NFB stuff and Notes

Joe Ruffalo interviews friend and colleague Jerry Whittle: April 2014

Notes:

-Retired
grew up in SC
attended Clemson University (1979) and received a bachelor's degree from University of TN in English

met Mr. Donald Capps at SC Camp for the Blind and University of South Carolina at Aiken

He has been married for 30 years.
he got his first job in 1975 in Louisiana where he worked for 28 years
playwright
teacher
went blind discovered RP at about age 6 or 7 yrs. old
; he was not diagnosed as blind until he was 15 years old; since 29 years ago
playing baseball
American legion Team-coached kids (at about 15-19 years old)
during night games he could not see the ball
white cane/Braille was not used at 15 yrs. old
rural mountain area in SC
freshman- started working at a local bookstore in SC as stock/labor money
worked one year at Clemson bookstore
dropped out of college with 1.86 GPA
he read numerous books with his own vision
wrote literature
he wrote Dr. Kenneth jernigan a letter after seeing him on television
Donald Capps introduced him to NFB of SC where he served as pres. there
1979 - 3.45 GPA
he won scholarships:
he did not use Braille until graduate school
He learned Braille while sitting at a kitchen table
he started teaching English
he was a Braille teacher at Louisiana Center for the Blind
He learned Braille at age 33 years old.
He had improved his Braille reading speed to around 60-120 dots or about 60-100 words a minute

75 readers read over 300 words per minute

at age 88 years old he is still learning Braille

Who influenced you?
Marshall Tucker
Joanne Wilson (canes)
Pam Allen teaching her students Braille at Louisiana Center for the Blind
he won an NFB scholarship at the Louisiana Center for the Blind
while interning in OH; he came back and was learning Braille at 35 words per minute
he gave a speech at his first convention with Dr. Kenneth Jernigan


playwright, counselor/writer
What role has diversity played in your life?
working with students all over the U.S. and the world; I think in a positive way about blindness
He has taught Native American students and people on all different levels

Why do you write?
to educate, to motivate, to inspire, and to aggregate; to believe in yourself; not too much encouragement
He started out with a journal and wrote music. He was shy and didn't talk alot
He won Short Story of the Year

1985 he came to work at LCB where "The Glass Menagerie" by Tennessee Williams was being performed in mountains; developed teamwork; sent to Pam Allen and came to Joanne Wilsonhe wrote one and performed one a play at convention

He has written 21 plays in total; his plays are about Dr. Jernigan and Dr. Jacob Bolotin, "the world's first Blind Doctor" (Saran/Bass; Charlotte, NC 1992)
He has written four books including Slingshot which can be found on Kindle or Barnes & Noble Nook.
He writes about blindness and blind characters; even a book about Blind Veterans at LCB with a realistic approach.

Bookperks4

The Believer by Joakim Zander
Deep Dish by Mary Kay Andrews
The Novice by Thich Nhat Hanh
For All Our Sins by T.M.E. Walsh
Sleep with the Lights On by Maggie Shayne
The Fill-In Boyfriend by Kasie West
The Women in the Castle by Jessica Shattuck
Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford
Fatal Flaw by William Lashner
Stealing Home by Sherryl Woods
Across the Long Sea by Sarah Remy
The Rift Uprising by Amy S. Foster
The Ghost House by Helen Phifer
No One Else Can Have You by Kathleen Hale
Flat Stanley's Worldwide Adventures #1: The Mount Rushmore Calamity by Jeff Brown
The Thirteenth Man by J.L. Doty
The Savage Girl by Alex Shakar
Rough Crossings by Simon Schama
311 Pelican Court by Debbie Macomber
Knowing the Score by Kat Latham
Field of Graves by J.T. Ellison
Reign of Shadows by Sophie Jordan
Mr. Clarinet by Nick Stone
Twice Tempted by Jeaniene Frost
Funeral Games by Jay Allan
Triggered by Elle James
The Wanderer by Sharon Creech
Garden of Lamentations by Deborah Crombie
The Little Book of Hygge by Meik Wiking
A Closed and Common Orbit by Becky Chambers
Nefertiti by Nick Drake
The Secrets Between Sisters by Annie Lyons
Killer WASPs by Amy Korman
The Nine-Month Marriage by Christine Rimmer
Dark Transmissions by Davila LeBlanc
Surviving Hitler by Andrea Warren
The Man Who Walked on Water by Jacob Beaver
Trigger Warning by Neil Gaiman
Amberville by Tim Davys
Day Watch by Sergei Lukyanenko
Little Critter: Snowball Soup by Mercer Mayer
Snow-walker by Catherine Fisher
Brides for Brothers by Debbie Macomber
The Wolf of Allendale by Hannah Spencer
The Professor and the Madman by Simon Winchester
A Certain Age by Beatriz Williams
Someone Will Be With You Shortly by Lisa Kogan
The Country of Ice Cream Star by Sandra Newman
When We Were Strangers by Pamela Schoenewaldt
Rules for A Rogue by Christy Carlyle
The Map of True Places by Brunonia Barry
Spirit Week Showdown (The Magnificent Mya Tibbs #1) by Crystal Allen
Crime Scene At Cardwell Ranch by B.J. Daniels
Daring to Fall by T.J. Kline
The Heiress of Water by Sandra Rodriguez Barron
What Would Martin Say? by Clarence B. Jones
The Legacy of Lucy Harte by Emma Heatherington
Driftwood Cottage by Sherryl Woods
Her Montana Cowboy by Valerie Hansen
Dwelling Places by Vinita Hampton Wright
The Ultimate Diet Revolution by Jim Karas
Brighton by Michael Harvey
Racing the Devil by Charles Todd

Bookperks2

Let the Trumpet Sound by Stephen B. Oates
Mudwoman by Joyce Carol Oates
Daughters of the North by Sarah Hall
Looking for Trouble by Victoria Dahl
The Guild Conspiracy by Brooke Johnson
The Guardian Herd: Starfire by Jennifer Lynn Alvarez
The Rogue Retrieval by Dan Koboldt
Chicken Soup with Rice by Maurice Sendak
Happily Ever After: Companion to the Selection Series by Kiera Cass
The Bling Ring by Nancy Jo Sales
Summer at Willow Lake by Susan Wiggs
The Genius Files: Mission Unstoppable by Dan Gutman
Stress Free for Good by Dr. Kenneth R. Pelletier and Dr. Frederic Luskin
Batman Classic: Winter Wasteland by Donald Lemke, Eric A. Gordon, and Steven E. Gordon
Family Sins by Sharon Sala
Natchez Burning by Greg Iles
Don't Sing at the Table by Adriana Trigiani
All Chained Up by Sophie Jordan
Dog Crazy by Meg Donohue
The Honey Trap by Mary Jayne Baker
Wedding Ring by Emilie Richards
Seven Black Diamonds by Melissa Marr
The Secret Zoo by Bryan Chick
Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard

Hands Free Life: Nine Habits for Overcoming Distraction, Living Better, and Loving More by Rachel Macy Stafford

Garden of Lamentations by Deborah Crombie
To Dwell in Darkness by Deborah Crombie
The Roots of the Olive Tree by Courtney Miller Santo
One Last Summer at Hideaway Bay by Zoe Cook
The Green Smoothie Prescription by Victoria Boutenko
Three Delays by Charlie Smith
Whispered promises by Brenda Jackson
Masterminds by Gordon Korman
Unbound: A Story of Snow and Self-Discovery by Steph Jagger
Keep Me Safe by Maya Banks
About A Girl by Lindsey Kelk
Burning Glass by Kathryn Purdie
The Eighth Day by Dianne K. Salerni
A Ghostly Murder by Tonya Kappes
Minding Her Boss's Business by Janice Maynard
Don't Give Up, Don't Give In by Louis Zamperini
The Mermaids Singing by Lisa Carey
Flamecaster (Shattered Realms) by Cinda Williams Chima
Exclusively Yours by Shannon Stacey
Only the DEad Know Burbank by Bradford Tatum
Seven Wonders Book 1: The Colossus Rises by Peter Lerangis
Happy Gut by Vincent Pedre
The Riverman by Alex Gray
The Piper by Charles Todd
Crooked Heart by Lissa Evans
How to be Idle by Tom Hodgkinson
Sea of Shadows by Kelley Armstrong
1963: The Year of the Revolution by Ariel Leve and Robin Morgan
The Ruin of the Roman Empire by James J. O'Donnell
Septimus Heap, Book One: Magyk by Angie Sage
Slow Dancing with a Stranger by Meryl Comer
Clownfish Blues by Tim Dorsey
Coconut Cowboy by Tim Dorsey
Jackie After O by Tina Cassidy
First Women by Kate Andersen Brower
Letters to Jackie by Ellen Fitzpatrick
Jackie Style by Pamela Clarke Keogh

Bookperks

Bookperks:

After Anna by Alex Lake
The Girl Who Came Home by Hazel Gaynor
Brief Encounters with Che Guevara by Ben Fountain
Run Away by Laura Salters
Tunneling to the Center of the Earth by Kevin Wilson
Exposed by Jane Velez-Mitchell
Mezza Italiana by Zoe Boccabella
The Football Fan's Manifesto by Michael Tunison
The Skinny Rules by Molly Morgan
Beyond Suspicion by James Grippando
Powerhouse by James Andrew Miller
Wildalone by Krassi Zourkova
The Home Place by Carrie La Seur
Organize Your Mind, Organize Your Life by Margaret Moore and Paul Hammerness
Husband Hunters by Genevieve Gannon
The Cold Between by Elizabeth Bonesteel
Eat Dirt by Dr. Josh Axe
In The Quiet by Eliza Henry-Jones
Midnighters #1: The Secret Hour by Scott Westerfeld
The Alkaline Cure by Dr. Stephan Domenig
Depraved Heart by Patricia Cornwell
The Story of Land and Sea by Katy Simpson Smith
Of Things Gone Astray by Janina Matthewson
Darling, You Can't Do Both by Janet Kestin and Nancy Vonk
Eat Complete by Dr. Drew Ramsey, M.D.
The Princess Diaries by Meg Cabot
A Mind of Your Own by Kelly Brogan, M.D.
One Day the Soldiers Came by Charles London
Birdie by Tracey Lindberg
Mindfulness on the Go by Padraig O'Morain
The Fifth Letter by Nicola Moriarty
The Qualities of Wood by Mary Vensel White
Destination Thailand by Katy Colins
Victory by Linda Hirshman
Clean Green Eats by Candice Kumai
The Oracle of Stamboul by Michael David Lukas
Forbidden by Kimberley Griffiths Little
The Beauty Detox Foods by Kimberly Snyder
The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: Book I by Maryrose Wood
Make It Happen by Lara Casey
Live By Night by Dennis Lehane
Etched In Sand by Regina Calcaterra
Private Novelist by Nell Zink
The Longevity Book by Cameron Diaz
Water to the Angels by Les Standiford
The Negative Calorie Diet by Rocco DiSpirito
Nixon and Kissinger by Robert Dallek
Stop Whining, Start Living by Dr. Laura Schlessinger
The Beauty Detox Power by Kimberly Snyder
Three Days in January: Dwight Eisenhower's Final Mission by Bret Baier



Be Frank With Me by Julia Claiborne Johnson
A Year of Being Single by Fiona Collins
The Aztec Diet by Dr. Bob Arnot
The Jewel by Amy Ewing
The Vitamix Cookbook by Jodi Berg
A Series of Unfortunate Events #1: The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket
Smartcuts by Shane Snow
Sugar Crush by Dr. Richard Jacoby and Raquel Baldelomar
The Bookshop on Rosemary Lane by Ellen Berry
Notes from A Small Island by Bill Bryson
George Balanchine by Robert Gottlieb
Cook. Nourish.Glow by Amelia Freer