is doing great as we move into a new year!
Living Life Team (LLT), Inc. continues to focus on the needs of people who are blind or visually impaired. Through the passion of helping others, we offer personalized services to meet the needs of our members. Our monthly support group meetings (with a call-in option for those unable to attend in person) focus on instruction in activities of daily living, mobility training, and supplying assistive devices. An equally important benefit of these meetings is the provision of a new and special “family”; where members can express their worries and concerns and know they will be accepted and understood.
LLT also provides transportation to appointments and important errands when needed, and routine one-on-one phone calls to confirm the well-being of each individual.
Livinglifeteaminfo@gmail.com/(http://www.livinglifeteam.net/).
We welcome your support.
~The Executive Team~
Introducing Ms. Taylor Maddox, this issue’s Insight Spotlight
“At age 25, dealing with complete blindness, diabetes, and having very little family members, I became a ward of the State. I had no resources and no training on blindness. As a young adult, I had no one to advise or advocate for what was best for me and my life. Therefore, I was persuaded to forfeit my rights over to the state, believing that decisions would be made in my best interest. I was convinced to go into a nursing home based on false promises that I would receive training for blindness including mobility cane, daily living and participate in activities.
After my arrival, I was placed on the basement floor among patients who were incapacitated mentally and physically. With no one to interact with, I became very lonely, socially withdrawn and went into depression. I could not see a way out of this dark era of my life. Living Life Team discovered me and I was taken under their wings. They went to battle advocating to have me removed from the nursing home. I am in a wonderful facility now. Since becoming a part of Living Life Team, they have provided me with a variety of trainings.
Living Life Team helped me overcome a lot. I am now mobile and can navigate out in public using my white tip cane. I am a master at technology and craft making to earn extra money. Loneliness is no longer a part of my life. I have friends and a family at Living Life Team that is with me every step of my journey. Through Living Life Team, I learned to love myself and gain confidence and independence. Today, I Reach for the Stars and I know what I need to do. I love Living Life Team!”
The American Heart Association’s website offers the following Healthy Living Tips for People with Diabetes:
You can't control everything that can impact your health, such as your genetic makeup, age, or family history of diabetes. However, you can take steps to reach your full health potential, adding years to your life and improving its quality, even if you have been diagnosed with diabetes.
Becoming a healthier you isn't as difficult as you might think if you follow these simple tips.
- Choose a healthy lifestyle: By managing your weight through proper nutrition and regular physical activity, quitting smoking, and finding healthy ways to deal with stress, you can prevent or delay the onset of diabetes or minimize its impact on your body. A healthy lifestyle will also reduce your risk of developing other medical conditions.
- Know your numbers: Through home monitoring and regular visits with your health care team, you can track of your blood sugar, blood pressure, blood cholesterol, and weight. These critical health numbers provide insight into how well your treatment plan is working to manage your diabetes and safeguard your overall health, including your heart.
- Work with your health care team: Diabetes can have multiple health implications (effects on your vision, feet, legs and heart) and can require special medications and a special diet. So, your health care team may include a number of medical professionals with various specialties. Your team can guide you to implement a comprehensive plan to treat your diabetes and minimize its effects.
Every year the GA Lions Camp for the Blind hosts a weekend Christmas Camp in Waycross, GA. When Living Life Team President Rita Harris learned that the camp was in need of a host for their Christmas Party, the board agreed to help. Three board members and four volunteers of the Living Life Team went into planning mode for hosting the Camp Christmas Party of seventy people on the evening of Saturday, December 10, 2022.
 
The group purchased decorations, food, prizes, and much more and drove over four hours to Waycross on December 9th to set up. The first order of business was transforming the activity room where the party would be held into a Christmas wonderland. The next day entailed cooking and additional set-up. The fifty or so campers who arrived for the party Saturday evening, accompanied by a host of volunteers, were greeted with applause and Christmas cheer. The evening included holiday music, a huge fishing game where every player was a winner, a delicious buffet dinner, singing, piano playing, and joyful celebration. Read more about it here in the Morgan County Citizen.
The Living Life Team was honored to have had the opportunity to expand its outreach and serve such a wonderful group of people.
Sawyer Frost and Pres. Rita Harris
The 2022 Living Life Team scholarship was awarded to Sawyer Frost, who is attending Georgia Southern University. Congratulations and best wishes Sawyer! Since 2017, Living Life team has awarded six $1,000 scholarships. That is a total of $6,000 provided to deserving high school graduates. Living Life Team is proud to sponsor this award to elevate the awareness of challenges people with visual impairments may encounter. We applaud these young recipients for their efforts and insight into helping others.
It takes many volunteers to accomplish all we do at Living Life Team. On behalf of President Rita Harris and our Board of Directors, many thanks to all of you who join us in our mission. Together we are changing lives!
If YOU would like to become a volunteer for Living Life Team, please contact Rita Harris.
Contact:
livinglifeteamrita@gmail.com
P.O. Box 1063
Madison, GA 30650
706-474-2355
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