“Ira:” Cathy’s Other Half

 “I was 39 when I started to lose my sight,” said Dr. Cathy Beaudoin. “It was wet macular degeneration and it wasn’t long before I realized that I wouldn’t be able to work as an accountant anymore.” To Cathy, the precision and accuracy of numbers and how they translate to life, was a most special gift. To be threatened with the loss of this gift could have been overwhelming for many people.

“When I first started losing my eyesight, somebody gave me a piece of advice and it was the best advice I ever received,” Cathy said. “If you’re losing your eyesight, prepare for the ultimate loss of vision sooner rather than later.”

With these words to guide her, Cathy cut back on her corporate responsibilities and went back to school to get a doctorate. She always wanted to teach and she saw this as her opportunity to go back and get her Ph.D. in order to continue with accounting as part of her career.
“It was a difficult transition,” she says. “I was a fairly high-level executive and here I was going back down to the bottom. My first year was particularly difficult because that was the time when I was really coming to terms with the loss of much of my eyesight.”

While she was in graduate school, Cathy often thought of getting a guide dog but wanted to be a bit more settled before making the huge commitment. Ultimately, she persevered, graduated, and landed a job on the faculty in the Business School at The University of Vermont, in Burlington. Cathy’s lack of vision did not hinder her ability to function in an academic environment. But she was always self-conscious about using her cane.

“I’m a university professor. I’m always confident and always comfortable in my work environment.” she said. “But I didn’t like going to the grocery store, shopping for basic necessities, or just hanging out because of my attitude towards having a cane.” Finally, feeling settled at her job and new life in Burlington, she started the application process with Fidelco, an organization that she was well aware of having grown up in Enfield, CT.

While waiting to hear about a dog placement, Cathy experienced more bleeding in her “good” eye. That’s when Jason (Jay) Stankoski and Mary Chappell, a Fidelco placement specialist and apprentice trainer, respectively, arrived with “Ira,” her Fidelco guide dog. Cathy’s life immediately changed for the better.

“He’s definitely given me confidence; that’s the biggest thing,” said Cathy. “Confidence at being out in public. I’m not so self-conscious. I’m not worried about going places. Ira is opening up my life, especially outside of work.”

Jay and Mary saw the profound change in Cathy during the weeks of placement. “Ira is more than a guide; he is her companion,” Jay said. Cathy agrees. “Ira is great for me. He’s the other half of me that I’ve been missing.”

(Editor’s note: “Ira” was raised by Mary Ann Hilpert.)

Jay and Mary’s In-community Placement with Cathy Beaudoin represents another step in improving both the placement and apprentice programs at Fidelco. Under the guidance of Jennifer Caley, Fidelco’s director of apprentice trainers, Fidelco apprentices Mary Chappell, Lindsay Kababik, and Kim Miazga are assigned to placement specialists, like Jay Stankoski, and participate in three-week In-community Placements with clients.

Jennifer describes the process. “During the second half of their three-year apprenticeship the
focus of apprentice education shifts from training guide dogs to student instruction. An apprentice will observe several different instructors working with students receiving their first or successor dogs. They then become more involved with instruction themselves. When the placement specialist and I feel they are ready, the apprentice moves into a primary instructor role. This hands-on experience is vital to becoming an experienced, well-rounded and professional instructor. You can’t get this type of education from a book or classroom.”

Cathy Beaudoin only has high praise for the pair. “Jay and Mary are the best. I have a lot of respect for them. They want to contribute and make people’s lives better. I haven’t met two better people in a long, long, long time.”