Disabled Entrepreneurs' Workshop

Newsletter

Welcome to the second edition of the DEN Newsletter.

We are often asked to respond to the following types of questions:

• I have been to the statutory authorities and the agencies. I need more assistance with sorting out all the information and guidance about progress from here?
• I have a great idea, but where do I get money?
• How do I set up in business and how do I write a business plan?

This Newsletter deals with Finances and Part 1 of setting up in business.

Where do I get money?

There are ways of getting money, but because many disabled people are on low incomes, or on benefits, many financial institutions perceive them to be a greater risk and it becomes more difficult to convince the banks and others to support the fledgling business.

However, there are funds and ways and means of financing your business, although it is not easy. Some information can be found from your local business gateway www.bgateway.com

Access to Work

There are many misconceptions about the Access to Work Scheme and self employment, with a number of people believing that you cannot get Access to Work support if you are self employed. However, this is not the case!

The Access to Work Scheme can provide support with:

• alterations to premises or the working environment to make them more accessible;
• specialist equipment, that will enable you to work more effectively;
• travel to work costs if you are unable to use public transport; and
• a support worker, to assist with work related activities. (This can include a personal reader, communicator or interpreter or an assistant to help with personal needs in the workplace.)

After consultation with the Access to Work Advisor, or the Disability Employment Advisor in your local Jobcentre, you may have to undergo a workplace assessment, in order to identify the adjustments that may be needed or your equipment needs.

You may need to think about the things that can help you at work so that you are ready for the assessment. Additionally, you may also be asked to provide a business plan (see point 4 below and next edition of this newsletter). Once Access to Work has approved your application and support needs, they will then meet all the approved costs.

The Prince's Scottish Youth Business Trust

For budding disabled entrepreneurs, between 18 and 30 years old, a grant of up to £1000 may be available from the The Prince's Scottish Youth Business Trust together with mentoring for up to 2 years.

They may also lend up to £5000 repayable over a period of 5 years. The Prince's Trust website can be found at www.princes-trust.org.uk

Assisted Areas

The area where you live in Scotland (and for that matter, in England), can enable you to access funds. There are areas designated as ‘Assisted Areas', such as the Shetland Isles, parts of central/lowland Scotland and parts of the highlands in the North of Scotland. In these areas, one may get up to 30% of funding for things you may need for operating, depending on the area where the business is being started. However, one must have matched funding to get the money. Further information can be found at www.rsascotland.gov.uk

How to get on the right path …
setting up in business

Setting up in business needs a lot of preparation and there are a number of things to consider. You may come across a number of difficulties along the path to success, but with some motivation, determination and preparation (for the lows as well as the highs), it is more likely that your business will succeed and thrive.

Here are some tips that will help you to prepare for self employment:

Look at your strong points and any weaknesses you may have, as there is no point trying to start a business doing something you really don't like doing!

Remember that starting up a business can be hard work, particularly in the first few years. However, you are not superhuman, so try and ensure that the expectations you have of yourself and the support you may get from family or friends are realistic.

Please contact the editor@anAurora.co.uk with any stories or features that you would like us to publish for you.

Feature Facts

Mobility Ramps

Here is a list of some suppliers of ramps for Mobility scooters. Where known, there are notes on the type of ramps. anAurora would like to know if there are any more suppliers, and also of the types of ramps that they provide.

Email editor@anAurora.co.uk with details of other suppliers.

Ramps

Jetmarine Ltd (fibreglass)	National Trading Estate Hazel Grove Stockport SK7 5AD	Tel 0161 467 1648 Fax 0161 483 7820
Roll-a-Ramp (Europe) Ltd ( aluminium & strong)	Summit House 40 Highgate West Hill LONDON N6 6LS	Tel 020 83416767 Fax 020 8341 0365 www.rollaramp.co.uk
Koller (Titan: telescopic(1.5 to .73) & light weight)		www.koller.com
Portaramp	Portaramp Trident House Roudham Road East Harling Norfolk NR16 2QN	Tel No: 01953 714599 Fax: 01953 714598 www.portaramp.co.uk/product-range.html
Homecraft	AbilityOne P O Box 5665 Kirkby in Ashfield Nottinghamshire NG17 7QX	Fax: 01623 726886 Web: www.homecraftabilityone.com
Chester Care ( various: roll-up/portable)	Allardyce Unit5 Bellfield Road DUNDEE DD1 5HY	Tel: 01382 228411 www.applegate.co.uk/company /coz/1200220.htm
Enable Access (ultra-light)	16 Plantagonet Road Bernet Herts EN5 5JG	Tel: 020 8257 0375
Unwin Freeway 21: telescopic aluminium (1.95 to 1.22)	Willow House Artillery Road YEOVIL BA22 8RP	Tel: 01935 410920
Rolac portable (not folding)	Unit6 Forbisher Industrial Centre Budds Lane Romsey Hamps SO51 0H0	Tel: 1794 515133
Hoists & Trailers
Autochair		www.autochair.co.uk/
Brig-Ayd		www.brig-aydcontrols.co.uk/
ScooterTote Ricability		www.ricability.org.uk/reports/report-mobility/gettingawheelchairintoacar/ contents.htm
Ricon	Ricon UK Ltd Littlemoss Business Park Droylesden MANCHESTER M43 7EF	Tel: 0800 435677 www.riconuk.com
Elap (hoists/swivel seat etc)	Dept.DDM Fort Street Accrington Lancs BB5 1QG	Tel: 01254 871599 Fax: 01254 389992 www.elap.co.uk
Scoota moova		Tel: 01709 761782 www.scootamoova.co.uk

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Dungavel Removal Centre Dossier

When Dungavel first opened in September 2001, the Home Office said it would be for those about to be deported, likely to abscond, and it was better than putting them into prison. They said Dungavel would also speed up the process of deporting illegal immigrants. Dungavel is not a prison – it was claimed – but a ‘centre', despite everyone including babies being finger printed and photographed, despite the razor wire, steel fences, guards, ID numbers, the metal detectors and the same security as a category c prison. Housed away from society, some of the first inmates were 51 refugees held in Scottish prisons under UK immigration laws.

On its third anniversary, Positive Action in Housing wishes to highlight how different the reality is from the initial p.r.

We have gathered a damning dossier of evidence that Dungavel cannot cope with the suicide culture it is creating. There is a defnite pattern emerging of asylum seekers being held for long, indefinite periods up to two years, being transferred to prison when their spirits break.

What's their suicide prevention strategy? They don't have one. There are indications of a suicide culture taking hold at Dungavel, which houses whole families after all, and the authorities cannot cope with the suicides and broken spirits they have created. They appear to be simply dumping long term detainees in Prison after they become depressed or suicidal at Dungavel.

These cases make a mockery of the Home Office's claim that Dungavel is not a prison and only holds asylum seekers for a few days. By its actions, the Home Office clearly doesn't care that asylum seekers are being detained indefinitely, in some cases for more than two years, without charge or trial or even a crime to pin on them. They have no regard for their human rights obligations which declare it unlawful to detain asylum seekers indefinitely without charge or trial is and breaches the human rights of those fleeing torture, persecution, and civil war.

This dossier documents the atrocities committed in the name of asylum & immigration policy.

We want to make sure their stories do not go undocumented or unheard. We are calling on Amnesty International and UNHCR to take up these cases and investigate human rights abuses in Scotland. We are also calling on Scottish politicians to raise these cases and speak out on a detention system that is more about systematic psychological abuse and less about immigration control.

See also: http://www.closedungavelnow.com/names_not_numbers.htm

Please contact the editor@anAurora.co.uk with any stories or features that you would like us to publish for you.

Junior Crew

There is just one contribution to the Junior Crew in this edition, and that is the Junior Quiz. Also, we have the answers to the Adult Quiz.

JUNIOR QUIZ

Here is our Junior Quiz. The answers are in the Regulars front page. Click here

1	A reptile is an animal that has scaly skin and lays eggs. Which of these animals is a Reptile? Eagle Lion Lizard
2	If a lizard is a reptile, what kind of animal is a frog? Mammal Bird Amphibian
3	Some wild animals, for example bears and tortoises, hibernate when the weather is cold. What does this mean? They sleep until the weather is warm again They hide food in special places Their skin or fur changes to protect them
4	A chimpanzee is an omnivore. What does this mean? It eats only meat It eats both meat and plants Eats only plants
5	A crocodile is a semi-aquatic animal. Where does an aquatic animal live? In trees In water Underground
6	Some animals are awake at night – that's the time when they look for food. What word do we use to describe these animals? Carnivore Aquatic Nocturnal

ADULT QUIZ: ANSWERS

1	1 What is the road between Invergarry and Kyle of Lochalsh called? ... The road to the Isles
2	Which island has the blue and white St Andrew's flag of Scotland as its national flag? ... Tenerife
3	Who won a gold medal in the 124 Olympics in the 400m? ... Eric Liddell
4	Which is the oldest Scottish University? ... St Andrews
5	What is skirlie? ... A mixture of fried onions and oatmeal
6	What is saffron? ... A yellow spice obtained from the stamens of a special crocus flower

Please contact the editor@anAurora.co.uk with any stories or features that you would like us to publish for you.

Portobello

If you want a bracing ride along a beautiful, old seafront promenade then Portobello is the place to go. The audit of this route was made in early October when the weather was sunny but bracing. Outdoor clothing for all-weather conditions, from sunshine to gales, is required and may be required on just the one day visit!

The route can be done from either end of the prom. or from the middle. I arrived by taxi at the Portobello Leisure Centre where I met 2 fellow wheelchair ramblers. Going west towards Leith and Edinburgh gives one the opportunity to pick up a feel for this old town as it might have felt 100 years ago.

Indeed the interpretation boards are written with this perspective in mind and tell of all the fun and jollies the Scottish holidaymaker might have expected - the Pierrots, Punch & Judy etc.

The west end is more industrial and it is perhaps better to cast one's eyes north over the Forth to Fife. At this point the choice is then I believe the ferry used to traverse the Forth from Portobello and it was easy to imagine boarding the boat here and the relief at not going on a train over the Forth Bridge miles up river. to return via the town of Portobello or retrace one's steps heading east towards Musselburgh.

We chose the second as the sun was shining and the draw of the sea quite compulsive. Although linear routes, retracing steps, may seem boring I always find the view behind one so different from the one taken that it is worth doing.

In this instance the view of the East Lothian coast and looking beyond to the North Sea quite entrancing.

Now this may be because, living in Fife, I am so used to viewing it from across the Forth or it may have been the sunshine glinting off the sea but I am sure it's better than an old high street anywhere.

We reached the end of the prom. and kept on going past Joppa where the blue plaque assured us it was the oldest house in Portobello. Keeping the sea on our left we came to traffic lights, crossed and turned right up towards the town.

About half a mile up the A199 we turned left towards the Brunstane railway station.

Do not be fooled by the first entrance with a flight of stairs. This is a new station with full access 10yards further on. The platform is narrow and I was only just able to access the train using the on board ramp.

Next time I will arrive by train and meander down the steep roads to the seafront – a route my friends took with no difficulty.

Please contact the editor@anAurora.co.uk with any stories or features that you would like us to publish for you.

Working Group On Hate Crime Report

An independent working group has today recommended specific legislation for hate crimes towards individuals based on their sexual orientation, transgender identity or disability.

The Working Group on Hate Crime said that hate crime should be defined as "crime motivated by malice or ill will towards a social group".

The Group also said that it should be irrelevant whether or not the victim belongs to the particular social group in question, saying it is the motivation of the offender which is important.

The Group made 14 recommendations together with several suggestions covering the criminal justice system and some areas outside it. The main recommendation asks the Executive to introduce a statutory aggravation for crimes motivated by homophobic or transphobic prejudice or by prejudice towards disabled people.

The report of the Working Group on Hate Crime was presented to Scottish Ministers today, who said they would consider the report carefully.

Minister for Communities Malcolm Chisholm said:

"There is no place in Scotland for prejudice and discrimination. Crimes motivated by prejudice are particularly repugnant.

"We announced the setting up of the working group on hate crime in June 2003 to look at ways of combating crime based on hatred towards social groups because we recognised the trauma faced by many victims of hate crime.

"We welcome the report and its clear recommendations. We will now take the time to carefully consider all these recommendations before responding in detail.

"We are committed to making Scotland's communities safe, secure and clean and to delivering public services which focus on the interests of the victims of crime."

RECOMMENDATIONS

The Scottish Executive should introduce a statutory aggravation as soon as possible for crimes motivated by malice or ill-will towards an individual based on their sexual orientation, transgender identity or disability.

Hate-aggravated harassment and alarming and distressing behaviour is a major concern. Consideration should be given to whether a general statutory offence of harassment and alarming or distressing behaviour would be an effective tool to combat such conduct. This would then be applied with a statutory aggravation as described in recommendation 1.

The Scottish Executive should review the area of criminal law on violence against women and continue to investigate the link between the undermining of women in society and crimes of violence against women with a view to combating both. A statutory aggravation for domestic abuse should also be considered by the Executive.

After the introduction of a new statutory aggravation, the relevant authorities should include in their training suitable awareness-raising on this legislation for the police, social workers, COPFS, lawyers, solicitors and the Scottish Court Service. Procurators Fiscal should be encouraged not to plea bargain away the aggravation.

All agencies should ensure that information and advice about their service is easily available and accessible in different formats to cover the different needs of victims, particularly those with learning disabilities.

Police forces should identify a liaison officer to take a strategic overview of ongoing harassment against particular people and groups in the community.

The profile of VIA (Victim Information and Advice) should be raised and all victims of hate crime should be automatically offered VIA support.

The Scottish Executive should consider the feasibility of legislation or other means to ensure that any victim who appears in court and wishes to have their privacy protected from the press and public (such as a member of the LGBT community or someone with a mental health problem) can do so if they wish.

Once the current trial of victim statements is completed, and depending upon its success, the Scottish Executive should extend the use of such statements to victims of hate crime.

Sentencers should make greater use of alternative disposals for people convicted of hate crimes. The Scottish Executive should consider research to identify which alternative disposals are successful.

The Scottish Executive should consider introducing a citizenship programme for schools which can incorporate work on combating prejudice at a young age.

The Scottish Executive should implement attitudinal campaigns against prejudice using learning from the One Scotland Many Cultures and "See Me…" campaigns, focusing on the LGBT community and disabled people.

The Scottish Executive should convene a meeting with the major media organisations in Scotland to highlight the damage of negative media reporting in relation to disabled people and to the LGBT community, and encourage more responsible images and reporting.

The Scottish Executive should identify hate crime as one of the priorities to be addressed by Community Safety Partnerships. Community Safety Partnerships should ensure that their action plans and consultation mechanisms address the needs and seek the views of communities which have been or may be particularly affected by such crimes.

The Working Group on Hate Crime was set up by the Scottish Executive in June 2003 to consider the most appropriate measures needed to combat crime based on hatred towards social groups. Recommendations are based on the detailed work undertaken by the Group and on the responses to a consultation paper issued by the Group in January 2004.

The recommended legislation already exists for racist and religious hate crimes.

The members of the working group were:

Richard Scott, Head of Criminal Justice Division, Scottish Executive (Chair)
Emma Sinclair, Criminal Justice Division, Scottish Executive (Secretariat)
Alastair Carmichael, Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (Mr Carmichael attended in an advisory capacity)
Keith Cowan, Outright Scotland
Ian Dickinson, Assistant Chief Constable of Lothian and Borders Police
Michelle Hegarty, Capability Scotland
Tim Hopkins, Equality Network
Ali Jarvis, Stonewall Scotland
Sandra McDougall, Scottish Association for Mental Health
Fiona McOwan, Engender
Euan Page, Disability Rights Commission
Helena Scott, Age Concern Scotland
Nicola Smith, Enable
John Wilkes, Equal Opportunities Commission

More information about the Working Group on Hate Crime is available online:

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/about/JD/CJ/00017915/wg_papers.aspx

Please contact the editor@anAurora.co.uk with any stories or features that you would like us to publish for you.

Graphic version

Arts

Beauty & Fashion

Features

Fiction

Food

Garden & Home

Health & Wellbeing

Regulars

The first is an interesting story of Helen Keller By Chris Shimadry

This year marks 125 years since the birth of Helen Keller, a woman who, struck deaf and blind as an infant, went on to alter society's perception of what it meant to be disabled.

Followed by our not so true Horoscope.

And lastly a short story Packed Lunch by the late Flora Richings Surgenor.

If you enjoy writing, and have a story, poem or narrative that you would like to share, send them to editor@anAurora.co.uk If you wish to attach a drawing or sketch, then so much the better!

Helen Keller

 

Helen Keller
By Chris Shimadry

This year marks 125 years since the birth of Helen Keller, a woman who, struck deaf and blind as an infant, went on to alter society's perception of what it meant to be disabled.

During her life Helen Keller came to be seen as a heroic figure, a symbol of courage in the face of adversity. She showed that being disabled did not mean a person could not possess high intelligence, ambition, or the ability to achieve great accomplishments. Despite her own unfortunate circumstances she devoted her life to helping others and was a tireless activist for racial and sexual equality as well as disabled rights. It is easy to see why, even today, Helen Keller remains a figure whose achievements and personality are viewed with widespread admiration around the world. This article provides an overview of the life of a woman who, at a time when the lives of most disabled people were constrained by their society's medical, philosophical, social, and economic limitations, managed to rise above her affliction and show the world that disability did not mean a person could not have an impact upon the world.

Helen Adams Keller was born on 27 June 1880 in the small rural town of Tuscumbia in Alabama, USA. She lived in a modest home, built by her grandparents sixty years earlier, with her father Arthur Henry Keller, who had been a captain in the Confederate Army in the American Civil War, and her mother, Kate Adams Keller.

The family was far from wealthy. Helen's father earned a living as both a cotton plantation owner and the editor of a weekly local newspaper. Her mother, as well as working on the plantation, would save money by making her own butter, lard, bacon and ham.

It was in February 1882 that their lives changes dramatically when nineteenth month old Helen contracted a fever which left her blind and deaf. The exact nature of her ailment remains a mystery - doctors at the time called it ‘brain fever' whilst modern physicians suspect it may have been scarlet fever or meningitis.

The following few years were a hard time for Helen and her family. She became a very difficult child, smashing household objects and intimidating people with her screaming and tantrums. There were many who thought she would be better off in an institution. By the time Helen was six years old her family had become desperate as they struggled to look after her. They travelled to a specialist doctor in Baltimore who confirmed that she would never see or hear again, but told her parents not to give up hope and advised them to take Helen to a local expert on the problems of deaf children. This expert was the inventor of the telephone, Alexander Graham Bell, who, by that time, was working on what he believed to be his true vocation, the teaching of deaf children. It was Bell who suggested that the Kellers write to Michael Anagnos, the director of the Perkins Institution and Massachusetts Asylum for the Blind, in an attempt to find a teacher for Helen.

That teacher was Anne Sullivan, a graduate of the Perkins Institute who had herself lost the majority of her vision by the age of five, though subsequent operations helped her regain a certain amount of sight. She accepted the role of teacher to Helen and on 3 March 1887 arrived at the Keller residence where they met for the first time.

Anne immediately began teaching her to finger spell by tracing words on her hands but, although Helen could replicate these movements, she could not fully understand what they meant. Anne Sullivan also faced the challenge of Helen's continuing bad behaviour and manners. Her attempts to improve these were initially met with resistance and Anne found it necessary to punish her pupil by refusing to ‘talk' to her by spelling words on her hands. However, after a few weeks, Anne and Helen, now living in a small cottage on the land of the main house, began to make progress as the bond between them grew stronger. The breakthrough came on 5 April 1897 when Anne led Helen to the nearby water pump. As she pumped water onto Helen's hand she traced the word ‘water' onto Helen's other hand. This brought about a revelation as Helen finally began to grasp the meaning behind the words being shown to her. From that moment on Helen's progress was astounding and she showed an aptitude for learning that seemed to be far in advance of what people had believed possible in a person without sight or hearing.

Before long Anne was teaching Helen to read using raised letters and Braille and also to write using both ordinary and Braille typewriters. Michael Anagnos was keen to promote Helen's feats and his articles on her led to a wave of publicity that saw pictures of Helen appearing in a number of newspapers. As her fame grew she even found herself visiting President Cleveland at the White House.

By 1890 Helen was living at the Perkins Institute where she continued to be taught by Anne. It was by March of that year that Helen met Mary Lamson who began to try to teach her to speak. At this time however such efforts were met with limited success, a fact later attributed to the fact that that Helen's vocal chords were not properly trained prior to her being taught to speak.

In November 1891 Helen sent Michael Anagnos a birthday gift of a short story she had written called ‘The Frost King'. He was so happy with it that he got it published in a magazine, citing it's importance in literary history. However, it soon emerged that the story was the same as an earlier work called ‘The Frost Fairies' which had been written by Margaret Canby some years before. This incident caused quite a storm at the time and led to the end of Helen and Anne's friendship with Anagnos, who felt foolish by what he considered to be a deception. It was subsequently found that Helen had been read the story some time before and had evidently remembered it. This episode also led Helen to doubt herself as she pondered whether any of her thoughts were really her own.

Helen and Anne met John D Wright and Dr Thomas Humason in 1894 and learned of their intention to establish a school to teach speech to the deaf in New York City. Helen agreed to attend the Wright-Humason School for the Deaf but, unfortunately, her speech never really improved beyond the sounds that only Anne and others close to her could understand.

In 1896 Helen moved on to the Cambridge School for Young Ladies, before entering Radcliffe college in the autumn of 1900. She was, at the time, the first deaf-blind person to have ever enrolled at an institution of higher learning. It was during this time that Helen, using both Braille and a normal typewriter began to write about her life. Her first book, ‘The Story of My Life', was published in 1903. Helen graduated from Radcliffe College in 1904, as the first deaf-blind person to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree.

In May 1905 Anne Sullivan married John Macy, who had helped edit Helen's first book. All three of them lived together in Wrentham, Massachusetts and during this period Helen wrote ‘The World I Live In' which, for the first time, revealed her thoughts on the world. John Macy also introduced Helen to a new political way of thinking and, in 1909, Helen became a member of the Socialist Party of Massachusetts. Her political thoughts were published in 1913 in a work called ‘Out of the Dark', which consisted of a number of essays conveying her thoughts on socialism and its impact.

This work had a great impact on Helen's public image and, in the following years, herself and Anne embarked on a series of lecture tours that allowed Helen, through Anne's interpretations, to speak of her experiences and beliefs.

In 1918 Anne and John, along with Helen, moved to New York. It was from here that Helen launched a number of fundraising tours for the American Foundation for the Blind and also campaigned to improve the living and working conditions of blind people, who at that time were generally poorly educated and living in asylums. Her efforts were a significant catalyst in changing these conditions.

In 1921, the same year Helen's mother died, Anne fell ill and a year later contracted bronchitis, which left her unable to speak coherently enough to work with Helen on stage. At this time Polly Thomson, who had started working for Helen and Anne in 1914 as a secretary, took on the role of explaining Helen's thoughts and experiences to the public whilst on her tours. These continuing tours and the awareness and money raised to help blind and deaf people led to Helen and Polly meeting King George and Queen Mary at Buckingham Palace in 1931.

On 20 October 1936, after years of deteriorating health, Anne died. This led to Helen and Polly moving to Westport, Connecticut, which Helen would make home for the remainder of her life.

After World War Two, Helen and Polly spent many years traversing the globe as they raised funds for the American Foundation for the Overseas Blind. It was whilst they were abroad that they heard about the fire that had destroyed their Connecticut home, along with the latest book that Helen had been working on called ‘Teacher', a work about Anne Sullivan. It was during this time that Polly's health began to worsen which led doctors to advise that she and Helen stop their touring, though their work continued once Polly had recovered.

In 1953 a documentary film about Helen's life called ‘The Unconquered' was made and went on to win an Academy Award as the best feature length documentary. Helen also resumed work on ‘Teacher' and in 1955, seven years after the original had been lost in the fire, it was published.

It was in 1957 that Polly Thomson suffered a stroke from which she never truly recovered and would lead to her passing on three years later. This was also the year that ‘The Miracle Worker', a play depicting Anne Sullivan's first success in communicating with Helen as a child, was first performed. Two years later it was re-written as a Broadway play and opened to much critical acclaim. Then, in 1962, it was re-made as a film which gained Oscars for the two women portraying Helen and Anne.

October 1961 saw Helen suffer the first of a series of strokes, which led to the end of her public life. She spent her remaining years being cared for at her home in Westport, Connecticut. In 1964 Helen received the nation's highest civilian award, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, from President Lyndon Johnson and she was elected to the Women's Hall of Fame at the New York World's Fair a year later.

Helen Keller died peacefully in her sleep at home on June 1 1968 Connecticut. A funeral service was held at the National Cathedral in Washington DC where the urn containing her ashes would later be placed next to those of Anne Sullivan and Polly Thomson.

Had Helen Keller been born today she would have had the opportunity to avail herself of the modern teaching methods and technologies that have been developed to aid deaf and blind people communicate with the world and provide them with more independence than ever before. She may also have learned to speak with a greater degree of fluency than she was able to achieve during her life. As it is, Helen Keller's legacy can be seen in the way people with disabilities are viewed in modern society. She proved how language could liberate the blind and the deaf and give them the freedom to be as extraordinary as the sighted. Through her writings and thoughts she has shown that disability need not be the end of the world.

HELEN KELLER QUOTES

“The public must learn that the blind man is neither genius nor a freak nor an idiot. He has a mind that can be educated, a hand which can be trained, ambitions which it is right for him to strive to realise, and it is the duty of the public to help him make the best of himself so that he can win light through work.”

“Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of the overcoming of it.”

“I seldom think of my limitations, and they never make me sad. Perhaps there is just a touch of yearning at times; but it is vague, like a breeze among flowers.”

“The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen, nor touched…but are felt in the heart.”

“Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all.”

If you are a poet or a writer with some work to share, would you like to send some of it to us? Email editor@anAurora.co.uk

Horoscope

anAurora's horoscope is here with her light hearted view of the stars.

In the Stars

SIGN	HOROSCOPE
LIBRA 24th September - 23rd October	harvest, fruition no more growth, loss of light, growth of dark births, storms, clouds saving seeds, bulbs, hope for next year
SCORPIO 24th October - 22nd November	planting spring growth seeds, affirmation of faith, world dying, cold, wet heavy, Halloween, Guy Fawkes Night, rain
SAGITTARIUS 23rd November - 21st December	St Nicholas Night, frost, stars, no colour, clouds, fires, hot Baths, mulled wine, chestnuts, fear, no movement, no light, Safe

For those who want a more personal horoscope: Please contact your local newspaper!

If you enjoy writing, and have a story, poem or narrative that you would like to share, send them to editor@anAurora.co.uk If you wish to attach a drawing or sketch, then so much the better!

Packed Lunch

Packed Lunch
By Flora Richings Surgenor

What? What did you say?"

"No I do not want Coke packed."

"Make up a flask of coffee. Use the ploughman's pie in the fridge, it is tastier than scotch pie"

"You can have a cake, I do not want one - thanks." Bob came though to the small dressing room. "What is it?" I asked again, "I am waiting to get into the cupboard to get the lunch basket."

"Oh, sorry, I have to get some shoes."

My feet were rammed into the soft brown suede shoes, the laces untied. I stomped back into the living room, shoved one arm into my jacket. I looked at the cats "Meow," said Tish. Joey looked through half closed eyes and yawned. The feather duster was grabbed from the hook in the pantry, falling over my laces I murmured an obscenity - two in fact, after banging my head on the shelf. Then I decided to put my arm into my jacket and tie my laces.

Like a fiend I hurled round the room attacking everything in sight with the duster. Bob looked sky wards and sighed, resigned. Oh dear, Joey just about smashed the lamps off the side of the cupboard. "Are you ready?" came the long-suffering wail from the car.

My bag, where is it? The cats look at me with disgust and closed their eyes. They have heard this pitiful plea before. They snuggle down on the couch, tuck their paws into their pockets and dismiss me.

"Oh here it is." I scooped up the bag and stumbled out of the door and into the car. I hear another sigh. We bumped over the Sleeping Policemen on the road, turned right and there we were. Wow, there it was, the sea! White horses were smashing against the rocks, leaping and laughing in the wind. All were brave and fearless in their rush to reach the shore. The sky was palest blue, clouds were tinged with grey, hardly moving despite the brisk wind on the ground. As if a hand had stilled them. A flight of seagulls flew across my horizon, winging swiftly out of sight.

We travelled further along the coast towards the small area called Gosforth. We parked on the coastal trail facing the sea. The white horses were still smashing onto the rocks along the side of the shore. The spume spitting and snarling, spilling on to the sand.

Looking up I see the Fife Coast and Ben Lomond in the distance. The oil tankers greedily waiting to discharge their load guzzling into the waiting oil storage tanks. The seagulls see the signs of an easy meal in a food wrapper and dive squawking and screeching, each stealing a piece and swooping off. Flopping wings covered the air.

Two women sat down on the rocks in front. One had dark red hair. She smoked, pulling on the cigarette greedily, inhaling in satisfaction. The other woman wore a knitted woollen hat covering her ears and hair. A man parked next to us, collar turned up, glasses on the end of his nose, reading the Scotsman newspaper. He bends down and turns his radio up.

"Lets go," I said.

If you are a poet or a writer with some work to share, would you like to send some of it to us? Email editor@anAurora.co.uk

 

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A –Z for Happy Bellies
A Wee A –Z for Happy Bellies
By
Pade Ross

Extracts from her Receipt Book Avocados

Contains:

Recipes for sensual, caressing, warming, cooling, heartening, comforting, delicious, exciting, harmonising, smooth, rough, sophisticated, tough, tasty and easy

Food for Friends

The celebration of being alive, large, small, poor, or rich, Christian, Buddhist, Moslem, Jewish, Japanese or Communist, vegan, vegetarian or omnivore, together at one table.

Wee Notes

For the “wee notes”, which you can read – or not - I am grateful to:

Earl Mindell for The Vitamin Bible and The Food Medicine Bible
Thorsons, for The Complete Guide to Vitamins and Minerals
Prevention for New Foods for Healing
Dr. Christina Scott-Moncrieff for The Vitamin Alphabet
Michael van Straten and Barbara Griggs for Super Foods
Phyllis and James Balch for Prescription for Nutritional Healing
Arnold and David Bender for Oxford Dictionary of Food and Nutrition
James Duke for The Green Pharmacy
Denise Mortimore for The Complete Illustrated Guide to Vitamins and Minerals
Anna Selby for Miracle Foods

If you have any recipies or hints on cooking, would you like to send some of it to us? Email editor@anAurora.co.uk

Armchair Gardener

Armchair gardener
By Violet Lutea

Is Green the new Black?

I heard a T.V. garden programme host say to one of the interviewees,

“Do you think that green is the new black in garden fashion?”

This left me puzzled and confused and with an image of gardeners draped in grassy cloaks and wreaths of green leaves.

I think what he meant was that green is the new chique in gardening terms.

But green has always been the black in gardening. It is the perfect complement to every other colour. All gardens suit green whatever their shape and size. It looks good during the day and in the evening. It is pleasantly understated and timelessly classic. It can be accessorised in an almost infinite variety of ways. From the cool simple galvanised pot to heavy encrusted chunky baroque statuary. A well turned out garden can be seen in green whatever the season.

My motto is;

Mostly this season my garden will be wearing green

Please keep them coming. Send your articles on Gardening and Home to editor@anAurora.co.uk

Plant Names

Plant Names

The International Plant Names Index (IPNI) is a database of the names and associated basic bibliographical details of all seed plants, ferns and fern allies. Its goal is to eliminate the need for repeated reference to primary sources for basic bibliographic information about plant names.

The names of plants can be very confusing as well as difficult to pronounce. But there are good reasons for this. All plants have two names. One is a scientific name very often Latin and also a common English name.

The problem with a common name is that the same plant will have many different names depending on which part of the country you are in. Because of this plants are given a Latin name and put into different groups and families depending on their botanical similarities such as flower type or leaf type.

These names are now universal, and so two people talking about Picea Sitchensis in different parts of the world will both be referring to Sitka Spruce trees. Plants are further divided into families. Genus, Species, Variety and Hybrids

Please keep them coming. Send your articles on Garden and Home to editor@anAurora.co.uk

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Jeni's column begins with a notice from a Personal Adviser to people with disabilities.

Her column is followed by an article on Multiple Sclerosis, describing how it attacks the Immune System.

If you have any similar experiences and would like to share them then email jeni@anAurora.co.uk

Jeni's Column

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Life is fragile handle with care

We have more emails from our readers for you to read.

Lots of hints and tips on happy thinks to do;

and we have extended and sorted our list of links .

And our quiz is as easy as ever

Just remember
every silver lining has a cloud

Junior Quiz Answers

Here are the answers to the Junior Quiz. If you want to visit the Junior Crew quiz first, then click here.

The answers to the Adult Quiz are in the Features section, after the Junior Crew quiz. Click Here

1	What alcoholic drink is made form crushed grapes? ... Wine
2	What is the name for the stick carried by a British policeman or Woman? ... Truncheon
3	What transport machine has forks, gears and a chain wheel? Bicycle
4	What stately home in Britain is famous for its maze? Hampton Court
5	Who is the cartoon and comic strip sailor who loves spinach? ... Popeye
6	What is a male elephant called? ... Bull
7	How many letters are there is the English alphabet? ... 26
8	Is a great bustard an old fashioned gun, a bird or a typed of drink?... A bird
9	What are a sombrero and a deerstalker examples of?... Hats
10	In which city would you find the shop Harrods?... London

Please continue to send your emails, Hints and Tips, Jokes, Web Links that you think readers would enjoy looking at and any questions and answers for our Quiz to: - editor@anAurora.co.uk

Your emails

New disability awareness website launched!

TISEE is a national DARE programme run in collaboration with the Scottish Executive and Fife Council bringing young people with physical impairments together with employers, education and other service providers to WORK TOGETHER IN A 50:50 PARTNERSHIP.

In workshops and project teams the participants explore issues for disabled young people entering Further/Higher education or employment and, through project team work, seek solutions towards resolving some of the difficulties experienced. TISEE is led by young people and provides a platform for all to come together and work together to improve opportunities and understanding of disability issues and find meaningful and sustainable solutions.

If you're a young person, an employer or an education and service provider and want to get involved, visit our recently-launched website today - www.dare2employus.com

We want to hear from you so start posting in our discussion groups.

Contact us if you are an employer and would like to get involved in this national programme.

Webmasters - we would be delighted if you could offer us a link from your website and we would offer a reciprocal one. Please email us for details.

information@dare2employus.com
www.dare2employus.com

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Editor

Would you be kind enough to forward this email onto the correct department/s - thank you.

Scottish Care Services Forum has recently launched an online discussion forum for the Care Sector in Scotland (www.careservicesforum.com). We have attached a press release with this email to provide more information of the launch. Every council in Scotland has been notified of its existence and feedback has been extremely positive. The Scottish Executive is also publishing an article regarding the launch next month in October.

The reason we are writing is to ask if you would be kind enough to place an article on your news page regarding the launch and, if you have a newsletter or e-bulletin, would you also consider placing an article in the next issue? Can we also ask if you would place a link to the site onto your links page?

We must apologise for the number of requests made, but it is always difficult at the launch of a site letting people know of its existence. We are intending to expand the site in the next few months and will have an events page for training and conference events, We would be delighted to place any information on this section regarding training or conference events which you are organising. When the site is expanded we would also be delighted to place a link to your site on our 'links page'.

Thank you for your time in considering our request. If there is any further information you need then please don't hesitate to contact us.

With Kind Regards,

Mark Rodgers
Forum Moderator
Scottish Care Services Forum
W: www.careservicesforum.com
E: admin@careservicesforum.com

Mark

Thank you we will include your information in the next edition of anAurora
Kind Regards
Editor

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Dear all:

With this message we want to inform you that ISdAC International Association has established a user database online. In this database we want to bring together people with varying disabilities who want to act as test users, in case ICT producers and/or webdesigners want to have their products and websites tested by experts regarding their accessibility and user friendliness.

Because we will be able to guarantee a better feedback to suppliers and Web designers with a large database, we are constantly looking for as much people as possible with a disability who are willing to register to our database.

You can find more information about this database through the link on the homepage of our website, www.isdac.org. You can register yourself by filling in the application form. Also, if you know any person that might have an interest in this, please feel free to pass this message on. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to contact us on Xavier@isdac.org . Remarks about our website and database are also always welcome.

With kind regards,

Xavier Du Chateau
Administrative assistant
ISdAC International Association
c/o IGL
Boddenveldweg 11
B-3520 Zonhoven

Tel. +32 11 819465

Direct phone +32 11 720012

Fax +32 11 271622

E -mail: Xavier@isdac.org

www.isdac.org

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SubjectNew Disability Website – Pubs and Restaurants www.yourlevelbest.com

Check your locality!

It is free to both the user and the listee and has 4000 venues throughout the UK although the founder, wheelchair-user Mary Dixon wants more suggestions from local people like you.   Phone 0208 355 4328

email info@yourlevelbest.com

www.yourlevelbest.com

If you want to send an email to us on any subject at all, then email editor@anAurora.co.uk

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