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light into europe charity Foundation Report 2015 Guide Dogs for the Blind ROMAN

light into europe charity Foundation Report 2015 Guide Dogs for the Blind ROMANIA www.lightintoeurope.org.uk www.facebook.com/LightintoEuropeCharity Contents Foreword....................................................3 Capt. Stan Platt, OBE Chairman of Light into Europe...................4 Camelia Platt, CEO of Light into Europe Charity..............6 Gabriel and Lewis (& formerly Chloe). ........8 Adrian and Veronica Benchea & Max. ......10 Cristi Moldovan and Hamish....................12 Cati Zgubea and Klint. ..............................14 Magda and Heidi. .....................................16 Petra Pintelei............................................18 Lăcrămioara Pintelei (Mrs. Lili)..................20 Anca Vasile, Guide Dog Programme Manager. ............22 Severian Pavel, Guide Dog Instructor. ...............................24 Mr. Alan Brooks, Senior Guide Dog Consultant..................26 Mr. Sean Dilley, Board Member, Light Into Europe. ...........27 Volunteers. ................................................29 Foundation Finances ...............................30 editor: Ruth Rusby ● design: Alexandru Ionescu ● photos: Severian Pavel, Ruth Rusby Foundation Report 2015 3 Foreword O ver a lunch of haggis soup back in February I suggested to Capt. Stan Platt and his team that we should try to put together a Foundation Report for Light Into Europe and capture some of the stories of the beneficiaries. They all welcomed the idea with great enthusiasm and excitement. I slightly panicked, as I realized that while I could write, I had absolutely no idea how to interview blind people. Gradually I learned that some would be able to read my emails and answer them, whilst others I could interview in person. The whole experience was at once fascinating and deeply humbling. With Seve’s help and a few friends translating questions and answers for me, we managed to capture some of the feeling of isolation, despair and entrapment that many people with disabilities feel in this country. We also discovered stories of hope and the incredible pathways to a new life that a guide dog can bring. We interviewed Petra, who is currently studying at University and her mum, Mrs. Lili (Lăcrămioara), who coordinates the creative educational services for many of the deaf children. Mr. Alan Brooks is the Senior Guide Dog Consultant from the UK who advises our two top guide dog trainers Anca and Seve, whose stories appear on pp. 22 and 24. Mr. Sean Dilley is a political journalist from the UK and Board Member of Light Into Europe who brings his real experience of being a guide dog user for the last 17 years. As well as the Financial Reports on p. 30 we also have interviews with Capt. Stan Platt, Chairman of Light Into Europe and Mrs. Camelia Platt, CEO which delve into some of the history of the charity as well as the future ahead. As this is the first attempt at such a report by Light Into Europe, we welcome any feedback. Please dip into a new story from time to time, and if you have ideas, or wish to contribute your time or make a donation, let us know. Ruth Rusby, Bucharest, April 2016 4 Light into Europe Charity Capt. Stan Platt, OBE, Chairman of Light into Europe C apt. Stan Platt is from Essex and first visited Romania in the aftermath of the revolution in 1990 when he flew a group of Anglicans from London to Romania. “From my first moments in Arad and travelling from city to city,” says Stan, “I felt a warmth from the people. I felt I had to come back and try to make a difference. I really felt needed. So did hundreds of Brits. I was part of a movement for change.” Light Into Europe was founded in 1986, making it now 30 years old. Initially it was set up to fly medical evacuations in Poland and other Eastern European countries. Stan flew hundreds of flights with the Air Ambulance service, of which he was chief in Romania until 2003/4, when the reins were handed over to SMURD. “We flew many missions with Dr. Arafat,” says Stan. “In 2004 I thought we would return to the UK. I even sent my fishing rods there. But Camelia, my wife, had other ideas!” Camelia Platt had surveyed the needs of the country and found two Cinderella groups, the deaf and the blind, which she considered most needed their help. The guide dog work began in 2005 with a visit to Guide Dogs for the Blind UK. Foundation Report 2015 5 “At the time it wasn’t clear how to establish such an organization in Romania when each guide dog costs around £50, 000,” says Stan, “so we shelved it for the time being and focused on other ways to help the blind and deaf.” Things changed when Petra Pintelei, one of the charity’s blind beneficiaries, won a six weeks old “guide dog” puppy after coming first singing in a TV talent show. “Petra asked me to take the puppy in, as she was too young to consider a guide dog,” says Stan. “The puppy was totally untrained, but with a lot of help we trained it and she became our very first guide dog Chloe.” Stan has always loved dogs. When he was a boy his family bred poodles and Pekingese and they had up to 30 at a time. “On Saturdays my grandmother would ask for a dog show on the lawn and all the kitchen chairs came out,” says Stan. “We had a dog on each chair groomed by my sister and myself in order that my grandmother could choose the winner!” Guide dogs are bred specifically for their temperament. They must have the right level of health and loyalty and be sure to never bark or bite. They have to bond well to a new user, transfer their affections and become an indispensable part of a beneficiaries’ life. “Guide dogs have an average working life of 6-7 years,” says Stan, “and we estimate there is a need for 1200 guide dogs in Romania. At present we have 11 working dogs and we hope to increase this to 50 in the next few years.” In order to achieve this, a permanent, sustainable guide dog training centre is needed, along with a self-sufficient Romanian team who can carry the service forward. A building has recently been identified as suitable and the team hopes that with further financial support this can become a reality. “There is a huge amount of work involved in running the current program,” says Stan, “and we really need more volunteers to help take some of the workload on.” With many new technologies becoming available to the deaf and blind communities it seems that one day sign language, Braille and the use of guide dogs may become outdated. “In the UK there is a separate deaf culture, where whole families use sign language to communicate,” says Stan. “The same culture exists here in Romania, but the authorities don’t realize that with the UN Convention on the Rights of Disabled People, sign language can be made an official language here too.” “Braille is a wonderful experience,” Stan says, “as it enables blind people to read and relax, just as we read and relax.” It is clear that there will always be a need for guide dogs too. It is not just the seeing eyes that they provide, but the companionship and loyal friendship they give that helps open up new worlds for the beneficiaries. Stan would like to see the government pass legislation that supports the work that he and his team do and would like the local community itself to be more considerate. “Things like not parking on the pavement are important,” says Stan, “being considerate and making space for a guide dog and user to pass, not touching working guide dogs. So many ways we could improve things with just a little more effort, but of course this all starts with us!” M rs. Camelia Platt was born and raised in Craiova. She met Capt. Stan Platt in 1993 and began working as a volunteer for Light Into Europe. In 1997 Camelia moved to Bucharest and from 2003 onwards she began to be involved full-time with the charity. Camelia and Stan have a son, George, who will turn seven in July 2016. Whilst initially working as a volunteer, Camelia reached a turning point in her professional career when she realized the corporate life she led didn’t really fit with her life ideals and aspirations. “I’d rather help somebody else,” says Camelia, “you can make a huge difference in somebody’s life, without worrying about corporate limitations.” Camelia came from the PR and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) field, but was frustrated when the corporate guidelines did not allow very worthy causes and desperate people to be supported. Which is why she switched to full-time working for the charity. “I then realized I wasn’t trained in working with vulnerable people,” says Camelia, “I needed to be qualified. So I became qualified as an Occupational Therapist in the UK.” In 2003, Camelia carried out a countrywide analysis of the needs of disabled people in Romania. She studied information and statistics from special schools, services provided for disabled, CSR reports from companies and so on. Through this she identified the needs of the blind and deaf uploads/Litterature/ light-into-europe-foundation-report-2015.pdf