Meet Monique and Manuele, two instructors who have been teaching at Braille Institute for more than 15 years. Monique teaches students braille reading & writing, and hosts a book club while Manuele teach classes like sensory awareness and rights & resources. What makes them unique is they are a married couple. “We take the bus to and from work together, we each lunch together and we even exchange ideas about work,” said Manuele. It was Monique who told us “I first started out as a student at Braille Institute, and then began volunteering and later got hired to teach braille as an instructor. I then suggested to Manuele that he apply for a job and a year later, we we’re both working at Braille Institute together.”
They have been married for nearly 30 years! Monique shared that they first met in Israel where they both were studying. “We were introduced by a common friend, and I admit that I don’t really remember much about Manuele at that first get together,” she said laughing. Luckily, it was Manuele who decided about a month later to ask her out. Monique told us he was 30 minutes late for their first date. Luckily, she didn’t hold that against him and the rest is history! People actually refer to them as the M&Ms which is sweet just like the candy we all love.
Thank you for sharing your story and letting us spotlight the specialness of our staff. In celebration of Valentine’s Day, please share how you met your special someone. braillesocial@brailleinstitute.org
