Caregiver Teleconnection

Shirlee Crandall
My fascination with the way people learn began when I took a Psychology elective in high school; so intrigued I declared it my major. After earning a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the University of Texas at San Antonio, I began working with children with various learning disabilities. Which lead me to the field of applied behavior modification, where I honed those skills over the next 20 years. This laid the foundation for the training skills needed to teach individuals with visual limitations new ways to accomplish activities of daily living. It also taught me the importance of quickly building strong relationships to facilitate the level of comfortability it takes to be able to put people at ease while visiting with them in their homes and interacting with their caregivers. In my position with the San Antonio Lighthouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired I quickly discovered a new passion – advocating for the Caregiver. Part of my position at the Lighthouse is as a facilitator of low vision clubs where I am able to interact more with the family members of individuals with low vision. I was fortunate to become the coordinator for our annual Caregiver Conferences which I find exceedingly rewarding. As a non-profit we are fortunate to be able to provide a forum to share resources with caregivers to better support them and assist in providing the best care for their loved one. I am thankful for the opportunity to assist individuals with blindness or low vision and their caregivers in learning to live their best, most independent lives.