0:13

From Vision Australia. This is talking

0:15

vision. And

0:18

now here's your host, Sam

0:20

Coley.

0:23

Hello everyone. It's great to be here

0:25

with you. And for the next half

0:27

hour we talk matters of blindness

0:29

and low vision.

0:30

I was at a point where I'd been looking

0:32

for a job for probably about

0:34

two years, and I was getting a bit fed

0:37

up and I just had another rejection.

0:39

So this sounded very interesting

0:41

and it just sounded really great to

0:43

upskill. And yeah, so just

0:46

decided to do it and got accepted.

0:48

Luckilly. And yeah, it's been great.

0:50

Welcome to the program. This

0:52

week I speak with three participants

0:54

in the Career Visions program,

0:57

a Queensland based program through

0:59

Vision Australia to build job

1:01

readiness and help participants

1:03

scale themselves up for a place

1:05

in the workforce. This

1:08

week you'll hear from Sarah, Serena

1:10

and Michael alongside the

1:12

program coordinator, Harmony downs,

1:14

who will join us later in the

1:17

interview. That's coming up

1:19

very soon, so make sure to stay

1:21

tuned. After that conversation,

1:24

we are hearing from Deb

1:26

Deshaies. She's celebrated

1:28

six months as CEO

1:30

of Blind Citizens Australia

1:32

and to celebrate the milestone,

1:34

she joined me to give us an overview

1:37

of the past six months at BCA.

1:40

I hope you'll enjoy this week's episode

1:43

of Talking Vision. I

1:48

began my interview with the Career Visions

1:51

participants by asking them

1:53

to give an overview of the

1:55

Career Visions program from their

1:57

point of view. I started off by

1:59

asking Sara and then moved on

2:01

to Serena and finally Michael.

2:04

Yeah, so from my point of view, it's split

2:06

up into three clear parts.

2:09

The first part is we go to TAFE

2:11

to get a certificate that

2:13

will have at the end of the program. Then there's

2:15

the part of computer training. And then towards

2:17

the end of the week we do career development sessions.

2:19

So we have workshops on

2:21

things like how to advocate for yourself in the workplace.

2:24

But then we also have people like business owners,

2:26

small business owners, or had

2:28

a lady who worked for a not for profit organisation

2:31

and they come in and talk to us about their

2:33

different areas of expertise, all

2:35

in an effort to get us career ready.

2:37

And Serena, what's your understanding

2:39

of the program?

2:40

What I've seen so far

2:42

is that we do a fair

2:44

bit of basic computer knowledge, because

2:46

obviously in the workforce today, you can't

2:48

avoid it. Followed up, as we

2:51

learn those computer techniques, we

2:53

get more and more into those things.

2:55

And then we have various workshops

2:57

giving us the skills that we need for the

2:59

workplace, giving us what we

3:02

don't already have or maybe haven't experienced

3:05

recently, and making

3:07

sure that we're ready for those situations,

3:10

and also showing us pathways that we

3:12

might actually be able to take.

3:13

And lastly, Michael, we'll

3:15

come to you. What's your overview?

3:18

The holistic sort of outcome that I think

3:20

they're trying to achieve is that we all get employment

3:22

at the end of the day, but also but

3:24

the program involves, as lady said, you know,

3:26

the TAFE and the PC skills

3:28

and the presentations, but also

3:31

amongst that we're moving. We're not in one place

3:33

all the time. So we move from room to room.

3:36

So we got to get used to, you know,

3:38

breaking down the computer and setting it up in a new

3:40

room. And also, we've been involved in

3:43

a real live project with Vision Australia

3:45

is having an open day in June, and

3:47

we've all been assigned roles there as well. So

3:50

apart from the practical skills we're learning,

3:52

we're also being thrown into a real life situation

3:54

as well. So it's just a

3:56

the whole program is designed to get us back

3:58

into, um, you know, into a working

4:00

situation.

4:01

With the three of you. Are you comfortable

4:04

chatting about your vision conditions?

4:06

Would you be okay going into detail

4:08

about that? Sarah, we'll come to you.

4:11

I'm sorry. I have hypoplasia of the

4:13

optic nerve as well as nystagmus.

4:15

And I was born with both conditions. So

4:18

basically the hypoplasia makes

4:20

me very short sighted. The optic nerve is too

4:22

thin, so I have to look very closely at things.

4:25

And I've only just started using a cane

4:27

to get around areas that I don't know well.

4:29

But I still have a bit of vision so can

4:31

get around by myself in areas that I know

4:33

quite well.

4:34

I've also got a bit of nystagmus

4:36

myself, so I can totally get where

4:38

you're coming from with that. And you

4:40

know, the impact that can have on the focus

4:42

and the balance and all that thing. So yeah,

4:45

totally, totally get where you're coming from

4:47

there. So, Serena,

4:49

how about you?

4:50

Yep. So I lost my vision

4:52

at a very young age. I don't actually remember

4:54

having vision. So probably a good thing in a way

4:56

that was due to a tumour on the brain,

4:59

which damaged the optic nerve, to

5:01

the point where I have only a little bit of light

5:03

perception left in my right eye, but everything

5:05

else is completely gone as

5:08

a result, though, I grew up using

5:10

mobility techniques, cane predominantly,

5:12

but other aides as they got integrated.

5:14

Over the years, people have told me that my

5:17

mobility is quite good. I have been

5:19

using it since I think I was in Darwin

5:21

and using buses on my own

5:23

at the age of eight I think. So,

5:25

yeah, a lot. Lots of experience with

5:27

it. And uh, my field is technology,

5:30

so I like to play around with the new mobility tech

5:32

that comes out. So it just gives you an idea

5:34

of what it can be if you start early.

5:37

Great to hear you got some positive feedback

5:39

over the years. That's always wonderful

5:41

to boost your confidence a little bit and,

5:43

you know, give you that feeling that you're definitely

5:45

on the right track and you're doing something right.

5:47

So that's always a wonderful feeling. Now

5:50

Michael will, um, come to you.

5:53

Yeah. So I, uh, have retinitis

5:55

pigmentosa. I got

5:57

diagnosed around about 2005

5:59

or so, but I think I had it a long

6:01

time before that. But I was working

6:03

in sport, and I finished up at the end

6:05

of 2019 because my work involved,

6:08

inside and outside work and outside work got a bit difficult

6:10

with people trying to fend footys away

6:12

from me and that sort of thing. But I have

6:14

a cane and I have a torch, the retinitis

6:17

pigmentosa, basically. I've got ten degrees of vision

6:19

and I'm not blind as well. So

6:21

I have a cane and a torch to help me out

6:23

when I get into situations where I'm not familiar.

6:25

And yeah, that's about where I am at the moment.

6:28

I'm keen to hear about how

6:30

you found out about career visions

6:32

and what sort of motivated you to

6:34

get involved. You have spoken about this

6:36

a little bit already, the three of you, but

6:39

I'm interested to go into a bit more

6:41

detail. So, Sarah, I'll come back to

6:43

you.

6:44

Yeah. So I saw an

6:46

email saying that. Was

6:48

closing soon. Obviously don't

6:50

read my emails properly because I missed all the other ones about

6:52

it, and I was at a point

6:54

where I'd been looking for a job for probably

6:57

about two years, and I was getting a

6:59

bit fed up and I just had another rejection.

7:01

So this sounded very interesting,

7:03

and then spoke to Harmony and came in for an

7:05

interview with some others in the employment

7:08

services team, and it just sounded really

7:10

great to upskill and

7:12

further the computer skills and everything that

7:14

I already had. Yeah, so just decided

7:16

to do it and got accepted. Luckilly and

7:19

yeah, it's been great.

7:20

And Serena, we'll come to you.

7:22

Now, I know you've talked about your technology

7:24

background a bit. Did that have much

7:27

of a bearing on your choice

7:29

to get involved in the Career Visions

7:31

program to further that or what

7:33

sort of, um, your motivation?

7:35

Yeah. So I haven't had any

7:37

employment for a long time. Many,

7:39

many years. I've only ever done voluntary

7:41

work briefly, and

7:43

I attempted to do a TAFE course

7:46

a year or two ago, and that didn't go

7:48

so well. So I kind of got a little bit burnt

7:50

from that. But then through

7:52

Job club here at Vision Australia

7:54

and through a friend that I have

7:56

that is in Job Club, I found out about

7:58

this program and I also saw

8:01

it on the website when I was browsing the website,

8:03

and I decided there and then, yep, I'm

8:05

going to go for this and give it a go.

8:08

And uh, again, I came

8:10

in for an interview and got accepted. I

8:12

was kind of surprised. On the technology front,

8:14

yes, I do use

8:16

technology quite a lot in my life.

8:18

Fortunately for me, I have

8:20

used computers for a long time.

8:22

That's given me a lot of experience with them, but

8:24

what I lacked was experience using

8:27

things like office. So if

8:29

I was going to get a job, that would be my

8:31

major downfall, and I needed to find a way

8:33

to learn what I needed to know for that stuff.

8:36

And this seemed to be one of the better ways

8:38

to do that, because just going through TAFE

8:41

really didn't do things for me too well.

8:43

They didn't know how to help me. Whereas Vision Australia

8:45

does have that process happening.

8:47

Some unfortunate, all too common

8:50

to hear that sort of thing happening with

8:52

various courses that they just don't

8:54

really understand, um, what

8:56

the needs are for people who are blind

8:59

or have low vision. And that's an ongoing

9:01

conversation. We can certainly have

9:03

another time. That's, uh, that's hours

9:05

long one there. So certainly,

9:08

certainly can, um, have a long

9:10

chat about that. But Michael, I'm going

9:12

to come to you. We've spoken already

9:14

a little bit about your desire

9:16

to get back into the workforce

9:19

after being retired for a few

9:21

years now, but tell us a little

9:23

bit about some other motivations

9:26

behind getting involved in career visions

9:28

on top of that.

9:30

Oh yeah. Well, I've been a client of Vision Australia

9:32

for about since I retired, and,

9:34

um, I was encouraged by Robert Terry to

9:36

apply for this, but I was always I was

9:38

keen to get into some sort of work, some sort of part

9:41

time work, because I live alone

9:43

and I miss I just miss the whole camaraderie

9:45

and the going into work and having

9:47

that social interaction. And,

9:50

um, I know people, you know, dream about

9:52

being retired, but I think retirement is sort of overrated

9:54

unless you got really lots of things to do. So

9:56

the biggest motivation was to get him back to

9:58

the social interaction and that camaraderie of

10:00

a workplace.

10:01

Yeah, exactly. It does give a lot

10:04

of purpose to people as well,

10:06

and it's always handy to have a bit

10:08

of extra money floating around.

10:10

That's always a fantastic little side

10:12

effect from that. But what I'm interested

10:14

to do now is hear about

10:17

what you've all enjoyed the

10:19

most about being in touch

10:21

with career visions and taking

10:23

part in the program. So, Sarah,

10:25

what I'll do is I'll come back to you.

10:27

I've enjoyed a few things, but probably

10:30

the standout for me has been

10:32

computer classes with Lee Jones here at

10:34

Vision Australia. Just learning

10:36

the keyboard commands and everything because

10:38

as I said, like I had a bit of computer knowledge with Microsoft

10:41

programs, but even just these

10:43

few weeks of learning has helped me to go a

10:45

lot quicker in putting spreadsheets together

10:47

and documents just with the keyboard commands. So

10:49

that's been so invaluable to me.

10:51

And then, yeah, just getting to meet a bunch of awesome

10:53

people has been really cool.

10:54

And Sarina, how about you? What's

10:57

been the most enjoyable part?

10:58

Probably for me, ironically, as

11:00

strange as it might sound, not so much the computer side

11:03

of things, but just seeing how

11:05

internally business is run. Because

11:07

that's not something I've got any experience with,

11:09

uh, in any real sense. So

11:11

seeing some of this and learning how this works,

11:14

that's going to be invaluable, because again,

11:16

it's like I've volunteered for

11:18

Coast Guard. You don't really have any

11:20

of this in that environment. So

11:23

this is kind of a bit of a culture

11:25

shock in a way. The computer side of things.

11:27

Yeah, that's easy. It's

11:30

the other stuff that I'm liking finding

11:32

out about.

11:33

Yeah. It's always fantastic to

11:35

come up with new skills and learn

11:37

something new. Michael, has that

11:39

been something you've enjoyed as well? What

11:41

sort have been the best part for you?

11:44

Well, just enjoy meeting the other participants

11:46

in the program because we've all. Got their own little

11:48

own separate stories we've all got here,

11:50

you know, different ways. But we're all here trying

11:52

to, um, you know, end with a positive outcome.

11:54

But also coming into Vision Australia, it's

11:56

a positive. The, you know, the vibe

11:58

of the place. It's a positive place to come

12:00

to. Everyone seems to be, um, you know, working

12:03

towards a, um, a good result for everyone.

12:05

So it's a pleasure coming in

12:07

here every day.

12:08

And joining me finally is

12:10

the coordinator of the

12:13

Career Visions program. One

12:15

of the people making it all happen. Harmony

12:17

down. So harmony, welcome to the

12:19

show.

12:20

Thanks.

12:20

It's great to be.

12:21

Here, Sam.

12:22

So quickly, harmony, just give

12:24

us a little bit of a final bit of info

12:27

about the program, how people

12:29

can get involved and how it's

12:31

all happened.

12:32

Sure. So Career Visions is a funded

12:34

program through the Skilling Queenslanders

12:37

for work initiative, which is

12:39

a grant application process that we

12:41

do to the Queensland Government, and it's administered

12:43

by the Department of Employment, Small Business

12:46

and Training. So when we're looking

12:48

to put in these applications, we have

12:50

between an 18 to 24 week funded

12:52

traineeship program. So this

12:55

one is running for 22 weeks and

12:57

has a focus on work skills development.

12:59

The first 12 weeks they're working

13:01

with us at Vision Australia and

13:04

they do their accredited training at TAFE

13:06

and their certificate one in work skills, followed

13:08

by a range of computer based

13:10

training and professional

13:12

development activities for the first 12

13:14

weeks. In this process,

13:17

we identify their strengths and their career

13:19

aspirations, and they head off

13:21

to a work placement for ten

13:23

weeks where they can further flex

13:25

all their awesome superpowers that

13:27

they gain throughout the 22 weeks

13:29

that they have with us. This is an

13:31

annual funded grant program, and so

13:34

we were really lucky this year to

13:36

include the Open Day event, which is

13:38

held on the 8th of June, and it's being

13:40

run with the children's and young people's team

13:42

and has a lot of investment from the local

13:45

community, as well as local and state

13:47

federal government. The other aspects

13:49

of the Career Visions program is that it leverages

13:52

a lot of our staff with lived experience

13:55

of low vision and blindness, so we know what

13:57

it takes, and we know what it's like to feel

13:59

like you're trying to carve out where you want to

14:01

go. So it's a big investment

14:03

by Vision Australia as well as the government.

14:06

And it's a great partnership and it's a really

14:08

great program that each year we

14:10

run, if we're successful and

14:12

hopefully next year in 2025,

14:15

we'll have the Eoi's out again in

14:17

February next year. So yeah, that's

14:19

it.

14:19

It's been great to chat with you all.

14:21

I've been speaking today with

14:23

Sarah, Serena and Michael,

14:26

as well as Harmony downs, all

14:28

involved in the Career Visions

14:31

program at Vision Australia.

14:39

On Sam Corley and you're listening

14:41

to Talking Vision on Vision Australia

14:44

Radio, Associated Stations

14:46

of Reading Radio and the Community

14:49

Radio Network. I hope

14:51

you enjoyed that conversation there with

14:53

Sarah, Serena and Michael

14:56

alongside Harmony. If

14:58

you missed any part of that conversation

15:00

or you'd love to hear it again. Talking

15:03

vision is available on the

15:05

Vision Australia Radio website

15:07

VA radio.org.

15:10

That's VA radio.org.

15:13

You can also find the program

15:15

on the podcast app of your choice

15:17

or through the Vision Australia library.

15:20

Coming up next, I speak

15:22

with Chief Executive Officer

15:24

of Blind Citizens Australia,

15:27

Deb Deshaies, who recently

15:29

celebrated six months in the role

15:31

as CEO. I began

15:33

my interview with Deb by asking

15:36

her to have a look back

15:38

over the past six months and

15:40

give us her thoughts and feelings

15:43

on what's no doubt been

15:45

quite a whirlwind that's rolled around

15:47

super quick.

15:48

Well, Sam, I think you just said it yourself

15:50

that it has been a whirlwind

15:53

and it has gone extremely

15:56

fast. In fact, when I got

15:58

to the six month mark, I thought, gosh, it actually

16:00

feels like I've been here a couple of years.

16:02

So definitely very

16:05

busy. But I've thoroughly enjoyed

16:07

returning to BCA

16:09

and settling into a different seat,

16:11

and was previously general Manager of Projects

16:13

and Engagement for those listeners who

16:15

weren't aware, and then left the organisation

16:18

for probably about three months to apply

16:20

for this role and then have returned.

16:23

But look, yeah, probably extremely

16:25

busy is the only way that I could describe

16:28

it, particularly because I

16:30

entered in the midst of an audit and

16:32

some really critical grant applications were

16:34

due for consideration and submission,

16:37

and then that all led into

16:39

our annual general meeting. So I think

16:41

from mid October to pretty

16:43

much Christmas Eve,

16:46

it was just rapid trying to ensure

16:48

that the team was supported

16:50

throughout those processes, the board

16:53

as well, and preparation for the

16:55

AGM, you know, and that

16:57

all ran parallel to just the day to

16:59

day operational needs. And

17:01

of course, most importantly, and something that

17:03

I value very much is forming those relationships

17:06

with our members, with our team of

17:08

staff and directors, you

17:10

know, partner organisations such

17:13

as Vision Australia and our disability

17:15

representative organisations in the

17:17

community. You know, we have many connections

17:20

and it's for me it was about just

17:22

trying to understand who's who, you

17:24

know, where's the roadmap as such around

17:26

the other disability organisations.

17:28

You know, the key people in those organisations

17:30

that we've been collaborating with, people

17:33

in the community. What are some

17:35

other options for us to

17:37

broaden the work and educate

17:39

others on the whole purpose of

17:41

BCA and the work that we do? So

17:44

extremely busy. Yes, I think I saw

17:46

a few times.

17:47

Yeah, absolutely. And Deb,

17:49

you mentioned those connections there,

17:51

which have, you know, no doubt stood

17:53

you in very good stead, including,

17:56

of course, your time with

17:58

Vision Australia and other blindness

18:00

and low vision organisations

18:02

alongside Blind Citizens Australia,

18:04

where of course you find yourself. Now,

18:06

what sort of advantage has

18:08

that given you to have those sort of

18:11

experiences in other parts

18:13

of the blindness and low vision sector,

18:16

as you do head into this

18:18

role as CEO?

18:20

Um, I think just an appreciation

18:22

for the differences in the organisation,

18:25

you know, service delivery versus advocacy,

18:28

appreciation for all the

18:30

work that's done, obviously, having

18:32

an existing relationship with Ron Horton.

18:34

So it's been really great to connect him with

18:36

Ron and his team again and Bill jolly,

18:38

as well as now the president,

18:41

because we've got the memorandum of understanding

18:43

with Vision Australia. So I've certainly found that a really

18:45

smooth transition and great

18:47

just to already have that understanding,

18:50

as I say, of service delivery of

18:52

a lot of the people in the organisation

18:54

not having to then I suppose

18:56

go back and go, oh, what do Vision Australia do? What do Guide

18:59

Dogs do? What do some of the other disability

19:01

organisations do? Great to connect

19:03

in with Dan Stubbs again to in his role

19:06

I think pretty sure that was in my first week. Actually

19:08

went to a roundtable there led by Dan, which

19:10

was fantastic. So I think,

19:12

you know, I feel very fortunate to have

19:14

had those previous experiences

19:16

and knowledge of

19:19

what each organisation and

19:21

leadership styles, and we're all striving

19:23

for the same thing. Sam. It's just we

19:25

provide our purpose at BCA

19:27

and service delivery. It's just obviously

19:29

done in different ways, but as much

19:31

as we can collaborate as possible, then that's

19:34

definitely what I subscribe to and

19:36

look forward to that. Continue.

19:38

And no doubt, in those

19:40

past six months there have been

19:42

quite a few challenges and

19:44

things to overcome. But

19:46

what's that been like for blind

19:48

citizens? Australia going into

19:50

a world post Covid, changes

19:53

to the NDIS and other such

19:55

things like that? What have sort of been

19:57

the biggest things to deal

20:00

with I guess over the past six months?

20:02

I mean, for Covid obviously pretty

20:05

I think we've all the whole world's got pretty

20:07

familiar, haven't we? Yeah for sure.

20:09

Accepting of the way in which

20:11

our lives are now. And in fact, sometimes,

20:14

you know, when you, you know, you walk around the

20:16

streets, you think, did we actually ever have Covid?

20:18

Because it's just like we never did. It's so

20:20

busy, you know, rare. Will you

20:23

perhaps be offered a mask or or

20:25

notice someone wearing a mask? But for BCA,

20:27

we were already working remotely, which was under

20:30

Emma's leadership. So we

20:32

didn't need to really adapt ourselves

20:34

in terms of where's everyone working?

20:36

Do we have offices? That type of scenario

20:39

that a lot of other organisations went

20:41

through? So we were a little bit more

20:43

prepared, which was great, but

20:45

particularly changed in terms of

20:48

how our staff operate getting

20:50

out and about now and then. There's probably still more

20:52

relating to my role. I probably

20:54

am away from the home desk on average

20:57

two days a week, and that's fantastic because it's

20:59

going out and connecting with, as you mentioned, the Ndia,

21:02

building those relationships and understanding

21:04

more about what their intentions are moving

21:06

forward for disability representative organisations.

21:09

I think also, well, one of our biggest challenges

21:12

and one thing that certainly kept me very busy,

21:14

and one of the things that I'm very much looking forward

21:17

to is knowing the outcome

21:19

of our grant applications.

21:22

It's made now and a

21:24

significant amount of our team's contracts finishing

21:26

30th of June of this year. We've been

21:28

doing a lot of work to submit some applications,

21:31

so that's kept us very busy

21:33

in terms of applying

21:35

for some critical grants to keep

21:37

our advocacy work going, to keep some

21:39

of our projects going, such as our own area

21:41

for employment, and that as

21:43

soon as we know, Sam will hopefully continue

21:45

to keep us busy. If we are successful, I'm going

21:48

to be positive and see it as you know,

21:50

very likely. But it's just that not knowing.

21:52

So that's something that we're looking forward to hearing

21:54

more about.

21:55

And staying on that positive

21:57

note, Deb, I think it's also

21:59

worth looking back over some highlights,

22:02

some of the really exciting

22:04

things that have taken place over

22:06

the past six months. So what

22:08

have you really been able to look back

22:10

and enjoy and think? You know, that

22:12

was really great. We were part of such

22:15

and such or, you know, this was a great

22:17

sort of instance where something

22:19

really fantastic happened within

22:21

or outside of the organisation.

22:23

I think one of the main things

22:26

is building our relationships outside

22:28

the four walls of BCA

22:31

so that we are more heard,

22:33

known, seen out in the community

22:35

and with other disability organisations

22:38

internally. We've contracted a fundraising

22:40

manager to work on a range of fundraising

22:42

activities to increase our support for

22:44

BCA and the Geoffrey Blyth Foundation,

22:47

we've got our upcoming national volunteer celebrations.

22:50

It's just the second year that we're actually

22:52

running that, and I was involved in it last year, so I'm

22:54

really pleased to see that we're doing that again.

22:57

I just feel like there's so many things. Sam, you know, from an

22:59

advocacy point of view, there's been so many

23:02

areas and writing policies in so

23:04

many areas that we just continue

23:06

to do. And when we do our annual

23:09

report, I know you're only asking me six months,

23:11

but when we do do the year and

23:13

review, it's so full,

23:15

it's like, oh, I think over 40 pages

23:17

of all the different things that BCA has been

23:19

able to contribute to collaborate

23:21

on influence, you

23:24

know, change the way in which

23:26

our members receive a service or

23:28

supports. So I

23:30

can't really pick one highlight. I do also

23:32

want to be.

23:33

Impossible to pick just one. Absolutely,

23:35

yeah.

23:36

But just want to acknowledge the board as well.

23:38

And I came back to BCA, spent a lot

23:40

of time with the owner would. So I feel very fortunate

23:42

that we've been able to actually even be in person

23:45

a few times. And one of those occasions was

23:47

at the Mastercard event that

23:49

BCA was selected to

23:52

receive the profits from

23:54

the ticket sales, but it was great

23:56

to work on that alongside

23:58

Fiona, and just

24:00

to spend more time with her,

24:03

having her perspective on the organisation,

24:05

you know, and her her leadership as our

24:07

president as well. But the rest of the board

24:10

have been fantastic. I've thoroughly enjoyed

24:12

getting to know them at a much deeper level.

24:14

Um, we welcomed Robin and Neil as

24:16

two newer directors. Unfortunately, we

24:18

farewelled Pru and Joanne. I mean,

24:20

change happens all the time, but you

24:22

know, it was great even just to have that short period

24:25

of time working alongside them as

24:27

well.

24:27

Looking forward to the rest

24:30

of the year. Deb. And

24:32

the uncertainty notwithstanding,

24:34

there is quite a lot of things,

24:37

no doubt. To look forward to for

24:39

the rest of 2024.

24:41

So what are some really exciting

24:43

things coming up for BCA

24:46

over the rest of the year that

24:48

you and the team, and all the clients

24:51

and BCA members out

24:53

there can look forward to.

24:55

Well, Sam, as I said

24:57

earlier, it does hinge on the

24:59

outcome of our grant applications.

25:02

I do want to acknowledge the team, though, right

25:04

now are very much doing their absolute

25:06

best to continue to provide the peer

25:08

connect programs to all of our members,

25:10

you know, continuing to advocate in all the

25:12

necessary, you know, necessary areas, whether

25:15

they be individual or for systemic

25:17

related matters. We hope to continue

25:19

all of that work. Can't really

25:22

say how much or what that will

25:24

look like, but we certainly will

25:26

hope and have our fingers crossed that we'll be able

25:28

to continue to extend on some of our

25:30

peer connect programs, hopefully

25:32

continue our An Eye to the future

25:35

employment program. We also have the scholarships.

25:38

We'll continue to do those, which is really fantastic

25:40

to be able to acknowledge those who want to go out and

25:42

do some study, and to be able to assist them to

25:44

purchase a much needed items that they need

25:46

for their studies. But yeah,

25:49

I'm just being honest and transparent. Sam, it's really

25:51

tricky to say what we'll look like

25:53

from 1st of July onwards. We

25:55

are just doing what we can now with what we

25:57

have and are very hopeful for

25:59

the future.

26:00

That's very good to have that, um, positive

26:03

outlook. But we do appreciate

26:05

your honesty and being realistic

26:07

about things that are going on in

26:09

the space and the nature

26:11

of not for profit and all those

26:14

sort of things. So absolutely, a lot

26:16

of people out there would perfectly understand

26:18

that for sure. A lot of people very

26:20

familiar with that. But we do

26:23

keep our fingers crossed as well and

26:25

look forward to hearing about

26:27

some hopefully positive news

26:29

in the not too distant future.

26:31

So thank you very much for your time

26:33

today. I've been speaking today

26:36

with Deb Deshaies, chief executive

26:38

Officer of Blind Citizens

26:41

Australia, just past the

26:43

six month mark as CEO

26:45

of BCA, and it's been an

26:47

absolute pleasure to chat with you today.

26:50

Deb, thank you very much for your time.

26:52

Oh no, thank you, Sam. Appreciate the invitation

26:54

and just engaging and I'm sure we'll speak again

26:56

shortly hopefully.

26:57

Yeah, absolutely. One of our grants for

27:00

sure. I can give.

27:01

You a little bit more around what do we look like

27:03

moving forward.

27:04

Excellent. Thank you so much. And

27:13

that's all the time we have for today.

27:15

You've been listening to Talking Vision.

27:17

Talking vision is a Vision

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That's talking vision all one word

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27:40

But until next week it's Sam Colly

27:42

saying bye for now.

27:47

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