Feature Story
Luis Raymundo: "You have to be blind to be cool"

Sitting in a local restaurant and sipping a Caribbean flavored smoothie, Luis Raymundo quietly remarked, "We built a canoe and it floated!" At a glance, Luis seemed very matter-of-fact but then a twinkle appeared and the corners of his mouth turned up. "It must be all the epoxy we put on it!"

Luis Raymundo (right) with Susan Sherry, an Orientation and Mobility Specialist at the New Hampshire Association for the Blind.

The infamous canoe was built last summer, at the Inter-Actions Camp, by campers who were blind and visually impaired. During the school year some of the campers get together every few months to play Goal Ball. And this summer, Luis is working as a CIT (Counselor-In-Training) during the campÕs new music session. Luis and other campers are constructing special African drums under direction of Glenn Gunn from the New Hampshire Association for the Blind and Steve Ferris, from the University of Vermont, who is a guest artist at Inter-Actions.

Luis is a 15 year old young man from Manchester who is visually impaired. But nothing stops him. He takes advantage of every opportunity that comes his way. He builds canoes, plays the clarinet, marches in the marching band and even attended the National Federation of the Blind Youth Slam at Johns Hopkins University for several days earlier this summer. Luis was the only student from New Hampshire chosen for this leadership camp for boys interested in math and science.

When Luis is not at club meetings (Sierra Club, City Year and SCA, the Student Conservation Association or CLC) to name a few, he enjoys hanging out with friends, three of whom are also visually impaired. Luis likes to say, "You have to be blind to be cool." Though prone to using the Jack Benny one-liner from time to time, Luis is a serious student. He reads Braille and likes to announce that he is bi-lingual: Spanish, English, and Braille.

At school, he prefers Large Print text books and uses his laptop to take notes in class, as well as a CCTV and Zoomtext software for homework assignments. Susan Sherry, an Orientation & Mobility Specialist at the New Hampshire Association for the Blind.

Blind, has worked with Luis since September 2006. The day we met, Ms. Sherry had brought a new white cane for Luis to try. After the interview, the two of them headed out onto the rain-soaked streets of Concord to navigate their way to the car and back to Manchester. The white cane guides Luis on city streets as well as on hikes in the mountains of New Hampshire. He likes to hike in a group and carries his cane in his backpack.

Luis has three brothers, one older and two younger. His father and mother, an electrician and an LNA, are very proud of their sons, and encourage their many talents. Sometimes though, Luis says his mother "rolls her eyes" at their antics!