It all started with inspiration.

“A kid down the street who was deaf amazed me with what she could do,” said Dover native Debi Trout.

That’s what led her to a master’s degree with 32 years of teaching special education students in Kingfisher County.

Debi now has 18 years of working with children-senior adults at the state Department of Rehabilitation Services for the blind and visually impaired.

She is scheduled to speak in Hennessey at 10 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 2, at the Senior Citizen Center, 620 E. 2nd St.

Those programs are to help “the older population who want to maintain their lifestyle while in their own homes,” according to the Golden Eagles who are having an open-to-public September meeting.

About Debi’s Job

Debi currently has about 50 clients she is helping in a 22-county area. That includes helping a blind college student to navigate taking a bus to class and assisting adults and seniors so they may continue to live in their own homes.

“My job is to teach skills that will improve independence and daily living,” she said. “These skills usually include using local transportation, walking to areas of need, interest, or just getting the mail.”

Her job also includes being an “advocate for accessible pathways” for clients.

Those services are provided with “your tax dollars,” she said.

She will also demonstrate some of the items to help with mobility issues as well as hearing devices, including smoke detector alarms, and encouraged those who want to know more about them to attend the Tuesday morning meeting.

A good contact number for those in this area who want help with mobility, vision and hearing issues is 580-548-3667.

More About Debi

Debi has served as a board member/officer for Special Library Services (Friends of the Library), My Limitless Vision and the Oklahoma Association for the Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impaired.

She was an adjunct professor of Orientation and Mobility for Langston University graduate school for eight years.

She was honored with the Director’s Award for planning and implementing transition VIBE and the Bob Utley Servant Leadership Award.

She’s Chod’s Daughter…and Chod’s Mom Golden Eagle President Shirley Koons (a Kelly cousin) told members at their August meeting that Debi’s father was Charles 'Chod' Kelly, who was the county sheriff from 1959-63 and died while in office.

Chod’s grandson - and Debi’s son - is Charles “Chod” Trout, who recently retired from the Kingfisher Police Department and runs a pair of businesses in that community.