S2E22 - VIP Coaching in the Dark

Read transcriptVIP Coaching in the Dark: Build Skills, Experience the Light! Meet VIP Coaching in the Dark: Contact Them: [e-mail] https://www.vipcoachinginthedark.com/ Desirée A. Christian VIP Coach Desirée A. Christian is a Visually Impaired Person Coach, entrepreneur, and lifelong learner with a passion for helping others navigate transitions with resilience, clarity, and kindness. Raised in a multigenerational blind family, she grew up with independence as the expectation and learned early that determination, not outside barriers, shapes success. Over the past 25 years, she has balanced managing a household with complex medical and dietary needs, raising two medically fragile daughters, and pursuing her own growth as a legally blind woman. For the last four years, Desirée has taught virtual classes and led peer support groups for people experiencing sight loss. Two of those years were spent as a hired coach and facilitator with the Hull Foundation, where she expanded her reach and deepened her experience supporting the blind community. Her professional life extends beyond coaching. She is the founder of FlauntYourAbility.com, “Cheeky Tees for those daring enough to be human,” an online shop featuring witty disability-related and fandom-inspired designs, along with custom work. She has also volunteered with the American Council of the Blind, fandom-based charities, and other community organizations. Her creative spirit shows up in her love for sewing, knitting, dance, and world cuisine, and her intellectual curiosity is fed by reading more than 150 books a year across history, science, and fiction. With decades of choir singing behind her and experiences ranging from solo traveling to Alaska to see the aurora borealis, to experimenting with diverse crafts, Desirée embodies adaptability and joy in exploration. Marja Byers VIP Coach Marja Byers has lived through sight loss in ways few can imagine—three times in her life she has been declared legally blind. Each experience bringing its own challenges and lessons. Today, with only a small field of vision remaining, she uses her white cane with confidence and a deep understanding of what it means to adapt and keep moving forward. Before blindness changed her path, Marja spent more than 30 years working in obstetrics as a surgical technician. Since losing her sight in 2010, she has dedicated herself to serving the blind and visually impaired community. She has led Blindskills as Executive Director, provided vocational assessments, taught Zoom classes with the Hull Foundation and Learning Center, and is a Certified Peer Support Specialist in Oregon—a role that allows her to use her lived experience to guide and encourage others. Her passion for this work began at her very first support group meeting. Feeling overwhelmed and disconnected, Marja remembers the simple moment when the woman beside her gently touched her arm as she grew emotional. That small act of kindness sparked something inside her: “This is where you belong.” From that day forward, she has been committed to helping others find the same sense of community and hope. When she isn’t coaching, Marja loves listening to audiobooks and playing music on the jukebox at her neighborhood spot—curating the mood of the room one song at a time. Her gift for creating connection, whether through music or mentorship, is what makes her work so meaningful. Marja brings warmth, humor, professional skill, and lived experience to VIP Coaching, believing wholeheartedly that no one should face vision loss alone. Teresa Christian VIP Coach Teresa Christian is a certified Empowerment Coach with VIP Coaching in the Dark, where she helps people with vision loss build independence, confidence, and resilience so they can create the lives they truly want to live. Her coaching approach is rooted in compassion, persistence, and humor. Believing that growth is easier when learning feels enjoyable, she brings warmth and positivity into the process—even when challenges arise. Clients often describe Teresa as someone who can find clarity in chaos, turn obstacles into opportunities, and keep going until solutions are found. Teresa’s background spans over 15 years as a massage therapy business owner, followed by studying social work with direct service experience serving the senior and disabled populations. Her work with those populations continued with her recent role as a Sight Loss Instructor at the Hull Foundation and Learning Center. She has also given back extensively through her volunteer work with the American Council of the Blind (ACB). Teresa served on the ACB of Oregon state board for ten years, edited the state newsletter for eight years, and led a local chapter as president for six years. On the national level, she contributed as vice president for an ACB affiliate for blind entrepreneurs for three years. Alongside her career and volunteer service, Teresa raised two ...