To celebrate the Helen Keller National Center’s newly renovated independent living kitchen, deaf-blind students learned to make bagels with Brooklyn-based bagel connoisseur Sam Silverman.
Silverman, popularly known as the bagel ambassador, taught deaf-blind participants to roll dough, boil and bake bagels then top them off with sesame seeds, poppy seeds and homemade everything mix.
“This is a very tactile class; it’s very hands-on,” Silverman said. “They’re doing a fantastic job feeling the dough, getting the texture right, getting the shaping right. I think they’re well suited for it. And the bagels that they’re making, I’m personally very excited to eat.”
The Helen Keller National Center in Port Washington is a Long Island-based national non-profit that offers programs and services for deaf-blind individuals. Deaf-blind participants in the independent living program develop crucial skills for independent living and employment.
The new kitchen helps the independent living program participants learn to navigate a kitchen safely and cook for themselves. The customized kitchen has four separate stations that have been adapted with accessibility features, including a working stove, ovens, and microwaves. The kitchen comes equipped with the necessary tools of a typical kitchen.
“This really is a great experience, using different tactile techniques and modifications,” the supervisor of the independent living program, Maricar Marquez, said. “So it’s really great to get the DeafBlind perspective that they can be bakers. They can do things like this.”
The Helen Keller National Center’s Comprehensive Vocational Program is the sole vocational and rehabilitation program in the U.S. for deaf and blind individuals who wish to achieve personal and professional goals. The program trains in assistive/adaptive technologies, vocational services, orientation and mobility, communication, and independent living training through a person-centered approach.
Visit helenkeller.org for more information.
