So, how does a deaf woman chat with a blind woman on the internet?
I recently had the opportunity to connect with Ronda Del Boccio, the gal who won the Affiliate Marketing Challenge that I wrote about previously on Disaboom:
Storyation Lady Wins Marketing Contest. Ronda was the only person with a disability and the only woman in the contest.
I originally planned to call Ronda using CSDVRS.com, a relay service through a videophone. Ronda mentioned that she uses Skype to call her deaf friend so I downloaded that instead. Ronda listened to me through my webcam and she typed back her responses. It worked beautifully.
Ronda and I discovered that we had a lot in common, including a background in counseling and experience working in Centers for Independent Living. Ronda works from home, running a business marketing her books and affiliates.
Ronda dabbled briefly in marketing, working as the Director of Marketing for a training center for the blind. "A couple of years ago, I knew I would and could write books," said Ronda. "I didn't know much about marketing on the web."
Ronda became involved with a mentoring program and knew that she wanted to work from home. "In the process of learning how to market a book, etc., I learned a lot about business and marketing. I now mentor people who want to learn how to work from home."
Ronda encourages people with disabilities to explore their options when it comes to disability benefits and running a business. "People with disabilities who have benefits can still start a home-based business through a PASS plan or by setting up an LLC," she said. "Check with the Social Security Administration. Anyone receiving benefits who is concerned about healthcare costs-- you can keep your benefits and have a business." Ronda wishes that more people with disabilities knew about the ways they could work from home and still keep their benefits. "It could mean financial freedom for so many people with disabilities," she said.
Ronda has been blind from birth. "One of the hardest things about growing up blind was people talking around me ("People would ask my mom, 'Does she want...' ) and people deciding I couldn't do things because of not seeing well."," she explained. "Tell me I can't and I'm like 'Watch me!'"
Getting around has been made easier by her service dog, Molly Flagtail, who even has her own Facebook page. Ronda has trained two service dogs herself, Thunder and Molly. Her first dog, Thunder, was a smooth-coated collie and Molly was rescued from a shelter when she was four months old. "Growing up, I didn't even use a cane because when you can see some, the world wants you to be and act sighted. The best thing that I ever did in college was learn to use a cane."
One of the other "best things" that she learned while growing up was to type by touch and to read. Ronda was also inspired by a friend's mother who was totally blind. "It was great seeing someone who was more blind than me live independently."
Ronda and I talked about the importance of role models for kids with disabilities. I loved what she had to say about surrounding ourselves with good people: "We become the five people we're around the most," she explained. "So, if you're around complainers then you become like that. If you're around people that are making things happen, then you can make things happen. I always tell people if you have a 'friend ' around who is negative, have as little contact as possible."
Today, Ronda is hard at work on her second book and each day, her business continues to grow. She specializes in helping people to tell their own stories through her
Storyation website. Storyaction is the process of creating your story into the world, she explains on her site. You can learn more about Ronda here:
