Last week on Thursday the 12th, the St. Louis Zoo held its first ever See Like Me event, an event dedicated to those in the blind community. With the help of the Sight Collective, a coalition of STL based organizations, the Director of Diversity, Equity, Accessibility and Inclusion Rory James, were able to tackle a very real issue, how can those who are blind or partially sighted experience the zoo in a similar way to everyone else.
The Tables
Nestled in the lower level of The Living World rotunda, several organizations set up shop with resource information, tactile representations of animals, maps, and more, as well as treats and candy for the attendees.
Docents from the Zoo brought out fur and horns for everyone to feel, as well as a frog exhibit that allowed for attendees to hear what sounds the different species of frogs made.
Penguins!
At about 11:30, attendees filed out the doors to head towards either the Penguin event or to feed the giraffes. I was only able to get to the penguins myself, but both the giraffes and the penguins were closed so that the See Like Me attendees were permitted, allowing for specific accessibility needs to be met.
A sighted tour guide and trained expert led the tour into the Penguin and Puffin habitat where everyone got to learn about the different species of penguins, different types of food that they eat, as well as various different factoids about the incredible animal.
You ever pet a stingray?
After everyone had a chance to peruse the zoo, attendees were notified that the Stingray event was about to begin. Dozens made their way to the stingrays, where zookeepers helped lead everyone to the pool. Stingrays of all different sizes glided through the water, over and under one another, sometimes even jumping out of the water, spurring many oohs and ahhs from the participants.
Aside from the amazing descriptions and information given by the tour guide, attendees were able to stick their hands in the water and actually feel the stingrays, something that left smiles on every face there.
Thank You!
All in all, a resounding success for our friends over at St. Louis Zoo. Being the first event of its kind in the area, I’m excited to see where it goes from here. A very special thank you to all those who came out to support the event, such as Lighthouse for the Blind – St. Louis, Missouri School for the Blind and so many others that showed up.
Wow what a phenomenal idea!