ALICEVILLE — Sarah Fitzwater sat down at her ham radio table on a recent evening to visit with a woman in Emporia. The contact was made special because the two women are blind.
Sarah, 37, has been blind since birth. Ham radio is her newest adventure.
A gift of three years ago of a ham radio sparked her interest.
“I’ve always been interested in other people and their hobbies,” which prompted her to learn all she could about ham radios, including involvement with the Iola Amateur Radio Club.
In December she took the test for a technician license, which opened a new world.
“She passed with flying colors,” said Ralph Romig of the IARC.
Other members also have helped Fitzwater pursue the new passion, including installing an antenna on the side of her home as well as a better radio.
That’s when Sarah made her first contact with the woman in Emporia.
“I was a little nervous about what to say at first,” Sarah said.
“Having the antenna and new radio has opened up a whole new world for her,” said Sarah’s mother, Bridgett Fitzwater.
SARAH grew up in Linn County and attended public schools, with the help of a paraprofessional. She attended summer sessions at a school for the blind a couple of years, learning to type and cook.
After graduating from high school, she charged ahead with online courses through Johnson County Community College and eventually earned an associates degree from nearby Fort Scott Community College.
“Technology is great today,” she said. “Courses are very accessible to the visually impaired.”
Sarah said the associate degree is just a stepping stone to what she hopes is a home-based career in counseling couples on how to take care of personal finances.
“I want a better life for others and for myself,” she said, allowing that “sometimes I forget that I’m blind. I don’t really see it as an obstacle.”
Sarah admits to being a “big reader,” occasionally through Braille, but more often with talking books, which “I like better. Braille books are too heavy.”
