Success Champions
Sometimes a blind person does need help crossing a street: the fallacy of the independent business owner By Dave Bahr
“Even though I am extremely selfsufficient, there will always be a time when I need help from somebody to do something.�
O
ne day in the summer of 2011, a blind man and his guide dog stood at the corner of one of the biggest intersections in Schenectady New York. There were turn lanes and the cars rushed by. Suddenly, several people offered to help him cross the street. He allowed a woman to help since they were going the same way. True, there had been many crossings like this that he had crossed before, but the day was hot and all of the noise was getting to him. Everyone made it across safely,
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the man said thank you and goodbye to the woman and he and his dog went on their way. You have probably figured out by this point that I am the person in the story. My name is Dave Bahr and I was born totally blind. I was doing an internship in Schenectady when that incident occurred. I had implicit trust in my guide dog, Katie. We had crossed dozens of streets like this one but we were both very tired. Asking for assistance was the right thing to do. In the main, I am a very independent person and do things
