By JEFF MEYERS
PLATTSBURGH "" Dolores Bradley enjoys a relaxing afternoon in front of the television with one of her favorite shows, "Murder She Wrote," playing.
She can't visually follow the antics of super sleuth Jessica Fletcher in the popular TV series from the 1980s, but she listens intently to every clue uncovered by actress Angela Lansbury's character.
Dolores suffers from macular degeneration and is legally blind. She describes her vision as like wearing glasses covered with a thick layer of Vaseline, but that has done nothing to impact her need for independence.
"I love my children dearly, but I will not live with any of them," said the 80-year-old mother of four. "I like my freedom."
Dolores, a retired history teacher of 34 years from New Jersey, moved to the North Country with her husband, Joseph, for their retirement years. They had spent summers in Jay and loved the area so much that they decided to become full-time residents in 1996.
"We were quite comfortable until Joe's heart started acting up," she said, noting that her husband had suffered a heart attack in the 1970s but had lived without heart problems for two decades before he became ill following retirement.
Dolores had been substituting at Holy Name School in AuSable Forks at the time, and it was soon after when she began having vision problems.
"I was teaching sixth-grade math, and all of a sudden I realized I couldn't read the numbers," she said, adding that she had just been to the ophthalmologist six months earlier without any problems detected.
But a return visit verified the presence of macular degeneration. She had laser surgery on both eyes, but her vision rapidly eroded and she was declared legally blind in 1998.
Joseph died in 1999 after the couple had moved to Plattsburgh to be closer to medical facilities and family. But Dolores's connection with the North Country Association for the Visually Impaired (NCAVI) has helped the most in keeping her independent and at home.
"I was very fortunate (for the aid she received from the association)," Dolores said. "Their training was very good. They've done a wonderful job helping me stay at home."
An individual from the association visited with Dolores regularly during those early days of her blindness, helping her to redesign her actions without her eyesight. The agency also provided her with a variety of tools to assist her in daily activities.
"The services we provide are free of charge to blind and legally blind individuals," said Donna Abair, executive director for NCAVI. "We deal with all age groups, but many of them are elderly people who have had to deal with vision loss at an older age."
Most people have to have medical proof that they are legally blind to be eligible for services, but some clients can receive support if they are in jeopardy of losing their job because of deteriorating eyesight.
Besides macular degeneration, a disease that destroys the eye's sharp, central vision, other conditions that can rob people of eyesight are glaucoma, retinopathy, retinitis and diabetes.
"We go into people's homes and teach them how to do all the things they did with vision, but in a different way," Abair said. "We provide them with all the assistance we can to help them remain independent."
The association, which serves Clinton, Essex, Franklin and St. Lawrence counties, serves around 500 clients annually. The agency receives funding from the Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired, but that support covers just over half of NCAVI's financial needs.
Other support comes from local fundraisers such as the upcoming Lockwood Memorial Golf Tournament in Lake Placid on Aug. 17.
"We're looking for this to be the best event ever," said Barbara Zelinski, a member of the association's board of directors. "Anyone who wants to participate can walk in that day and sign up. Everyone is welcome."
The tourney will be a four-person scramble with 12:30 p.m. shotgun start. Fees are $80 per person, $320 per foursome and $23 for the awards dinner only.
The Gibney Family Foundation will provide matching funds for the event.
Support from the Lions Club and a December television auction also benefit the organization, whose main office is in Lake Placid but also has satellite offices throughout the North Country.
"As a board member, I've followed staff around into homes and have been amazed to see what skills and training they provide," Zelinski said.
"A lot of people don't know about this organization, but the counselors do such a good job of educating people about preventing visual impairment and also educating families about how to help their loved one with a visual impairment."
jmeyers@pressrepublican.com
