Laurie McBride, DeafBlind Employment Specialist (DBES) with Helen Keller National Center (HKNC) for Iowa and Minnesota. Services provided fall under Job Development such as online job searching skills, job interviews, solving transportation challenges and education of reasonable accommodations to employers. Provides information and resources to family members, employers, and local vocational rehabilitation counselors. Originally from Ontario, Canada, Laurie worked in Iowa as a Graphic Designer for 20 years. Since 2015, has been a trainer with HKNC for the iCanConnect Program providing consumers training in telecommunications equipment, while attending college and university to obtain her bachelor’s degree in Human Service. Laurie has adapted to different workplace environments with her hearing loss, and now with combined hearing and vision loss. Her personal experience as a DeafBlind person is a helpful tool in her DBES position to show consumers and potential employers that people with vision and hearing loss can live AND WORK in their community. Self-advocacy has been an important tool in finding her own jobs and adapting her career path. Using these personal assets to assist other DeafBlind consumers in finding and retaining employment will result in the right fit for both employee and employer.