Blind
from page CI
rare cases. Risks are more
.intense in operations for conve
nience. According to Branch,
this procedure requires the use _
of the eximer laser, which dis
rupts the bonds between the
cells.
"Essentially it explodes the
cell and lets the contents of the
cell out. It then erases layers of
the inner cornea or stroma,?
Branch said.
Although thw laser has been
around since the "50s. it was an
industrial tool. Only in the last
10 years has the laser been used
for clinical delivery on human
tissue. Before, it was used to cut
diamonds and to write on hard
metals. ^
According to Stephanie Tew
of TLC Laser Eye Centers, the
procedure takes about 15 min
utes per eye.
"The purpose of the proce
dure is to sculpt or reshape the
cornea, or the inner eye....It
etches the prescription onto the
eye permanently." she said.
Although Elcock under
stood the risks involved in the
procedure, she also saw it as a
gift from God and a way to
demonstrate His power in the
world.
"I know this is God. He per
forms miracles every single day.
and He has done it with my
eyes." she said.
In her sewing room, this
poster hangs above her Quan
tum XL-100 sewing machine.
She calls it her Lambourguine.
She has at least six different
sewing machines, and each one
has a unique purpose. Over the
years she has done wedding
dresses for more than 50 wed
dings and for various proms.
She also has designed choir
robes for several ' churches.
Most recently, she created afro
centric robes for the Senior
Choir of her church. United
Metropolitan Baptist Church.
' "I don't allow anyone to
come in my shop without know
ing about my history of blind
ness and the ministry He gave
me as a result. 1 pray with the
brides about their wedding
plans and the dresses they
desire." Elcock said.
Last Friday, when Elcock,
now 48. picked up the first pair
of glasses prepared for her
when she was 18 months old,
she burst into tears.
"All I could think of was
that I had to keep these thick
glasses by my bedside, and I had
to wear them constantly if I
wanted to see at all." she said.
"I never learned to Swim as a
child because I could never
remove my glasses."
As a child. Elcock once
broke her lenses, and she had to
stay out of school for three
weeks until they were remade.
When Elcock was 18 months
old. her grandmother noticed
that she would often walk into
walls and into other objects in
the home. Her mother. Willow
Elcock. then took her to three
opticians.' who all diagnosed
severe nearsightedness.
Elcock was declared legally
?
blind in 1952.
Finally, a Brooklyn doctor,
Martin Bodian. decided to take
on the task of preparing glasses
for Elcock after he discovered
that the youngster had an astig
matism. The doctor also sug
gested that her mother put her
in special classes to learn Braille
because she would be complete
ly blind by the time she would
reach puberty.
"When my mother received
the news that I was legally blind
and never would see, she began
to pray< and she taught me to
pray," Elcock said. "Her hope
was never in man. but in God."
Willow Elcock learned to
trust in God when she grew up
in an orphanage as a child. She
had to kno^ that there was
someone greater that she.
"I always worried about my
daughter caring for herself as
she grew up and went to
school," she said. "God has
brought me through so much in
my life. I can never thank Him
enough."
Each year, Bodian prepared
new glasses for Elcock. Willow
Elcock also did her part. "I had
to use ISO watt bulbs in the
house to provide a lot of light. I
also requested that she sit in
front of her classes, at school,
since she could not see from the
back of the class," she said.
"She did very well in school, but
she had to almost put her head
directly on the desk to see her
work."
A crisis came in 1964 when
Elcock reached puberty. She
had severe headaches and
blacked out at school.
A checkup revealed that the
vision in her right eye had
improved, but the left eye
remained the same. Bodian
could offer no medical explana
tion for this occurrence.
"Apparently my vision was
going in the' opposite direction
of what he had predicted.
Prayers were being answered,"
Elcock said. "I was born with
poof vision, but my mother
refused to believe that her baby
was blind. She never treated me
like 1 had a handicap,"
Her brothers, William and
James, never saw her as vision
impaired. As she followed them
on the playground, she became
one of the most outstanding
athletes at her school'.
Bobby Montgomery, cur
rently a resident of Winston
Salem, who grew up with
Elcock in the Red Hook Pro
jects in south Brooklyn, remem
bers her well. Elcock attended
?P.S. 30, and Montgomery
attended John J. High School
and Brooklyn Technical School.
"'We used to pick on her
about her thick glasses. We
called her four eyes and cork
bottle eyes.' Kids will be kids.
But we couldn't say too much
because she was an excellent
athlete in track, volleyball and
handball," Montgomery sajd.
However, Elcock was aware
that "those 'cork bottle' lenses
made me look ugly." ?,
The fact became painfully
clear when she removed her
lenses to take her photo for her
high school yearbook. A friend
said to her, "If I had known
that you were that pretty, 1
would have dated you in high
school." Although it was meant
as a compliment, it crushed
Elcock's spirit. She was able.to
secure her first pair of contact
lenses in 1982.
"It was then I discovered*
that grass was individual blades
and not like carpet. I: could
only see shadows of color, but
now I* can distinguish more,"
she said.
She continued to make great
strides toward success. She
completed her B.A. degree in
elementary education at City
College of New York and grad
uated with a master's degree in
reading from Bank Street Col
lege of Education.
She is currentfy a Title
I/Chapter I Early Involvement
Instructor. She goes put into
homes to show parents how to
prepare their toddlers and
kindergartners for first grade.
"Dr. Bodian confessed to me J
that he didn't understand why I 1
wasn't blind and that he did not 1
expect me to accomplish all that
I have." Elcock said. "He called
me his miracle baby. Now I
know that prayer works."
Elcock sent a letter to the
doctors responsible for helping
?her see.
"You are a part of phase
k three of my life," she wrote.
"I've always been told that I
couldn't or shouldn't do certain
things because of my vision.
I've asked God to help me in
everything I tried, and he has
been my eyes."
,
Grandma Regina tkock helpt bar granddaughter Deonica Raid "With her talad.
i ????iii
Regina Elcock and her mother; Willow Elcock, examine the first pair of glasses that were fashioned for
Regina when she was 8 months old,-in 1952.
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Nowiyou can recycle Nickel-Cadmium
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^TT^EASY. Just Iflok for the RBRC Battery
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For more information, call
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or visit our website, 'V
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k The Charge Up
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W spokesperson is
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N, Cri ^ B
Look for B
the Seal
nor^co* puMc mwv** *yaruatvr crMMtopnmMN rwcyc>nq I
g? Mch?l CmOrrmgn (H-Ctf) mchmymtte baMrnw I
Bought his first car in 1941.
' ?'**? ^ ( ? ?" % *
4 '' , *
, .. H
Worked as a mechanic
for the Department of
-Transportation.
Can no longer
remember how to drive.
c
That's why we have the Adult Day Care and Alzheimer's /^v
Center, where he can receive the kind of daily care he f nl
needs and still live at home. Senior Services is dedicated (\) ]
to helpihg Forsyth County's eldest citizens live as
independently as they can If you know someone
who can use our services, or if you 'd like to SENIOR SERUICES
help us, call 725-0907. Helping Our lldertg live With Dignity