Photo by Neidy Gutierrez and Adrienne J. Romero / SOC Images.
Editor’s Note: This is a sponsored post.
On the eve of Ana Centeno’s 20th birthday, the St. Joseph’s School for the Blind (SJSB) student radiated as she sat down in the colorful physical and occupational therapy center, reflecting on her 16 years at the school. When asked about what the school has done for her, she smiled and replied, “I love being here. I got to make new friends [and] also got to build my confidence.”
Centeno—who was born with anophthalmia, a rare eye condition where a baby does not have one or both eyes at birth—is one of the many students who are blind, visually impaired or who have multiple disabilities that found a home within St. Joseph’s School for the Blind.
Since 1891, SJSB has been providing opportunities for students with disabilities to learn and live as independently and productively as possible. Centeno is just one example of how a generous donation can provide an engaging, meaningful and fun educational journey, and strengthen a person’s ability rather than disability.
“People donating to my school it’s so amazing because anything people donates to us, we get to use them, we get to use any items. We get to explore anything basically and we also get to learn about different organizations,” she told Slice of Culture as she continued smiling.
And this coming May 1, people have the opportunity to keep SJSB’s impact going.
St. Joseph’s School for the Blind is one of the many participants in this year’s Hudson Gives, an annual local fundraising initiative by the Hudson County Chamber of Commerce that’s meant to unite the Hudson County community and raise much needed funds for a number of local nonprofits.
SJSB is one of the many nonprofit organizations who are taking a hit from the federal government’s funding cuts on education and grants.
The Hudson Gives campaign kicks off on May 1 until May 16, but the most crucial date will be May 8, which is when a donor’s generosity could be even more impactful. On this day, donations made between midnight and 11:59 p.m. will be counted towards special prize incentives for that specific nonprofit.
SJSB is the only school for persons who are blind in New Jersey. And while tuition and fees cover the majority of the school’s total operating cost—that’s just it—the programs, specialized rooms and resources are made possible by generous donors including their newest sensory theater that encourages students to use senses like touch, hearing and smell.
‘Learning To Be All We Can Be’
Online, St. Joseph’s School for the Blind highlights its three-acre campus that’s 75,000 square-feet with two floors and ADA-compliance all around. However, the real magic is inside their 761 Summit Avenue location.
Whether you drive to the school or get off the No. 87 or No. 119 bus, you step into the humble abode of SJSB; a sanctuary for the students and its staff who work behind the scenes to make everything possible.
The sliding doors welcome you into a spacious first floor, sprinkled with art from students and inspirational boards to serve as daily mantras. You’ll encounter students here-and-there who are transitioning from classrooms or on a stroll with a teacher, usually laughing or smiling in reaction to their conversations. But as you look closer, you’ll notice the wide hallways that grant students the gift of space, especially those with special equipment, and optimized walls to assist students with visual impairments.
These are the hallways that Centeno graciously roamed for almost her whole life.
In a 2024 interview with Good Morning America, Centeno admitted that growing up, she never wanted to use her cane—which is a mobility aid for persons who are visually impaired—but now, she proudly uses it to roam within the school and beyond, transforming it into a symbol of independence.
And her cane is what helped guide her into her teacher’s classrooms, like art teacher Athena Toledo and transition coordinator Diana Lao.
In art class, Centeno has created sculptures and other different shapes, which she loves working with because she can physically feel them. She explained that other mediums like painting or drawing are fun, but you can only feel the motion you’re painting or drawing and you can’t feel the shape of it. According to Toledo, this is her intentional teaching approach, which is through art therapy, sensory-based art and tactile art activities.
Just a few classrooms down is where Centeno meets Lao, who helps students enhance their abilities to transition from St. Joseph’s to college and then thrive in employment and their everyday lives.
“I got the opportunity to learn how to make a resume because people would always mention, ‘Oh, when you go to work, you need a resume.’ And I’m like, ‘What in the world is a resume?’ Centeno laughed.
“Like, why is that so important in your life? But thanks to [Lao], I know now that I really need a resume so that whenever I apply for a job, I can utilize that.”
One Donation = Enabling Lifelong Learning
Standing behind the eager and enthusiastic students of St. Joseph’s School for the Blind are none other than the teachers and staff.
Lao has been with SJSB for 20 years. She started off as a teacher aid, then teacher and now, for the last three years, the transition coordinator.
“I really do enjoy working with our students, building their confidence [and] their independence has just always been my goal and that’s why during COVID I just wanted to go back to school and see what else I can do to help our students. And the last three years I’ve been building the transition program and our students have been evolving and just learning life outside St. Joe’s… our students are out in the community and just exploring the world.”
Walking into her classroom is like a peek into the outside world that awaits each student. From ages 14 to 21, students can get experience running a store through the school store in the classroom, which sells snacks, fruits and drinks, all available for purchase. There’s also a kitchen and storage unit where students can pick up on other life skills.
But even further than that, students have attended Hudson County Community College through their Adult Transition Access Program and have also gotten part-time jobs in places like a daycare.
As Slice of Culture spoke with Lao in just a small corner of her spacious, impactful room, behind her was a plethora of St. Joseph’s clothing from t-shirts to hats and even more professional attire and watches. Lao said the $5,000 donation—from a pharmaceutical company—has brought a smile to the students’ faces, being able to represent their school and also teach them the responsibility of borrowing clothes and organizing the rack.
Lao highlighted how crucial donations, especially during Hudson Gives, are to the students’ education and experiences.
“A lot of the fundraising is contributed to our students’ education, including all of the equipment that’s needed to get them going throughout the day so that includes the assisted technology, the sensory room, a physical therapy room… uniforms like this [and more]. So [donations] really helps our students grow in their program,” she said.
Down the hall in Toledo’s classroom, you enter a world of the students’ imagination. Thanks to her background in art therapy and working in a nursing home with Peace Ministries, Toledo curated her room into an inclusive, expressive space.
“Art is for everyone” is hung on a door inside the classroom as you’re surrounded by different artworks from different students of all kinds of ages, including Centeno’s. Toledo echoes the quote through her teachings which implements materials that are adapted to serve her students more appropriately like clay—which is Centeno’s favorite—, wikki sticks, paint and fruity-smelling bingo dotters, to name a few.
With Hudson Gives coming May 1 to May 16, Toledo emphasized that donation could give so many more opportunities for the students.
“With Hudson Gives, it definitely could provide more opportunities for the students to go out into the community and to experience art in a different landscape. Maybe to do some museum trips throughout the year or to go to public facing art events that happen throughout the city and then also to acquire adaptive equipment for displaying work, [like] auditory buttons where you can press a button [and] it can read what’s on the bulletin board in different places throughout the school,” she said.
“[Donations during] Hudson Gives could certainly help bring more adaptive equipment into the lives of our students.”
And it’s not just young students, but adults and seniors too. Through SJSB’s adult services, individuals over 21 years old can learn and practice life skills with real-life community experiences and activities.
At the end of the day, both Lao and Toledo agreed that donations would go a long way for the SJSB community, which Toledo said, “with the staff and the students, the kind of culture that they set here, makes it a very special place. It makes it like a home.”
And as Centeno is set to graduate from St. Joseph’s and move onto the next chapter of her life, she left some words for her home at SJSB.
“I’m really gonna miss being here. I promise to stay in touch with everybody and everyone here is amazing. Thanks to my friends and teachers, I’ve built my confidence and thanks to them I am who I am today and I just love everyone.”
Anyone can donate any amount to St. Joseph’s School for the Blind for Hudson Gives. For more information on the school or Hudson Gives, you can visit here.
